Trees

If we continue at this rate of progress on our back yard, we'll be looking really good in about three years. We got trees this week.

Technically we bought our trees on Friday. It was a surprisingly good experience. We went to Cook's Nursery, and we worked with an awesome employee who really knew her stuff. It was so much better than the oodles of employees I've tried to talk to in garden departments at hardware and ginormous stores. Those employees are total nitwits. The folks at Cook's know what's what about plants. She really helped us get a good idea of what trees would work well in our soil and in our terraced back yard, and then she helped us choose the best specimens they had to offer. Most of their stock is 20% off right now since it's the fall, so that was a huge help for us since we bought seven trees.

The trees were delivered on Monday afternoon, and Eric planted them that evening. I took this picture yesterday morning, and I don't have a panoramic option, so I had to make do with using Paint (the photo editing tool of choice for people who are digital-image-inept. This explains not only the vast lighting differences, but also the uneven back fence.)

From left to right, the trees are:

• crabapple, named Krabapple (prounounced Kruh-bahpple, like the teacher from The Simpsons)
• choke cherry, named George
• hornbeam, named Horatio South
• hornbeam, named Horatio North
• Swedish aspen, named Björn
• Norwegian spruce, named Thorlief
• flowering plum, named Professor

Everyone names their trees, right?

Things I'm eagerly awaiting:

• In a few years those hornbeams will be nice and tall, which will block that horrible setting sun that beats down into my kitchen and dining area every evening.
• In a few more years that choke cherry will be big and beautiful and shady.
• Each spring we will have some beautiful blossoms. I can't remember which trees will have which colors, but it's going to be wonderful.
• Every fall that crabapple will have beautiful, bright, red berries. At first we were looking for a non-berry variant of the crabapple, but after seeing enough of the red berries on the trees at the nursery, I changed my tune, and we got a berry variety. We'll just make the children find and clean up the berries.

I'm not sure anyone has ever been quite as excited about trees.

Felix - Twelve Months

He's 1! Felix's favorite things are milk (not from Mom anymore), his brother, being held by Mom, exploring on all fours, wiggling, and bread. He is figuring out how to climb down from things like stairs, but he still hasn't mastered that. He loves to empty cabinets and shelves at any chance, and this month he has learned he can also put toys and other small items into buckets or boxes. He no longer takes a morning nap, but he's a fantastic nighttime sleeper. Felix doesn't say any words, except may "dog." I'm not quite sure about it, though. When he hears the bath water running he comes crawling as fast as he can to join in the fun. Ike has really grown to be a much more involved big brother in the last few months, and I love to hear him try to involve Felix in his activities. He is happy to have Felix follow him around laughing at his antics, and I love to hear the two of them together. I love this little guy. 

(But I sure hope he stops spitting up soon. Enough's enough, amiright?)