Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men

About a week ago my dear daughter #2 (dd2) and my dear and only son (ds) went off traipsing the countryside near our house and came home with quite a few wild raspberries. It was then that I devised my plan. I needed to go back through the woods with them, and we would pick a bucket of raspberries. I would bake something deeeeeee-licious. Hmmm…what would it be? Maybe raspberry cobbler. Now there was a second part to my plan. I would take a spade and a second bucket along, dig up some of the very small bushes and transplant them to my backyard. Then they would multiply and someday I could have all the raspberries my little heart desired.


So late this afternoon, my ds became my guide, and an excellent guide he is. The time he has spent on his constant treks through these parts has been well spent. He knows this area like the back of his hand. Along the way he directed my attention to several points of interest. Other places he forsook the trails to lead me over his own “shortcuts”. Now while it was not hot today, I still became warm from the exercise of ducking under this branch and stepping over that fallen tree. However, I encouraged myself with the thoughts of the pail of raspberries that would be my reward. I was also thinking that raspberry bushes planted near the house would make this trek unnecessary.

Now I am a transplanted country girl; and while I have been learning a little about gardening, birds, critters, and the like, my city girl ignorance often outshines my best country girl intentions. This was one of those times. When we arrived at the raspberry bushes, there were very few berries left on the bushes. (A good country girl probably would have known that this was the end of the season). A note to you true country girls that are reading this, I would appreciate it if you would please stop your snickering. Anyway, we came home with a few paltry raspberries. We picked a few blackberries (not nearly as sweet as the raspberries), and I am not sure why we even bothered to do that. I was too disheartened to even dig up a few small bushes to bring home. Well, I guess there’s no raspberry cobbler tonight. Sigh.

However, I did get a nice hike. I definitely can use the exercise. The scenery was lovely. I got to see a big patch of native white Bee Balm that the bees were really working.

I even got this picture of a bee that is called “Hummingbird Bee”. This is only the second time I have ever seen one. Strangely enough, last Sunday in the flower garden in front of my house was the first time. I had never even heard of them until a sweet friend of mine described one she had seen last summer. From the picture it is a little hard to see, but they really do look like a miniature hummingbird. Their wings beat every bit as fast. They really are fascinating!

However, the really good thing about all of this was that I got to spend a few hours of one-on-one time with my very favorite guide. I guess it really was a pretty nice day.