When I was a little girl growing up in southern Mississippi, Garden Clubs were a big deal.  Now mind you me, I never attended one, nor did anyone in my family.  I truly had no reference to what went on behind the closed doors.  I did carefully observe my friends' moms, who actually went to Garden Club meetings.  From those observations, I surmised that you had to belong to the club, had to dress up in a pretty dress and heels, and have a bit of money or pull in the community.  The word "snooty" always popped up in my brain when I thought of Garden Club.
    I had no real frame of Garden Club reference.  My mom was an avid flower gardener with exceptional rose beds, zinnias, sweet peas, and more, but she wasn't in Garden Club.  Several brides even came to our house and begged for roses for their wedding bouquet and flower girl baskets!  Mama usually told them, "It's a deal, as long as my daughter gets to be the flower girl." (That would be me - perpetual flower girl to many a bride.)  Still, she wasn't in the local Garden Club.  I'm sure it didn't bother her, as she thought bridge clubs, Garden Clubs, and anything of the sort a waste of good time.
     So my imagination took hold and I mostly thought of Garden Clubs as a playground for rich white women in pouffy dresses and big hats.  There was no dirt under those Southern Belle fingernails for certain!
     Fast forward to a different country and continent - Uruguay in South America.  Imagine my surprise when a friend called and asked if I'd like to come to her next Garden Club meeting.  My first thought was - "Oh mylanta - I had no frilly dresses or big hats!"
     She assured me it would be casual, as we were going to tour a member's vegetable garden to learn some organic gardening tips and tricks.  "Be prepared to get muddy feet," she warned. 
     What?  Vegetable garden? Casual? Muddy feet?  I felt as if I'd fallen down the rabbit hole.  I decided to go - hey, it was a free lunch!  Knock me over with a feather - when I arrived, I encountered a bunch of women in baseball caps and hats that looked like fishermen needed them.  They wore jeans tucked into waterproof boots and sturdy jackets.  In other words, my kind of women friends!
​    And so began my Garden Club experiences.  Our club was called The Giving Tree and we took up a collection at each meeting to fund an elementary school garden, a local village garden, and other worthwhile projects.  We romped through muddy fields looking for an elusive wild orchid, trod carefully around newly planted vegetable gardens, shared seeds, plants, and love of the Earth.
     I did get to wear something pretty once in a blue moon when we would go to a restaurant for lunch afterwards, but all in all it couldn't have been more different than my misconceptions gathered over the years.
     And as for the U.S. - my perception of Garden Clubs was sorely lacking, especially in today's world.  Garden Clubs in the South have fundraisers to sponsor scholarships, establish vegetable gardens in schools and communities, and generally take on beautification of streets and parks in their communities.  
​     Who knew?

     Winter gardens rock!  When I was teaching, fall was one of the busiest times of the year for me.  There was absolutely no time for tending to a garden.  I tried it one year and it went sadly neglected.  Had I only known that winter and fall gardens are the easiest to tend!  I would have had broccoli and kale, swiss chard and pumpkins every single year.
     Fall and winter in Uruguay have some rain and cooler temps, so there's not much watering involved.  The first year we planted in the fall, I expected to have to go to the garden every single day and pull weeds, water, pick bugs off the plants, etc.  NOPE!  Fall and winter gardens are suspiciously pest-free. The cooler temps and less intense sun mean not as much watering and not as many weeds. Whoo hoo!!

   Ugh!!!  BUGS!  I don't mind a spider, after all I've read Charlotte's Web a zillion times to my third grade students and cried every single time that Charlotte died. (Sorry - no spoiler alert!)  However, I draw the line at some destructive garden bugs - like these aptly named leafy-footed stinkers.  They have a gelatinous glow as orange and black babies, then grow into an evil looking monster.  
   Yes - monster.  I'm not mean-spirited, but these insects are like vampires to your tomatoes.  They suck the life right out of a tomato and you don't even know it until you cut the tomato open.  Yuck!  I'm not sure why they're called "stinkers" as I've killed my fair share and never smelled a thing.
   The only way I've found to murder them is to spray vinegar on them and their nests.  Eventually they die.  However, they do lay eggs in the soil and will come back the next year if you don't treat the soil while it's resting (i.e. no plants or the vinegar will kill them).
   Next time you want to give someone a nightmare, show them these photos...then run!

   Our new raised garden beds are fantastic!  I highly recommend the extra effort and expense.  We have tomatoes of all sorts, cucumbers, squash, arugula (blossoms in 1st pic), spinach, basil, carrots, and onions.  Every day is a garden adventure and not a chore at all; look at that view!
   Sam, our red Border Collie, and Benny, our only male cat, love to garden with me.  They keep me good company and hopefully chase away any slithery critters that may be lurking.

   Well this is a different kind of Christmas post!  It's summertime in Uruguay and the bees are buzzing, the flowers are blooming, and the birds are chirping their little bird brains off.
I'm still not used to a summertime Christmas, but it's hard to not be jolly in the beautiful sunny weather.  (even without the holly)
   I've been out and about with my camera lately.  There are so many images to capture.  I've complied my favorites for a Christmas delight.  There's no better way to feel love than to be out and about in nature.

