Bits of Blue

 

~ On Saturday we visited a new(ish) garden center.  It was one of those wonderful places filled with beauty, inspiration and a very knowledgeable staff.  What's not to like about that combination?

Since I have several blue garden pots in the garage, I was keeping an eye out for pleasing plant combinations to fill them with.

~With spring's arrival the bluebirds are visiting the feeder and the nesting boxes we put out for them.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed for new little families in the very near future.

~ There is a little vase sitting on the top shelf of a plant stand in my family room.  Each afternoon when I'm passing through there the sun illuminates it beautifully and I think I should take a picture of that.  Today I did.

~ My birthday was on Good Friday this year.  It rained that day with a tornado warning thrown in the mix.  It seemed like a good day to stay in.  So, I did.  Stayed in and baked myself a carrot cake.  Well, actually it was for Easter and I shared it with the family.

~ Easter was a lovely day.  We ate lots of good food and then went on a walking tour of homes being built across the street.  

~ The next day, while washing up the dishes, it occured to me that I didn't take a single picture on Easter.  It also occurred to me as I was drying the china that I haven't changed much since picking out my wedding china.  Something Blue.

~ I liked blue then and still do as you may have guessed by now.

Since my birthday it's been nothing but blue skies around here.

Last evening the spring green leaves on the trees looked so pretty with the clear blue sky background.  

Any bits of blue capturing your attention lately?

An Evening Walk

Around here the construction crews arrive early and since the majority of the new homes are going up across the street and down the street, that makes for a steady stream of construction trucks and workers.  Neighborhood walks during the day would involve a lot of maneuvering around obstacles and, therefore, don't happen often.

The secret is to wait until just before sunset when most have finished their day's work.  Things are much quieter and the hammering is replaced by the sound of birdsong.  

Tonight after washing the dinner dishes, I put on my walking shoes, grabbed my phone and slipped out the door.

Dogwoods and Redbuds were calling my name.

Here our mail is delivered to a central location within the neighborhood.  It is a nice little walk to get there.  A few rolling hills are involved.  That was my destination on this lovely evening.

In the distance the sun began it's descent.

Before long it would be gone from the horizon and another day would be nearing it's end.  Time to head for home.

In our last house we planted a redbud right outside the master bathroom window.  It grew well and soon filled in the view looking especially lovely at this time of year.  If you've been around long enough you may remember it here.  It was one of the many aspects of the garden that was hard to leave behind.  Before moving into this house we were happy to see that the developers planted a few trees in the commons area on the side of the house.  Imagine our delight when the one situated right outside the master bath turned out the be another redbud.  It's beginning to feel like home more every day.

Welcoming Spring

Spring has sprung

The grass has riz

I wonder where the flowers is?

On this first day of Spring my thoughts wander to this little poem I often heard my mom recite.  There aren't many flower to be found here so I am sharing the pretty bouquet featured on the card my sister sent to me.

 With Easter being later this year and winter being grayer, I was craving the pretty colors of Springtime.  So, last weekend it was time to see just what Easter décor survived the great moving purge.  

 This little bunny has his garden trowel in hand eager to get out there and dig in the garden.  He's hoping to knock out the garden chores in time to hide those Easter eggs.  

 Speaking of Easter eggs.

It seems all of the bunnies are busy loading their baskets and wheelbarrows to make this year's hunt a roaring success.  Perhaps they know that many of their relatives have gone to new homes and are hoping to avoid the same fate.

 In another corner Mrs. Bunny has her tree beautifully decorated and is busy searching for just the right spot to display it.

 This little knee hugger chick is not convinced that it's warm enough to venture out.  For now she's content to be curled up in a tea cup.

 This bunny with her extra large egg is summoning the strength needed to add her contribution to the big Easter egg hunt.  

 Another wheelbarrow ready to hop into action.

Well, I think it's safe to say that the bunnies have nothing to fear.  The hutch is a happier place because of them.

I've even switched seats at the table so that I can enjoy their antics while dining.

From my happy hutch to you, the bunnies (and chick and lamb) say

"Happy Spring"

While waiting...

~ Waiting for Spring's Arrival ~

It shouldn't be too much longer, if you believe the calendar.

I'm getting a bit antsy this year.

Yet, in an effort to be patient while waiting, I snipped a few grape hyacinths and plopped them in a birdy vase.  They joined the etched glass bird and her nest of eggs.  A gift brought from England many years ago.

The windowsill above my desk just got a wee Spring makeover.

For the first time in my married life we have windowsills.

One of those exciting little things for me :).

While I am resisting the urge to clutter them up, I couldn't pass up an opportunity to bring a touch of the outdoors in and why not enjoy it while working and gazing out the window waiting for Spring to arrive in all her glory.

