September 2017 Day 24 Faith

Letting go and letting God can feel like a scary thing at first but 

who knows what beautiful things He has in store for us.

#faithofamustardseed

#sharethelove

September 2016 Day 23 Wishes

On my walk, I found this dandelion for today's 

photo share.  

I added the  heart because at first glance; it's all I could see.

--Like seeing animals in clouds... this wish flower had a heart.   

I love how simple, little things can be  inspiring. 

Not only will I add this photo to my journal,  but also want to sketch it tonight 

along with a list of wishes.  

What are you wishing for?  

 

September 2017 Day 22 Wonder, and Photo Quote

Hello friends,

Today I finished Volume 1 for my grandgirl.

I wasn't prepared to sit and cry while writing her story- but yet..I did.

So much gratitude welled up in me and  spilled over.  

I think it was the  wonder of it all?

  I take this baby bloomer to the garden often and rattle on about every flower, plant and weed

that we see.  She understands in smiles and jibberjabber.

As I wrote this page to her, I remembered my own Grandmother.  

She gave me a love for flowers and gardening too.  

I wonder... if being a growgirl can be passed generation

to generation. Time will tell. 

It's weighed on me to get her first full year recorded.

And today... it was finished! 

Volume two begins.  

 It will be even more fun now just keeping it up to date.  

More wonder to look for.

Which leads me to a picture quote to share:

The photo is of this  yellow garden spider that built her beautiful web right in front of the greenhouse

this week.  I have to remember to look out for it and not  run into it when I come and go.

Spiderwebs are so intricately  made and  well... they amaze me.  

Always be on the lookout for the presence of wonder.

E.B. White 

Charlotte's Web

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September 2017 Day 16 Plants Have Stories Too

 It was a productive day.  

All the morning glories in this part of the garden are gone!!!.  

There's tilling to yet do but  the hardest part is all over.  

Myguy had the day off and helped  finish clearing all those vines.

It went so much faster together!! 

I'm sooo thankful.  

Then, we  started moving  hydrangeas that had to get done before some major

work starts on the back wall of the  house. 

First he cut the branches  off with a chainsaw and 

 we must have had at least two truckloads.  

 Then we wrapped a  chain around  the bushes and pulled them out

with the bucket on the tractor.

 After getting them out, we carried them up to my Mommas

olde place and used the backhoe to dig all the holes to replant.  

The rootballs were pretty huge.  

It's funny how plants are for gardeners.  

--You remember where you got them.

Who gave them to you... and 

how old they are.  Well; for the most part.  

One of these hydrangeas came from our neighbor.  

When they go on vacations she often asks me to come feed her animals and 

check on things.  About ten years ago, they were going out of town and she had me over

to tell me what all to do.  She lives  on her Papaws homeplace and

Papaw's hydrangea bush  was in full bloom.  She told me to help myself

to bouquets from it.  So... I did!  I cut the flowers as well as stems with

just leaves and put them in an antique fruit jar.  The day I decided to throw 

them out, I discovered the stems without the blooms had started to root! 

Beautiful little white hairy roots!  I didn't even know hydrangeas will "start" like that.  

So I pitched the dying flower blooms and kept the stems going in water and later planted them. 

That sweet gift from my neighbor  grew into my row of hydrangeas.  

I have one different type that was in the same row.  

I bought it online in memory of my angel mother.

It's white and is called the snow queen.  

My Momma once won a snow queen pageant  in her younger days--

so you know how it is in grief.  It was one of those things I just had to have

because I was missing her so much.  

When we dug that hydrangea up today it kind of broke in two so one piece got planted

up at her place and the other half we moved to another area of our yard.  

I sooo hope they make it.  

I watered them really good and mulched heavy with old hay.  

Now we wait and see what happens!

Well; it's late... so I leave you with a cool quote on today's 

Lantana.  

"Normality is a paved road:

it's comfortable to walk, but no

flowers grow."  

Vincent Van Gogh 

Sweet dreams!

Leaon Mary

September 2017 Day 11 Squeal From The Pumpkin Patch

 Usually I forget to water,

and quit caring all together.  

Tending the garden somehow gets put on the back burner

this time of year.

Come September; I have no green expectations.

Maybe it's the lingering heat... and let's not forget the droves of grasshoppers, 

but usually everything just fades this time of year-

well that and  you know... gets choked to death by purple morning glories in

my neck of the woods here. 

Seed packs though are like... candy to me.

Come early Spring when stores start lining the isles with racks of seeds,

I turn into a crazy plant lady.

Some of you understand... I know you do!!...  

Don't deny it... your yards tell a similar story.  

Seed packets for people like us ..well;  they're  like a box of kittens to a crazy cat lady.

You can't walk away.  

Those seeds ....need me!!!!!!!  

They need to be taken care of... and I would love them,

and feed them and water them......

Well until September.  

But I plant them anyways.  Coz there's  always room for one more bulb

and one more seed.  Always.

Same is true and perhaps is harder to hide the sickness when stalking

I mean walking the half off  isle of death row at the Walmart garden center. 

Plants where ..usually the half off means half dead.

They neeeeed meeeee!

You buy a whole buggyful... and hurry home to give them a drink. 

Plant them... and love them.  

Back to seeds... and in my case "pumpkin." 

I bought several but didn't want them for a July barbecue.  

Who wants to bake pies and bread when it's a hundred degrees out?  

So this year I waited. 

Then  counted backwards.  

I really did.  And that's no small feat for someone who.. well; let's just say numbers get scrambled in her little head

and  come out on paper upside down... inside out... and backwards.

