cleaning up the yard

Maybe working outdoors would be nicer if this guy helped us?

Do you garden?

Yes! But this has only started happening the last couple of years, so I'm kind of a beginner. - Steffy

I am trying to get into landscaping & gardening. It's definitely a learning process! We've redone the flowerbeds/shrubs on two sides of the house, and they look pretty good. The others are currently a losing battle! I'll get there - I'll just kill several plants in the process! - Ann 

I've gotten more adventurous with our "garden" every year.  We didn't have one before, then a few years ago, Tom's sister gave me a pot with some mums that I put on the porch, then a year or two after that, some coworkers gave me clippings from their gardens, and the butterfly bush was born!  I think that year (with all the new flowers) was when I started the process of setting up a border for the garden.  Most of the flowers from that year died, but the butterfly bush and several lilies survived.  I think last year, I finished the border on the long side of the porch, so I have a pretty, curved stone border surrounding the porch and house in the front.  And, THIS year, I spent a few days weeding the ground to an inch of its life inside the borders, spread some wood chip mulch and planted my first irises!  I've discovered recently that irises are my favorite flower.  They're just so vibrant and cheerful!  I also cut back the butterfly bush and planted wildflowers all along the house edge, mixed in with the irises.  I can't wait to see everything blooming. - Cristy I like to watch my husband garden, i don't like the hard, sweaty, buggy work of weeding. Last year he made a big deal about how it was sooo hard and hot and he layed down. I picked up the hoe and cleaned up the rest, with my gimpy leg. I like the idea of a garden producing all this great food, but i really have an ICK issue with picking up rotten stuff or dealing with bugs. - Teresa Do you clean up the yard yourself?

Yes, my husband does the mowing, but he's not really big on helping me, he does the "man stuff", like cutting limbs and stuff. - Steffy

I have to admit that I DETEST weeding, though.  So, I only do it once a year.  I know, lazy.  But, it's my garden, darn it!  At least this year I put mulch down to hinder all but the most determined weedy plants.  And, the stuff I planted is in front, so hopefully, once those wildflowers and irises start going crazy, you won't be able to see the weeds as much. :)  - Cristy We are lazy, we pay a service to mow weekly and to weed the flowerbeds. it's really nice having a nice looking yard and not having to worry about when I should do it or make the time for it. - Teresa What's your favorite and most hated outdoor "around the house chore" ?

I love to do stuff like cleaning up the beds, and making it look pretty. The results are instantaneous. But I hate raking... it takes forever. - Steffy

My favorite around the house chore would be anything dealing with fresh, clean soil.  I don't buy garden soil; I figure if a flower can't hack it in our natural soil, it's probably not going to survive anyway.  But, I love the point after I've weeded it and I'm arranging mulch and where I'm going to plant the flowers or seeds or bulbs.  When everything is clean and pristine, I love to just dig around in it and enjoy the potential of it all! - Cristy
I don't mind planting flowers, the result is really nice for a minimum of work. I hate doing dishes. I can fill up the dishwasher 20 times but i hate hand washing stuff. There's a roasting pan in the sink that's been dirty for at least 2 weeks if not more.  - Teresa

Spring has Sprung

Do you have spring rituals?

Yes, I dig out all my spring / summer clothes from the attic and put away all the winter clothes! During my spring break from work I switch everything out. It's so nice to see all the pretty stuff in my closet. -Steffy

I'm on the lookout every year for the "last" freeze because I know there will follow a few days with nice temps that I can spend cutting back my butterfly bush and planting any flowers.  We have drenching rainy seasons in the fall and late spring, and it does actually snow here, so watching for those few days that it's not going to rain, but won't be too hot to work outdoors is critical.  And, WV hasn't failed me yet!  Every year, I end up with 3-4 days that I spend happily tending my porch and garden area without it being too hot.
 
