{Retaining Wall got CURVE}

As promised, here the finished look!

The official inauguration of the added CURVE to our Retaining Wall!
Speckie walking to the CURVE and Tiggy-Tiger already sitting on it.
Our cat-girls LOVE the new addition, which Pieter built down in steps.

Can you see the markings where the huge Indian Hawthorn and the 25 year old Rosemary have been growing? They covered quite a section of our driveway!
Now it's free again and we both love the new look.

At the end, Pieter placed four solar powered LED lights.
We had some rainy days in-between and the wall might need another coating of Benjamin Moore Golden Mist but for the time being we're fine with it!

Tiggy Tiger showing you the entire wall, while Spicy, just disappears over the wall...
We love the huge Magnolia Grandiflora 'Namnetensis Flore Pleno' being solitair now.

Tiggy-Tiger and her brother Spooky...
Do you like this new addition, done by a lay-person who is not a mason?

Related links:
{Extending Retainer Wall & Lawn} | previous post by me
{Digging up Huge Indian Hawthorn and More...} | previous post by me

{Extending Retainer Wall & Lawn}

In my previous post I already gave you an indication about the changes that husband Pieter was going to make.
At the end of that post, where Pieter dug up the Huge Indian Hawthorn and More, I promised to show you how it looks now.
First of all, here you see a clear view of the Magnolia Grandiflora 'Namnetensis Flore Pleno' being freed up!

On October 7, at 7:00 AM a truck delivered the concrete blocks that Pieter would need for extending the retainer wall.
Here you see very clearly the dirty part on the driveway, to the right of husband Pieter, where the Indian Hawthorn and the old Rosemary had been.
We regained quite a bit from our driveway; about one meter or over one yard!

Pieter also had dug up all the rattlesnake weeds and planned on extending the lawn.
So a big truck did deliver 2 mᵌ of topsoil on October 16.

That huge truck had problems backing up on the driveway but never mind, Pieter managed to scoop up all the topsoil.

This is where it got filled in... Behind the retainer wall, for extending the lawn.

Almost done and next grass seed was sown.

October 31, already grass has grown here! Some bare spots where we removed the big Black Gum tree on November 5, 2014.
It takes years for patching up such spots but with patience that will happen!
Do you like this extension of our lawn?
Next I will show you the finished retainer wall extension.

Related link:
{Digging up Huge Indian Hawthorn and More...} | previous post by me
{Black Gum Nyssa Sylvatica Cut Down} | previous post by me

{SWEET Gifts from Celia at High Heeled Life}

SWEET Gifts from dear Celia M. High Heeled Life & Resilientista, a Blogger Friend I very much admire!

We did have brunch with her and with Susan from Ava Grace's Closet, while visiting Toronto, Canada in June.

Look what sweet Celia sent us home with:

Pure Maple Syrup; Orangic Wildflower Honey from her lovely state of Ontario, Canada.

Also 8 Syrup Wafers... So sorry that my husband Pieter had eaten some of them before I even could take this photo!

We ALWAYS do use Pure Maple Syrup with our waffles and/or pancakes.

That's what I did again today, see photos below...

The remainder of those 8 delicious Syrup Wafers.

YES, I got to taste one; when it comes to sweets, husband Pieter will win!

Such delicious Pure Organic Ontario Wildflower honey!

Guess when my husband will ever reincarnate, he will be a 'Honey Bear'

Yes, I baked plenty of Multigrain Waffles, using the Multigrain Mix for Pancakes from Trader Joe's  

We got fresh raspberries and blue berries from Costco in Jacksonville, FL.

Yummy looking out on our balcony in the sunshine!

Generously drizzled with delicious Maple Syrup...

Still lots of Waffle Hearts left over for indulging many more times in Celia's Pure Maple Syrup and fond memories!
Freezing them and reheating in the Toaster...

THANK you ever so much SWEET Celia for so many SWEET Gifts that keep on giving!!!

Please do visit this very special lady as only yesterday she went through the very tragic anniversary of her accident in 2006.

Related links:
{Brunch in Toronto with Blogger Friends I Admire} | previous post by me
Meet Celia M. | How High Heeled Life came to be: About Sunday, October 29 in 2006...

Managing Change with Celia M. | YouTube video Excerpt from Celia M. Speaking at BIST (Brain Injury Society of Toronto) - Oct. 28, 2013   

  

{Digging up Huge Indian Hawthorn and More...}

Little shrubs can grow into HUGE monsters... and often, after some 15+ years we find out that they were planted in the wrong spot!

So we decided to dig up our Huge Indian Hawthorn or Rhaphiolepis umbellate.

In Dutch this is: Indiase meidoorn. 

In German: Weißdolden.

In my previous post (link you find below) you saw me with my short hair standing in front of this HUGE Indian Hawthorn.

A nice evergreen shrub that blooms in the spring but it was growing inside our precious Fragrant Magnolia Grandiflora 'Namnetensis Flore Pleno', again you can find the link below.

On a damp and cloudy day, husband Pieter started the mega-task. 

Together with also digging up the azaleas and prostrate gardenias that succumbed to the rattlesnake weeds, growing behind this retainer wall.

Spooky boy was always at his side!

Here you can see the Magnolia branches inside the HUGE shrub... They had to be rescued!

Even the drain pipe from the previous water project had to come out....

Supervisor Spooky is right there.

A pile of dug up underground stems from rattlesnake weed with its tubers is to the left and front.

Branches from the Indian Hawthorn in the back.

