Pretzels & Brazil Nuts...

A few birthdays ago,

my dear husband gifted me with this rustic outdoor bench

 that wraps around our crab apple tree,

 a tree that sits next to our front door,

 and

 I. love. it.

(you done good honey)

 

  Summer time you will find it full of various potted plants,

old bird houses

 and

other ditties that I have found over the years. 

 

 At Christmas time

you will find potted sruce tips,

 fresh pine, winter berries

 and

 perhaps an old pair of ice skates.

 

Here is my Autumn version of the bench...

I filled the bench with various size, shapes and colors of these... 

with freshly picked bittersweet entwined throughout...

are you getting the picture?
Good.

This years harvest of hedge apples

 were really too big

 for my various ironstone bowls

 or platters

 for indoor decorating.

 

Darnit, now what am I going to do with all these hedge apples?

 

AND THEN

 I had this brilliant idea...

 

I'll tuck some of them around the pumpkins

on my tree bench...

orange & green, wonderful contrast,
PERFECT....

If you aren't familiar with the hedge apple,

 they sort of stink,

and
 they ooze a sticky substance.
 

 Old wives tales say they are suppose to repel spiders,

 if you keep a few cut up in your basement

over the winter months.

 

 Hmmmmm...

maybe they would repel those damn little bushy tail varmints?

{she thinks with a twinkle in her eye}

 

Brilliant idea,

I thought...

And the photo above pretty well sums

up my latest research...

The pumpkins are now gone,

not because I made pumpkin pies with them...

 

The bittersweet is finding it's way

to the ground.

Not because I put it there...

{sigh}

 

Awwww,

and

poor little bushy tail

only has hedge apples to snack on....

Hmmm...

 

Sort of like

 when you

get down

 to just

 the pretzels and Brazil nuts

in the bowl of Chex Party Mix....

 

you soon realize

they aren't so dry

and bad tasting after all...

 

and

 so much

for my

 hedge apple squirrel repellent theory!

 

Maybe I should stick to pattern ideas

and

 forget about a career

 in pest repellents...

 

You win squirrel,

Brenda