God Bless the USA

From the lakes of Minnesota,
to the hills of Tennessee,
across the plains of Texas,
from sea to shining sea. . .
I’m proud to be an American
where at least I know I’m free,
‘Cause there ain’t no doubt
I love this land
God bless the U.S.A.
(selected lines from Lee Greenwood song)

As many of my gardening friends and family are headed off on a long holiday weekend - I wish everyone a well watered garden, safe travels, fun times, good food, fantastic fireworks and gratitude that we live in the good ol' USA!

All things bright and beautiful. . .

All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small
All things wise and wonderful,
The Lord God made them all.

(hymn by Cecil Frances Alexander)

I have to remind myself when I am out and about in the garden that all these little creatures that pop up and surprise me are still a wonderful creation. Just wish they could enjoy life somewhere else.

Today, I counted 10 frogs in the pond - how do these guys find a rubber lined pool of water in my backyard? Any more and I might have to implement a relocation program.

Spiders are not one of my favorite little creatures either. . .but a little white & pink one is actually kind of cute!

Knock, Knock. . .

Knock, Knock
Who's there?
Orange
Orange who?
"Orange" you glad you stopped by?

I've always considered myself a pink and purple kind of girl but this year I am fascinated by the color orange in the garden. It warms things up and brightens even the grayest of days. No wonder our friend Nez just loves the color. Who knew it went so well with purple? I guess Mother Nature did, she combined them together in the osteopermum and anagallis. Enjoy your bright and "orangey" day. . .I know I am.

Birdsongs. . .

The sound of birds
stops the noise in my mind.
(Carly Simon)

I feel so blessed that my garden has become a haven for the backyard birds. I can just sit and listen to them all day, in fact this weekend I joked to family that I could make my own relaxation nature cd with the sounds of water and all the different birds. The orioles seem to "tell me" when their jelly supply runs out and they also annouce their arrival before they come to the feeders.


My busy wrens sing all day. I sometimes wonder if they ever get hoarse. We have several nesting pairs in the decorative birdhouses and a family of tree swallows in the box in the pine tree. All of these colorful songbirds make for a bright spot in my days.

Soul Blossoms. . .

"Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom."








I've been a lot of places and seen a lot of things. . .but nothing compares to a relaxing afternoon in the garden with family.




Nathan, Jayme & Scott and Jeff

It is a pleasant day. . .

Come my children, come away,
For the sun shines bright today;
Little children, come with me,
Birds and brooks and posies see;
Get your hats and come away,
For it is a pleasant day.
(Mother Goose)

She forgot her "hat" but I had a great time in the garden with Alexis today. We fed the fish (enough for a couple days), checked out the robin's eggs, watched the baby tree swallow, smelled some blossoms, had a tea party and played in the water (her favorite)!

Oh, to see life through a child's eyes. . .is there anything better?

Share the joy. . .

He who shares the joy in what he’s grown,
Spreads joy abroad and doubles his own.
(Anonymous)

Last night I hosted a busload of classic car enthusiasts on my first garden tour of the season. It was fun to hear the comments behind me as I led them around the garage for their first glimpse of the garden and pond. Here are some broad views of what they saw.


It is still a little early in the season for my garden to be filled out and full of blossoms but I hope you check back throughout the season for updates. As any gardener can tell you, things change daily which leads me to end with another quote.


"It is only when you start to garden – that you realize something important happens every day."
(Geoffrey Charlesworth)

Sunshine. . .

"Keep your face to the sunshine

and you cannot see the shadows."

(Helen Keller)

I've been experimenting with light

in my garden photos this week.

The daisies are facing the early morning sun

(so I guess they can't see their beautiful

shadow on the hydrangea) as well as the campanula below.

The late afternoon light is behind these clematis making them seem almost transparent.
This little guy is facing into the sun and on close inspection you can see the highlight in his eye.

(By clicking on any photo, you can see the full size version)

Can a robin read?

"Outside in the backyard

relaxing in the sun,

Mother Robin rested

after frolicking and fun."

(adapted from a John Roberts poem)

Webster's dictionary defines

Frolic as

1. To behave playfully and uninhibitedly; romp.

2. To engage in merrymaking.

and Welcome as

1. Received with pleasure and hospitality into one's home.

I think this Robin can read as she took the "Welcome to our Cabin" sign literally and built herself a nest upon the wreath. I guess she also read the "Frolic in my Garden" sign too!

The results of all that "frolicking".

Splish, Splash. . .

"Splish, Splash . . .
I was taking a bath
long about Saturday night.
A rub a dub-dub,
just relaxing in the tub
thinking everything was alright. . .
(Bobby Darin lyrics)

Okay, so it's not a tub

just watering running over

a rock but the birds sure love it.

Here is a baltimore oriole, robin

and goldfinch taking turns

showing off their

splish, splash techniques.

I think the goldfinch might

even be washing

behind his ears.

(That is if he even has them)

A dog's life. . .

"Did you ever walk into a room and forget why you walked in?
I think that is how dogs spend their lives." - (Sue Murphy)







"We are innocent." - (Ruger and Gabi)






These two faithful companions have decided one of my flower beds is their own personal "roll in the dirt" area this year. Yup, those innocent eyes aren't that innocent!
Today, I had to purchase more annuals and replanted for the 5th time. I have decided that it will be the final time. If it happens again, I will just have to let them have their own garden.

Nature holds a medicine . . .

"Nature holds a medicine
the heart alone can feel,
for in it's peace and beauty
is the quiet power to heal."
I woke up this am to two new lily blooms and thought to myself how peaceful and beautiful. The scene was quiet water, sunshine and gorgeous blooms. . .
This afternoon we rode our cycles down to Redwood Falls to see my sister and visited Ramsey Park. The falls were absolutely breathtaking and it was a second "peaceful and beautiful" moment in my day. Don't you just love nature . . .

A rainy day

"God made rainy days so gardeners could get the housework done."




Today is a gray, rainy day here in my garden. I read the above quote in a magazine and thought "how true". Who wants to be inside on a beautiful day when the garden is calling - but today was a good day to catch up inside.

During a brief respite between showers, I took a walk in my garden. A raindrop covered blossom has it's own special beauty - why can't we look this good after being caught in rain?

Morning has broken. . .

Morning has broken, like the first morning
Blackbird has spoken, like the first bird
Praise for the singing, praise for the morning
Praise for the springing fresh from the world
Sweet the rain's new fall, sunlit from heaven
Like the first dewfall, on the first grass
Praise for the sweetness of the wet garden
Sprung in completeness where his feet pass
Mine is the sunlight, mine is the morning
Born of the one light, Eden saw play
Praise with elation, praise every morning
God's recreation of the new day (Cat Stevens..)

Is there anything better than a June morning enjoying a 2nd cup of coffee on the patio? Welcome to my garden blogsite - I love to share the beauty of my garden and all it's feathered visitors so decided what better way than a blogsite. Enjoy and feel free to leave comments.