Happy Spring!

Posted on April 20, 2013 by TheLittleGSP

Happy Spring! Our yard has made a beautiful transformation from Winter to Spring in just two short weeks. Our trees are blooming, the tulips are coming up, and the garlic that I planted last Fall is looking great. Here are some photos from April 19th:

Hyacinth

Daffodil

Weeping Cherry Tree

Pine Cones

Pansies

Daffodils

Tulip Bed

Spinach

Viburnum Carlesii

Weeping Cherry Blossoms

Garlic

That beautiful spinach patch is actually leftover from spinach that I planted in October. It never really took off at the time (probably because I planted it too late) but as soon as the weather warmed up in April it started growing like crazy. I harvested it today and I can’t wait to enjoy with some cucumber, feta, and toasted almonds tonight!

If you’re interested to see how this year’s growth compares to the same time last year, check out my Garden Update from April 17, 2012. Thanks for stopping by!

Ridley Creek State Park

Posted on December 11, 2012 by TheLittleGSP

In honor of my 100th post (yes, it’s my 100th post!) I’m going to feature one of my very favorite hiking spots ever: Ridley Creek State Park. “Ridley Creek,” as we call it, is a 2,600 acre park located in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, approximately 15 miles west of Philadelphia. It also happens to be about 2 miles from our house which makes it a very convenient place to enjoy nature while getting some exercise!

Matt and I both grew up in this area so we’ve been coming to Ridley Creek State Park with our families since long before we met one another in college. Come to think of it, we both spent SO much time here as kids that it’s actually pretty likely that we unknowingly passed each other on the bike trail or splashed around in the creek together at some point in our childhoods.

Ridley Creek features miles of secluded hiking trails, multiple family-friendly picnic areas, and a 4.5 mile paved trail. The paved trail is popular with walkers, runners, and bikers. The trail has mile-markers every tenth of a mile and the scenery along the way includes thick woods, cornfields, deserted 19th century stone houses, and, of course, Ridley Creek itself. Matt, Bailey, and I walk this trail fairly often. Most recently we went on Day 14 of my mile-a-day “Streak” and the next day I was definitely feeling the combined effects of the hilly 4.5 mile walk and my morning mile!

In addition to the paved trail, Matt and I also enjoy hiking in the much more secluded northern section of the park. This area is usually utilized by horseback riders but we started to frequent it after discovering an off-road hunter’s parking lot (1) near our house last February. The 4.25 mile trail can be a bit difficult to follow if you don’t know where you’re going but I love how sections of it makes you feel like you’re 100 miles away from civilization or, better yet, like you’ve gone back in time. In fact, if you follow the gas pipeline right-of-way up the (very steep) hill you’ll actually come across a forgotten cemetery that hails back to the 1800s. Cool!

If you’re ever in Delaware County looking for a good place to take a hike I’d definitely recommend stopping by Ridley Creek State Park. If you have been to Ridley Creek before please let me know what your favorite trail is in the comments section below!

Related Links:

Official DCNR Map of Ridley Creek State Park
DCNR’s Ridley Creek State Park Web Page
Friends of Ridley Creek State Park (they have a good map of hiking trails here)
Overview of the Park’s Hunting Hill Mansion from my favorite local news source, Media Patch

August Cheer for a Rainy Day

Posted on October 29, 2012 by TheLittleGSP

As predicted, Hurricane Sandy is slowly turning into the New Jersey coast and we have already experienced 40 mph wind gusts, almost 2 inches of rain, and a short power outage. We’ve also found a leaky spot in our roof by the chimney… eek! Other than that everything is fine so I thought I’d share something completely unrelated to the storm: photos from my garden in August!

This pink zinnia plant was at its peak in early August but, believe it or not, it STILL has a few blooms on it today! We’ll see how they look after the storm…

These Gladioli bloomed in August and did a nice job of covering up the big propane tank that powers a little stove in our living room. That stove might come in handy if the power goes out tonight!

Vine-ripening tomatoes in early August… yum!

These “Dinnerplate” Dahlias bloomed outside of our front door for most of the summer.

I picked all of these vegetables during my lunch break one day in August. Pretty good harvest, right?

And, last but not least, an isolated Orange Cosmo. You might recognize this plant from my August post “The Bee’s Knees.” I’m definitely planting more of these flowers next year!

Thanks for stopping by my blog and good luck to everyone in the storm’s path!

Pink Zinnia!

Posted on July 25, 2012 by TheLittleGSP

We grew this lovely pink zinnia from seed and it now resides outside our front door amidst a volunteer squash patch. Isn’t it pretty?

Also… don’t forget to leave a comment in my Slimkicker Giveaway post to be eligible to win a digital kitchen scale!

The Tortoise and the Shorthair

Posted on June 25, 2012 by TheLittleGSP

Bailey made a new friend! Well, I don’t know if friend is the right word, but after several unsuccessful attempts at trying to eat the large box turtle that she found in the back yard Bailey came to a tense understanding with the creature.

Yes, I know that this is a turtle, not a tortoise… He’s pretty cool looking, right?

Bailey discovered this box turtle in our back yard while she was patrolling for squirrels and groundhogs. I could hear her yipping and barking from inside the house. Bailey hardly ever barks so I knew something exciting must be going on and rushed outside with my camera. Sure enough, she was straddling the turtle (who was safely closed up in his shell) and alternating between smelling and barking at him. After hearing horror stories about snapping turtles biting peoples’ thumbs off I was a little worried when Bailey put her nose up against his shell but he didn’t seem too concerned.

I shooed Bailey away and spent several minutes watching the turtle in the yard until he eventually started to poke his head out. His eyes were very intense and we stared at each other for a while. This must have been a very amusing sight for our neighbors who probably couldn’t tell that there was a turtle on the ground in front of me – to them it must have just looked like I had taken a break mid-Zumba-workout and dashed outside in my hastily-donned Sperrys to help Bailey watch for squirrels!

All in all, it was pretty neat to see such an “exotic” animal in our yard. He was very patient with me as I took his picture. When I was done he stuck out his head, legs, and tail and marched off into the woods. What a cool encounter!