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Posts Tagged ‘garden’

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“Oh Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder consider all the worlds thy hands have made…

Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee, How great thou art!”

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A blessed Sunday to you!

Daisy

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My husband bought me a new phone case…

I had dropped my phone so many times (not on purpose) that it broke and was beyond repair.  So this time we thought I should get a “real” case and not the cute plastic one I had…

He got me the universal Otter case.  He used to have one and it actually survived when someone ran over his phone (not on purpose).  It’s practically indestructible.  

But this isn’t  just an Otter case…it can be used with all kinds of useful (and fun) attachments.  Knowing that I love photography and take thousands of pictures…he bought me the clip-on lens!  (He said it was for my birthday and Mother’s Day, but he’s always looking for things that he thinks I’ll appreciate).

    These are the parts included in the lens box.  There are two different clips, a cute little bag, a nice Lanier, and of course, the lens.

There are four different lens: wide angle, fish eye, and two macro.

My favorite is the macro lens!  Here’s a few pics I took in my front yard:

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 This is a tiny miniature rose bud.    
    

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 A periwinkle . 

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  This is a little marigold that has just opened up.

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I thought these leaves looked so pretty.

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It’s so fun taking pics with the macro lens.  It’s like seeing things with a new pair of glasses that just happen to be magnified. 🤓

I’ll take some pics using the other lens soon and post them here.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Daisy

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I went to the Farmers Market this week and found they had baskets of tomatoes for $1!

I bought three and went home excited about making tomato jam.

I had never tasted tomato jam until just last year, and I thought it was so delicious, I couldn’t believe I hadn’t seen it before, or that it wasn’t everywhere, in every super market, next to strawberry jam or blueberry jelly!  I felt deprived…

So when I saw those tomatoes, I immediately thought, “I could make some jam!  I mean, how hard could it be?

 

 

Five hours later, after peeling five pounds of tomatoes, simmering & stirring the pot, checking the consistency countless times, I wondered if this “soup” was ever going to turn into “jam”.

I decided to go sit down, after all, I’d been standing in the kitchen for hours (I already had met my 10,000 steps quota and it was only 5pm!).  While I was checking my emails and Instagram, I fell asleep…

Next thing I know I smelled a hint of something burning… I jumped out of the chair and ran to the kitchen, exclaiming, “no, no, no…!”

I stirred the pot and realized the bottom was starting to stick, but it wasn’t burned!  I tasted it quickly, hoping there was no burnt taste…

Oh, I have to tell you, I breathed a sigh and was so thankful that it tasted fine!  It was still really, REALLY hot from those red chile flakes, but it was delicious.

I grabbed the jars and filled three of them with about four tablespoons left over.  That’s it!  Three pints from FIVE pounds of tomatoes!  I had to laugh…
 

 

I was so proud of myself.

For years, (since I first got married and went to college in a rural area), I’d wanted to try canning and I finally did it.

It only took a couple decades.

Now, the jars sit it on my kitchen shelves and I can’t wait until next week when I can go to the Farmers Market, buy whatever is in season, and try canning again!

I can almost see it…my kitchen shelves stocked with colorful jars, filled with all kinds of good food.

Of course, what will really happen is that I’ll end up giving these jars away in pretty gift baskets…

…But I love to do that, too!

So it’s a win/win situation 😊

Enjoy summer bounty,

Daisy

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But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? …You of little faith! Do not worry then… for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”  Matthew 6:30-33

 

 

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I found a new Farmer’s Market not too far from where I live…

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The produce is so fresh and such a great variety!

 

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These radishes are delicious.  I put them in salads,
but most of the time I just eat them raw as a snack.
Is that strange??

 

 

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Huge tomatoes, so good!

 

 

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I couldn’t believe how sweet the grapes were!!

 

 

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The peppers were 2 for $1
I roast them in the oven and put them in salsas
or to flavor soups.

Delicious!!

 

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Cilantro, parsley, greens…  big bunches

 

 

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This Farmer’s Market also has a “Flea Market” section.
I bought hibiscus, azalea, and each one was only $6.

 

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My favorite buy was the Orchids!
I got four different kinds and they were each $3!!!

They make great Christmas gifts.
I wanted to keep them, but then I figured
I could just get some more after Christmas.

 

Have a wonderful weekend, everybody!

Daisy

 

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Isaiah 40:8
The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.

