the yard - before we owned it

So here are two pictures of the house, prior to us buying it (these were the real estate photos that were used when the house was on the market).

So, the front....I want to rip out that ugly shrubbery right in front of the door.  Yuk on every level.  I have already re-shaped the holly bush/tree by the garage door, and now it looks like a tube with a flat top!  I would like to plant some annuals and perrenials, with lots of color.  So some daffodils, tulips in all sorts of colors, some lillies, and then some flowers that are full of color, but won't die as quickly or seasonally as the others.  I would like the front of the house to be very colorful and fun, but not all crazy looking.

The back.  Now, in theory this doesn't look too bad.  But I'm also not sure when it was taken, because there is now a butterfly bush right near that spikey looking thing, that is now WAY out of control (and getting cut back this weekend, insha Allah).  This is where I'd like some of the "natural screens" to go.  Stagger them along this side, and then at the back, so it is almost like a gate/doorway you must walk through to get into the yard.  I want to plant various colors of the clementis, so it will just be pretty and green and private!

Here's to happy planting!

*update*

Here is the right half of the backyard as of this summer (2011):

Before:

After:

Asalaamu alaikom world!!  (peace & blessings of God world!)

So, it's another beautiful day here in the Commonwealth of PA, and it is supposed to reach 80 degrees!!  Same for tomorrow, and insha Allah (God willing) I am able to get outside and do some yard work.  I guess I really have to plot and figure out what we want to do with the yard, then tackle it.  I am really looking forward to creating some "natural screens" with a metal trellis and some clementis (sp).  I think that will not only provide privacy, but it will create it in a natural way...not with an ugly fence.  Our next door neighbor Betty is very sweet, and I don't want to block her out in any way, because I wouldn't want to offend her. 

I did notice that a neighbor behind us has this little....looks like a tiny pond with a waterfall (mind you, these are townhomes, so it won't be huge).  The birds just LOVE it, and I see them flitting in and out of the water, almost like they are playing.  I've seen lots of cardinals over there (the red caught my eye, which is how I discovered their "pond"), and I am thinking of maybe looking into getting one of those for our yard.  Maybe not this year, but it's in the plans.

My DH wants to put more grass around, so we're going to have to maybe do that this weekend also.  I wish it wasn't Easter, because we have to go to my mom's for dinner on Sunday (we don't celebrate it), and it sort of throws a wrench in the works of the day.  I'd really like to get some serious yard work done, but we also have to move the beds up/downstairs.  We're moving the Queen down and the King up, because my father in law is coming soon, and he'll be staying in the master bedroom on the first floor.  So....if we can tackle that early, or maybe even do it Friday night, that would be just SOOO much better all the way around.  I think I might shoot for Friday night, and try and recruit Bruce!!

I will have to take pictures of the yard as it is coming along.  Sort of like a "before & after" kind of thing.

Wish me luck!  Insha Allah it all turns out beautifully!!

nothing new

I guess I want to really make an effort to write on here as often as possible, even though right now there isn't much going on.

I'm hoping for something(s) in MAJOR ways, but feel it's best to leave those cats in the bag for now. 

I have to go for my hearing/dizziness test this Friday, the latter part I am 100% not looking forward to.  They will blow hot and cold air into my ears to give me the sensation of the world moving (ie: the spins / dizziness) to try and see what's causing my BPPV (benign positional proximital vertigo....I hope I got that right).  I'll be wearing some goggles (wooo) to test how my eyes are reacting when my world is spinning.  I'm just hoping I don't throw up during the test, because the spins really make me nauseous.

That's all for now folks!

frustration

I know politics should not be discussed.  I know this.

And yet, I cannot seem to put a lid on it and just NOT TALK ABOUT THEM!!

May Allah help me, truly.

the pillow thief

There are a few reasons the cats don't sleep in the room at night.  First and foremost is the hair factor....Brahim is allergic and the hair sometimes makes that worse.  The constant up and down on the bed (get up, jump down, get up, jump down) is another reason.  Sometimes though, when Brahim stays in MD, I'll let them in.  Which brings me to the MAIN reason (in my book) why they aren't allowed in: pillow stealing.

Tyrone is good, and stays mainly next to my body, but never EVER near my head.  Sammy, that's a different story.  Sammy likes to lie beside my pillow, then when I'm asleep or almost asleep, he moves in.  First 1/4 of the pillow, then 1/2, and before you know it, I'm lucky to have a corner.

I caught him moving in this morning and yelled at him.  Not that he pays any attention to me, he just freezes, the s l o w l y moves in again. 

You'd think I'd learn.

turkey and brie....how I love thee

I think my all time favorite sandwich now is a smoked turkey with melted brie on wheat.  *sigh*  nothing better....

And some sellou (Moroccan sweet) for dessert, with some ice cold milk.

And for some reason, the dryer shrunk all my pants!!  who woulda thought??

ha, not funny

After reading some of the other blogs out there, I realize I need to step it up.

Mine are rather droll, and not too funny. 

I need to be wittier, or smarter, or something-er.

German airport issue

There is a news article about a passenger who fled when his laptop bag tested positive for explosives in Munich, Germany.  

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/01/20/germany.security.alert

How much do you want to bet that they release the video of this character within a few days?  Unless he's like the two Indian guys from the Northwest Flight, and then he will never have existed.

Lori & Kurt Haskell

I read about Lori & Kurt Haskell about a day or so after the Christmas Day thwarted attack on the Northwest airplane out of Denmark.  They indicated they saw an "older, well dressed Indian man, about middle aged" accompanying Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab at the Denmark airport (http://www.monroenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091227/NEWS01/712279987/-1/NEWS), and this Indian man told the woman at the boarding gate that Umar had no passport, was a refugee of Sudan and that "we do this all the time."  Fast forward to them landing, and ANOTHER Indian fellow, 30-ish, is spotted when bomb sniffing dogs make a "hit" on his carryon luggage.  He is taken away, brought out and handcuffed, then led away.  This is the "man in orange" mentioned in this (http://haskellfamily.blogspot.com/2010/01/latest-story-by-kurt-haskell.html) post by Kurt Haskell.

Now the powers that be are essentially saying Lori and Kurt "saw things" or were "mistaken" and they didn't really occur.

When will people wake up, and begin to wonder just WHO is pulling the strings?  The Gov't has "eyes in the sky" that can find a LICENSE PLATE, but can't stop a suspected terrorist, nor can they find any record of the older Indian man (won't release the tapes), but they can release a still image of the Newark fool who jumped a gate to kiss his girlfriend goodbye!?!  What is wrong with this picture??