Excuse the picture quality in this post. My camera batteries have pooped out and I'm using my cell phone to take pictures.
When we first moved up here it was quite an adjustment from moving from a suburban neighborhood to a more rural place. We went from a 1/4 acre, landscaped lot to five acres of trees and wildlife.
Any window you look out from here you see an ocean of trees. Oaks, pines, maples, cedars, cottonwoods to name a few.
Instead of a patio we have a big deck that goes around two sides of the house. When we first moved up here it was shaded with trees that were planted close by. One of them was a gorgeous dogwood tree.
The second year we lived here we had a wildfire that started from someone tossing a cigarette out their car window on the freeway about five miles away. It came to within a half mile of our house and they had closed the roads so I was home alone with the cat and the dog (which I locked in a bedroom in case we had to evacuate. I didn't want to have to search for them). I turned on all the sprinklers around the house and stood on the deck with the hose in my hand. There were firefighting planes flying low overhead dumping retardant.
I don't think I have ever felt so anxious in my life. Rick managed to get through the road blocks to get home but for a few hours there I felt like it might be touch and go and I'd have to round up the animals, the family photos and make my escape.
Afterwards we cut down all the trees that were close to the deck, creating a defensible space. We actually spared the dogwood even though it is right up against the deck but because it wasn't shaded by the other trees it suffered from sun burn and we eventually had to cut it down.
Well darned if it hasn't come back. Determined thing, isn't it? It is about shrub sized now and adds a nice spot of color in the sea of green that is our yard. The pink blossoms do fade to white after a while but right now they are a glowy pink.
I think Spring is trying to make a come-back. There is a bit of sunshine peeking out from behind the clouds.
I bought some plants and hopefully the rain will hold off so I can get them planted. I am sticking with my pastel color scheme. I just buy whatever pale pink, pale yellow, pale lavendar flowers I can find. It's like a treasure hunt around here because all the nurseries seem to want to stock are obnoxiously bright oranges, reds and purples.
Here they are, just waiting to be planted.
