Amarilli, mia bella....by (Angela) Jean

Amarilli, mia bella,
Non credi, o del mio cor dolce desio,
D'esser tu l'amor mio?
Credilo pur: e se timor t'assale,
Dubitar non ti vale
Aprimi il petto e vedrai scritto in core:
Amarilli, Amarilli, Amarailli
è il mio amore.

Amaryllis, my lovely one,
do you not believe, o my heart's sweet desire,
That you are my love?
Believe it thus:  and if fear assails you,
Doubt not its truth.
Open my breast and see written on my heart:
Amaryllis, Amaryllis, Amaryllis,
Is my beloved. 

 

We've been working on a little science project here at Abelattanzedinio Homeschool.

Mimi, do you know what this is? 

A flower? Really? It doesn't look like a flower.

And this is the soil we're going to plant it in.

 

 

We added some warm water

....and waited....

we had fun choosing things that would float or sink

and of course

stirring

the mud

in went the bulbs

Ok, now what?

We measured and graphed the growth, daily.

one stem even grew 7cm in one day!

Ta Da!

 

 (if you find Cecilia's facial expressions distracting, just close your eyes and listen)

Remembering Nonna Erminia...by (Angela) Jean

At this time of year, the flower on most people's minds is the poppy. Not me. November makes me think of tulips.

On November 8, 1995, my Nonna Erminia walked the same 7km route across St.Thomas, from her house on Alma Street to the Holy Angels Cemetary on Sunset Drive, and back again. The same route she had walked every day of her life since my Nonno Roberto had died of leukemia in 1980. On her way back home, she stopped at the grocery store where they were having a clearance sale on tulip bulbs. She bought 150 bulbs and carried them back to her house. She spent the rest of the morning planting them in the back yard. She made her lunch, ate her lunch, washed the dishes and took out the garbage. The last thing she did was go down to the basement and begin to mop the floor. She had a massive heart attack, and from what the coroner told my Dad, 'she was probably dead before she hit the ground'.

Her sister-in-law, my great aunt Zia Lucia stopped by her house, probably within minutes of that tragic moment. She had come to share an espresso with my Nonna, just as she always did before she went to start the ovens at the family pizzeria on Talbot Street. She knocked at the door, heard Giorgio the poodle barking, but there was no answer at the door. She figured my Nonna must be out with my Dad or maybe my Zio Lino. She tied a bag of bones for the dog on the doorknob and left.

The next day, at the same time, she stopped by again for their daily espresso and when she saw that the bag of bones was still tied to the doorknob she knew something was terribly wrong. When she got to the restaurant she called my Zio and my Dad. They raced together to the house and found her there.

It was such a shock. My Nonna was the most 'alive' person you could ever meet. She never stopped. Ever. She made her own tomato sauce, she made her own wine, she tended to her garden all by herself. She shoveled her own snow. She cooked supper for 16 of us every single Saturday night, right up until the week she died. We continued having those dinners in her house on Saturday nights for months after she died, slowly cleaning out her house--smiling and shaking our heads at the 30 brand new bottles of shampoo under her bathroom vanity and the stacks and stacks of brand new towels, clearly bought 'on special'. She couldn't pass up a good deal, and when things were 'on special' she stocked up. She had a floor-to-ceiling closet that was completely full of pasta. No lie.

We buried my Nonna on November 11, in the pouring rain, right beside my Nonno. They were together again, at last.

Early every November, I plant more tulips and I think of my Nonna. Her influence in my life runs deep and wide, and I have a lot of her in me. I would say I look the most like her of all her grandkids, and I feel her around me often. She loved to cook for a crowd. She never wanted to miss a party. She hated it when people were late, especially for dinner! She loved the Price is Right and the Young and the Restless. She had mountains of energy, a generous spirit, and she loved her family more than anything. And just like her, I always, always make too much pasta.

