Happy May to you!

May is such an amazing month, we get to plant things. Later on in this posting is an article on Moon Gardening. I love the concept of moon gardening . My husband Charlie’s favorite flower is the moonflower. The way it opens as the sun sets and how it glows in the dark is enchanting. Every year to no avail, I try to plant moonflowers for him. Every year the seeds get washed away by heavy rains, birds eat them, or the earth devours them whole so we don’t get our beloved moonflowers.

Last year I was thrilled to find some plants marked “moonflowers” at a local nursery. I was so excited, usually you can only find seeds. The leaves looked a little suspicious and my suspicions grew when the vine later became covered with little yellow flowers. Yep, we had a bumper crop of cucumbers but no moonflowers!

I am not thwarted though, I know this will be the year I finally get moonflowers. I have two packets of seeds ready to go!

The Magical Moon Garden

By Patti Wigington

Many of us love to garden, but a lot of people don't realize you can grow plants and flowers that bloom at night. Cultivating a moon garden is a great way to get in touch with nature, and it provides a beautiful and fragrant backdrop for your moonlight rituals in the summer. If you plant these lovelies close to your house, you can open the windows and take advantage of their aromas as you sleep.

Many night-blooming plants are white, and give a luminous appearance in the moonlight. If you plant them in a circle or a crescent shape, when they bloom, you'll have the moon herself right there "as above, so below." There are a number of plants that open at night -- mix them in with silver-foliaged day bloomers.

Night Blooming Plants

• Moonflower: Yes, it should be painfully obvious, but the Moonflower really does bloom at night. It releases a slightly lemony scent when it opens up, and during the day the white flowers are tightly shut. Some species of this climbing plant, a cousin of the Morning Glory, can get up to eight feet long*. The flowers, when open, are around 5 - 6" in diameter.
• Evening Primrose: This perennial spreads rapidly, and can cover a lot of ground for you. The pale pinkish-white flowers open at dusk, and release a sweet aroma.
• Night Phlox: these pretties open up at dusk, and have a fragrance reminiscent of honey or vanilla.
• Evening Stock: the tiny purple and pink flowers aren't very fancy, but they smell divine when they open at night.
• Angel's Trumpet: Another vine, this annual spreads like crazy. Its trumpet-shaped, white flowers have a bell-like appearance when open.
• Night Gladiolus: this plant isn't actually nocturnal, but that's when the creamy yellow flowers smell the strongest -- it's a very spicy scent that's a glorious addition to any night garden.

Day Blooming White and Silver Plants

• Dusty Millers
• Silver Thyme
• Lamb's Ears
• Mugwort (Artemesia)
• Silver Sage
• White vegetables such as Alba eggplants or Baby Boo or Lumina pumpkins

Herbs and Flowers with Lunar Connections

• Camphor
• Eucalyptus
• Gardenia
• Jasmine
• Moonwort
• Sandalwood
• Willow
• Water Lily
• Sleepwort

What to do With Your Moon Garden Plants

When you have plants that have blossomed under the powerful energy of a full moon, the possibilities are just about endless. Harvest the flowers and dry them to use in talismans or charms. Use them to dress a Full Moon Candle or as part of a purification bath. Include them in incense blends to help enhance your intuition and wisdom.

*Note: Be sure to provide a trellis or other support for climbers like the Moonflower. If they don't have a stable surface to hang onto, they're less likely to fully bloom.

Picture from: 10000birds.com

A Good Day

A Good Day

Sometimes giving someone a good day is the greatest gift you can give them.

My dear friend, Monica, is struggling with cancer. Her daughters and friends all want to give her a good day. We bring her her favorite soup from a little Italian restaurant she loves, bring her books and the complete set of “Friday Night Lights” to watch, strawberries, tea and the newest perfume that L’Occitane has come up with as she is so excited to try it. Her days are so full of pain and exhaustion, it would make us so happy if she just had one good day.

It is easy to wish Monica a good day. She is one of the sweetest people I have ever known. It fills our hearts with sadness to see her struggle. What most of us don’t think about is the other people that really need a good day too. I was in a park and a homeless man came up to me to ask for some money. I gave him a $10 bill. A man in an expensive suit saw this. He snarled at me and said with disdain, “You know, he will just spend that on liquor. He won’t buy food with it.” My response was, “I don’t care, I gave him a good day.” That man may have bought food, he may have bought beer, perhaps even a  newspaper and a latte. It did not matter because for a little while, his only thoughts were how he could spend the money in any way he wanted. I won’t miss that $10, it is the cost of a lunch or tube of mascara but that was all the money in the world to him. 

When my son was younger, he would love it when I would take him out to eat on Saturdays. We would get an extra meal to go, complete with a drink and a cookie or dessert. We would place it on a bench in the park where the homeless would go. We never knew who got our meals but we like to think we gave someone a good day. For one day, he or she did not have to worry about having something to eat. For one day, they had a complete, tasty meal and a full stomach.

