A Great Week For Being In The Garden......

The weather has been just about perfect except we could sure use some more rain. I have been doing a lot of hand watering.  I love standing with a hose and refreshing everything.  I have lots of things blooming now.  All my rose bushes have at least a few blooms.  I have shown them several times and won't show many this time.

I have been enjoying this big Louis Philipe rose. This picture was made through the back porch screen.

Close up of Louis Philipe. And just to the right of this big bush is this one.....

....Mutabalis.  I love this single petal rose, sometimes called the butterfly rose because the blossoms turn darker and it can have about three shades of blooms at one time giving the impression that a bunch of butterflies have lit on it.

 I keep thinking of all my company that has come and gone and I wish they could all see my yard now.  I know they will think I am just saying this but it really does look a good bit better than when they were here.  This is duranta.

It is also called golden dew drop because of these seeds. It has both nice purple blooms and these seeds at the same time.

This Ducher rose just blooms and blooms.

Because you could see this in the background of the last picture, I am showing a close up.  I plan to do a post with all my Easter decorations a little later.

One of my best shots of  a Ducher bloom up close.

This is another little plant that just blooms constantly - Euphorbia. I love how delicate the small white blooms are.

  Is that some big ears I see in the blue-eye grass!!! 

It sure is and doesn't he look quite proud of himself.

It's hard to photograph but this grass has lots of little blue flowers (iris) on it.

As I finished photographing the rabbit another critter fluttered by - this Monarch butterfly.  I am happy to start seeing these. They have been a little scarce but hopefully are making a come back.

And, would you look at this!!!  Is he one of the critters that has been chewing perfectly round holes in a lot of leaves. I guess he is trying to get some calcium and perhaps a little protein from this egg.

Someone has left seven eggs in this pot of grass.

This morning I noticed all the walking Iris had developed buds. They all bloom at once in one day. I went on around the house taking pictures and watered a little with a hose and when I came back around, maybe thirty minutes later this is what I saw!

Isn't it just amazing how nature is so wonderfully designed!!! Every one of them had fully opened.

They're not the prettiest iris and the blooms don't last long but they sure are organized.

Well, I have many more pictures but I am going to put those in part two of our yard tour.  I hope you are enjoying some outside time and are noticing the many marvelous wonders of Gods creation!

~~~~

Three Things to Share........

......Three things and none of them from the garden as I promised in my last post.  I need to quit saying what will be coming next because I am not reliable with following through.  I get excited over little things and one of them this week is what I found at Big Lots when I went looking for a garden wagon they are having a great sale on.  More on that later..........

They had just a few of these big letters which are very popular in decorating now. I started looking for an S, the first letter of my last name.  They had none of those but I found this B.  B is for Betty my first name or B is for bird which I have many of and love! For Carrie - no C or E.

The best part?  It was only $2.

The next thing is this hanging ribbon and cups item - all things I already had.  It is hanging on a cabinet side at my kitchen window. Love, love, love!

I put a white cup hook into the cabinet side and used three different ribbons, one black check, one black stripe and one solid green.

I found this tiny nest on the ground one day and saved it with my nest collection - another post to come.  Now that I see this picture on here I will go and remove the one stray, white piece that looks like it doesn't belong.

The little egg is plastic.

And last, this glass piece which I assembled.  I saved this lamp globe (from years ago) after the cord shorted out and flamed up - a scary few minutes!  I have intended to have the cord replaced but never did and now I never will.

When I saw it sitting upside down in the garage a light went off in my head!  I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it.  I opened a kitchen cabinet door and chose two pieces of glassware to make a top which also covered the opening which originally sat in the lamp base. The little sherbet dish (I have only this one) fit perfectly. And, the tiny bowl finished it off.  I used E600 glue which holds well and doesn't show at all.

It is presently sitting loose on this small pedestal with my spooner inside.  It can look better with just the right thing inside.  When I figure out what that is I will show you. It looks a bit top heavy and something dark, slender and tall inside would be better - ummmmm, a big chocolate bunny???

~~~~~~

Sharing From the Inside.........

........I took bunches of pictures outside in my yard this morning until my batteries ran down.  I am however, going to show a few that I just made inside.  My next post will be from my garden.

This is a nighttime and dark picture but, I like it.  I hope you can see good enough to enjoy it. I haven't shown this area after I changed it over for spring.  At least I think I haven't. Please forgive if I repeat!

Here is the shelf in detail.  I put the spring-like stems in the two vases and added some miniature tea things.

 

I found this metal envelope at Goodwill  and I bought two other items that day and the total was $3 and and some change.  You know this was a bargin!

I printed out an old-looking menu to stick in it and draped the old linen on it.

I know you have seen this as a recent gift I talked about but it did not have any of the decorations.

I put one of my real bird nests inside with an egg in it.  Added the dragonflies and the sprig of blackberries.

Doesn't it have an interesting top.

I printed out a new picture for this frame and made it look more springy.

Lots of reflection going on here.

I have been given the nicest gifts lately by family and friends. This petite vase came from a good friend who always shares a "spring fling" party with me and a few other friends.  This year the party had to be cancelled because of sickness but we still celebrated spring by exchanging gifts.

The bag is so pretty with its applied butterflies, I consider it part of the gift!

Isn't it so sweet!!

I picked a bouquet of herbs to put in it.

Do you grow herbs?  I love growing them - one of my favorite plant groups.  Can you identify all of them?  There is parsley, dill, rosemary and thyme. Also arugula blossoms and onion chives. The purple blossom is on the rosemary and do you see the tiny flowers on the thyme?

What a nice surprise came in the mail for me today!  A thank you card and this Michaels gift card.  It is from my great-niece and her boyfriend. They spent some time here with me recently.

    

I can hardly wait to go spend it!  You see I have my purse ready to go!

~~~~~~

I Think We Have Four.......

..........Four baby wrens in the window box nest.  Early in the week I could see movement in the nest when the adult bird was not in there.  Today I opened the window and got a few pictures of the new birds.

Can you see them? They are in there!

I have seen the dad(?) bring wiggling worms to the nest several times today.

                                          Oh, yes. Hungry babies with their beaks wide open.  

Sorry, baby wrens, I am not the one bringing you worms.

To be continued later............

~~~~~