Mom Had Some Talent!

My Mom used to spend every evening doing some sort of craft making.  She made beautiful crocheted afghans that we all treasure.  But I think her biggest talent was in counted cross-stitch.  She made SO many pieces, it was astounding!  Luckily, I was a fortunate recipient of several of her creations!

 

 

A couple of these were from kits that I purchased and asked her to complete, but most were just from reading a pattern on a piece of paper.  The patience required for this type of handi-work is amazing to me!

My favorite pillow!



This calendar has hung in our house for many, many years.  It's definitely one of my favorites!

 

(Please excuse the flash in some my pictures.)

 

Birdhouses (of course!)

 

 

 

We had pigs while growing up.  This Hampshire reminds me of one of our favorite pigs, Lucy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Birds and Gardens.  Perfect!

 

 

 

 



 

I love Americana!

 

 

 

This one was a very special gift to my daughter.  My Mom's good friend, Jan Jameson, is the artist of this picture and a couple of others above.  She made her artwork into cross-stitch patterns.  What a great keepsake.

 

 

It definitely makes me happy to have her amazing creations all over my house.

 

Thank you for your visit!

 

Pam

 

 

I am linking to the following parties:

 

That DIY Party

 



Doing the Wave with Petunias

I'm so glad that someone figured out how to come up with Wave Petunias, because I love them!! 


I had some trouble finding them this year.  The planting date that everyone goes by here is Mother's Day.  We were going to be out of town right around there, so I waited until Memorial Day to buy them. Boy was I shocked that they were really hard to find!  Luckily they had just put some out that morning at my favorite nursery.  The colors were limited to purples and whites.  I would've preferred to have more pink flowers, but beggars can't be choosers, right?! 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have them in pots on my driveway and on my back patio.  They are blooming like crazy and are just so much fun to look at!

 

 

 

Here's Bailey doing his wave!  "Hey, I just came in 20 seconds ago, but now I must go outside again!"  :)

 

 

 

 

What are your favorite flowers for pots?

 

 

 Thank you for your visit!

 

Pam


I am linking to the following parties:
Debbiedoos and On Sutton Place's Pinterest Blitz

 

 

Reluctantly Accepting that Summer is Ending

I love summer.  I love everything about summer.  I'm probably one of the few people who doesn't eagerly anticipate fall's arrival.  Yes, I enjoy the coziness of fall and love to watch football, but I know that soon after fall comes snowy, non-gardening winter.  :)

It usually takes me awhile to buy fall flowers, as my summer flowers are generally still doing well.  Unfortunately, if I wait until my summer flowers look horrible, it's too late to get fall flowers.  Oh the dilemma.  haha

(Full disclosure here--this was the pot at its prettiest a few weeks ago.  It did not look this good yesterday when I pulled all of the flowers...)

 I love the Wave Petunias and Cosmos in here.  I will definitely be planting Wave Petunias in all of my pots next spring.  They get huge!

 This and the next two pictures are right after I planted the pots in May. 

And now I have Mums.  The plants I bought were so big (thank you Costco!) that I wasn't able to fit anything else around the edges.  Maybe a simple planting is perfect for now.

 

Thanks for visiting! 

Pam


I am linking to the following parties:


Debbiedoo's Newbie Party with a Twist
Thrifty Decor Chick's Before and After Party
 

Bicycle Art for the Living Room

We went to Southern California on vacation a couple of weeks ago.  The vacation started with a family reunion on a lake, then to the beach to see friends, then out to the Palm Springs area to spend time with more good friends.  We had a great time!   While in the desert, my good friend and I hit Home Goods.  As soon as I saw this picture, I was smitten!

I love canvas art, love flowers, love the bike, love the colors....  But, I had recently found a piece of typewriter art that I loved too.  I thought about it overnight, then rushed back to Home Goods and luckily it was still there.  I decided that I would change out the art as I change out the pillows with the seasons since I love both pieces.

I found these blue/green ticking pillows at Pottery Barn.  (I made the little pillows years ago)

I made this pillow recently.  You can see how to make one HERE.  I have a neat bicycle graphic that I will use on another pillow.  (The darn job is certainly getting in the way of all of the crafts I want to do!)

I found this birdhouse at Home Goods too.  It was on clearance. I love when that happens!

My sister and her boyfriend sent these beautiful flowers.



Thank you for your visit! 

Pam

There are only a few days left in the Palatin Remodeling, Inc. contest for Most Innovative Blogger.  I'd love it if you'd vote for me HERE.  There's nothing to sign up for, it's just an easy click and you're done.  (My blog is Our Adventures in Home Improvement)

I am linking to the following parties:

Savvy Southern Style's Wow us Wednesdays

Cottage Style Linky Party

An Explosion of Blooms for the 4th

Fireworks are illegal in our city this year due to the extreme fire danger.  We haven't had any fires right here, but much of the state has burned.  Very scary!  We will go see a professional fireworks show tonight which should be fun.

In the meantime, I am loving time spent in my garden.  As I've mentioned before, June and July are amazing months.  This year we have had extremely hot weather and lots of wind--not a good combination, so some things have been slow to take off.  I'm hoping the winds go somewhere else for the rest of the summer!

The wave petunias are starting to fill out. 

The pond lilies are blooming.

The daisies and coneflowers by the pond have gone crazy.

I love the fullness of this bed.

The flowers on the ladder were hit hard by the hot, dry winds.  I think if I leave the ladder there next summer, I will run tubing up to water each box separately.  I think I need a birdhouse on the top, as those flowers aren't doing very well. 

I am generally not a fan of orange flowers, but this daylily is gorgeous!

 Coneflowers, daisies and butterfly bush are looking good.

More daylily love! 

 I bought this birdhouse from Colby Cottage in Oregon years ago.  I love how the daisies and daylilies are enveloping it.  There is a Rose of Sharon there too, but it hasn't bloomed yet.

The other day I saw FOUR adult birds hanging out at this birdhouse. I think there are separate compartments (or apartments) :)   They sure are loud anytime we are out there.  Those parents are very, very skeptical of people and animals.

Thanks so much for coming by! 

Happy 4th of July!

Pam


I am linking to the following parties:

Pin the Tail on the Bloggy Time Party at Debbiedoo's
Jennifer Rizzo's Fabulously Creative Friday Linky Party

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I Love June in the Garden

June and July are my favorite months in my yard.  Just about everything is blooming and the hot, hot days of August haven't yet taken their toll on the flowers. 

 This is the beginning of the third summer for the plants around and in the pond to grow.  Everything is filling in nicely.  The daisies on the right are enormous!!

The lavender and some daylilies are blooming. The daisies and coneflowers are about to explode with blooms. I can't wait!

Several families have taken up residence this year. Some of the places look awfully full of nesting material!  I absolutely love that the birds use the birdhouses!

Thanks for coming by.  I hope everything is blooming in your yards now too!

Pam

I am linking to the following parties:

DIY Show Off's Project Parade

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