Yesterday, as we were driving, my youngest daughter, Bear, broke into my garden writing reverie by suddenly saying, "Annie and Joey are my best friends in the whole world." I smiled at her reflection in the rear view mirror. "Yes," I said, "You will all probably be friends for your whole life." This wasn't any pie in the sky notion, or something a mother tells her child to give them dreams on which to fly.  Annie and Joey's mother has been my best friend for fourteen years, and our younger children have been friends almost since the day they were born  Beneath our feet, they played on the same blankets, toddled on short stubby legs, and later climbed trees together. Aimee and I were both SAHM when we met. I'd recently quit being a legal assistant to parent my children full time.  Diva was three, and ASW was eighteen months....

Ever bemoaned your lack of space? Felt uninspired by a tiny urban lot? What do other gardeners do with small, urban lots? In Buffalo, they move right our of the backyard and into the front using verticality, hanging baskets, side yards and even creating beauty in the hell strip when they've run out of growing area. Do you think your garden is too crowded? Naah. For this Oklahoma gardener whose planting area encompasses about an acre and who has seven and half more to expand (if only I weren't human), it was humbling to see what the gardeners of the Buffalo Cottage District could do do with their postage stamp sized lots. I bow to their ingenuity and sheer ability to pack in yet one more container and create such a delightful effect. As Pam from Digging pointed out while we walked into a miniscule backyard of one of the...

Call it cheesy, call it trite, but I spend the summers recreating the classic vacations of the 1960s. My parents were broke, and my father didn't like to travel, so I never saw the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone or Niagara Falls until now. I wonder, where did I develop such affection for these? Was it the classic The Parent Trap (1961) and The Parent Trap II (1986): 2-Movie Collection (2-Disc Set) which I saw as a child? Was it all those Wonderful World of Disney films shown on Sunday nights during the now non-existent "family hour?" I'm not sure, but something instilled a love in me for our entire park system, both National and state. A couple of years ago I saw the Grand Canyon, and now, I can say I've been to Canada (if only for a little while). Then, we were fortunate to see both sides of Niagara Falls....

Dear Carol and Mary Ann and Gardening Friends Everywhere, My letter is a bit tardy because I had to regroup this morning after the fireworks last night. One of the strangest things about living in the country is the 4th of July festivities. Fireworks vendors begin setting up shop in trailers and tents all along the Oklahoma County line about two weeks before Independence Day. Fireworks are illegal in Oklahoma County. However, where I live, in Logan County, they are legal, and the popping and crackling begins two weeks before the holiday. By the time Independence Day rolls around, the entire county is blanketed with loud bangs, and the sky is filled with sparkling light. It's a good thing I love fireworks, or I'd be forced to move to a motel until the barrage ended. I wouldn't be exaggerating to write it is like being on the set for a...