It's Officially Here!!

 Gail has all the flower pots out and ready to go!  She says the pansies are on their way!

 There is color again!  

 Jezzy, as Maria affectionately calls her, in her nest...can you see her little face?

 Things are starting to grow again! 

Buds along the wall outside the courtyard. 

Those Sneaky Morning Doves....

Remember a few weeks ago when I told you the story of how I "met" Jezebel, the morning dove who continually chooses the Villa Courtyard to raise her babies?  Netting had been placed over the light fixtures she normally built her nests in to prevent her from taking up residence inside them, and she was originally beginning to construct her nest over that netting.  Sneaky I tell ya....

A few days ago I was sitting for public hours when I heard the doves cooing in the courtyard.  It's pretty normal to hear them, especially on a quiet day.  But this time it was really loud.  It sounded like she was in the building it was so loud.  I grabbed my camera, and walked outside, to see her mate sitting on the ledge right by the door.  He must have been cooing close to the doorway, which is why it was so loud, I thought.  Then I turned around to go back inside and happened to look up to see Jezebel sitting in the circle window right above the entrance, guilty as charged with a stick in her mouth, looking at me like she hadn't gotten caught red-handed.  Sure enough, she has relocated her nest to this window, right above our main entrance.

If last year is any indication, she is a pretty relaxed mom when it comes to people being around her babies, but I immediately thought of the countless number of guests walking directly underneath this window everyday and whether or not we'd have a problem with her acting up.  She obviously did not consider this when choosing her new nest location.  That and watch out for droppings!!!

Just a few friendly reminders....

Hi All!  Happy Wednesday!

I was just over at the Allis taking care of some website updates and thought I'd post a friendly reminder about some upcoming events!

This Sunday is of course indoor Cafe at the Villa.  Doors open at 10 am, and Bella's will be here with the usual coffee and pastries.  No brunch this month.  Not to worry, though! Brunch will return to the balcony in June.  As for indoors, well, there simply isn't enough space.  We want to maximize your viewing pleasure and hopefully things will be less crowded this month.  Music will be by Tangos Stas and Friends.

With Spring around the corner, Gail is hard at work getting the gardens ready for the opening in June.  She needs your help!  If you are volunteer in the gardens, the first two volunteer days will be May 14 and 21 from 8:30 am to noon.  Contact Gail at gjaeger@cavtmuseums.org, 414-271-3656 x211 to sign up!

That should do it!

Plein Air Art and Garden Sale and Allis Garden Restoration

Lest we forget, the Charles Allis is also experiencing the early stages of Spring fever too, and the gardens there are also spectacular in the Spring and Summer months.  To get everyone excited about Spring, planting gardens, and being eco-friendly, the Charles Allis Art Museum will be hosting a Plein Air Art and Garden Sale on Saturday, May 14.  I must admit I am very excited about this event!  Our lovely Ann has put together a press release announcing this event, so without further ado, take it away Ann!

The Charles Allis Art Museum will host Plein Air Art and Garden Sale - "From Our Garden to Yours" on Saturday, May 14 from 9 am to 4 pm.  Local Plein Air artists will paint in the Allis museum's English garden beginning on Thursday, May 12.  Their completed works will be ready for sale at 2:30 pm during Saturday's festivities. 

Additional activities include viewing Plein Air landscapes in the Charles and Sarah Allis collection, the sale of plants, crafts for kids, garden giveaways, and a presentation by The Green Team, Sustainable Landscape Management.  The Green Team will speak about the Allis garden's transformation and display one of their eco-friendly lawn mowers. 

The Charles Allis event staff thanks Johnson's Nursery, The Flower Source and The Green Team for their sponsorship of Plein Air Art and Garden Sale-"From Our Garden to Yours." 

Plan to attend this family, admission-free day at Milwaukee's Charles Allis Art Museum located at 1801 N. Prospect Avenue.

