October 1: The Hopeful Dieffenbachia

In 2019, my sister gave me plant-a-month birthday present.  For 6 months, tiny houseplants were delivered to my door  It was delightful and this  dieffenbachia was one of those plants.  

It’s grown quite a bit since then - this it it’s third pot - and for Halloween it has a black cat plant stake.  By the end of this month, overnight temperatures will be cool enough that plants must come inside for the season.  But we’re not there yet and both the dieffenbachia and I are determined to soak up the last of the warmth.

September 1: Snake Plant

Earlier this summer, I went to a local plant store with my friend A, who is as plant-enamored as I am.  I came home with a few additions to my plant world, including this snake plant. 

It needs a name, of course, but while I wait for that inspiration, I enjoy it on the front porch.  I tucked a tiny clay mouse into the soil and it’s thriving in this lovely pot.  Snake plants are notoriously forgiving plants, prone to thriving.  I am not a careless plant mom, so it’s in no danger of being neglected.  It’s been the delight of my summer hours on the front porch and that’s very happy!

August 1: Mama’s Little Shefflura

I bought this shefflura - also known as an umbrella plant because of the shape of the leaves - in a 6 inch pot at Ikea at least 10 years ago.  Ikea is a terrific resource for amazing plants and this little gem is proof.  

Though it’s not really a “little gem” anymore.  At nearly 5 feet tall (and that's after a big pruning), it’s more of a tree, albeit a tree that needs to come inside to survive the Winter season.  In the Summer, it lives in a corner of the front porch.  In the Winter, it comes inside on a wheeled stand because it’s far too heavy for me to maneuver too many steps on my own.  I love it for its lush greenery, its rapid growth, and its insistence of taking up the space it needs to grow.  I find that a powerful reminder that I should unapologetically do the same.   

July 1: Christmas (Cactus) in July

Nearly all of my houseplants are outside on the front porch for the Summer and that includes the tiny transplant from my Dad’s Christmas cactus.  It held its own after I returned from California in February, though it did not grow.  For obvious reasons, this particular plant is special to me, so I put it on the porch with some reluctance and in a spot where I would be sure to see it every day.  In mid-June, I saw red growth on the end of all four stems.  This is the first Christmas cactus I've grown and I wondered if the spots of red meant a bloom was coming.  Turns out that the red was the start of new growth.  

Those red buds buds grew into four new stems and then four more red buds followed.  I know now that means more stems are taking hold.  Huzzah!

I check in on the cactus every morning when I drink my coffee on the porch.  That the plant is an offshoot of my Dad’s is a source of comfort and peace to me.  The new growth feels like a message from him and I am best pleased to see it.

June 1: All on the Front Porch Now

We’ve had a truly lovely month of May and, as is my custom, all of the indoor houseplants were moved outside to soak up the sunshine and warmth.  I added some impatiens and geraniums to the mix, as is my way, and the front porch is now my peaceful plant oasis.  

I spent most of Memorial Day weekend sitting out here or on the back deck.  Both places feel like a refuge.  This week, I’ve been out here in the early morning chill to enjoy the bird chatter and my first cup of coffee of the day.  When Summer Break arrives fully, I will sit out here every morning before I go to work and again when I come home in the early afternoon. 

Surrounded by my plants, I have the time to attend to each one fully.  I can admire the blooms starting to emerge on my peace lily.  I can consider whether I should trim my giant shefflura.  I can admire the enormous leaves of a particular pothos.  I can give the Christmas cactus, a transplant from my dad’s enormous cactus, all the love and affection it deserves.

These plants are my salvation in the cold dark Winter, when they brighten my days and bring warmth to my home.  And in the Summer, they are my morning glory.  That’s happy.

Gratitude Journal: Pot of Impatiens

I know someone who calls daily gratitude the “glimmers” in her world.  I like that way of thinking about gratitude.  For me, moments of gratitude are often a glimmer….a moment or more that feels good and happy; when the stars feel aligned and I experience a sense of contentment and peace.  I start this week with much to be grateful for.  Chief among them is the Mother’s Day celebration that JT organized for me.  I felt loved and cared for; understood and appreciated.  It was a day I will remember and reflect upon for many years to come.  

