Secret Garden

One of the things I love most about the house we live in is the backyard. What used to be a mix of dead lawn and dusty cactuses is now a secret (and practical) garden.

The yard is sectioned into three different areas: the lawn (where Cocoa does his thing), the gravel path and fountain (doesn’t it look like a giant cat litter box?), and the succulent garden (the actual “garden” part of the yard).

The other morning, before the Valley summer heat set in, I did a little frolicking in the succulent section of the yard.

The morning dew, combined with the fresh, bright colors, transported me to a different world...

Into a wondrous, secret garden.

Being out in the garden makes me wish I was one-twentieth of my normal size.

I could lie on this soft bed of groundcover.

And climb the lush, bushy shrubs.

I could forage for wild vegetables and berries.

And splash my face with the morning’s dew.

I love that a bunch of succulents and groundcover can awaken my adventurous spirit.

And I encourage you to do the same! Go out and enjoy the little things in life.

Or, alternatively, redo your backyard with a bunch of low water plants. That’s the real reason for this fabulous section of the yard: a lawn’s too expensive.

What's Wrong with This Picture?

Answer: One of those bottles hasn't been opened yet!

Dear Steve T,

Thank you for introducing me to what is now my new favorite champagne. You have good taste my friend. Now I just have to figure out how Laurent-Perrier fits into my budget. But that's my problem, not yours.

Thanks again,

Jocelyn

A Serious Case of the Snuggles

One of my favorite weekend activities is snuggling. It also happens on the weeknights, but the weekend is where we do some serious, down-to-business, no nonsense snuggling. We lay down at night knowing we won’t have to get up early the next morning and we lounge in bed until we are good and ready to get up. I’m a lucky lady to have a man that takes his snuggling seriously (probably more seriously than I do), but living with a professional snuggler has its disadvantages. I imagine it’s like living with a professional football player. Your whole life becomes about football; it revolves around it.

“Sorry honey. We can’t go out tonight. I’ve got a game later.”
Or in my case, “Are you sure you want to go out? We could get into our sweats and snuggle. Doesn’t snuggling sound better than driving 30 minutes to hang out in a noisy bar? We could rent a movie to go with our snuggle. What do you think?”

In most cases I would concur, because I’m a homebody who fully realizes that I can have a WHOLE BOTTLE of wine for the same price as what a GLASS of wine would cost in a bar. Oh, and yes, I do like to stay home and snuggle. But some nights are meant for taking a walk on the wild side and staying out PAST 8:30pm. And on Saturday night we did just that.

“Woohoo! Are you excited to be going out Lovies?”

“Ah, come on. We never go out. I’m excited!”

 
(30 minutes later)

“Wow, it’s so pretty at night. We never get to see Downtown at night!”

“Ooo, look at all the buildings.”

We arrive at our destination, but it's not long before the novelty begins to wear off.

(30 minutes later)

“Wow, it’s so noisy and dark in here. Guess this is what it’s like to “go out” on a Saturday night.”
“Ya, don’t you wish we were back at home in the warm house all snuggled up?”
“Geez, alright. Just a little bit longer since we came all this way. How about we stop at the taco truck on the way out and I get you some tacos for the ride home?”
“Ok, and THEN we’ll go home and snuggle.”