This is the pesky weed!
Called here in the south rattlesnake weed or Florida betony (Stachys floridana) just click the hyperlinks.
Also seen in the above picture are the other nasty weeds with taproot we got everywhere, the Chamberbitter (Phyllanthus urinaria)... 

Spooky is pondering about those pesky weeds...

Nasty looking all those rattlesnake weeds behind the retainer wall. 

All needed to be dug up and Pieter decided to sow grass seed instead and have the lawn extended.

There was a 3rd pesky weed involved too!

Smilax (Greenbrier) grew from the center of the Indian Hawthorn up into the Magnolia tree.

Spooky too was working hard to kill the pesky weeds.

Those underground stems and tubers from the rattlesnake weeds are shown behind him...

Such a loyal helper; every day he accompanied Pieter!

Pondering how it will look like in the future...

Right in the center of the Indian Hawthorn were these nasty tuberous roots from the Smilax (Greenbrier)!

No way to ever eradicate those, with that shrub sheltering them...

Their branches are also full of nasty thorns!

The Indian Hawthorn had a kind of orange wood and many stems, some thick and hard to cut and dig up.

Hard work!

Now you can see the cross tires that we together did place there 25 years ago!

The shrub also was covering up at least 3 feet of our driveway or 1 meter.

Spooky is seriously supervising!

Huge tuberous root came out from the Smilax (Greenbrier)

Will show you next how it looks now!

Gardens don't come about easy...

Related links:
{New Hair Style} | previous post by me showing you the Indian Hawthorn
{Our White Pansies & Indian Hawthorn} | previous post by me
{Our Fragrant Magnolia Grandiflora 'Namnetensis Flore Pleno'} | previous post by me
Florida Betony control of pests weeds info

{New Hair Style}

Well, here is my New Hair Style!

Quite a bit shorter...

Sunday, September 27... The day after we'd done another Etiquette Class for girls.

When we're outside, our felines always follow us!

Standing now in front of our HUGE Indian Hawthorn.

Husband Pieter standing in front of that HUGE Indian Hawthorn...

For a reason; as it is NO more.

Muscular Pieter did take it out and dug up its roots.

It was growing into the Magnolia Grandiflora Namnetensis Flore Pleno!

Friday, October 24 just before we left for the special Birthday party: 'Strawberry Fields Forever'

Our Magnolia Grandiflora 'Namnetensis Fore Pleno' is visible again.

Yes, cutting back on hair and on shrubs or trees often pays off!

Pieter is wearing a Burberry polo shirt and Alberto Tonal Stripe Five-Pocket jeans in black.
All of my outfits, including shoes are Escada. 

Related link:
{Contemplating Cutting my Hair...} | previous post by me
{Our Fragrant Magnolia Grandiflora 'Namnetensis Flore Pleno'} | previous post by me

{Strawberry Fields Forever}

On August 28, when we went on the sight seeing tour with OnBoard Tours in New York City, the very first stop was at Strawberry Fields in Central Park!

Beautiful black-and-white Mosaic was created by Italian craftsmen and given as a gift by the city of Naples.
Based on a Greco-Roman design, it bears the word of another of Lennon's songs: Imagine. 

It was a warm and sunny day as you can see from the shade.

Here husband Pieter walks to the left of the sign Strawberry Fields...

Both of us were so impressed with the sight, size and cleanliness of Central Park and would have loved to walk there and bike...

Very touching...

Yes John Lennon from The Beatles is being remembered in a beautiful area and his widow, Yoko Ono still lives across from Strawberry Fields in the Dakota apartment.

Our dear Dublin Friend Griffin Lovett turned 64 and instead of celebrating big at age 65; his kids organized a big party at age 64. 

Him being such a Beatle fan, this was perfect!

The Food Buffet was all done according to Beatle song titles...

Lots of work and very well chosen!

Strawberry Fields Forever!

Strawberry Fields Forever

'Strawberry Fields Forever' was originally intended to appear on the band's seminal Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, but was instead released the same year (1967) as a double-A side with Paul McCartney's 'Penny Lane'. Both songs are named after sites in Liverpool and are steeped in childhood and English nostalgia.

It was a lovely evening on Friday, October 24 and the ending of a perfectly sunny day with 29°C or 84°F
Here you see only a section of their back yard with pool and part of the back porch.
They live in a majestic Gone With the Wind style home where they easily can host a a large group of friends inside and outside.

It is pure bliss for living here in the South!
Also we treasure this long friendship of 32+ years...

Related links:

{Our Visit to September 11 Memorial in New York City} | previous post by me

{Friends' son, Ben Lovett, is Madrid International Film Festival Winner} | previous post by me

{Halloween Craze not Eco Friendly}

The POWER people of our World, only 1%, have turned the other 99% into Consumer Slaves. 

With all their propaganda via media commercials etc. they make people work harder and harder for things they don't need!

These Compliant Consumer Slaves are paying taxes to their governments, in the form of Sales Tax etc.

This is me, at Costco where they were/are pushing stacks of merchandise for Halloween...

Indeed, the West is being Controlled and Manipulated to BUY - BUY ever more!

The invention of so many seasonal things for which people are being brain washed to buy, is almost endless...

Halloween is one of them.

How much will end up in the landfill? Not very Eco Friendly!

Don't we think ahead anymore?

What kind of planet will be passed on to future generations... A scary thought!

This is the main reason, aside from the limited personal budget, that we never ever invest in anything like that mass produced 'STUFF'...

How about you?

Related link:
{My Old-Time Spun Glass Halloween Ornaments} | previous post by me showing our ONLY 5 ornaments for Halloween from durable materials