I went on a Jaunty shopping spree recently... and not a stitch of wardrobe-related stuff was purchased.  Who doesn't have a love of beautiful things? That love can extend to the world around you, including the very yard of the home you live in. Gardening isn't for everyone, and it's definitely subject to moods -- I didn't feel like doing much yard work last year when Indy was sick, we just wanted to enjoy time we had with her, so everything around us certainly suffered. But it's a new year, and I have a new outlook on life (with a new fuzzy friend), and that inevitably translates to a need to grow and blossom.

Gather ye flowers, while ye may... I remember when we first bought our house and the yard was a huge canvas full of possibilities. I wanted to fill it with every possible plant, and there have been as many failures as there have successes in terms of my Green Thumb. It's taken many years, and I don't always baby the yard with the attention it needs, but I'm thankful so many plants have accepted my Neglectful Gardening method and continue to flourish from year to year.

It's hard to get excited about things in stores when it's more inspiring to be outside. I admit to never being a huge fan of summer, what with the uncomfortable hot days and lugging the garden hose to water plants on long stretches of no rain. But I've become a convert to the Pacific Northwest summers -- it's about being chill and taking the time to appreciate the little things. I love that I don't have to travel far to visit a year-round favorite place that's especially stunning during summer -- the Willows Lodge hotel in Woodinville.

Happy Birthday to Me, Happy Birthday to Me, Happy Birthday dear Maggie-Pie... Happy ALMOST Birthday to Me. Let's just call it my Birthday Week, as it's not important what day I turn the dial on another year come and gone.  

It's that Jaunty time of year again where we make our weekly trip to the Saturday farmers market in Redmond, mostly as an excuse to take Miss Indy, the Jaunty Pup, out for a weekend stroll and see what's market-fresh. On a recent trip, this Bird splurged and picked up some very Fancy glasses by WileyWare, a local company that crafts some really lovely drinking glasses that hit all the right notes of unique beauty and woo-hoo! dishwasher safe. I picked up a couple that are destined to be a gift for a friend, who doesn't peek on this blog, so I feel fairly safe the surprise won't be spoiled. This Bird can't keep a secret to save her life, so I couldn't help but post a pictures of the pretty designs on the bottom of each glass.

Other Fancy finds included some much-needed sweet basil plants for the garden and some herbed gouda by local cheesemaker Samish Bay. So far, so good on the sweet basil plants -- the slugs and snails haven't yet had an Italian-flavored all-you-can-eat buffet on the new plants. Hoping for sunnier weather to get the plants going big and strong for summertime salads and a final harvest for pesto. As for the cheese, I've bought Samish Bay creations before, and while the herbed gouda was very pretty, I found this particular one on the bitter side -- much better to be enjoyed with something sweet, like slices of ripe pear or apple. Admittedly, we got a little bit of a bitter-cheese face. But I still think they make great cheese and recommend their soft cheese dips.

What about you, what are your favorite farmers market finds in your neighborhood?


Jaunty Fine Print: photos by Denise Sakaki

 

What? No pretty summer dresses and sparkly sandals?! This Bird's wardrobe has been relegated to gardening gloves and dirt-smudged workpants of late, digging around in soil beds and pulling the occasional weed. What can I say? It's quite the rage, dusting dirt from one's hair and tromping around in workboots through the mud. OK, maybe not so much, but it yields such pretty results in the garden. The last of the spring bulbs are in bloom and while they weren't in the Jaunty garden, I plucked handfuls of wild roses from Mother Nature's garden to collect the fragrant petals for making herbal tea. Sometimes finding the true Jaunty Life is walking one's own path and getting dirt under the nails now and then.

To share the Jardin J'adore, here are some thoughts to go along with summertime blooms:

Flowers are the sweetest things God ever made, and forgot to put a soul into
- Henry Beecher

Earth laughs in flowers
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

I'd rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck
- Emma Goldman

Bread feeds the body, indeed, but flowers feed also the soul
- The Koran

When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other
- Chinese Proverb


Jaunty Fine Print: photos by Denise Sakaki