Me and Nonna in 1994, right after my 3rd Year Recital

My cousins Roberta & Sylvia, Nonna, and baby me, in her garden- 1974

Nonna, it's been 16 years, but if I close my eyes I can see your face and hear your voice as if you were standing right in front of me. We all miss you very much. Here are the tulips I planted for you this year. And you would be proud, they were all 50% off!

October in my Garden....by (Angela) Jean

So far, it has been an October of extremes, here in Southern Ontario. Two weeks ago, the temperature dropped down to single digits and it took great will power (and extra socks and sweaters) to resist turning on the furnace. Last weekend was Thanksgiving, and we were blessed with a long weekend of glorious fall weather. In fact, it was so warm, that during our annual trip to the pumpkin farm, we almost suffered heat stroke in the corn maze.

This week we have returned to cold, wet and windy.
Despite the less than ideal conditions, I have spent considerable time in the garden, ripping out flower and vegetable beds, and doing general clean up.

look what happens to broccoli when you don't pick it

My brussels sprouts: too much brussel, not enough sprout.

I have washed all of my patio planters and furniture, and stored them, along with my hanging baskets, in the garage. Some baskets still looked quite lovely, despite the flowers being finished, so I left them up for now.

I felt badly about cleaning out the finished sunflowers.

The gold finches loved them so much, and we loved seeing the gold finches.

So this week, I bought a finch feeder with special finch food.

So far, no finches, but hopefully they will find it soon.
I have plans to put up some more bird feeders around the back yard, in hopes of luring some of these guys.

This one is from my parents' house and he likes to eat the peanuts that they leave out for Charlie the Chipmunk.

While the weather was pleasant, we had great fun playing in yard,

but the recent wind and rain have left our ash tree bare.

It was time to bag up the leaves for pick up.

It appears I may have missed a few.

The front step has been properly adorned for the season,

and there is much talk of Halloween around our house. Planning for pumpkin carving and costume making is underway, but consensus is never easily achieved around here. We still have a few weeks to think our ideas through.
As we go for our daily walks around the neighbourhood,

sometimes to the park, but often just along the paths,

I continue to be struck by the beauty of the foliage and grasses.

The growing season may be over, but some of the plant life is just starting to show off.

I hope you are enjoying your autumn and taking some time to marvel at the beauty all around.

Flora Abunda....by (Angela) Jean

I wrote a post a few weeks ago lamenting about the fact that this spring was significantly delayed. I am happy to report that eventually the flora did return to my little garden and I have the photos to prove it.

At long last the tulips and lilacs bloomed.

 

 

May 22

May 29

The buckthorn bush bloomed.

 My Clematis, that looked like this on May 7th,

now looks like this. Although it has climbed halfway up the lattice, it still has only one bloom.

June 18

I tried something new this year and attempted to grow Morning Glory from seed. This is what they looked like on May 7th.

This is what they look like now.

June 17

I haven't spotted any signs of blooms yet, and since I threw away the seed packet I have no idea what colour they will be. These are growing so quickly that I can see a noticeable difference each morning when I check on the garden before I leave for work.

I planted geraniums in my hanging baskets again this year. I just love them. Some years I have stuck with a uniform colour scheme for all the baskets (I have 7) but this year I decided to mix it up. Amelia and I went to the nursery together and she and I picked all the prettiest colours.

I added some white to each basket and I am pleased with the result. It gives a highlight effect which draws the eye from across the yard.
My Dad always tells me that I need to add Ivy Geraniums to my baskets so I decided to do just that this year.

I'm still not completely convinced I love them, but they are growing on me.
I bought this perennial purple salvia at the end of the season last year. It had finished blooming and was 80% off at the nursery so I couldn't pass it up. I have a soft spot for things on clearance at the nursery, especially if they look sad and unloved. I usually end up taking them home and finding a spot somewhere.

June 14

And I know I swore up and down last year that I would NOT have petunias in my garden this year, but this basket was a Mother's Day gift so what's a girl to do?

 And last but not least, my pretty, pretty peonies.

June 17

June 17

I am surrounded by flowers. All is right with the world.