If pumpkins would actually grow they needed to ripen for Fall not Fourth of July.  

So I tilled, hoed, planted and watered... maybe even sang a little- (poor little things)

-And I've waited.  

The plants have looked pretty horrid and grasshoppers are like a plague.  

But as I walked past the patch today- pulling a hopper or two out of my hair...I finally saw it.     

That adorable lil baby punkin!!!!!!!!!!!  Yeah just one.  

Lots of blossoms though... so there's even more hope.  

It's actually possible ....that our lil babygirl punkin can pick her own pumpkin for Halloween this year.  

Thinking that very thought is prolly when I squealed a little.  

I'm so happy....... I know I know... it's just one little pumpkin but... hey...

don't go poppin punkin bubbles. I'm believing for this little pumpkin.  

You crazy plant lady and gents.. I know you are cheering for it too.  

That one little pumpkin is like a whole boxful of kittens to me.  

Well if you made it this far reading... bless your hearts.  

Thanks for sharing my simple joy too!

I leave yall with two of my favorite quotes.  

Pretty sure at least one is in the quotes tab up above but 

it needs to go here again.  

"I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself,

than be crowded on a velvet cushion."

Henry David Thoreau

(Is that cool or what?) 

I bet many of you would rather sit on a pumpkin  wouldn't you?  

Not sure but I'm guessin the velvet cushion people probably clicked off

around paragraph two. (it's okay)  

and now ... one more for the road:

Until we meet again friends,

Leaon Mary

#sharethelove

September 2017 Day 9 She Knew

As I played in paint today things just kept

going from bad to ....worse.

The trash can was well fed.   

 Sometimes; no amount of scribbles,

mark making, pokee dots or photo filters  help.

...it was time to walk away ...

and  

go take a hike.  

I'm sharing the view as I headed out back.  

  

#sharethelove

St Patrick's Day

Hey there friends,

It's been so long since I've written.  Sorta feels like I'm just

 typing into the wild blue yonder.  

So yall have something green on?

Can't say as I do.  No cabbage or green jello or any of that jazz on 

tonight's menu either.  

What an olde fuddyduddy huh?  

It feels sooo good however- especially  with these  shots of Spring upon us.

This week it's been up in the 80's at times but

here we are now looking at a weekend with a possible freeze in the forecast.

As of yesterday the Wisteria was close to leafing out; I hadn't checked it yet today.

The peonies... my "Mommas" peonies no less; are up and growin like weeds.

So there we go once again; that big fat dilemma.

Do I get my panties in a wad and do my level best to covering  everything

with old sheets, tarps, buckets, flower pots... milk jugs... ---yall know how it is!!!

Who else out there dotes and coddles her  beloved peonies?  

 I can't just "let" these succumb to frost.  I have to 

at least try to bundle them up and keep them warm.  

It's what any good PeonyMomma surely does???  

So I'll be tuning in to channel 5 to  see if  olde Garrett our weather man says, " bring those plants inside..."

If he does; .... well then  pots and buckets and tents of sheets  

will attest that indeed this gardener "tried."  

 Looking across the board I know alot of you have also been having

extra warm days.  Perhaps you too have been cleaning up your gardens and old sheds?

This door on our greenhouse has had peeling paint for over a year now so finally

got the gumption to scrape it off and give it a fresh coat of bark brown.  

Then set about cleaning the whole place.  Every winter it's quite a catch all,

so it felt really good to get some junk tossed,  and then spent hours with a shop vac suckin up 

mouse droppings,  dead bugs, leaves and mud dobber nests. 

 At the end of one day out there, I walked inside and 

the sunlight was shining through one window in the greenhouse 

right onto this Jesus painting again.  I've seen it happen a couple times

before but when you're standing there "seeing" it... well;

it's just pretty awesome.  

 Getting everything spruced up out here gave me  new inspiration to spend time

writing and painting in the greenhouse. 

 It's so peaceful to watch the birds at the feeders and birdbath 

and sketch or take pictures of visitors.  

 Got some  planning and daydreaming done too  in this  new Sparrow.  

Leather traveler's notebooks have  become a new passion of mine and 

this one is a big A5 size to jot down all my garden ideas and plantings. 

You can only have 15 characters stamped into the leather so had to leave off 

the "shabby." lol    

 One of my inserts is on favorite quotes.  

This is actually in a different book than the oldepottingshed book but

thought I'd share it in case one of you might be inspired to share one of 

your own favorite quotes here.  Feel free to share in the comments if you do!!

 Thought I'd share some more evidence that Spring is really here.

This is my Momma's redbud tree in all her glory.  

It's so beautiful and I often think of her planting that tree with her own hands.  

 Her pear tree is chock full as well.  

Sure hope the cold snap doesn't hurt it.  

 The last couple years a mockingbird has nested in these branches.

I saw one flying around when I took  photos and I wonder if she's the same one?

I'll be watching to see if I spot a new nest.  

The three donks are starting to shed their winter coats.  

There are little piles of grey hair under their favorite cedar branch rubs.  

 The green grass is really coming on now.  In fact;....

Last night; Myguy bought a new push mower since our  last one was 

on it's last leg.  

This afternoon I mowed  all around the potting shed and our fenced  dog yard.

Smelled so good.    

It's hard to hold off planting though.

I've learned the hard way in the past and well;

it's  still just too early. 

So for now; ... patience grows instead.  

Thanks for stopping by the shed ... your time and friendship is dear to me.  

Happy St. Patty's day!  

Leaon Mary