Blue Sky!

After several days of pouring cats and dogs the sun broke out for just a little while today. I went for a brisk walk to just enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. The clouds were so pretty and 

  a group of hawks kept flying overhead. This is my best shot of one of them.

  

Rainy Day Soup!

The three days of sunshine are gone and it is pouring rain!! So.............I made a BIG pot of veggie soup! I threw in every vegetable I had in the house! Seriously! I will let it simmer for a few hours before partaking. 

How many veggies can you see?

A Beautiful View

This is in Beautiful Canada looking out from the dairy we drove out

to get an ice cream cone with my family. 

Country Country Livin'.

Another gorgeous view in Canada. I pulled over to take this one out in the country country livin'!!

Those Stinkin' Flowers!!!

We were running a little early for our lunch date in Canada because there were only a couple of cars at the border!!! For a few years now I have wanted to check out this place off one of the back roads we travel. It seems like I am either flying this way or flying that way...so today, because we were running early, I thought today is the day I check this out. There was a lake and picnic area at the end of the road. We just did a quick drive through to check it out and as we were leaving my husband spotted some yellow flowers back in the woods. I backed the car up and got out with my camera in hand to see what it was. Bright yellow flowers growing right up out of the ground with hardly any stalk to them. I noticed the smell of a skunk but I just thought that maybe a skunk had passed through.  I took lots of photos and then started walking along the parking lot looking for more good photos to take. I yelled over to my husband to bring the car. I found another small patch of the same flower and crunched through the thicket to get a closer look and photos.  I again noticed the smell of a skunk but again thought that maybe a skunk had just been in the area. I stomped around in the meadow to take some more photos and when I was satisfied I got back into the car and started driving out of the parking lot when my husband pointed out a large field of the same yellow flowers. I backed the car up and parked so we could go check it out. I had to fight through the dried branches and clear some brush to get back to where the patch of flowers were. It was quite the sight. Later on I was sharing my photos and adventure with my daughter and she told me that she was pretty sure that the flowers were called Skunk Cabbage. Looking it up on-line confirmed that it was the Skunk Cabbage. How could anything so pretty Stink like a skunk?? Too bad my oldest daughter doesn't live closer otherwise I would have picked a stinky bouquet for her. When she was a teenager she belonged to a fan club that actually loved the smell of skunk! 

Field of Skunk Cabbage.

Look at the details of this stinky guy.

The stinky thing just pops up out of the ground into a bloom. No stem.

Stinkin' Flower!

More Stinkin' Flowers!

Can I Please Go Outside and Dig in The Dirt?

Hanging basket bird feeder I made.

Another angle of the bird feed I made.

One of our birdies. I used to just sprinkle bird food along the edge of our patio railing...the birds think they moved on up to the East side with their new feeder!

It didn't take long for the birdies to find the feeder! This little

guy is the Chestnut-Backed Chickadee.

I am pretty sure this is a Dark-Eyed Junco (male.) If anyone knows 

for sure, please let me know. I have a bird book to compare

my photos to and this matches pretty close!!

Black-Capped Chickadee (left) * The one one the right 

is too hard to match up.

This is a House Finch (male) The male's feathers are red and 

the females are just multi-colors of white and browns. You can

see the reflection of my drapes in the window...I had to be sneaky

to get this photo and hide behind the them!!!

Old tubs and milk cans with my flowers.

I am going to add a few different flowers to the tubs as well. Sweet alyssum or something

like it.

I love watching hummingbirds. I hope they come soon!

Altogether I got over 40 pansy plants. The plant on the left in

little ball looking shapes is another plant that

came up on its own. It has a purple flower on it.

Angel ivy in a blue pot. That is some of my beach 

glass collection in my old blue mason jars on the table as well.

