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

Friday, August 25, 2017

Azaleas.........

I love them!  I have tried to grow them through the years............
starting off with a pretty, healthy plant,
then within weeks, the blossoms drop off........
the plant dies.
Friends have told me that the grounds here are too acidic and the heat
in our area is too intense for Azaleas to withstand. 
In the photo above.......these Azaleas
are now on my front porch...........

                                     
yet, these will never drop their blossoms, 
and they will never die........
they are made of silk!
This lovely arrangement arrived at my door today
from the 
Commercial Silk Company  (click on to visit)
Aren't they  the prettiest??
They came in a lovely box as well!

I love to send flowers........but when these arrived to me
in such a pretty box.........I realized I love to receive flowers 
as well!
And  I can just imagine the reaction of someone if 
I were to send a box of these lovelies to them! 


The Commercial Silk Company specializes in creating lovely lifelike 
silk flower arrangements

with decorative containers.........
( I chose a vintage metal container above) 
They also have artificial trees, bushes, topiaries,  succulents, 
boxwoods, and much more!  
It took me a few cups of coffee and and hour or two to 
look through all that they have to offer!
They also have a good varying price range to fit anyone's budget. 
I had the hardest time making a final decision on 
what I wanted..........everything was beautiful.......I wanted it all! 
As you know, I have posted about our front porch before,
and I love to spend time out on it on lovely days.
I have been wanting to freshen it up a bit........


that is why I chose this Azalea arrangement.  It gives 
such a nice touch to any area of the porch...........
I then had a hard time deciding on the right spot 
to place it. 
I tried it here first............the sitting area

then I placed it here.........so that it could be seen
when one approaches the porch

but I finally decided here.........when
walking up to the door,
it can be seen 

and the right amount of light shows
off the color of the blossoms.

Now the front porch has a 
welcoming touch to it.......
don't  you think?  
and I now have lovely Azaleas.........to last!
These flowers and the container are of such good quality!
I tugged at the flowers as I was spreading them open...........
not one petal or leaf came off.  
The metal container is also very well made and sturdy.
I know that this arrangement will last and  stay lovely on my
front porch for a long time.
So grab yourself a cup of coffee and visit 
Commercial Silk Company  (click on to visit)
  
Now tell me.........do you love to 
send flowers and revel in the 
excitement and surprise that the person 
you sent them to feels..........
or do you love being surprised 
when someone sends you flowers?

What would your favorite silk flower be?.....and what color??
I would love to hear!
















Saturday, August 19, 2017

In the early morning hours, I sit quietly with my morning coffee,

 and watch the busy traffic.......... streaming from the woods...
large groups of shell quail............in a constant flow and hurry


to the local watering hole
The bobwhite quail also hurry in, 

the long billed and short billed birds

all flying in for a drink and a bite to eat.


The small owls who have taken up residence in the trees 
watch from their tall perch

as a hungry and thirsty rabbit hops along the patio

to come to the same spot,
to the small cement feeders and shallow water containers 

  After the road runner enjoys a cool drink, 


                                            

it spots a cement planter and decides to make a bed


enjoying the moist dirt inside

constantly scratching to make it just right.

Then it hops out


and enjoys the warmth of the sun 


that is making the cool of the morning disappear. 

In no time, it is up and on it's way. 
Throughout the day, there is always some kind of bird
or creature, stopping by to rest at the feed and water.
A constant flow of traffic...........but 
one that is without honking horns, road rage or stress.
A road much traveled........
but much more enjoyable!
So tell me,
what traffic is running past your back yard?
I would love to hear!


Monday, August 7, 2017

She has been here for a few years..............

guarding the gardens........

(2013)
withstanding the harshest dirt storms, extreme heat, 
freezing snow

the scariest thunderstorms, with blowing rain and lightning,
and once had a nest of wasps in her head.


(2014)
But each year I find a new outfit for her to wear
(purchased at the thrift store)

(2015)
as you can see from the photos.....
she started out skinny as a stick

(2016)
and through the years, she has filled out. Her body has dropped 
and sagged and her head has cracked..........
and she has needed some repair............

(2017)
now here is Gertrude

she has moved from the back gardens, to the front
pumpkin patch.  I love to be able to look out the window 
and to be able to see my flowers and pumpkins growing!
Now, it is nice to also see Gertrude looking like a country
gardener , in the shade of the crooked and twisted mesquite
tree.........always keeping watch on whatever I choose to 
grow.  
So tell me..........who is keeping watch over your garden?
I would love to hear!

Wednesday, August 2, 2017

A brand new day


Tis sweet as the day begins to dawn,
When the lark her song is singing,
To wander at will through the grassy lawn
Where fresh flowers around are springing.
’Tis sweet at that solemn hour to go
O’er the rocky slope, all alone,
Where the scattering streamlets freely flow...
’Tis well to inhale the earthly gale,
As it sweeps the green hill’s side...
Or to look on the wood in its leafy pride,
In the glen or on the grove, the dawn is fair,—
Morning is beautiful every where!
~Thomas Furlong, "Morning Meditations"