Paper Wasps and a first attempt at landscaping

I meant to create an entry just dedicated to paper wasps, but now I have more to talk about besides just insects. I also mulched and planted a few flowers. I have lots of pictures this time.

First, the wasps:

I did some research on the internet and found the wasps that chill on our deck are Paper Wasps, and they are eating parts of our deck to make nests. For Sara, these ARE the wasps with the hangy-legs.

But that's not the only place I've found them...The other day I went to fill the car with gas, opened up the door to the tank, and there was a wasp. I about shut the tank door and drove off, but it was raining out so I knew he would be helpless. I beat the area around the tank with the windshield cleaner thing so somehow I must have drowned it. I never did find him, but he doesn't appear to be on the gas tank anymore.

Anyway, so how do we get rid of these beasts? Well, everything that I've found has said you have to get rid of the nest. We have yet to find a nest anywhere around the house, so I have no idea where they are coming from. I'm hoping after we power wash and seal the deck, the wasps won't be able to eat it anymore so they will go away. The other remedy that I read about was using peppermint oil. I'll have to try that, too.

Next, landscaping:

For Mother's Day weekend, we both went home and spent the day with our respective mothers. Mom and I went out to several stores, and got some flowers and mulch. I helped mom plant a couple geraniums, daisies, and a lily. We also put down the red mulch around the house.

Mom bought me some mulch (I chose cypress, but it took a really long time for me to decide), an orange lily, a day lily, and a pot of white geraniums. I put the pot out front and planted the lilies. I did have to rip up some of the landscape lining to get to the soil out front. I put the mulch down in the front planter outside the window, and it blended very nicely. I started to put it down in front of the porch, and it realized it was much lighter than what was already down. I put down the 3 bags, and when I stepped back, I couldn't believe how much it brightened the front of the house. Take a look at some pictures: The first shows the planter with the lily, the second is in front of the porch. Notice the Day Lily planted in the left-hand corner.

A blog entry wouldn't be complete without a Neville story. Neville was by himself for the first time this weekend. When we returned, he had thrown up in the living room and ate very little all weekend. He didn't leave my side the whole night. When we went to bed, he came up, but around 1:30 he decided to meow and wanted playtime. Well, in the past we would just kick him out when he gets playful at night, so last night wasn't any different. Usually, he comes downstairs and we don't see him until morning...but not last night. After we kicked him out, he stood outside our door, howled, and pawed on the door. Because I didn't want to give in, I let him cry, but after an hour of it I knew neither of us would get any sleep if we let him continue. So at 2:30AM, I crawled into my old twin bed in the guest bedroom, played with Neville, and let him cuddle with me. He did eventually fall back asleep, and left on his own at 5:00AM. I usually get up at 6:00, so I had an hour to sleep. He was back outside the door at 6:00 looking for food.

So the bottom line of the Neville story: He still has separation anxiety. He acted like he was attached to me when we first brought him home, but then he got over it and started to become more independent. I guess when we left for the weekend, he thought we (when I say "we" I really mean "I" because he doesn't really care whether Chance is here or not) were never coming home. Not sure if in the future we will be able to leave him or have someone come in on Saturday to feed him and give him some attention. I hope this separation anxiety doesn't last too long!