Flowers and big back yards

I don't know if I have ever been so happy to have flowers blooming!  Dick worked so hard to transplant many, many daffodils, tulips, and lilies from Lori and Anthony's gardens.  The daffodils and tulips immediately lay over and wilted.  The lilies looked like they wanted to do the same for the longest time.  But at last all those buds are s-l-o-w-l-y beginning to open up.  We discovered that the flower bed on the border of our lawn is actually ours, and the green things that sprouted profusely are some kind of lilies too - tiger lilies, maybe?  I'm so flower challenged, it's not even funny.  They were all dead by the time we moved here last August, so we were pleasantly surprised.

Here are some close-ups of some from Lori.

Meanwhile, at Anthony and Lori's, a major transformation took place in their back yard this week.  When they bought their house eight years ago it came with a wonderful, big pool.  We so enjoyed coming up here at least once a summer to have fun in the pool, especially Destiny.  However, a few years ago they discovered that the pool needed major, very expensive repairs, and after considering all the options over the past few summers, they decided they'd rather have a big back yard than a pool.  I don't think we had any idea just how much room that pool and the surrounding landscaping took up until it was gone!  They could put a ball diamond back there, haha!  Here are some pics.

The pool in its heyday.

The pool covered over when we moved up here two years ago, as it has been ever since. 

 And now, all the possibilities of a big back yard.

 

Austin has been missing his beloved girl cousins!  He asks for Sophie and Destiny all the time, bless his heart.  This week when I would walk into his morning daycare to pick him up, he would look at me and immediately say, "Destiny?"  Yesterday I had my clean laundry in a wash basket at the sofa ready to fold.  He decided to help me by getting into the basket and picking out each  piece individually and throwing it onto the sofa.  As he did so he would say things like,  "Pawpaw's sock."  "Destiny's shirt, Destiny's jammies."  It was so cute.  Then he tried to help me fold wash cloths.  When he did one he would say, "Other rag," and I would hand him another one.  Lori left with him this morning to visit her folks in Long Island for the weekend.  I miss him already.