FLOWERS and BIRDS

 The above two photos are of Helleborus that are blooming now.  I think they are so pretty, even the undersides of the leaves.  Don't know what variety I have as they were a start from my daughter.  My new header picture is also the helleborus.

Below are crocus that just popped up the last day or two in the poppy bed-see the fuzzy foliage, that is poppy foliage.  Will have poppies around May 1.  Also in this bed, which is around a maple tree, is some hostas and some Asiatic lilies-the orange lilies bloom usually around July.

I like the crocus foliage and my photograper (daughter) got a good shot of the foliage in this pic-notice the buckeye behind the foliage.

 My daughter took these photos in her yard.  She has lots of birds including these pretty cardinals.

                                                                       Regal Royalty

                                                                               Friends

 What do I hear?  He has his head cocked like he is listening for something.  Probably heard the photographer.

The pretty twigged bush they are resting in is a Red Twig Dogwood. 

Haven't done any stamping for awhile-lost my mojo somewhere.  This past week I started working on our taxes,  getting the paperwork ready to go to the accountant.  Need to get my desk cleaned off so I can make a few birthday cards.  

POTPOURRI II

 PASSION FRUIT FLOWER AND FRUIT

Have cleaned on the flower beds the last two mornings and they are looking good.  Did a lot of cutting back, pulling weeds and getting rid of some unwanted plants.  The photo above is one of the thugs I am keep trying to get rid of, but it just keeps on coming back. It has a pretty flower but really travels, vining on whatever it can find! 

 BUCKEYES ON THE TREE

 BUCKEYE OPEN

Buckeyes are some of my favorite fall things.  I think the spiney shell is interesting and the buckeyes are a pretty, shiney, burgundy chocolate color.  Our tree usually has several on it.

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Have been making some Fall/Thanksgiving related cards. 

 The card above uses a stamp from the Stampin' Up set 'Happy Blessings'.  I colored the image with Prismacolor pencils and blended with Turpenoid.  Added some Yellow Stickles glitter glue and some tiny punched butterflies (Martha Stewart).  I love the colors in the unknown striped background paper and the Rubber Stampede 'Just a Note' sentiment stamp, which I use quite a bit.

This card I made for a challenge where we were to use a #2 pencil on our image.  I used the pencil to color in the cornucopia.  I used Prismacolor pencils to color in the fruit and veggies and blended with Turpenoid.  I cut the image out and added it to the gold strip; I punched the edge with a Martha Stewart border punch. The stamp is by Stampabilities-Cornucopia 02

SUNDAY SPECIALS

The daylilies are beginning to pop.  Here are a few select photos of some daylilies that are blooming today.

 Bridal Suite (Hanson C. '88) is one great daylily.  She is just loaded with scapes, buds and blooms.  One of my favorites.

 Little Maggie (Williamson '81) is a shorter daylily and makes a beautiful bouquet when in full bloom!

Shari Harrison (McKinney '75) is a different color-violet purple and a very pretty bloom.  I need to move her as she is behind Bridal Suite which is much taller and hides her.  Always rearranging to do in the garden.

 I have grown Serpentine (Wild '84) for a very long time.  A very good daylily-never fails to perform.  I love her coloring-a rose bitone.

 Ming Porcelain (Kirchhoff '82) is another great daylily that I have grown for a long time.  This photo is of her blooming in shade.  I also have her in a sunny bed.  Beautiful porcelain texture.

Leebea Orange Crush (Gates 78)  Here is a bright one for you and another favorite daylily of mine-and another one that really performs well.

 Siloam Double Classic (Henry '85) is another one I have grown for a long time and another favorite.  Most always blooms double except maybe for her first bloom.  Gorgeous pink!

Finally here is a card I made some time ago with the Siloam Double Classic photo. 
I printed the photo on Georgia Pacific white cardstock, layered on Wild Wasabi cs and Pretty in Pink cs. Added a pink and white checked ribbon and a sentiment in Wild Wasabi  as I needed a sympathy card.

Will add some more photos later-take care-really has been hot already here in SW Missouri. 

SWEET VIOLETS

I love violets, tame or wild.  They are one of the sweetest sights in early spring to me.  The Viola Johnny Jump Up's in the above photo return every year and in some unexpected places. 

The Viola Penny violet above was very pretty.  Reseeded back for a few years but haven't seen it this year.  Sad!

This is one of the prettiest colored violets and very prolific as are most violets.  My daughter gave me a start and this is the mother plant.  It has reseeded in the bed, which I want, and out into the lawn.  I dug some of those and replanted and the rest get mowed if they are tall enough for the blades to reach otherwise I enjoy them as I walk around the yard. 

 The bed above is the one that I want the violets to have free run in.  The mother plant is in the background.  Annabelle hydrangea is in the corner out of camera range.  There is also some reseeding Sweet Williams and some  iris, can't remember the kind at the moment.  Our dog, Lady,  lays on the other end of the bed  so I leave that spot open for her. 

