"Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands........" 1 Thessalonians 4:11

Thursday, February 22, 2024

Unusual Hot February Days and Unusual Visitors

 

Here in Texas the February days have been up to 86 degrees.  The Italian Jasmine
is glimmering in the sunshine and is full of buzzing honey bees. 
One day we got a large rain .  Along came the same coyote that I have shown to  you 
in previous posts.  It looks pretty wet this day.  There is a large section of woods that surround our home and for years ,I have taken the kitchen scraps out to the woods.  I no longer have chickens to eat the scraps.
The coyotes and the raccoons enjoy this feast. I have noticed now, 
when I bang the scrap bucket, in just a few moments, the coyote has shown up to 
eat.  If I dare say hello ......it runs away.  It is good that it is scared of me. 
This morning we had two unusual visitors to the feed and water spot.  I am braver to greet a pack of wild coyote compared to these two wild hogs.  They have razor teeth, courage,  and extremely angry attitudes. They can be very dangerous.

I let them hang around just long enough to get a few good photos then I yelled at them
very loudly and thankfully they ran away.  I hope they don't come back for another visit, but now that they have found water and feed, they will more than likely stop by again. 
While these days are almost like days of summer.......we who live in this area know that in a blink of an eye, Texas can get a big snow.  We don't dare plant anything at this time because of this unpredictable weather. 
Are you enjoying sunny and pretty days?  Are snowflakes still falling by your window?
Have you had any unusual backyard visitors?
I would love to hear!


 








Thursday, February 8, 2024

Valentine's Day Wishes

Anyone can catch your eye, but it takes someone special to catch your heart.
Author Unknown
Wishing you a happy Valentine's Day! 


 

Tuesday, January 23, 2024

January

 

Let me start by sending all of you warm wishes that this finds you with sunshine and a warm cozy place during these cold January days.  While many of you have been under a thick blanket of snow and ice, 
we have had just a light dusting of frozen ice from our first hard freeze a few weeks back.  It sparkled in the sunshine as if diamonds had been scattered across the grounds. 
We remained dry but did experience temperatures that were down to 7 at night and only up to 22 in the day.  I am so thankful that our power company did not turn off the power as they had done to us in 2021.  
So we remained in our house on the harsh, windy , cold days, and embraced the sun when it came out to shine. 
How can I complain when I have a pink cotton candy cloud sky?
or
a moon just rising in a pink/blue late afternoon sky?
In the corner of the yard, a tough , determined sunflower bloomed.....in January!
A lone coyote has been coming up to the yard to drink from the icy water container as it goes along
hoping to find something to eat. It's coat looks so soft and silky in the sun.
In that same water, a little wild bird enjoys it's bath
and then sits for awhile to enjoy the sunny day. 
As most of you know, I love these "pincushion" devils claw cactus that I have dug up from the woods and planted into a dry garden. Some I plant into containers.  They are all doing well 
and I am thrilled to discover that there are many little cactus now growing in the same garden.
I have some plans for making some more dry garden spaces and for making some prettier flower gardens this year.  I hope this finds that you are thawing out if you have been under snow and that maybe some sunshine has come into your day. 
Wishing you all warm and pleasant days ahead!



















Sunday, December 31, 2023

Wednesday, December 13, 2023

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

 

The gift itself is not so much—
Perhaps you've had a dozen such;
Its value, when reduced to gold,
May seem too trifling to be told;
But someone, loving, kind, and true,
Selected it—and thought of You.
The gift may have a hollow ring—
The love behind it is the thing!
Walt Mason (1862–1939), "Christmas Gift"


Tuesday, November 28, 2023

November is fading away,

 sunny days are shorter and hold a chill from the cold of the night before.  A couple of large hoot owls have decided to make their midnight lookout post on a large crooked mesquite tree that stands outside of our bedroom window.  I hear their hooting through the wee hours and they sound as if they are in conversation with each other.  One has a distinct deep and low hoot and the other has a light airy hoot.  

There is still so much that is a vibrant green all along the grounds even though it is late November.

There is an abundance of red berries on the wild bushes this year
The Turkey Pear cactus is at its best in vibrant red and green. 
The porch plants are now tucked away into the greenhouse to wait the winter through
and there is not much to do outside on these short chilly days.
Much of my time is spent cooking, cleaning, or stitching the hours away.  There is always something that needs to be done inside.  I hope this finds that you all have had a blessed Thanksgiving day and are looking forward to a happy Christmas season ahead.




 




 

Monday, October 2, 2023

Summer days have gone

 

and there is a cooler breeze that blows through the woods and 
 across the prairie.  Some days are still quite hot, but the 
sun seems to be a bit more gentle as it beams down. The 
flowers seems have gotten a refreshed spurt of energy since the relief of 
rain and cooler temps have come and have started to bloom once again.
In the late afternoon and all through the night, the moonflower
bloom their large white trumpet flowers...their fragrance drifts on the breeze.
By mid morning, these lovely flowers will have faded away
Deer are coming up to eat the wild bird grain.....even in the 
early morning. If you look at the arrow on the photo, you can see a 
third deer behind the tree. 
They are such pretty creatures!
I took this photo of the sunset on the first day of fall........
the day closed with the perfect autumn colors.
The night temperature is perfect for star gazing.......
and moon gazing. 
Fall.......I am so glad you are here!
Wishing you all happy and pleasant fall days!