After seeing the gorgeous stands of creeping Phlox in full bloom around town last year, I knew I had to have these pretty plants tumbling over our rock walls. Last spring we added about a half dozen pink Phlox and half a dozen blue Phlox. I always reserve judgement on a plant until it’s gone through one of our winters. This past winter we had a few snowfalls including the 15” accumulation which we thought would never melt and leave. All of my Phlox returned beautifully and it’s the first of my perennials to put on a bloom show which lasts a few weeks.

I bought 15 pink Phlox and three blue Phlox this year. We added six of the pink Phlox to our garden bell garden at the road...

We added nine pink Phlox to the middle stone wall which leads to our upper drive.

I want drifts of Phlox at the upper driveway stone wall, too. I noticed how lovely the blue Phlox was in front of the yellow Goldmound Spirea and planted the three last Phlox there.

Phil and I signed up for Highlands' Plateau Pickup event several weeks ago. On this day each year dozens of volunteers come together to clean up the Gorge Road which winds down the mountain to Franklin, North Carolina. The amount of litter tossed from cars and trucks traveling up and down the mountain is frustrating. We live in the gorgeous western North Carolina mountains and we all strive to keep this area pristine for local residents and for thousands of yearly visitors.

Phil injured his shoulder while hanging laundry room cabinets so he couldn't join me today, but I knew I'd see friends and make new friends, too, so off I went. A volunteer drove me a good ways down the targeted road and dropped me off with a safety vest, my trusty litter pole, and a bright orange trash bag. I met a few other volunteers already cleaning up litter. The couple pictured below own a local gas station/mini market. She shared that it made her sad to see all the beer cans because she suspected a lot of the construction workers who daily drive back and forth from Franklin to Highlands were among the culprits. They buy a lot of beer from her store each afternoon.

After an hour or two I noticed I had covered a lot of ground, but it was quiet. I looked around and didn't see anyone. It's kind of scary walking on that road alone so I crossed the road and started picking up trash on the other side as I made my way back to town.

After we finished cleaning the roadsides, the volunteers were treated to lunch. Thanks, Fressers Eatery for grilling hamburgers and hotdogs for us!

Our mayor's truck was loaded down with some of the trash bags collected.

I found my neighbors, Pam and Roger and John and Sally with their sister, Mary. These are some of my very favorite Mirror Lake neighbors and it was great to eat with them.

We were given t-shirts as a thank you gift.

A clean scenic road, a delicious lunch, meeting new friends, visiting with old friends, and a t-shirt... success! Sign us up for next year, please!

During our renovation of Two Holt, the contractor had a little accident and knocked over our old mailbox. It never really recovered and we lived with a wobbly old box for a year. We kept promising the mailman we'd get a new one up soon.

I looked all over the Internet until I finally found a black bear mailbox on Etsy. Phil and I tackled the job of replacing the box on Easter Sunday afternoon. The weather was glorious-- just right for an outdoor project.
Phil got busy digging the new hole...

We got the post up, leveled it, added the house numbers...

...and here's our new beary special mailbox!

Isn't he so stinkin' cute? I can't wait to plant a few things around him. Happy spring, y'all!