Out of Doors!

We spent a lot of time outdoors with a string of good weather we’ve been having. Here are some photos of what is blooming outside in our yard.

Our pink Dogwood.

Some sweet pansies.

Our lilac and bleeding hearts.

Dogwood with Lilac in the background.

Our azaleas and rhododendrons are getting ready to show us all they have to offer soon.

Yesterday I brought some of our outside beauties in to enjoy their fragrance.

We had a record breaker heat day yesterday at 90 degrees. They expect another record breaker for today at 86. Unheard of in April.

Linking up with ABC Wednesday originated by Mrs. Nesbitt and carried on by Roger and and team. O is for out of doors, outdoors, outside.

Cheerful!

Daffodils can help spread sunshine on a cloudy day. So if it’s dark and gloomy in your neck of the woods I hope these add a little light to your world and make you smile. Daffodils pop up and are such a nice surprise every year as they remind us that Spring is coming.

Hope you have a cheerful week.

What Makes you Smile?

Sunflowers make me smile.

Birds flitting around the yard make me smile.

Wild bunnies eating my clover make me smile.

Seeing my children blessing their friends and each other makes me smile.

Seeing good times that my nieces and nephews are having on Facebook makes me smile.

Completing my to-do lists makes me smile.

Enjoying a good meal with friends makes me smile.

Seeing someone smile at me makes me smile right back!

Seeing God’s mercy and grace in my life and in other lives makes me smile.

Hearing about answered prayers makes me smile.

What makes you smile?

Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute! Philippians 4: 4-5 (The Message)

Rosebud Azaleas

I wanted to show you my sweet Rosebud Azaleas and give you an update about what’s going on around this old house. If you are here for the giveaway you will need to scroll down a few posts.

This variety of Azalea is my very favorite.

I finally cleaned out this area of the front planter that rounds the corner of the house and planted a hydrangea in the space. Time will tell if the blooms will stay purple.

My cement block plantings are mostly doing real well. The wild rabbits that roam around here have eaten all the pansy blooms, though.

Things are going well with my extraction recovery. I never really experienced any pain to speak of which is nice. I’ll be getting the stitches out on Wednesday if they haven’t dissolved on their own. I’m still on a relatively soft diet so I don’t hurt the area that is healing. Although I still have a few days of antibiotics left I am off the Ibuprofen. Thank you for your kind thoughts. My de-fluffing progress was hindered by being on medication and being off my regular meal regiment but I’m happy to report things are still going well.

Happy Victoria Day weekend to our friends in Canada!

Peonies and Purple Blooms

Time for ABC Wednesday and the letter P! Thank you Mrs. Nesbitt, Roger and the whole ABC Team!

I love all the shades of purple that are growing in my yard right now. My lilac blooms are almost full.

Pansies and the ground cover have purple blooms.

I have the promise of more peonies this year than last.

More perennials that are purple.

And here’s my Bible Verse Card for the Letter P!

And on the subject of peace here are some words from the Prince of Peace, Jesus;

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” John 14:27

I’m continuing to enjoy a peaceful week at this old house. We had some very warm weather here on Monday. It reached 76 degrees in our town. Tuesday is another story. Hopefully I’ll be able to mow the lawn before the rain comes in.

Do you have promises of more blooms in your yard?

Springing Up Already!

Some of my favorite things in my yard this week! I count all of these as blessings from above.

Things that are springing up around here are among my favorites for

Friday’s Fave Five hosted by Susanne at Living to Tell the Story.

The Lenten Rose is my favorite plant that ushers in the Lenten Season.

These primroses appear every year and I didn’t plant them. I’m always happy to see them.

What fun to see these miniature daffodils springing up, too.

We managed to prune both our apple tree and pear tree this week and that was a huge accomplishment at this old house.

My bonus fave is my verse of the week from my abc Scripture Memory Cards…

The fact that we have been called and redeemed by God is pure love…

Have a wonderful Valentines Day and President’s Day Weekend.

Do you get Monday off? What were some of your favorites this week?

In the Pink!

I’ve got one more post from our trip to the tulip festival this year.

Meanwhile at this old house we are busy busy getting ready for Easter.

Today is Maundy Thursday—the Thursday before Easter. Christians around the world and across many denominations take time on this day to remember the Last Supper, when Jesus and his disciples dined together for the last time before his death.

The word “Maundy” comes from the Latin word for commandment (mandatum), which Jesus talked about when he told his disciples that he was leaving them “a new commandment,” that they “love one another.”

As a reminder of this commandment, some churches hold foot washing ceremonies on the Thursday of Holy Week. If you’ve never been a part of a foot washing ceremony, it’s an incredibly humbling activity—one can imagine how difficult it would have been for the disciples to allow Jesus to humble himself in this way.

ht: Bible Gateway

Dopey and Sleepy…

…that’s how I feel after having a wonderful time in Canada last night. When all of my senses come back on line I’ll share all about our time. Until then…

I love these sweet little flowers.

Sneak Peak on what was happening in Canada.

Serious business…

Daffodils and Sunshine

Although we were short on sunshine this past weekend we had some nice sunshine last week. I bought some daffodils that always have a way of adding sunshine to a table. They also make me smile. Today is Shrove Tuesday or Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras. The day before the season of Lent begins. Lent is a time of abstinence, of giving things up leading up to Easter Sunday. In the U.K. this is Pancake Day. Shrove comes from the old word “shrive” which means to confess. Will you be eating pancakes today?

We had a great visit with our middle son and his girlfriend this weekend. I did not take one photo. We ate, played games, ate some more. Now that Dan has his own house we are slowly sending over his leftover belongings from our house. You know how that goes if you have adult children. This time around he was able to load 2 motorcycles in the bed of his truck to take back with him. I really do hope he didn’t take Dear’s head cold back with him. The roads were quite nasty on their trip home and on Monday the pass that they took was closed to traffic most of the day.

Everyone was talking about March challenges this weekend. Maybe I’ll challenge myself to do something in March, too. I’m thinking along the lines of exercise. How about you?

Those daffodils are now 13 inches high. It’s amazing how fast they’ve grown.

Refresh

What do you find that refreshes you each day?

I know from experience that it’s good for me to start each day thanking God and expressing my gratitude to Him for the new day.

I also know a little exercise each day is refreshing, too. I’m wondering what is going to kick start me into my habit of walking which has fallen by the wayside the last few years. I don’t want to be that American that Yeats speaks about who doesn’t walk in the winter because it’s too cold or walk in the summer because it’s too hot. Maybe each morning after I talk to God and express my gratitude I’ll start asking for Him to help me put one foot in front of the other and walk a mile or two.

Do you walk regularly and what helps you get out the door?

The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b.

To honor and encourage

Category Archives: Flowers