Before the Rumble!

Yesterday we had a sunny and windy start to the day. This is a view of our Pink Dogwood from the kitchen window and then from the yard.

We have 4 mature Rhododendrons in our yard and they are getting to full bloom.

Closeups of the lilac and dogwood blooms. Those lilac blooms are filling our yard and deck with their fragrance. Of all these blooms they are the only ones with a strong fragrance.

Blooms from two of our rhoddies.

In the late afternoon the clouds got dark and grey and we had a loud thunderstorm that lasted for an hour. A lot of noise and a little rain. The winds continue today. In the meantime our house is still clean and organized waiting for that family who wants to buy our home.

Spring Has Sprung…

The most vibrant of our azaleas has bloomed.

The fern fronds are unfurling.

Everything is green. Our large rhododendron plants are just starting to open their buds. This is the back side of our home.

This smaller rhododendron is in full bloom.

The rosebud azaleas are close to their prime.

This is view of our side yard looking to the front of our property. Our house is on the left and garage/shop on the right.

Yellow Rhododendrons

I’m real excited about all the peony buds this year!

This is one of our Top Hat Blueberry plants on our deck. Fresh blueberries are in our future.

We are in another rainy pattern. They are talking about some sunshine in the near future.

Addyson is 2 months old today. We were texted some photos the last couple of days.

They’ve been storing breast milk and daddy was able to successfully feed her for the first time on Mother’s Day.

2 months old with Rayna keeping a watchful eye on her! Isn’t she lovely…So happy for the easy way we have these days to share photos. It makes being far away so much easier. Are you near or far from your grandkids?

Linking up to ABC Wednesday for the letter S. Thanks to Mrs. Nesbitt and her loyal team.

Hallelujah! Christ Is Risen ~ Hymn

Hallelujah! Christ is Risen

Hallelujah! hallelujah!
Heart and voice to Heaven raise,
Sing to God a hymn of gladness,
Sing to God a hymn of praise;
He who on the cross a ransom
For the world’s salvation bled,
Jesus Christ the King of glory
Now is risen from the dead.

Now the iron bars are broken,
Christ from death to life is born,
Glorious life, and life immortal
On this holy Easter morn:
Christ has triumphed, and we conquer
By His mighty enterprise,
We with Him to life eternal
By His resurrection rise.

Christ is risen, Christ the firstfruits
Of the holy harvest field,
Which will all its full abundance,
At His glorious advent, yield;
Then the golden ears of harvest
Will before His presence wave,
Rising in His sunshine joyous,
From the furrow of the grave.

Christ is risen; we are risen!
Shed upon us heavenly grace,
Rain and dew and gleams of glory
From the brightness of Thy face,
That we, Lord, with hearts in Heaven
Here on earth may fruitful be,
And by angel hands be gathered,
And be ever safe with Thee.

Hallelujah! hallelujah!
Glory be to God above!
Hallelujah, to the Savior,
Fount of life and source of love;
Hallelujah, to the Spirit
Let our high ascriptions be;
Hallelujah, now and ever,
To the blessèd Trinity.

Words: Christopher Wordsworth, 1862.

Farewell to April ’17

A view from my kitchen window on Saturday April 29th.

The apple tree is in full blossom and several other plants are greening up nicely and pushing forth their buds.

It’s a very green time of the year here. This is a view from the back of our home looking towards our old pear tree in the distance beyond the chain link fence.

The steps into our home from the deck.

Some of the apple blossoms close-up.

The Pink Dogwood is just now getting ready for it’s full glory with it’s pink blooms unfurling.

We’ve had a quiet weekend except for me going to a Sounders game with our daughter and son-in-law on Saturday evening. We went down early in the game and in the 2nd half at the 74th minute we were down by 3 goals to none. In the last fifteen minutes of the game we scored 3 goals to tie the game. The last few minutes were amazing. Too bad about the folks that left early thinking we would lose. Weather wise we had some dry stretches in the morning and into the afternoon the rain began as we headed to the game and after the game it was pouring as we drove home. Sunday has been a mix. The weather people are talking about the possibility of us getting up to 70 degrees this next week. We hope so!!

Linking up for Mosaic Monday with Maggie at Normandy Life.

When Spring Unlocks the Flower ~ Hymn

When Spring Unlocks the Flowers

When spring unlocks the flowers
To paint the laughing soil;
When summer’s balmy showers
Refresh the mower’s toil;
When winter binds in frosty chains
The fallow and the flood;
In God the earth rejoiceth still
And owns his maker good.

The birds that wake the morning
And those that love the shade;
The winds that sweep the mountain
Or lull the drowsy glade;
The sun that from his amber bower
Rejoiceth on his way,
The moon and stars their master’s name
In silent pomp display.

Shall man, the lord of nature,
Expectant of the sky,
Shall man alone, unthankful,
His little praise deny?
No; let the year forsake his course,
The seasons cease to be,
Thee, Master, must we always love,
And Savior, honor Thee.