   I had never seen an agapanthus bloom until we came to Uruguay.  I know they exist in the U.S., but I was an agapanthus virgin!  And thus originated my addiction... 
  They really are a no-brainer plant.  In a temperate climate, even with a handful of freezing temps every winter, they stay green and flourish as a plant year-round.  Come late spring, they burst into bloom.   The first year, I made several trips to the nursery and requested ONLY blue ones.  Well, that didn't work, but I love the white ones too.  I get so excited in December when they begin to bloom.  
   You can divide them in the early spring and they will replicate.  Good plants to give to friends!  Did I mention the bees and the hummingbirds are addicted to them, as well? 

   The U.S.A. was calling me to come home!  It was time for a trip to visit family and friends.  It's hard to visit everyone; they're all spread out in 3 different states.   On this trip I concentrated on a visit with childhood friends in Florida and a visit to family in Arkansas.  The rest will sadly have to wait until the next trip.   (Update - little did I know that would not happen for awhile with the outbreak of COVID-19.)
    I will have to say that the trip from Montevideo, Uruguay to Miami, Florida was the absolute worst.  The flight was fine; it left on time from Montevideo.  I sat with a group of 20 urologists all traveling to Miami for a medical convention.  They were a fun bunch and a delight.  Uruguay being small, of course my seat mate knew a mutual friend!  
   The problems started as we landed in Miami.  You must pick up luggage before going through Customs.  We were sent to an area with NO bathrooms, no seating, and no access to water or food.  And there we stood for 2 and 1/2 hours waiting.  I was hotter than a firecracker and needed to pee like a racehorse!  We then formed a very long line of tired, angry travelers, all of whom missed flight connections.  URrrgh!!!
   I'd love to say the rest of the trip went smoothly.  It didn't, with typical Florida thunderstorms, heat, and mosquitoes.  I did, however, love seeing my two best childhood friends and their husbands on Longboat Key.  I got up early every morning and watched the birds and fishermen on the beach.
   Getting to Little Rock was a breeze in comparison and I absolutely adored seeing our son, daughter, and granddaughter.  I love them all so very much.  They were the best hosts, ever!!!  We went out to eat all my favorite foods, we played board games, I read stories to my granddaughter, and we even had a pedicure!
    Visits are a reverse culture shock.  Everything in the U.S. is so busy and loud!  I hear English everywhere!  Gotta love these trips.
   Update:  I am beyond grateful to the Universe that I chose to see my childhood friends on this trip.  One of them passed away suddenly in 2022.  I'm so blessed that he and I had this time together in Florida.  We sat on the beach every morning drinking our coffee and chatting.  He was a dear friend for over 50 years and always there for me no matter what.  I will miss him terribly.  As destiny would have it, his grandson is staying in Uruguay this year (2022) on a college Study Abroad program!

     We went to a restaurant at the port in Punta del Este for my friend's birthday lunch.  After lunch we walked down to where the fishing boats dock (right near large yachts) and unload their daily catch.  You can buy the BEST seafood there and man, is it fresh!
     Sea lions are all around that area of the port, begging for snacks from the fishing boats.  The world's largest colony of sea lions is right off the coast at Isla Los Lobos - home to over 200,000 sea lions.  Appaarently, some of them swim up to the port for entertainment and snacks!
     If you go to Isla Los Lobos, you can swim with the sea lions, which is reportedly an interesting experience.  Unlike swimming with graceful dolphins, sea lions are chubby and blubbery, very loud, and nibble on your toes.  I think I'll stick with watching them from a boat or the docks of the  port.  They were very cute, if a bit rambunctious begging for food.
   One of the larger sea lions (600 pounds) is named Roberto.  He's semi-famous for coming around every day, then coming on land.  He once perched on top of a convertible in a nearby parking lot and had to be bribed with a snack to get off!! 
You can watch a video of Roberto on top of the convertible on Youtube.
And here's a link for more about ROBERTO ON THE ANIMAL CHANNEL. 

     Gracie and I are at it again - practicing our birdwatcher photography!    She's such an amazing companion, no barking, sudden movements, or any other shenanigans that might scare away our feathered friends.  
     The cats come and watch us for awhile, thinking we're sort of nuts to be sitting very still and not even trying to catch the birds.  After all, the birds are eating the cat food we buy!

   Uruguay has a huge amount of birds.  I like birds, but have to admit I'm a little bit scared of them.  Irrational fear, I know.  The old Hitchcock movie, The Birds, forever ruined me. This morning Gracie, our Border Collie, and I decided we were going to be birdwatcher photographers.  Gracie has a huge heart and an abundance of patience.  She's the perfect birdwatcher.  I, on the other hand possess a semi-big heart for birds, and little patience for waiting to photograph them.  
   We positioned ourselves on the side porch where there is a large bush with branches shooting upwards.  The birds love to perch there and swoop in to eat the cat food on the porch table.  The cats have become oblivious to them after the first 100 unsuccessful tries at catching one.  Gracie, being very intelligent, always watches the cats' attempts and saves herself any wasted energy trying to catch birds.  She prefers to watch.
   The birds didn't seem to mind that we were there.  The only hesitance came with actually landing on the cat food dish and eating.  They passed on that, but posed on the branches for photos.  They were secretly hoping that Gracie and I would get ever so bored and leave.
   And so - after all these years of taking photos, these are my first serious attempts at birdies!  Gracie agrees that we should to this again!  (We have no idea what these birds are!)