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While temperatures continue to go up and down around here, it seems that Spring has arrived at my neighborhood Walmart!

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Stepping into the garden section was like finding myself in another world…

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A pretty world with lots and lots of flowers, all different colors!

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I was smiling the entire time I was there…

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I know I’ve seen these all before but they are just so beautiful, I couldn’t help but smile and think, “How am I ever going to choose?!”

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It was a cold day outside (at least for this part of the country), but it felt more like summer in the mountains… Cool air and gorgeous flowers everywhere!

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I haven’t yet planted what I bought, but I can’t wait to see how they’ll look!

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There were tulips in different colors for $.98 each. I bought yellow, orange and red, and put them in our little front entrance. They make me smile every time I come home!

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Have fun planning your garden, whether small (like mine) or large (like Biltmore) 🙂

Daisy

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Recently,  my husband got me a gift…

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I was very surprised, since it was HIS birthday, not mine.

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It was beautiful… a dozen red roses, each one a masterpiece.

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I smelled them, gazed at them, took many, many photos of them.

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I don’t particularly like the color red.  I own very few items (maybe 2 or 3) that are red.
But…
How can I not like these??
Together they make a truly amazing display.

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I didn’t have any place to put them except for this glass jar I bought at an antique store…

I’m learning to look at the details…
They can be beautiful, too.

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My husband is always thinking of me, how to make me laugh, bring me joy…
Every time I looked over at the roses, I couldn’t help smiling.
Even now…

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I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it before, but one of the things I’ve been
re-learning this year is that, “Actions speak louder than words.”

Let your loved ones know you care.
In our house, we say the words, “I love you” many times a day to each other…
But somehow when we do something totally unexpected,
it speaks so loudly,
and unforgettably.

 

Have fun thinking up ways to surprise your loved ones!

(Let me know how it goes :))

Daisy

 

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“I love You, O Lord, my strength.”
The Lord is my rock
and my fortress
and my deliverer.
Psalm 18:1

Have a blessed Sunday!
Love to you all,
Daisy

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During our time away,  (I posted about it  here) one of the places we were able to visit was an old farm, way up in the mountains. . .

 

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This is the marker at the top of the hill:

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A closer look, so you can read it:

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This is the farm house.  We weren’t able to go inside because the park rangers weren’t there, but we were able to walk around and see everything.  We did peek inside the windows. . . everything looked just as if time had stood still back in the 1880’s.

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Here’s a view from the porch.  I just love porch swings.  Makes me think of family & friends, children’s laughter, ice-cold lemonade. . .

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There were several gardens with many, many butterflies. . .

 

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They were everywhere!

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Here are some beautiful ones . . .

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I love barns.  Maybe I’ll live in a Barn House someday – they’re becoming more popular now.
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The flowers were beautiful. . .

 

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Wild flowers as well…

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As we approached the Chicken House, we heard them inside. . . We also heard a rooster several times.
I love the sounds of a farm!  Can you tell I live in the city??

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The root cellar (I could almost see the veggies stored there, as this was used over so many years!)

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There were many tiny birds.  So beautiful.

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A few were perched on the clothes line.  That’s right.  There was a clothes line.  That’s another thing I miss while living in the city.  I never thought I’d say that!  When I was a kid, my Mom would tell me to hang the clothes up on the line.  Inevitably, it would rain before I had a chance to run and take them inside!  I used to wish for a dryer.   Now that I have one, I miss both my Mom and the assigned chore of hanging the laundry on the clothes line.

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While we were there,  someone was working on the garden, planting & weeding.  This bench was among the fragrant flowers…

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These are the stairs to go back up to the parking area.  I didn’t want to leave.  I wanted to stay and visit the country folks and have a nice tall glass of lemonade with them.  What was it like for the folks who lived on this farm?  How did they get up & down the steep mountain paths with no car or truck?  How did they survive with no TV, internet, or cell phone?  It was a simpler time.  But it wasn’t an easy time.  These people knew back-breaking work, and plenty of heart aches.  They probably never would have imagined that well over one hundred years later, there’d be “tourists” visiting their farm, admiring their work & perseverance.

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It was an unforgettable experience.  I can still feel the cool mountain breeze.

These are the kind of places that stay with me for a long, long time.  By that, I guess I mean that when I remember them, when i see the photos, I can’t help but smile and want to visit again.

 

Thanks for visiting with me.  🙂

Love to you all,

Daisy

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