The sun has been shining for two days now and I am loving it! Yesterday I went out to my garden plot and dug up some pansies that just re-seeded themselves. I had enough to leave some along the edges of my plot and enough to put in some old tins and buckets for my patio. I got filthy! I love digging in the dirt. I guess it is the country in me! Today I finished up on transplanting them and making a bird feeder. I got the idea from Pinterest but I changed it up a little. The one on Pinterest is using a wood or moss type wreath to hang and then sit a plate or bowl into. Then you have to put rope or chain or something to hang it with. When I was out shopping for the right wreath I saw something that I thought would work better. It already had chain and a hook to hang it by. It is one of those hanging moss baskets with the wire and moss inside. I just simple took out the moss put some of my shell collection inside the basket part and then put the dish inside. (See photos) I also put up the beautiful hummingbird feeder I received for my birthday. I am not completely finished with my patio yet but I did get a good start on it. Oh yah, I also put some angel ivy I had been rooting for a while, that my friend Mary gave me, in a pot. It actually is in dirt!! I love Spring! I love sunshine! I love dirt!  

Rockn' Robin!

I went out for a short walk today to get some fresh air. I took a great photo of two robins in a tree....no, they were not  k i s s i n g!  Ha! I also found out that the horse that was being board on the property we live on died. The horse was not mine but I became close to him in the last year. When he saw me walking the trail out back he would gallop up to me. He knew I had an apple for him and expected it. I will miss him.
I also took a photo of an eagle's nest today. I was hoping there would be an eagle sitting in it. I have heard that they mate for life and they return to their nests every year. I will be watching it to see if they return. I checked out my garden plot I had in our community garden last year and I have at least 20 or more pansies up and blooming. There also is some ground cover I do not recognize nor did I plant. I guess some blew into my garden. I will re-plant my pansies along the edge of my garden plot and dig some up for my patio to make room for all my veggies I will plant. I can't wait to start planting!! Come on Spring!!

Eagle's nest.

Two red robins in the tree. Can you find them?

Two Beautiful Gifts

My snazzy necklace and earrings.

Yesterday I had lunch and a good long, over-do, visit with a good friend of mine. We met about thirty-five years ago but we lost contact over the years. Good ol' Face Book helped us to reconnect. All of the years and all of the miles between us and then to find out we both moved across the country to live only about one hour from each other. For many reasons this was only the second time we got together since we found each other about one and a half years ago. We had a lot to talk about....we talked for literally seven hours straight!!! We both shared at a mile a minute gasping for air every now and then!! We sipped coffee together, laughed together and cried together....now that is a true friendship. I believe that everything happens for a reason....everything has already been planned out by God....He directs us when we listen....and when we are willing to go the direction He is leading us in. I am thankful that the Lord arranged for us to find each other once again. I received two gifts today...A gift that can not be seen, only felt. And the second one was this gorgeous necklace and pair of earrings that she made for me. It made me look snazzy!  I love you Celeste! 

My Art Project!

I have been wanting to put something on our bedroom wall for a long time now. We have been in this apartment for almost one year now and I still haven't finished decorating. My main reason is that I can't make up my mind! My husband says that women have very clean minds....because they change them often!! We don't change our minds, we just come up with a better plan!!! So all of my ideas keep changing to a better plan!  My friend Mary finished adding some fabric to our shower curtain and she also made us a couple of throw pillows that matched our curtains and lampshade in our bedroom. This inspired me to finish decorating the bedroom....Thanks Mary for the sewing you did for me..love ya! I got an idea to get a wall hanging....of course in a retro design. I went on-line and looked for retro wall hangings...OH MY WORD is all I can say...Instead of paying $1400-$2,000 to put something on my wall I chose to just make something myself. So...IDEA!!! Make my own!! The ideas kept coming so I grabbed one and went with it. A trip to Michael's for my supplies and I made a unique and one of a kind wall hanging for under $50.

All of the glass in my wall hanging I found on some of my

beach combing trips. I love beach glass. My hanging

measures  4' x 2.5'.

I finished it!! I added more glass! I really like it too!!

A White Surprise!!

We woke up to a white surprise this morning!! It snowed last night!! The sky is crystal clear, the birds are chirping and the creek behind our apartment is rushing. The birds are a little confused...they are singing like Spring has sprung!!!! I love living here!!!!

Special Time

The before photo.

Today I took one of my granddaughter's shopping to buy some new clothes and out to lunch for her birthday. She had an ice cream sundae which she dusted!! We had a really special time together. 

You could almost put this one back in the cupboard!

These gorgeous flowers were also for the birthday girl!!