Meeting Meems of Hoe & Shovel

I was up bright and early to get ready for a short trip to a friend's house. A friend I'd not yet met. And isn't that what some people say strangers are - friends we've not yet met? But this friend was no stranger.

I felt as if I already knew much about Meems from reading her blog, Hoe and Shovel, for a year or more and after an hour-long phone conversation yesterday. We managed to cover a mutitude of subjects in a very short time, and realized we both loved to talk. As we said goodbye on the phone, we joked that maybe we wouldn't have anything left to talk about when we actually met. Not a chance!

My uncle Bob was my "driver" and we arrived at Meems' house around 10:00 a.m. It was readily apparent as we pulled up to her house that a gardener lived there. Beautiful and inviting landscaping had me wanting to see what other treasures lay beyond the front yard.


She invited us into her lovely home, where we hugged and introductions were made. The talk was non-stop, even as we enjoyed her homemade banana bread and fresh blueberries and strawberries.

Eventually, we began the grand tour of her gardens, and while Meems was just a bit apologetic about the destruction by the freezes they'd experienced recently, I still recognized the lovely gardens she pictures on her blog. It was fun for me to see them in the context of her home and the surrounding area. While we both would have liked to see things in their usual gorgeous prime condition, nature happens and we as gardeners know all about that and learn to take it in stride.

Despite the frost, I was taken by the beautiful layout of her gardens, with such careful attention to what grows best where. It's apparent that she knows her gardens intimately and tends to each plant and shrub and flower as her children.

Before we left, she used her Shovel to share some amaryllis bulbs from her own garden with me. She knows how much I love them and these will be special treasures from a friend, growing in my own garden this summer. The frost damaged their foliage before they were due to bloom, so perhaps they'll do it later, in my Ohio garden.

We spent 2½ hours there before we had to leave since my aunt and Jenna had not accompanied us and we had left them without transportation. Meems and I could have spent the entire day talking about so many things. We had that instant connection that you make with some people when you share a common interest. Even outside gardening though, I know that Meems and I could be the kind of friends who spend time together, if we just lived closer to each other.

Thank you, Meems, for opening your home and gardens to me. You are just as charming and warm as you appear on your blog and I am so glad we got the chance to spend some time together. Now, you need to visit Our Little Acre. My door is always open for you, my friend.