Tuesday, May 7, 2024

Tuesday, May 7, 2024 -- Mattie died 762 weeks ago today.

Tonight's picture was taken in May of 2008. Mattie was six years old and that weekend we went for a walk on Roosevelt Island. One of Mattie's favorite spring time activities was finding, collecting, and bringing home tent moth caterpillars. We had a whole system of jars to nurture these creatures, which entailed giving them fresh oak leaves daily and cleaning out the debris they left begin for us each day. Mattie learned about the process of metamorphosis through these spring time experiments. Once the moths emerged from their cocoons we had releasing parties on our deck! An event Mattie always enjoyed. 

Quote of the day: We loved with a love that was more than love. ~ Edgar Allan Poe

My plumber came over this morning to evaluate our sump pump. He prepared me by text message how much it could cost if it needed to be replaced. Turns out there is an angel watching over my pump and the pump is fine. The issue is we had some sort of surge in the house that impacted the battery. He tested it and retested it today, ran water outside the house into the drain, and everything worked just fine. The battery is now plugged into it owns dedicated electrical outlet, and we will see if the problem arises again. But the pump also has a back up battery and it was the back up that was working, because the designated power supply was tripped. Bottom line was the sump pump has been working all along and it is now back on its usual power supply rather than the back up battery. One issue addressed for the day. I take all good news when it arises.

My mom has friends coming to visit us on Friday. They are staying with us for one night. That may not sound like a big deal, but it is! On any given day, I am dealing with a three ring circus and it is hard being a one woman show. Nonetheless, I do not want to be the one to deny my mom opportunities to socialize. So I have prepped the guest room, the guest room bathroom, and went grocery shopping this morning so I can begin prepping dinner for Friday on Thursday. 

I admit that I have moments of anxiety that come over me now. They are overwhelming bouts and the one thing I want to do when this happens  is to go outside and walk around. Fortunately there is something to always keep me busy in our front or back yards. 

I happen to love roses, and Peter planted these knock out roses last year. They are simply glorious this year. Last week, I planted all the flower pots for the summer season. 

Shortly after we moved in, Peter also planted iris bulbs. This is the first year, they have actually produced beautiful flowers. 

One of our heirloom roses. I love it because it is a Mattie Miracle color. 

Last week, I planted herbs. I love fresh herbs in the summer time. This year I have basil, parsley, dill, rosemary, oregano and mint! 

What I fell in love with regarding this house, was its property. I must have seen 60 houses, before picking this one. When I was looking at houses, I would share the links to each of the houses with my lifetime friend, Karen. One of the observations Karen made was all of the houses I had seen had NO planned backyards. No plantings, no gardens! She was 100% correct. 

Which is why when I came across this house, it jumped out at me immediately. The property had a planned garden and though we built upon it, the foundation of it was very well done. One of the beautiful parts of this property is it has something blooming throughout the spring and summer seasons. In the spring we have incredible azaleas and rhododendrons.  

One of the things we added to the property since we moved in are roses. This space is what I refer to as my rose garden. I can't tell you how fragrant it is! Soon I will have to get in there and start trimming and shaping things out, but my point is when I feel like I am overwhelmed and I am going to jump out of my skin, I turn to the gardens!

Meanwhile, our box turtles are back in the front yard! 

A baby turtle! Mattie would have loved this sighting. It is a hard reality knowing that he never got to live here and of course that I am now facing a future without both of my boys.