Trellis vines, working out, and a good read aloud

Nothing fills in dead space on a house (or tree...or fence...or porch...or...) like trained vines. They tend to be inexpensive and they grow well in our temperate climate. We bought cheap wooden trellises at Sunny Farms a few years ago, bolted them to the house, and put in two varieties of clematis. I chose these over the evergreen types because they were fuller and had prettier leaves. The benefit of the evergreen varieties is that they (duh) stay green year-round. The honeysuckle did poorly the first year after planting it beneath the pussy-willow tree. But this year, it's not only healthy, it's jumped out and started growing a new plant right beside it. Yay!

Clematis (2 yrs. old, from Sunny Farms):


Wild, out of control clematis vine that needs some serious taming (2 yrs. old, from Sunny Farms):


Honeysuckle (a housewarming gift, 3 yrs. old)



And last but not least, last year my little guy picked out my mother's day gift (I decided when I was pregnant with him that I'd like to have a plant for mother's day every year, since it's inexpensive and easy for him to pick out - plus, I like them). I needed a 3rd vine, because the original one I had planted between the two clematis died (I don't even remember what it was). L. picked a "potato vine". It's just barely taking off this year, so I didn't take a picture of it. Next year, it should be well rooted and beautiful. Here's what it "should" look like:



I've yet to see a berry on the vine, but the little purple/yellow flower bunches have begun to bloom. Very pretty. I can't wait until it covers the whole trellis.

In other news, I have successfully completed workouts this week without external motivation. Not at all like me. My body hurts, and I hate it still. But, I must say that I am happy to have done it. I still have tomorrow before a rest day on Friday, but 3 good days makes me feel less guilty about the glass of wine I'm about to go and get.

Also, read a great childrens' book tonight: Good Boy, Fergus by David Shannon (who has been a household favorite for some time).



I laughed out loud several times and quite enjoyed all of the subtle humor based solely on skills of inference that most little ones don't yet have. Fun! And totally beats reading The Little Engine that Could for a 74th time.