Feed the Birds

I don't know if Mary Poppins is in your head right now, but it is mine.  (I am my mother's daughter, after all).

When that cold snap in October came, and then all that snow, I knew it was time to put the bird feeders out again.  And boy did they like that!!  It was not long before my feeder and the deck below and the ground below that were covered with little birdies looking for a bite.

I've only just started to see the Cardinals, it took them a while to warm up to the feeder I guess.  So, sadly no pics of them yet.  But here are pics of chickadees, titmice, juncos, nuthatches and a woodpecker.

I love where my feeder is b/c it's so close to our french doors and it's right in the sight line of my kitchen window.  These little guys always make me smile.

Summer - come and gone

I did not do a great job of keeping up with my flower pics this year.  But I didn't want to just skip over all the summer flowers - I took so many pics I hate to see them go to waste.  This blog posting is all about the annuals.  I usually plant a few, but only in pots.  This year I also planted a few climbers in the ground.  I enjoyed the results and will likely put these flowers into the regular rotation in future years.

This is the yellow Thunbergia.  I planted these in two pots.  Then I put each end of some half moon iron rods into the pots to create a bridge for the flowers to climb over.  It took longer than I expected to get going, but once it started, it looked just like I'd hoped.

Then it was time for the planters that hang from the back deck.  I loved the color combination here.  I'm not sure the picture really shows it, but it was very Victorian.  The white petunias with the almost black leaves and the dusty rose flowers was so pretty.

Here is my red Mandevilla.  The pictures don't do the flowers justice.  I had these climbing an iron obelisk in the front of the house.  It was a nice back drop for my roses.

I always plant Dahlias!

This is what the Thunbergia looked like after they covered the iron rods.

And this is the first year I ever planting Morning Glories.  I bought a mixed bag of colors, so they ranged from white to pink to light blue to purple.  They were so easy and they took off so well that I'll definitely plant these again.

Walking through the neighborhood

Last week (before the week of wet began), I walked Jessica to pre-school and brought my camera along.  It was a gorgeous, sunny morning with a perfect blue sky.  The perfect background for all of the trees that were either in full bloom or at least full bud.

Our King Crimson maple is the header pic.  I loved how the sun was making the red leaves glow.  I don't think the pic does justice to how pretty it really was.  And of course, the flowering trees are always gorgeous.

I was also fascinated by the pine trees - they are so heavy w/ little cones this year.  I really don't remember them being this full before.

The final tree pic was of my neighbor's Sand Cherry.  I covet this tree/bush.  I should just go ahead and buy one, but don't really have a good spot for it.  So for now I'll have to be happy with seeing this one from across the street.

If you haven't taken a walk around your neighborhood yet, I highly recommend it.  There are so many different and pretty things to look at.

Spring has sprung

It's not an original phrase, I know.  But I can't help saying it when the flowers are popping out all around me.  The andromeda have their bells.  And mine had a visitor today.

The daffodils have been out for a while and are actually starting to fade already, but my tulips are just blooming.

Jess refuses to call dandelions weeds.  We may not agree on that, but I have a hard time not smiling at the pretty violas and violets even though they're growing through the grass.

Valentine's Flowers

Thank goodness for Valentines Day!  Spring is still a couple of months away, but Valentine's Day came and I got FLOWERS! :)  I need flowers.  They make me happy.  So while I can't take credit for growing these beauties in my garden, they are a harbinger of things to come and I had to share.