Eden!
And here I thought I lived in Indianapolis... you'd never know! These photos are all from my yard. And yes, we do live in a neighborhood with lots of houses, we just happen to have a pretty secluded lot, with a camp behind us, a stream separating us from neighbors on the one side, the garage next to the neighbors on the other side, and the neighbors across the street with a wide lot, and their house on the far edge of it. Of course, close-ups and care with the angles helps too!
From top left, spiraling in...
apple blossoms (granny smith!);
crabapple (outside our front window);
children's haven -- log cabin playhouse nestled in the trees;
violets;
a row of peas; more
violets;
yarrow; our
stream framed by a willow;
weeds (I don't know what type they are, but I like 'em!);
cherry blossoms (sour cherries -- perfect for pie!);
hyacinthOur raspberries aren't flowering yet, and the lilacs are still tight buds; the redbud, which you can barely see behind the playhouse was just too far away for my little digital camera to capture well; and I totally forgot about the sweetgum (which is full of yellow-green flowers right now); and the wild strawberries won't be out for another few weeks... You can probably tell that I love the woods, wildflowers and fruit trees. Our neighbors no doubt drive by shaking their heads -- those crazy Muslims, don't know how to take care of a yard -- when it should be -- those crazy tree-huggers letting everything go wild!
I just wish I knew how to record the birds that are singing outside my window and add them to this page.
Every time I drive through our neighborhood, it makes me sad to see all the carefully manicured lawns -- chemically green and dandelion free. How can anyone justify poisoning the soil, the ground water, the animals that live in and around our homes -- just to have a "pristine" yard? And how ironic -- since a pristine yard would actually look an awful lot like mine, while all the "perfect" lawns are heavily adulterated.