Here are some cards I haven't posted.

This was for a challenge we were to title as a dance theme.  I called mine 'Doin' the Button Dance'.  I used a Cuttlebug Button embossing folder on the edge and used the Sizzix Button #5 die for the buttons that I added to the punched solid and music dp circles-someone said they looked like the old 78 records. The sentiment is from a Stampin' Up set Riveting and I used brown and white baker's twine for my trim.

My oldest daughter turned 48 last week-where has the time gone?  She is a jig saw puzzle lover so I used the House Mouse Piece Corps stamp to make her card.

This card uses another image from the Tim Holtz Journey set.  It didn't make a very good ink impression so I later colored it in with a black pencil and like it better but didn't retake a picture.

Wishing you all a good week.

THINGS ARE COMING ALONG!

Been a very busy week and the weekend has started out that way. 

The Dictionary Word for the Day was: futz \FUHTS\, verb:

1. To pass time in idleness (usually followed by around).
noun:
1. A fool; a simpleton.

I had planned for today to be a day to just futz around but somehow I went outside to do one thing and didn't get back in until after lunch. 


Did get several things done in the yard and flowerbeds.  Got my  three red Knockout Roses pruned and the sedum trimmed up in the driveway curve bed.  Trimmed back two pink Knockouts and cleaned out around the Sorbet peony at the end of the tomato garden.  That leaves three more red and one yellow Knockout to do. Set out a daylily a gentleman from Arkansas sent to me.  It is one of his seedlings-a purple double. Mowed the back yard this morning and set the mower on high and "pruned" some nepeta 'Walkers Low' and some henbit that was growing with it.  Henbit, creeping charlie, deadnettle are all very plentiful and very nasty weeds! 

I love heucheras (coral bells) and bought two new ones at Wal-Mart; Caramel and Georgia Peach.  I need to move three hostas to a new bed then the coral bells will have a home. 

I haven't been very crafty lately what with bookwork and working outside.  Need to get at least two cards made to send out.  A friends mother died and I need to make a sympathy card for her and my oldest daughter has a birthday next week so I better get busy. I used to do most all the challenges on SplitCoastStampers but haven't done any for awhile.  Would like to get back to doing some of those.  Here is a card I made for a challenge awhile back using a Tim Holtz stamp and gave to my DH for his birthday. We were to use black ink and a silhouette image on our card.

Tuesday was the day I meet with 3 friends and we play games and snack. (we meet monthly) Played Boggle Tuesday.  The first Wednesday of the month is the day I weigh  with 3 other friends; we discuss our month and then go have a nice lunch together.  Both outings are always a lot of fun that I look forward to.  Wednesdays are my regular weigh in morning along with my sister and a friend.  We each weigh at home and then report our loss or gain online and try to encourage each other.  I am losing very slowly.  Maybe working outside now will help-hopefully!!

DAYLILY VISIT - PART 2

Some more photos taken in Bob Benbow's garden-Enjoy!

This bed had peonies, different varieties of coneflowers, Asiatic lilies and coral bells.  Beyond the bed, next to the house,  is the azalea and bulb bed.  Would be a pretty sight in the spring. Also in the photo is his 17 year old border collie.

Bob's Yellow Wow We

                                         Bob's Pink Wow We

 Back yard view-the rocks along the tree line go across the back of the 6 acre property-lots of rock picking.

 

Some more backyard views

Close up of Wheelbarrow planting.

DAYLILY TRIP

Daylily Tour at Bob Benbows -Part 1                   

Earlier in the week my sister, my daughter and I went to Salem to tour the garden of Bob Benbow.  We had made arrangements with Bob to arrive about 9 a.m to hopefully beat the worst of the heat and before the flowers begin to fade.  In an email he had earlier told me the following:  "I grow just about everything and hybridize daylilies and iris. We have a large vegetable garden, fruit trees and berry patch and can a lot of stuff. I just finished planting over 3,000 daylily seeds of my own and another 500 of Michael Bouman.. I have grown Michael's seedlings here because he has limited space in St.Louis.  I also bought 16 Knockout double red roses two years ago and boy have they grown; I just cut them back this morning."

Bob Benbow

He had been doing some hybridizing when we arrived but graciously stopped to show us his seedlings and other daylilies and flowers that he grows-all to perfection.  We took several photos around the property and it is amazing what he has accomplished in two years!  Some of the photos on this post Bob took and shared with me. Click on the photos to enlarge them.

Daylily seedling bed with vegetable garden on the left side.  Not a weed in sight!

     

Bob walking the seedling bed and answering our questions.

Below are some of Bob's seedlings:

 

 

 

I will be posting some more daylily and garden photos in a later post-Part 2.