So often, we tend to deem whether someone is worthy of kindness.  We judge them without knowing what they are going through.  We cannot turn their lives around but we can just give them one good day.

Sing Loudly

Grandchildren love it when you sing. They will make you feel like a rock star when you cannot hold a tune. I, personally, am a terrible singer, I mean really bad. I am not one of those people that say they cannot sing and then manage a decent rendition of “Happy Birthday”. When I sing, dogs howl. My whole family was like this. I apologized to my sons Jordan and Daniel for the abyss in our gene pool for musical talent.

But when I sing to Mia, my granddaughter who is 17 months old, her eyes light up. I can sing anything to her and she loves it. When she was really young she liked the National American University commercial jingle (One day, one night, Saturday’s all right, online’s just fine, nighttime any time, get your degree, set yourself free, National American University). I was so thankful for this commercial when she was cranky. It worked like a charm every time. 

Now that she is a bit older, I make up silly songs for her. She loves Elmo so we sing, “Hi Elmo Hi, you’re our favorite guy, Hi Elmo Hi”. Or sometimes I will make up other silly songs:

The Pink Baboon in the silver balloon

Is singing his tune as he flies past the moon

We hope he stops soon

He is such a buffoon

He came from the saloon

‘been drinking since noon

Now he’s starting to croon

He’ll sing until June

It is like a cartoon!

Grandchildren give you an excuse to be silly and lighthearted. The more flourish and gestures you add with your songs, the more they love it. Be goofy and sing loudly.

Don’t Call Me Grandma!

Don’t Call Me Grandma!

Ugh, my daughter in law calls me “Grandma” to her children, Skylar and CJ.  “Grandma” was my grandmother who never had a day of fun in her life. “Grandma” is old and sits around knitting. I have never knitted a day in my life. In fact, I despise sewing so much that if a button falls off a shirt it gets donated to Goodwill. Might as well, I will never fix it, yeah, I don’t bake either.  “Grandma” sits in a rocking chair with a shawl draped around her frail shoulders. I prefer sitting in my Lazy Boy with my Ipad listening to Adam Levine and sipping a glass of Merlot . 

My mother was a cool grandmother. She danced in the rain, made up stories, and captured the imagination of her three grandsons. She asked to be called “Gran”. My son, Daniel, was confused as a tot because he knew I was “Mama” but he heard me calling my mom, his grandmother, “Mama” too. He started calling her “Big Mama”. We were both “Mama” and she was bigger than me so it made sense to his two year old rationalization.  She thought it was cute and it was “Big Mama” from then on. No one called her “Grandma”, ever.

I think as Baby Boomers, we don’t want to sound or feel old. We are the BOOMERS for goodness sake. I saw an article about what boomers are wanting to be called as grandparents on http://grandparents.about.com. Here is what it said:

________________________________________________

Article:
Learning that one is to become a grandmother is one of those watershed moments in a woman’s life. Usually the grandmother-to-be begins to wonder almost immediately: What should I choose as my grandmother name?
Grandparent names can spark family conflict, so it is worth spending some time thinking about your choice. Fortunately, modern grandparents have many options.
Traditional Grandmother Names:

• Big Mom
• Gram
• Gramma
• Grammy
• Grams
• Grandma
• Grandmama
• Grandmom
• Grandmother
• Grannie
• Ma or Maw
• Mamo
• MawMaw
• Mema
• Memaw
• Mom-Mom
• Nana
• Nanny

Many children today have more than one grandmother. Indeed, through stepfamily relationships, some have half a dozen. For grandchildren who have more one grandmother, some families choose to add the given name or the last name to the grandparent name, arriving at combinations such as Gramma Jean or Grandma Brown. There is also a tendency among some modern grandparents to invent something that sounds perhaps younger or more hip than the traditional names. Indeed, the adoption of a cool grandmother name is something of a trend amongst Baby Boomer grandparents
Modern Grandmother Names

• BeBe
• Bella
• GiGi
• G-Ma
• G-Mom
• Honey
• Lovey
• MayMay
• Mia
• Mimi
• Nina

In addition, grandmothers may choose names favored by different nationalities or cultures, either because they reflect their heritage or simply because they like the way they sound. You don't have to be Italian to be a Nonna! Many of these names appear in several variations and spellings.

So there you go fellow grandmothers. Be a “Honey”, a “Noni” or a “Big Mama”. Me, I am a “Grams”….. don’t call me “Grandma”!

Creating Fairy Gardens

Fairy Gardens are a magical way to spend time with your grandkids.

 

I just love these Gypsy Garden Miniatures by Genevieve Gail. They are super colorful and adorable and feature all-weather paint and a unique distressed finish. You can mix and match them however you like. My favorite is the little camper, too cute.

