This is what I planted:

And a great pot of mint! Peppermint is very invasive but effective. I highly recommend it – in its own pot only!

The wood is for Albus. He is a true chewer and loves wood. You can tell when you’ve been here as there are wood chips covering 94% of the surface.

On a whim, I decided to paint the frame around our sliding door. I painted it a pale teal color first (Shire Green, actually), but Matt thought it mixed too much with the coating and once he voiced his opinion I couldn’t get it out of my head. (I love you!) So I walked up with some leftover black exterior paint that I had used on our shutters and garage door because I know it will hold and I really can’t resist a strong black + white + wood moment.

Now available: Albus’ homemade mulch!

There you go! This space feels like a retreat once again, just as we intended it to be 10 years ago. Let me know if you try your own mosquito repellent planter! The real test will be in the summer when they get really bad, but I’m optimistic!

Thank you very much for coming!