A Hot Tub Next to a Waterfall

Did everyone have a nice Valentine's Day + President's Day weekend?

We don't usually do much to celebrate Valentine's Day, but this year we did go on a quick cabin getaway the previous weekend, and are going to see the Book of Mormon on tour this coming weekend, so we just pretended those plans counted for Valentine's Day. :)

And speaking of the quick getaway, I wanted to share some photos, because it was a pretty amazing little spot. Mainly because of the fact that it was a cabin built next to a small waterfall, which you could see from the hot tub (hence the title of this post).

Snow Day!

Ok, not really, considering I work from home and therefore have to work everyday no matter what the weather. BUT! Snow in Raleigh is still pretty exciting, since it doesn't happen very often.

Spotted

Taken out our front window:

This little guy was eating my hostas, but I'll forgive him because he is just so adorable!

 

Working With A Landscape Designer

Almost a month ago we had a great meeting with a landscape designer to put together a plan for our front yard. If you remember, our yard is in some serious need of help.

Taken in mid-March. Things are a little greener now that the leaves have filled in, but there still isn't much going on at the ground level.

So far it's been a really great experience, so I thought I'd share the process!

{Nature Photos} 3 Bucks!

Man, I love our yard!

While sitting at my desk yesterday, I spotted a beautiful juvenile buck out my office window. As he walked around the side of the house, I grabbed my camera and had the perfect vantage point out our bonus room windows, above our garage.

Look at the cute little horns!

 But he wasn't alone, and a moment later two other young bucks appeared next to him.

I've never seen this many male deer together before. The family that has been coming by a couple of times a week usually only has two bucks. I wonder if these are the same ones, or a whole different group. Either way, I appreciate them trimming our weeds, at least until we get around to landscaping our backyard!

Signs of Spring in Our New Neighborhood

Last week we had a huge pollen explosion around Raleigh. Every surface outside was covered with yellow dust, and people were sneezing left and right at the grocery store.

But it was all worth it. Seemingly overnight, leaves were popping out on branches and flowers and trees are blooming.

One of our favorite things about our new neighborhood (other than the fact that a lot of the houses are a lot nicer than ours, so we can fix ours up as much as we want and still not have to worry about going too far) is the lake, with picnic tables and benches next to it. There's actually a lot of little lakes in the Raleigh area, many nestled between housing developments, and we're happy to have this pretty lake, with blossoming trees next to it, to be able to visit once we finally move in.

So pretty and springy! Have you had a pollen explosion yet this year where you live? Any signs of spring yet in your neck of the woods?

I Don't Know What It Is About Our Back Patio...

....but for some reason animals really seem to love it!

Remember back in November when the friendly fox visited us?

And we've had deer, bunnies and turtles come by too.

And I'm constantly being distracted by more common animals, like squirrels, birds, and our cats running around. But today we had a new kind of friendly backyard visitor, an opossum!

(Sorry for the cell phone quality pics!)

I know not everyone thinks they're cute, but being the animal lover that I am, I'm always happy to see another backyard friend! And they remind me of growing up in Washington State, where we would see them all the time. I don't think I ever saw an opossum the whole time we lived in California.

The best part of all? I totally thought it was just my blue point Siamese cat when I first spotted it out of the corner of my eye! It cracks me up just thinking about how insulted Hailey would be, that I thought she was a scruffy opossum.

Here's hoping we have just as many, if not more animals in our new backyard after we move!

 

Butterfly Bush

I'm loving this bush in our backyard.

It was there when we moved in, and we've never watered it or done anything to maintain it.

But it gives such a pretty lavender pop of color in our backyard, and every morning when I look out the window while brushing my teeth, I see tons of butterflies on it.

Which now makes complete sense! I finally took the time to look up what kind of bush it is, and found out its common name is "Butterfly Bush."

Buddleia's literally explodes into a summer landscape with masses of 4" to 10" long cone-shaped flowers from July through September. Adding to the color are clouds of butterflies these flowers attract while open. (From here)

Do you have any flowers or bushes in your yard that attract butterflies?