And then, very soon after those days, it starts getting really hot (at least for me), and Tom and I do the juggle the window A/C unit and turn off the furnace ritual.  The window unit's a pain in the rear and heavy, but at least we've learned from past mistakes and store it upstairs now! :)
 
I also really enjoy switching out my accessible shoe collection for the warmer season.  I have one of those over-the-door thingies for my shoes, and it fits just the right number for each season, give or take.  During the winter, I have boots and loafers, and at the beginning of spring, I get to put out all my flip flops and sandals.  I LOVE flip flops!  My favorite shoe.  I try to buy different colors every year.  Right now, it doesn't matter that they're all the rubber cheapy ones.  I just love the feel of bare feet. :)   - Cristy

My 'ritual' is to put up some colorful spring decorations and start to clean the flowerbeds. This year I have up my seasonal birdie and butterfly towels hanging on the oven and I bought a wreath with lavender and white flowers to hang on the door. I changed the seasonal garden flag outside to tulips & 'welcome spring'.
- Teresa

Do you look forward to spring or are you simply thankful that it's no longer winter and can't wait for summer?

Summer is my time off, so I'm always counting down the days to summer! -Steffy

 I love the spring because there is so much COLOR around here!  There are blossoming bushes and trees all around our neighborhood.  Gorgeous, delicate light pink and white ones and bright, bold yellow ones.  So beautiful.  And, we can see a ton of it just from our house or where we drive every day.  We have several bushes and trees that blossom one color during the spring, then turn green in summer, then bloom gorgeous, vivid colors in the fall.  All in one plant!  So amazing to watch.

I grew up in Texas where we had 2 seasons:  Summer and Christmas.  And, it doesn't normally "snow" in Texas.  You get iced out a few days a year and the rest of the time is blistering hot - above 100 in the areas I lived (West Texas, Austin, Houston, College Station & Dallas, though Dallas was a little milder), and depending on what side of the state you're on, you're either choking on the dust (west) or melting in the humidity (central and southeast).  Neither are fun.  And, forget green.  The only green in Texas is brought there from outta' state.  They get ONE bloom of color in Texas - bluebonnets - which last about
two weeks out of the year, then turn to yellow weeds.  Blech.  And, being a nature-lover, I LOVE to see blossoms and color, so moving to West Virginia and experiencing SEASONS has just been an incredible experience.  Really gorgeous! - Cristy

I'm always planning for summer because it's the best time of the year to do stuff. It doesn't feel like spring is here for very long, it's more of a quick transition to the hot days of summer.So from sometime in March until late April I'm looking for cycling events, concert calendars and festival dates. I LOVE Summer! - Teresa

Say Hi to Steffy, chainsaw massacre?

What is your name?
Stephanie Marie Manny, but most people call me Steffy.


What is your hometown?
 I live in Webster Groves, MO, which is a suburb of St. Louis. I've lived here my entire life. I've only lived in 2 zip codes, I've never lived more than 10 minutes from my childhood home!




What do you look for in a friend?
Someone who can make me laugh is the most important. Someone who I can trust, someone with common interests, someone who can put up with me.




What do you think is the best thing about kids today?
Oh boy... kids today. How smart they are. I look at the kids I work with and I don't remember having to be so ambitious at their age. They have full plates and they are go go go. I remember being LAZY in high school. But maybe that's a bad thing for them to be so busy at such a young age.




What book character do you relate to the most?
Oh, that's a hard question. My favorite book is Lord of the Flies by William Golding. Sometimes I feel like the main character, Ralph. Like I'm the one person who has to play the grown up all the time, and it's not fair, because I want to be a kid still sometimes too. But someone has to be responsible, you know? Poor Ralph.




What is the best thing about you?
I think I'm pretty creative. Not in the traditional artsy sense, like I'm no artist, but in a really practical sense that I can apply to my job. I come up with new ideas all the time.




Do you have a blog or website you'd like to plug?
LOL, not really. I'd like to say I would plug my husband's website, but I'm not really done with it yet, so I can't plug it. But when I'm done with it, I'll show it off.




What question that hasn't been asked here should I have asked you?
I don't know. Everyone always asks me about my job, so I'm kind of glad you DIDN'T ask me about that, even though I mentioned it anyway.

What's up with that picture?
LOL... it was before the school halloween dance. I was dressed as Jason and wore my Jason t-shirt.

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You keep mentioning your husband's website, now my interest in piqued and you need to finish it :) I think you have a fun job, except for when it's testing day for the clarinets.  --Teresa