Stir Your Sense of Pleasure........

     ........This giant cake pop will do it!!!   

The cake pop is yellow cake rolled in some kind of creamy puffy mixture and covered with colored coconut. Yummy, yummy taste but a bit too sweet for me. The fresh strawberries are just what it needs to cut some of the sweetness.

Two out of the three Dove candies told me to Stir my sense of pleasure!  Sure worked for me.

I wish I could give you the recipe for the cake pop but, it came straight from the Publix bakery.  This might just be the start of a once a year tradition for me. I wanted to go to Pappy's Patch and pick strawberries but they weren't picking yesterday. So, these are also from Publix.

Did you know that three a day of these dark chocolate Dove pieces are good for you?

How do you like my spoon stand?  It was a gift from my son one Christmas.  It also works well with a flat plate.

I cut most of my roses to bring in yesterday knowing it would get down to freezing temperature last night. The roof tops and grass were covered with frost when I first got up this morning.

I am sure I had damage to plants that I couldn't bring in and didn't cover!  What a shame, especially when it will be back to eighty degrees two days from now!!

This rose is Old Blush.

I love the little buds about as much as the open blossom. Old Blush is not particularly good for cut arrangements. Except for one Knock-out rose all my roses are antique roses. Since I don't spray the bushes, the Knock-out looks ugly half the time so I may get rid of it.

Old Blush grows in a full and upright bush and is a favorite for the south.  It has been much used for hybridization. It is said that General Lee wore an Old Blush rose in his lapel at his surrender.

The blossom on the right is G. Nabonnand - one of my favorites. It is a little past its best look here but I still like it. Unlike a lot of old roses it can have nice long stems.

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I appreciate you for spending a little time here on my blog with me!  I hope your sense of pleasure has been stirred!!

I Like to Play in the Dirt ~~~~~~~~

I have been playing in the dirt a lot this week. Actually, I have been doing a lot of work raking, trimming and other clean up.  I took time to visit with my garden gnomes and helped them get their area all nice and neat.

Their abode is near these big toad stools. The plant with the blue flowers is a spiderwart. Wart is just another word for plant. It is an invasive in most gardens but not mine. In fact, I have been trying to get some natives to invade and they won't! I have very poor growing conditions.

Here they are after I worked and even laid down some moss carpet for them.

The moss is really just for the photo shoot. It wouldn't stay pretty long if I left it here and I have another purpose for it.

This one needs a new paint job.

The next time you see this croscosmia it will be in bloom as it is starting to bud. Now, this plant WILL spread everywhere. It is not a problem though because it completely disappears when the hot weather hits. And, shows up again in late fall.

I was happy to see several of these plants, the one next to the flower pot, a creeping ruellia. I have been hoping it would naturalize and help cover some of my bare places back here in what I call my wild area.

I also found some of these violets here and there. Nothing seems to spread very fast. I put the first clump of these in the ground several years ago.

This is a wildflower but I don't know what it is called. In the background you can see Waldo and his blue house.

There he is just beyond the wild coffee plants.

I love these bushes. They keep the berries for about half of the year or more.

Waldo never gets very far from home. I never have to wonder, where's Waldo! He just sits here and thinks with his foot up on his head.

I thought I would show a few other things while we are back here. This is a green ball tree. Actually it is a camphor sprout. I keep trimming it back - don't want it to get big!

I love the saying on this plaque. It was a gift from a family from England that had Christmas lunch with me a few years ago. They were guests with my daughter and son-in-law. I had not met them before but it was a good time had by all, I think.

A very large bromeliad and assorted ferns.

A ginger.

A pencil cactus. Little did I know how big these can get when I put this one here. I might have to call in my tree man if it gets out of hand!

I do a lot of living, laughing and loving here in the backyard. Just me, Waldo, the gnomes and all the wild creatures that play in the dirt with me.

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 I think I have chosen the spot for my Monet Outdoor Tea Party.  It won't be ideal but I think we will have fun.