 Mia and I are just starting to plan our fairy garden now. We will get little plants to add. It will keep us busy through autumn and we will add Halloween min1atures in October!

 I found this article on Wikihow that has some great tips:
How to Create a Fairy Garden

Nothing is quite so magical as the thought that fairies may be making their home in your garden. By planting flowers and adding fairy homes to your garden, you are sure to create a garden that is a place of wonder. Follow these steps to create your own, beautiful fairy garden.

Creating Your Fairy Garden

Create a Fairy Garden Step 1 
Pick a location. If you already have a garden, decide whether or not you would like your whole garden to be a fairy garden. Perhaps you would just like to keep a portion of your garden as a regular garden (to give the fairies some privacy perhaps.) Creating a divider with stepping stones, river rocks, or small fencing can do the trick when making a border for your fairy garden. 

 Create a Fairy Garden Step 2 
Plant flowers in your garden. Try to layer your plants by planting ground-cover plants, medium-height flowers, and taller flowers. Planting flowers of different heights will give your garden a lovely, layered look. Be sure to select plants that grow well in the environment you live in. For example, if you live in a desert, it’s best to avoid trying to grow jungle plants. Ask an employee at your local home improvement store for the best flowers to plant in your particular area.[1] Plant ground cover plants like moss. Moss and other plants like it are soft to the touch (perfect for resting fairies) and will cover up any patches of dirt left in between flowers. Plant brightly-colored flowers. Fairies (and people) are incredibly drawn to flowers that are bright and cheerful. Try roses, sunflowers, snapdragon, daisies, pansies, and foxgloves. If the flowers smell really nice, that’s an added bonus. 
 Add a trellis for your flowers. Trellises are pieces of interlaced, painted wood. Flowers will climb up trellises and create what appear to be walls of plants. You can purchase flat trellises, entryway trellises, and archway trellises. 

Create a Fairy Garden Step 3 Attract birds to your garden. 
Fairies love birds. The best way to get birds interested in your garden is by hanging feeders. You can either hang feeders from trees in your garden, or get a feeder that hangs from its own pole. 
 Be aware that different types of birds have different feeders and food that they need. For instance, attract hummingbirds with red feeders filled with sugar water. Provide nesting boxes for birds. You can build your own birdhouse or buy one at a store. 
 Add a bird bath to your fairy garden. The birds and fairies will both appreciate the extra source of water. 

Create a Fairy Garden Step 4 Attract animals to your garden. 
Fairies love animals, but keep in mind that those furry woodland creatures might also enjoy dining on the flowers you just planted. To avoid this, add food for the animals (to distract them from the flowers.) The easiest things to plant in your garden that will attract animals are berries. Plant berry bushes--the animals, fairies, and your family will all enjoy the berries that come from the plants.[3] To attract butterflies to your garden plant flowers like Aster, Daylily, Lavender, Hollyhock, Goldenrods, and Zinnias.

 Create a Fairy Garden Step 5 Add fairy homes. 
Fairies, like any other creature, want a place to feel safe and rest their weary heads. You can either purchase a fairy home at a garden store or build your own. Build a fairy house out of natural materials. Gather four sturdy sticks and stick them in the soil so that they will not tip over. Lean or wrap bark on the sides to create the walls. Place two stones at the front of the house, leaving a space between the two so that a door is created. Use large leaves as the roof of the house or place another piece of bark on top. These are all merely suggestions--feel free to get creative with your fairy houses; they can be very fun to build! 

 Create a Fairy Garden Step 6 Add windchimes. 
Fairies need music--windchimes are the perfect way to provide a beautiful sound to your garden without disturbing the neighbors. Hang windchimes off of branches or on metal poles you place in your garden. You can also make your own windchimes. 

 Create a Fairy Garden Step 7 Add water. 
As stated above, a bird bath is a great way to add a little water to your garden. You can also have a fountain installed, or build your own small ponds. All of these watery additions will attract birds, animals, and fairies to your backyard. 

Create a Fairy Garden Step 8 Leave out sweets. 
Fairies love sweets such as candy. Designate a small pot or bowl for leaving candy in. Make sure to unwrap the candy so that no animals who may want to eat the candy will have to deal with the plastic wrap. Place the bowl in a shady part of your garden.

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog. I have three grandchildren: Skylar age 3, Charles age 2 and Mia age 1. I wanted to be very active with my three little lovelies but found there just really isn't much out there for grandparents. Sure, we raised kids and there is so much information out there for new parents, but let's see about cool stuff for Grams to share with our grandkids. Marketing companies spend the majority of their efforts on 18-39 year olds. Almost no companies target 40-60 year olds except Viagra. And after 60, it is only Depends and denture cream. I am 50 years old and no one wants my money and I have more than ever. That is why I am forming my website www.cool grandmother.com. We are a pretty cool group of ladies!