I am very excited about purchasing plants, and also about hearing from the Green Team.  Being interested in environmental science and "green" practices myself, I am always excited about local organizations developing new and innovative ways to help reduce our carbon footprint AND they are helping us do great restorations to the gardens at the Allis in the coming seasons.  To learn more about their philosophy and their practices, please visit The Green Team's website here.

And to get you all excited about "greener pastures" over at the Allis, here are some photos graciously donated by our very own Patty Redeker and Dennis Felber. 

Photo by Dennis Felber

Photo by Dennis Felber

Photo by Dennis Felber

Photo by Patty Redeker

Photo by Patty Redeker

Photo by Dennis Felber

Photo by Patty Redeker

Hope to see you all at the Allis on May 14th!

Please check back often for more information about the garden restoration at the Allis by The Green Team.

For more press releases from the Charles Allis and Villa Terrace museums, please visit the "News" tabs on both our websites, or click here for the Charles Allis and here for the Villa Terrace.

John Gurda is Coming to the Allis!

Author and historian John Gurda will be coming to the Charles Allis Art Museum to talk about the Allis Family and their role in the rise of manufacturing.  It should be a very interesting talk, especially for anyone familiar with farming and the Allis-Chalmers Corporation and curious about the history of the Allis family and the East Side of Milwaukee!

The lecture starts at 7 pm on Wednesday, April 27 and is $15 for members and $20 for non-members.  For an additional $10, you can come at 6 pm to take part in a cocktail hour in which John Gurda himself will answer all of your questions and socialize with the audience.

Reservations are strongly recommended.  To make a reservation by phone, please call 414-271-3656 ext. 215.  Tickets can also be purchased online at our online store.

Hope to see you all there!

Our summer courtyard tenants have returned..

Last summer was my first summer here working with the Villa, and as such I had a lot to learn not only about my job, but about the nuances and traditions that have been occurring here for many years.  One of the first Cafes of the season, my coworkers and I were setting up with Patty from Zilli's when I noticed a morning dove above the lights at the side door from the pantry to the courtyard.  I swore it wasn't real...I was so close to it and it didn't even flinch.  I called Patty over and she said "Oh yeah, that's Jezebel, she's here every year."  No way, I thought, you are definitely pulling my leg.  For several minutes I exclaimed that there was no way that bird was real, while Patty insisted she was not trying to play a trick on me.  Finally, I got up as close as I could to the bird, so close I could have reached out and touched it, when she blinked.  I was so startled that I laughed hysterically for probably five minutes!  After that, I saw Jezebel (named by our Katie Shorts) and her two batches of adorable babies every Sunday morning at Cafe.

These morning doves are a fixture in our Courtyard. Despite putting wire over the lights so they can't build their nests inside the top of the lights, they have returned, apparently building their nests on top of the wire netting.  These two have definitely made the Villa Courtyard their home, and I for one am happy they are back!

They don't even try to walk away even when you get right up next to them!

Getting Excited!

First, I have noticed many visitors viewing the blog in the past week or so and wanted to say welcome and thanks for stopping by!  It is such a great feeling to get to share what's going on here with everyone, and to know there are people out there reading!

Today, the sun is shining and the air is warm with hints of Spring again.  Our wonderful gardener Gail has been hard at work in the gardens already, and you can definitely tell that there is an excitement about Spring around here.

Patty, our Membership and Development Coordinator (among many other things) also happens to be a very talented photographer, and more often than not throughout the year she can be seen wandering around the Villa and Allis taking pictures of our various events and scenery.  She graciously passed on some of her lovely pictures to share with you all!  I am sure there will be many more to come!

Gail, our Estate Gardener, working on the flower pots in the Courtyard last Spring.  Soon those pots will be back in the Courtyard again!

According to the description, this is a Crocus.  The color is spectacular!

Time to bring the flower pots out of storage for Spring.

Yes, of course the bugs will return too.  But they do bring with them their own treasures as well, and with any luck the dragon flies will cover the sky above the gardens like last year.  It is definitely a sight to see!

Everyone is working hard to make sure we have a colorful, successful, and exciting Spring and Summer season.  I'll be sure to keep you up to date on everything that goes on, and be sure to stop by and visit!