The gardening gene apparently skips a generation, since all I've ever been able to grow is unsightly facial hair. I try....I really do, but all I come up with is achy knees and a pitiful mess. After my "sod removing day gone awry of 2005" I'm not allowed outside without proper supervision.
Thanks to a wonderful lady named Carol, my front gardens are starting to come into their own. They were planted three years ago and I enjoy them tremendously. Here's a pic of the front of the house.
The weekend brought a special treat in that the lilies are starting to bloom. I seem to remember them blooming in June last year, but this year they are coming in a bit late. I snuck a few pics of ones that I thought were really cool:
This is a hibiscus that I bought at Lowe's for $6. I bought two of them and stuck them in containers on either side of my garage door and they have gone nuts. On some days there are at least 20 blooms per bush. Now I just have to figure out what to do with them for the winter. Can I bring them inside?
OK, enough garden talk. I did manage to get some stitching done this weekend. On Friday and Saturday I worked on Laura J. Perin's blackwork mystery. I've completed the first part and am ready for the next!
Last night I played with CCN "Joyful Summer". I've decided that when I'm finished stitching this one, I'm going to really tart it up with tons of seed beads. I'm all about the fancy, don't you know.
I'll leave you with a pic of my dining room. The cabinet was our Mom's, and on either side of it are two pieces of her needlepoint. I look at these and treasure them every day. Mom did pre-worked canvases on penelope canvas and she stitched the backgrounds in tent stitch using the sewing method. I know....not one part of that makes any sense at all to us "modern stitchers", but everything she did is gorgeous and Chrissy and I love them all. One of these days I'll sneak over to her house so that I can show you some other pieces Mom did...they are amazing!
P.S. I sure am glad my table is clean! Stewey had the boys over for poker last night, so I wasn't sure what I would wake up to today!We're off like a herd 'o turtles!
Glad to see that the boys cleaned up after themselves after poker night. :)
ReplyDeleteOff like a herd o turttles *giggle*
Thanks I really needed that laugh today.
We brought our hibiscus indoors last year and it seemed to do okay. Not great, but it did survive. Probably we should have pruned it because it ended up looking like VERY long sticks in a pot with a couple leaves here and there and the occasional flower. Apparently it needed more light than it was getting.
ReplyDeleteWe moved it outside into full sun for the summer and it LOVES it out there. We'll prune it back and bring it in again for the winter and see how it does if we can get it in a place with more light (we have bathroom skylights now, so maybe that will help)
Your flowers are so pretty.
ReplyDeleteGreat progress on your weekend stitching.
Hope the boys weren't to rowdy on poker night.
Your garden is so pretty - I love the lillies!
ReplyDeleteYour dining room is so tidy - are you sure Stewey didn't get a cleaning service in after his poker night?
Ah, to have a garden like that (although most of the year here it is too hot to spend any time in it!). Unfortunately, I did not inherit my mother's gardening genes either. I think the only reason my indoor plants are still alive is because my cleaning lady waters them when she comes in :)
ReplyDeleteHi Coni,
ReplyDelete"Off like a herd of turtles"... ROFLOL!!!
Yes, I've had days like that! After spending all day at Hershey Park on Saturday I was moving a lot slower on Sunday. Who decides to build an amusement park on hills! LOL! We go every year and we have a great time but I've learned to not schedule a hike for the next day! :-)
Yes, you can bring Hibiscus indoors. Google it to find out if it will need any special care and make sure that Stewey treats it with respect! :-)
I have the supplies (three different options) for Laura's challenge just haven't had time to start on this project as I have "several" others in the works. But don't I always! :-)
Looking forward to seeing "Joy" with all of it's beads!
Thanks so much for sharing the pictures of your mothers pieces! Can we have a closeup? My very first project ever when I was 9 was a pre-stitched piece where you only stitched the background. And stitching on Penelope canvas is a challenge. I guess that's why I'm not intimidated by much. After learning on Penelope I must love this hobby/art and everything else is easy! LOL!!!
Isn't it amazing what we have now!
Cynthia
Windy Meadow
LOL! You make me smile every time I visit. Nice job on the LJP blackwork mystery. And, yeah, enjoy embellishing with seed beads, etc.! The more the merrier : )
ReplyDeleteHi Coni,
ReplyDeleteWell, for someone who doesn't
garden, you sure managed to
have a lovely front yard this
year. Even if someone else
planted it for you, you're
still responsible for the
upkeep.
And the Hibiscus is gorgeous!!
Those flowers are spectacular!
I love those lilies. We have
some too, but ours get eaten
by nasty little red beetles.
So we have lovely flowers on
long stalks, with leaves that
look like someone's attacked
them with a hole punch. Very
sad.
You have a lovely, elegant
dining room. And your Mom's
stitching pieces are wonderful.
Love the flowers on the table
too.
Glad the poker players didn't
make a mess. Hope it wasn't
"strip" poker. Eeek!
Cheers!
P.S.
ReplyDeleteOur saying around here, when
we're being silly, is ....
Off like a turd of hurdles!
Well, it was funny on the
night of the New Years party.
Around 2 am.
Cheers!!
What a lovely garden, and great pictures. I don't have a green thumb, either - you've definitely done better than I ever would!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that the boys cleaned up after themselves!