The flowers of spring may wither,
The hope of summer fade,
The autumn droop in winter,
The birds forsake the shade;
The winds be lulled, the sun and moon
Forget their old decree;
But we, in nature’s latest hour,
O Lord, will cling to Thee!

Words: Reginald Heber, (1783-1826)

A Garden Party!

Looks like there are several link ups for this party. Hope I didn’t miss anyone!

Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson

At Home With Jemma

Poofing the Pillows

Decor to Adore

White Spray Paint

This has been a banner Spring in the Seattle area with many things blooming early because of the weather this year. Here are a series of lovelies from our yard. Calling it a garden is a bit of a stretch.

Pink Dogwood is one of my very favorites. We planted this tree just a few years ago.

Our lilac bush was planted the same time as the Dogwood. This is the first year it is full of blooms. Last year we only had 3 blooms!

I love these sweet Violas.

Our Camellia was at it’s fullest a week ago. It is waning now but the azalea bush you see next to it is now in it’s glory in the photo below.

Next to this vibrant azalea is our Rosebud Azalea that will bloom next.

This next photo shows what the sweet little rosebud azaleas look like when they open up. As of this morning this is the first one to open.

We have a few established rhododendrons in our yard. This yellow rhoddy is the youngest and we had some beautiful blooms this year.

These last photos are of our very old and established Rhododendrons that were here when we purchased this old house. The Rhododendron is the Washington State Flower. These next photos were taken this morning in the rain.

One lighter pink and the other one deeper. The third bush always blooms later than these two.

Our patio covers are not up yet so on the next couple of photos you can see the frames without the covers. We usually put the covers up on Mother’s Day weekend.

Here you see a little view of our deck patio and the Dogwood, little yellow rhoddy, and the side of our barbecue.

This is a view of the french doors from our family room that are the most used doors at this old house. You step out on the deck from them and this path takes you to our detached garage/shop. I’ll leave you with some shots that show our deck with the covers up. This one shows the deck looking out from our family room.

Another view with our new privacy fence. Whew…you made it through. Wish I could have strolled through with you and a cup of coffee!

We just got home from a trip across the mountains to visit our son and his new bride of 10 months. It’s a 5-1/2 hour drive to get to their home. Now we are rushing about getting things ready for a trip to San Antonio, Texas for Dear to work at a conference there. I will be on my own and will explore this city that I’ve never been to and also drive to Austin to meet up with my brother and his family who will drive down from Dallas. Woohoo. Better get the laundry going. Hope you all have a good week!

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.

I Love Fall Y’all!

To start the new season today at sundown I have fences, signs, and fall color for y’all!

The vines covering our neighbors fences are turning color already.

My Dogwood is ablaze in fall colors.

Even the cats on my daily walking route are sporting fall colors.

And at the end of my walk I found a couple of signs to throw in the mix.

Looks like we have a new baby in the neighborhood. I’m not sure if I’d want all the details on a sign in my front yard.

I’m linking to signs, signs with Lesley and Good Fences with TexWisGirl at Run*A*Round Ranch Report.

Our fall is beginning with lovely cool mornings and sunny days. Today we are experiencing lots of traffic snarls because the Chinese President is visiting our region and driving around a lot to his different events. I’m happy to be able to stay put at home with only short drives to the grocery store etc. on my list of things to do. Hope your Fall is starting well or if you are in the southern hemispheres, I hope you are enjoying your Spring.

Looking Back ~ Bellefontaine Cemetery & Arboretum

On the 5th day of our roadtrip Thursday May 1st we doubled back to St. Louis to visit the Bellefontaine Cemetery. Bellefontaine is the 14th great rural cemetery built in the U.S.A. Before rural cemeteries the dead were buried in family plots or churchyards. The first internment took place in 1850. Because of the Cholera outbreak in St. Louis in 1849 and a devastating fire that killed many, the city needed a large cemetery.

Like Calvary Cemetery there are a lot of people buried here that were influential in the history of the U.S. Before I share about the people I’m going to share the beautiful trees and flowers we enjoyed.

I’m a huge fan of dogwood and we were treated to many beautiful dogwood trees here. Katie and I left home just as my pink dogwood was starting to bloom.

I’ll be sharing much more from this great cemetery in the future.

Today in Jacksonville Katie and I shopped for all the staples for her kitchen, all the basics for cooking and baking. Katie is making dinner for us tonight. She has been registered on an e-meals sight for a while now and you choose the meals that sound good to you and a shopping list is generated. It has been a handy tool to get Katie more comfortable in the kitchen.

It’s so nice to be in a residence instead of a hotel. Having internet makes a big difference, too. No T.V. yet but we are surviving nicely. Katie and Andrew have some interesting neighbors. Apartment life is so unpredictable! At least you know you aren’t in one spot forever especially if you are in the military. Did you know that active military members that receive any new orders are free to break any lease without penalty? That’s a very good policy.

What’s going on in your neck of the woods?

The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b.

To honor and encourage

Tag Archives: Pink Dogwood