🎕🎕🎕

Are you looking forward to Spring?

Garden Dreams

My current herb garden consists of one lone rosemary plant.

In the absence of a real garden, it is being overly pampered while my itchy green thumbs wait most impatiently to get gardening.

 When we moved in at the end of November we weren't quite sure what we wanted to do in the backyard.  So, we did almost nothing.

At the last minute I dug up some grape hyacinth and black eyed Susan from the old house and planted them along the back wall of the new house.

 When we chose our lot we picked one with a protected wetlands in the back.  This was one way to have a bit more privacy on our tiny lot.  In the photo above our lot ends where the lawn stops.  It may not look all that small, but trust me, it is.

Teeny Tiny.

This angle might give you a better idea.

  The window you see is the next-door-neighbor's bedroom.  It's almost close enough to reach over and touch.  We did add 3 shrubs to afford some privacy.  They will grow up to 10' tall and 6-8' wide.

The shrubs are called Fragrant Tea Olive.  At certain times of the year they put out tiny clusters of white blossoms that give off a very pleasant scent.  It has been described as being similar to rose, gardenia or jasmine.  We had them on either end of the patio in our previous garden and loved the subtle waft of fragrance when sitting on the patio or going in and out of the house.

As much as I love to garden, I am not a garden designer.  We have a basic idea of what we want so we consulted with the landscape designers who created the waterfall/fish pond in the last garden.

While we wait to see what they come up with I am trying to be patient.  Our unusual amount of rainy, gray days this winter is making it a challenge.  Yet a trip to the local garden center helped matters.  It was fun to look at all of the seeds and dream of things to come.

 I'm planning to make many of the plants in this new garden do double duty in the form of edible landscaping.  I became intrigued by this idea after reading this post.

I'd really like to work in a fig too.  They do so well here although I know they do get big.  We'll see...

This book has been an inspiration too.

While waiting, I read and dream.

 This house has no built in bookcases.

However, since there are a lot of cupboards I've been satisfying my love for old and new garden books and the vintage garden pieces that survived the massive purging I did prior to moving in a new way.

Little happy spots behind cupboard doors.

My little secret ;).

A recent thrift shop find, this book offers great information for our garden plans.  At the suggestion of our chiropractor, we have been making green smoothies regularly.  That has meant buying lots and lots of greens.  I'm thrilled with the idea of growing them myself for a portion of the year.  It will be nice to save a little green while ingesting all of those greens.

🍃🍃🍃

On another note, belated thanks to all who offered kind words, support and even prayers for the dental ordeal in my previous post.  I'm pleased (and relieved) to report that all went well.  Glad to be done with that.

Last Day of January

 This is the sight I saw when I opened the blind in the front bedroom this morning.  

Shortly after that I opened the blind above my desk and this was the view.  When we moved in it was rather quiet on our end of the street.  There were no homes across the street or to the left of us.

Looks like that is about to change.

❆❄❅

How are things looking in your neck of the woods on this last day of January?

Are you staying warm?  My gosh, it's been unbelievably cold for a lot of you.  Here it's currently 39 and sunny, yet I have on two sweaters and my slipper socks.  Wimp!

Tomorrow morning I'll be going to a new dentist for part 1 of a crown.  Double Wimp!!  I was feeling so good about myself while eating a healthy breakfast of Greek yogurt, berries and homemade granola.  That is until the part of the granola that seemed awfully hard turned out to be a piece of my tooth.  Ugh!  So, my white knuckles and I will be starting the new month off reclined in the dental torture chamber chair. 😁

Can you tell how excited I am?

Decorating the Foyer

 The foyer in my last house was the one area that had me stumped for the whole time I lived there.  I know they say the foyer should make a good first impression and create a welcoming feel to all who enter.  The problem was, unless you find a grandfather clock with two pictures next to it exciting, it was lacking on all fronts.

Seems I could never figure out quite what to do with it so I sort of ignored it.

So now, in this new house, I was determined to create a more welcoming foyer right off the bat.

I started by heading to HomeGoods to check out their lamps.  This house has a very open floor plan so I was trying to tie the adjoining room colors together without being too bold.  This lamp with a touch of white, gray and blue seemed ideal.

 I knew I also wanted a mirror, but had no idea what it should look like until I saw this one.  I decided to bring it home and give it a try.

Once we managed to get the mirror hung and played around with the accessories, I was pleased with how it came together.  

My son dropped by shortly after things came together and wondered "what's up with the Gather"?  Ha!  I'm hoping to create a home that encourages new friends to gather together and feel welcome.

As for the grandfather clock and two pictures, they have been relocated right across the hall.  I think they look more comfortable in there :).

Here it is the third week of January and I haven't even wished you all a Happy New Year.  I hope you are managing to stay warm and healthy.