As of this week, my houseplants have been moved outdoors to soak up the warm weather and on the front deck, impatiens and geraniums keep the plants company.  That is such a happy thing in my world.

I can spy this terra cotta pot of impatiens from the rocking chair on the porch; from my cozy reading chair in the living room, and outside when I pass by the front door.   I see it when I leave home in the morning and when I come home in the evening.  The pot is just the right amount of aged; the flowers are verdant and bright and every thing about it fills me with gratitude.  That’s happy!

Style Journal: Outdoor Living

Come May, I begin to organize the front porch and back deck for the outdoor living season.  Well before May, I am daydreaming about being outside with my face turned toward the light and warmth.  Both the porch and the deck expand the reach of my home and offer a comfortable place to read and relax.  

I have a collection of house flags and I decorate the table on my front porch for every season.  But I pull out all the stops for Summer, which starts when I choose two hanging baskets for the iron hooks on the porch pillars.   

Then I fill the plant stand by the front door with flowers.  This year, I’ve a collection of bright pink geraniums and lighter pink impatiens.  The hanging baskets have heartier New Guinea impatient in a shade of purple.  The front porch is large enough to house all of my houseplants for the summer and they thrive in the warmth and shaded sunlight of the Summer season.  There’s a rocking chair and I will spend hours here in the next few months, reading, resting, and generally enjoying the company of my flowers and houseplants.  

The back deck looks out onto my lush backyard and the fairy garden.  Under the limbs of old man tree, the deck has shade enough to remain cool for big chunks of the day.  

A few years ago, I used my Covid teaching bonus to buy some Polywood chairs and they get a lot of use in the Summer, tucked into the corner and perfect for napping in the sunshine.  

We eat many a grilled meal at this table.  

The back deck also gets flowers.  This year, I started with some pots of begonias to keep me company as I wait for the canna bulbs and zinnia flowers to bloom.  This year, I have five pots of zinnias…..it’s probably too many but I have daydreams of being surrounded by the flowers and I’m looking forward to Mason jars full of zinnia bouquets.

The older I get, the more I love outdoor living.  For most of the cold weather season, I look forward to the days when I can sleep with the windows open and sip my morning coffee outside, where I find peace.  I'm determined to soak up that peace this Summer and that is very happy to contemplate.

September Front Porch

This is the last full month that outdoor porch sitting will be an option on a daily basis.  I am determined to make the most of it.  Happy green plants surround my tiny New England village.

The flag is a cheerful sunflower.

I come home tired most days in the first month of school and this porch is a welcome place to arrive.  That’s happy!

Front Porch in March

Easter is the theme for this month and I am clearly ready for some Easter warmth, as I set out the decorations on the first of the month when plenty of snow could still be seen in the yard.  The cast iron bunny is back on duty for the coming warm days.

There is an Easter basket, my tin lamb,  and pastel colors to keep the bunny company.  The Easter wreath is on the door and the Easter flag is in the breeze.

The day’s light is steadily growing and with it comes the prospect of daffodils and crocuses later this month.  That is happy, y’all!

February Front Porch

The colossal winter storm that ushered in February and then dumped more snow less than a week later slowed my porch set up for the month.  But once the snow was shoveled off the porch, I got to work.  There is a seasonal flag.

The table has a Valentine covering, the pot of hardy ivy, and a pinecone home for the fairies to stay warm while we all wait for Spring.  I had hoped to exchange the “hope” plant stake for one that reads “love” but the soil in the pot was too frozen for that swap out so we’ll have to stick with hope.  Given my longing for Spring, hope might be in order.

There is a cheery wreath for the front door.

February is the last full month month of Winter and in my mind March 1’s meteorological Spring is as good as the real thing.  The snow is piled over 2 feet high, however, so though I am prepared to call the end of the season, I suspect plenty of snow will linger into March.  Mother Nature has no less than three Water storms forecast for the next 7 days, so she clearly hasn’t received my memo.

