Wedding time!

It's been awhile since my last blog entry, but Andrew and I will be married in just a few weeks, on May 16th, and finding time to blog hasn't been easy. I now realize just how much is involved in planning even a relatively simple wedding.
Choosing the venue was easy, but the menu less so, even though I can't remember a single meal I have ever eaten at a wedding, and I never expected to spend so much effort contemplating wedding food. In the end, we picked 3 simple entree choices. I would rather spend time picking out the wine, anyway.

The invitations have been sent, and RSVPs are coming back daily. Most of the big decisions, like the venue, caterer, flowers, and cake were made months ago. In fact, since it's been 6 months, I'm not sure I remember exactly what we ordered, except I recall 3 tiers, buttercream, various flavors of mousse, lots of peonies and green hydrangeas.

My dress was, surprisingly, one of the easiest decisions of all. Not bad for someone who's not much of a girly-girl, and who laughed out loud while trying on and tripping over the merengue-y gowns at the bridal shop. Ladylike in a fancy dress, I'm not. But, once I found The Dress....ahh, the dress!

The dress alterations are almost done. I had no idea it would take at least 3 visits to the alterations shop to get it all right, since the seamstress honed right in on the 3 issues with the dress at visit #1.
First, as with with every wedding dress I tried on, the bust area needed to be taken in. At least with this particular dress, unlike some of the gowns I tried, it was not an insulting amount, just a bit. (A couple of dresses I tried at the bridal shop, I could have put 2 grapefruits down the front, easily, and still had room).
Then there was the issue regarding the sash ties, which were insanely long, something like 8 feet long. I don't even think an Amazon in 4-inch heels could have worn this dress as-is with the sash that long, even with it tied in a big flouncy bow in back. So, the sash was #1 item on my list of things needing tweaking, because I'm not a big-bow-over-my-butt girl, either. But now the long sash problem has been expertly taken care of, too. The sash ties are the perfect length, and now drape very gracefully and simply straight down, just brushing the floor, sans bow entirely. Perfect! I am a happy sashed and bowless girl!
Finally, the bustle. I'd heard of them, even seen them, and never thought I'd ever have one, or need one, but apparently I will, and I do. And, I'm actually excited! Needless to say, every time I have gone back to the seamstress to try the dress on- yet again -during its stepwise transformation, I have gotten all teary-eyed, it's so beautiful, and I hardly recognized the person wearing it. I guess this is what weddings are all about, and why brides go to all this trouble.

So...where things stand: we have our venue, our officiant, our vows (well, almost), our photographer, music for the ceremony, and music for the reception. We have food, cake, flowers, beer, wine, and champagne. We have table linens, favors, and decorations. We have (we think) a way of arriving and leaving in style. We have family, friends, and, hopefully, some surprises.
And, we definitely have our rings!


Meanwhile, outside of wedding planning, life goes on. Some photos from the garden:


Meyer lemon blossoms. Is there anything better than the scent of citrus trees in bloom? I didn't notice the ladybug until after I uploaded this photo.


Aloe vera plant in bloom. Talk about a hummingbird magnet!


Madame Alfred Carriere, our newest rose, which now has dozens of buds and blooms after a good pruning. The pale pink blush is very evident in this photo. The fragrance is wonderful, too.



The tried-and-true Blush Noisette, with lots of flowers and new buds.

The Bane of My Existence and Another New Rose!

If the redbuds, dogwoods, and azaleas weren't enough to announce Spring's arrival, these little winged spawn of Hell would be:


Yes, it's carpenter bee season!
Carpenter bees are destructive pests that resemble fat, shiny bumblebees. The males can't sting, and the females rarely do. But, the females do chew perfectly round holes (without actually eating the wood) into and through wood in order to nest. For the past few years, I have waged my annual battle to prevent them from boring tunnels as big around as my thumb into the fascia boards around the roof of The Cottage. Or, at least some of the fascia boards. Carpenter bees seem to prefer some boards over others, and they also seem to like a southern exposure. Some of the boards they haven't touched at all. Not even an entomologist or exterminator can explain why. People will tell you that carpenter bees don't like painted wood. Don't believe it. They like it just fine.

The holes pictured are actually doorways leading to very long tunnels that extend far into the inside of the board. These bees are pure evil.


I have tried various non-toxic as well as toxic methods of eradicating them. I stapled strips of wire mesh window screening over the entire length of another of their favorite boards by the workshop door. That worked well, but it looks a bit unsightly in the more visible areas under the eaves.
I have also spent hours sitting out on the porch armed with a spray bottle of pesticide, with the nozzle set on the high-power, long-distance death setting, and picked them off one by one. Although very satisfying, that just took up a lot of my time, and didn't seem to make a big dent in their population.
Now, normally, I wouldn't kill a bee, since they are pollinators, they make honey, blah, blah, blah.
I make a very big and unapologetic exception in the case of carpenter bees, to which I say: Die, Carpenter Bees, DIE!!

My latest weapon of apian destruction is Delta Dust, a dry powder insecticide that is applied directly into their bore holes using a bellows sprayer. Puff, puff...die, die. Very simple, very effective.

Since it is early Spring, and I planted some new roses last year, I have been anxiously awaiting any signs of blooming from my newest rose, Madame Alfred Carriere. I planted Madame Alfred Carriere last Spring, out by the back deck, so that she could climb up on the pergola, if I ever finish building the pergola.
Madame Alfred Carriere is also a noisette rose, and a climber with buds that open palest pink after which the flowers fade to purest white. They are known for being repeat bloomers, and for being very fragrant.
My Madame grew exactly one tiny bud this Spring, and I watched the single bud grow in size until it just started to open. Then, I somehow missed it at its peak! But, I did get a couple of photos while the first flower was still in bloom on a very cool and windy day:

Since these photos were taken, I pruned the plant back a bit, and now there are several new buds coming out, along with a new flush of growth!