Of Love, Families and Nest Building ~~~~~

     ~~~~~~~This morning I noticed a lot of bird activity just outside my dining room window. As I paid closer attention I realized it was a Carolina Wren couple building a nest in a container of begonias.

source - National Geographic

Looking at the container from the outside.

Last week I trimmed back the begonias because they had gotten so leggy. The whole look is not pretty now but, watching these two birds was so neat!!!!  See it sitting on the arm of the chair, with a twig. Immediately after this picture it hopped to the edge of the pot and went down out of sight in the middle.

I watched them come and go for quite a few trips. They started with small thin twigs and gradually brought larger twigs and oak leaves. He (she) is sitting on the corner of the pot holding a dry leaf. It was a very cloudy morning and with the camera zoomed and snapping through the window these are not the best pictures. These birds are monogamous and breeding pairs may stay together for years. They stay on their home territory all year long.  They have a habit of building in attractive human made spots like windowsills, mailboxes and flower pots.

See it on the corner of the pot next to the green flax lily? It is leaving to get more building material.

I love to watch the birds especially the Carolina Wrens. They scamper around low to the ground and hop more than they fly. They are small but very vocal.  Males are especially outgoing and are the only ones to produce songs. They employ one of the loudest songs per volume of any bird. They sing anytime, any place they happen to be. Oh, that us humans might flit around with happy songs all the time!

The nest building went on through the morning.  A pair always works together on the nest. Late afternoon, after not seeing any coming and going, I went out and got close enough to get this picture of the finished nest. It was empty. It is situated with the entrance on the side and the top is pretty thick. I am hoping they will survive any hard downpour if it ever rains here again!  I will just let the plant dry up instead of hand watering if need be until their little family is hatched. The other concern I have is neighborhood cats which visit in my yard every day.  I made a video through the window of their (the birds, not cats) coming and going and wanted to put it here. I downloaded it and now cannot find it anywhere!

   This little picture shows a comparison size of a Carolina Wren to a tea cup. I seem to work a tea cup into most of my posts! This picture and most of the facts are courtesy of National Geographic.  Love is in the air here - I will try to give you updates and hopefully pictures of eggs and baby birds.

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My Tribute to Valentine's Day, a little early.

"Valentine treasures are people who
have often crossed your mind,
family, friends and others, too,
who in your life have shined
the warmth of love or a spark of light
that makes you remember them;
no matter how long since you’ve actually met,
each one is a luminous gem,
who gleams and glows in your memory,
bringing special pleasures,
and that’s why this Valentine comes to you:
You’re one of those sparkling treasures!" 
     .........I think of hearts, the colors red and pink, roses, chocolates, and romance.  I must admit Valentine's day is close to the bottom of my favorite holidays list.  I remember loving valentine cards when I was a child.  I liked giving and receiving them. I made a few valentines this year to be sold at my church's bookstore. The proceeds from cards that a small group of ladies make for the store go directly to the education of little Honduras children. I forgot to take pictures to use here.

I don't do much decorating for Valentine's Day.

I do enjoy hanging this metal heart-shaped container on my wreath holder to stand outside near the front door.

This bust of a victorian looking lady stands on a small piece of furniture in my bedroom year round but, I made a little valentine vignette by adding a small bouquet of roses from my garden and and a paper fan.

It made a nice little valentine Day scene.

How convenient that I ran across this just recently in some of my stored items.

 

The  lacy fabric that was already hanging here lends a romantic look.

The one other place I put a little valentine decor was in the guest bathroom, simply by adding this pink towel and a bottle with a heart stopper top.

The pink colored soap fits, too.

Every year I buy at least one box of these Little Debbie heart shaped cookies. They are as routine for me as Girl Scout cookies!

I like the way they look and taste.

I have these two heart shaped pieces of jewelry. Maybe I should make a point of wearing them this week.

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Essential Valentine



"On Valentine’s Day we think about
Those matchless people who
Give extra meaning to our lives--
The very special few. Without them, skies would turn to gray,Things wouldn't be the same,Life wouldn't be as colorful;It would be a different game. And when I contemplate that group--Friends and family who are mine,I appreciate and treasure you;You're essential, Valentine!"