January’s Front Porch

Plotting and planning front porch decor is one of my happy pleasures in life and I look forward to a porch that is a welcome place.  In this cold season, I don’t spend loads of time out here but the month’s table reminds me how much I do love the time I spend here in the warm weather.  The month’s theme is hope….for new leadership, for a vaccine, for the health and safety of us all.

The green ivy, hearty despite the cold, leads the way.  The wooden trees were a gift from JT, who knows me well.  The wintery flag with wildlife and snow is a reminder to look for the common joys to be found in this sometimes bleak month when we work to keep our bird feeder full.

The wreath is homemade and a work in progress.

This January feels like so very much is on the line.  But in this house, we live in hope, the most powerful emotion in my toolbox.  I am hopeful; I always am.  It's the only solace I know when fear threatens to enter.  

The Porch Season

Weekday mornings on the porch have come to a rather abrupt halt this week.  It’s not the cool weather that ended the habit, instead it’s the darkness of the mornings.  We’ve reached the point in the season when the sun rises past 6:45 and even with the porch lights switched on, it’s just too dark for my 52 year old eyes to read comfortably.

I can sit out in the afternoons and on weekend mornings but the writing is clear —— the porch season is coming to a close.  Most years, I accept trading my time on the front porch at the close of the season as part of the happy transition to Fall and then Winter - the cozy seasons, if you will - but this year it’s hard to say goodbye.

I think that’s a side effect of life in a pandemic.  I am worried about what happens with Covid-19 when we are all cooped up indoors. I feel safe at home and even at school we all fully intend to keep the windows open.  But the uncertainty about Winter and this dreadful disease is certainly ever-present.

If I let it, the worry and uncertainty can consume me.  So I make a concerted effort to instead welcome each day and set my worry aside.  Time I spent on the front porch, grateful for the blessings of the green plants and fresh air, certainly helps to ease the worry.  That’s happy!

Front Porch in September

This is the last full month that my houseplants can be guaranteed of a hospitable climate on the front porch.  Some time in October, a freeze warning will hover into view and all these plants will make their way inside for the cold weather season.  The flowers, which are looking blowsy and overgrown, will fade in the chill.  When that happens, the cooler weather will also send me reluctantly inside.  But that time isn’t here yet and so I plan to enjoy every bit of the warm days that remain.  The table has plants that have grown splendidly all Summer long.  

The sunflower flag marks the close of Summer, even if it doesn’t quite welcome it.

The Summer wreath is back for one last month.

The porch remains welcoming and when there is time, I always take advantage of a few minutes in this rocker.

That’s happy!

Blessings

Happily, I never weary of my yard.  Sassafras House has lots of windows and from them I can see the outdoors from every room. I never tire of this view of the outdoors, especially in the growing season, when the green makes my heart glad.  From the front yard…

…to the back deck…

…there is beauty everywhere I look.  In a world that is mostly shrunk to the homefront, I feel grateful for the sight through the windows.

That's happy!

Front Porch in August

All the variegated leaf plants have joined the flowering plants for the August front porch table.  There’s a red and white tablecloth to anchor the festivities.

The flip flop flag remains because flip flops always make me happy.  This picture faces East and in the humid haze the coming tropical storm can be seen.

The other plants are spread around the porch to soak up their share of the warmth and sunshine.

I drink my morning coffee in this spot and I never tire of the verdant refuge that is this front porch.

July Front Porch

If the theme in my flowerbeds is lush and over grown (and it is), there there is no reason such a theme cannot be carried over to the front porch.  And so it does.

T gave me a flip flop flag and wreath and July is the perfect month for a woman loathe to wear shoes.

The ease of Summer is something I long for in the cold weather and never take for granted when the warm days settle around us.  I start my day on this front porch every day of the Summer and I never tire of the plant-fortified view that greets me in the morning.

Given the time, I’m out here in the afternoon with my iced tea and my books.  It’s my favorite room of the house this time of year and I spend so much time here that I can spy a new leaf on my plants the moment it first begins to bud.  Pandemic worries aside, the Summer is determined to fly right past.  I am making the most of it while it’s here.