Two Year Blogiversary

This blog is two years old today and, as it happens, it's also my 300th post.  Two years and 300 posts is just a little less than three posts a week, so I guess I've been having fun...haven't I?  Well it's been enough fun that I plan to keep on going.  In celebration I'm sharing the story of this blog ("My Blog So Far....").  It is also Marilyn Monroe's birthday, the anniversary of Sputnik, and the day Janis Joplin died.  Somehow my blog anniversary is not on the list of the important things which happened on October 4th.   Yet.

I've never been busted flat in Baton Rouge, but I have been beaten silly by the Texas caliche.  Not much rhythm in there, but it feels similar.  And I haven't orbited the earth, but I have circumnavigated my circle garden a few times.  And regarding the seven year itch, that will be a post 5 years from now.

Anyhoo, back at the south 40, when we began planning our retirement move from Washington DC to San Antonio in the spring of 2008, I also began to search for landscape inspiration.  In addition to the many excellent local gardening articles and radio shows offering advice, I knew I needed a lot more.  I wanted a landscape that would reflect both my style and our region.

Circle Garden Spring 2013

The Wide Shot

When I began reading garden blogs for inspiration I noticed a focus on single flowers and plants.  Although closeup photos are beautiful and useful for learning about specific plants, I felt a larger context is sometimes needed to appreciate those details in the garden.  Like an Impressionist painting, things change quite a bit when you take a step or two back.  Fortunately there were blogs like Digging with a good combination of each to guide me and provide just what I was looking for at the time.  One of my goals when I decided to jump in with my own garden blog in October 2011 was to mix in plenty of wide shots so readers could follow along to see just how the details fit within my landscape as a whole.

When Heather at Xericstyle began blogging in January of 2012 I noted right away that she is also a fan of the wide shot.  Her photos often show the big picture so essential for understanding her garden design projects, providing more of a "tour" than simply looking at closeups.  Heather, who lives just a few minutes from me in San Antonio, is beginning a new blogger's meme today and encouraging bloggers to post a wide shot of our gardens on the first of each month.  A meme is a designated day when bloggers link together and post on the same subject.  Heather has posted the wide shot of her garden here.

Since I already post a lot of views from the left or south side I selected a straight-on view of the house this morning.  I love the shadow patterns on the stone walls just as the sun peeks over the hill.

Blogging Memories of 2012

At the beginning of 2012 this blog was just three months old and I mused about the future of my garden and where blogging would take me.  Now I have an entire year to review with 155 posts to choose from and it's time to look back on 2012 and share a few of my favorites.

My first garden blogger meet-up in Austin was fun as I met four fellow bloggers in early November and toured six great gardens on the Garden Conservancy's Open Days tour.  Pam Penick of  Digging corralled us for a group photo to mark the occasion. Our group included (L-R) Jean of Dig, Grow, Compost, me, Diana of Sharing Nature's Garden, Pam Penick of  Digging, and Catherine of The Whimsical Gardener.  I had so much fun meeting them for the first time and spending the day touring six special gardens in Austin.

First Blogiversary today!

Today I celebrate the first anniversary of this blog.  One year of blogging.  What else is there to say? Quite a bit actually.   I've learned so much and had such a good time with my 147 published posts.  In honor of the occasion I'm sharing a few observations.

Rock-Oak-Deer?

It's all there in the title photo-the rocks, the oaks, and the deer in my backyard.  Those are just a few of the gardening challenges here on the north side of San Antonio.   Like the game rock-paper-scissors we're never quite sure which will prevail.  We’ve made a lot of progress improving our landscape in the past three years, yet there is still much to do.

There is also much to share.  While researching ideas for our own landscape, I found gardening blogs to be an excellent resource.  Most of the bloggers I follow are in Austin and other cities.  While there are many similarities in plants and gardening styles, San Antonio has a lot to offer too.  That's where this blog comes in.  In addition to sharing progress in my own yard, I will also highlight gardens, gardeners, and garden events in and around this beautiful city of San Antonio.  I'll post interesting things I see along the way as well.

We have a lot of visitors to the yard each week and I'll share those photos too.  This guy recently dropped by to check out the menu.

Good evening, a table next to the roses please!

This first post wouldn't be complete without acknowledging Pam Penick at Digging.  Thank you Pam for your inspiring blog and the enthusiasm with which you support garden bloggers everywhere!  Pam has declared October "Support Your Independent Nursery" month so my first series of posts will focus on local garden centers.