Did you really think it was something else?
So sorry if I disappointed you!
Let me introduce you to Amaryllis Belladonna, fragrant light-pink flowers that appear once their green foliage has died back, giving them the common name of “Naked Ladies.”
Nothing common about THIS beauty!
Happy Sunday, y’all.
Picture this:
I was on the phone yesterday evening, talking to my littlest Angel Boy who was beyond excited that the box of fairy garden bits and pieces had arrived.
There are fairy gardens all over his neighborhood and he’s fascinated exactly the same way I am.
A long while back, pre-Covid, I had gotten a lot of things from my local Dollar Tree to make a fairy garden here at Casa de Enchanted Seashells, but the trip they had scheduled to visit me had to be cancelled, so that’s why I sent them.
As I was chatting with him, watching him place the little gnomes and owls and house and bridge in a corner of his front yard, I looked up and saw the most amazing shadows on the wall.
They’re some of the fifteen windchimes that line the house on the deck. The sea turtle swimming across the wall made me smile.
Happy Saturday!
These (not mine) bluey-blue hydrangeas are amazingly beautiful.
So is this dogwood (also not mine).
But my own very rosy red hydrangea gift is special and belongs to me!
That’s it. Nothing more to say, but enjoy the 4th!
Do you see my bunny friend hiding in the foliage?
Surrounded by Silver Shield, Pride of Madeira, Jade, and whatever random ground cover I can propagate, my bun managed to shelter himself perfectly within their protection.
#wordlessWednesday
For me, when hell breaks loose all around, there is solace in symmetry and succulents.
My happy place. No matter what.
Garden; verb and noun.
Breathe.
Happy Saturday!
I love these little matching pots from Daiso. They kinda sorta remind me of Chanel quilting. The plant saucers, also from Daiso, were meant to hold ginger and wasabi for sushi.
Nothing but a round sunny yellow plate with a variety of succulents, but they bring joy.
Really hot for the beach…
And probably super crowded, too difficult to maintain proper social distancing, so I’m here:
with a couple friends …
and some mulberries that aren’t quite ready…
along with some pretty pretty flowers…
I’m enjoying all the lush and colorful garden because pretty soon no matter what I do, the grass will turn brown ‘cos we probably won’t have more rain until next winter and the dry hot SoCal Santana winds make watering a futile effort.
It’s been a long while since the gardens at Casa de Enchanted Seashells were honored by the presence of a four-legged child. When we had a completely empty nest, there was supposed to be a lot of travel and other fun but that didn’t really happen, at least not in the way I had happily anticipated.
This was my beloved Bandit…
…and my beautiful Border Collie boy –Victor at age sixteen, enjoying his senior years at what was to be his last Christmas before crossing over the Rainbow Bridge, sitting in the place of honor because he deserved it.
Lately, something odd and mysterious has been going on here. I’ve discovered tennis balls and other toys that simply seem to randomly appear out of nowhere, some even in the middle of the lawn, as if a game of fetch was still in progress.
See?
There’s a monogamous pair of coyotes that visit me on a regular basis and I have a wildlife camera set up to record their activities, so I know the balls don’t come from them, although that’d be super cool if they were bringing me gifts to thank me for my vocal support regarding coexistence with wildlife, instead of vilifying and murdering them.
But…
My yard is completely fenced in–not that coyotes care about that–but to emphasize the fact that a normal domestic dog roaming the neighborhood couldn’t possibly find a way in, and certainly not with a ball in his or her mouth.
I like to think it’s the spirit of my Victor sending me a gigantic message that he’s still chasing tennis balls and he’s up there with Sabrina and Stella Rondo and Beowulf and Tovah and Bandit and Misty and Tawny and Blackie, all my beautiful children who were so very loved and cherished during their lifetimes and beyond.
Here’s my most special part wolf, Beowulf, and a MUCH younger me.
I was part of a covert rescue operation and bottlefed him every two hours. I was his mom and he was my perfect boy. We were inseparable. Soul mates.
Yup, I really do miss them all so very much.
But where do the balls really come from?
I love this little bird. It really seems like he likes to follow me around so I started to follow him and snap pics everywhere he hopped. A special little friend for sure.
Since I’m pretty much a (willing) prisoner here at Casa de Enchanted Seashells just like we’re all enduring stay-at-home orders, I decided to create a positive mindset and find the beauty inside and outside these four walls and my infinite garden.
Today, the sky is blueblueblue with occasional puffy clouds so I thought I’d focus on blue.
Cerulean, ultramarine, the shade of a Ceylon sapphire.More like a periwinkle blue, but still BLUE.
The blue of agapanthus, also known as Lily of the Nile, from bud to flower.
The view from my kitchen window in the early morning light.
A perfectly symmetrical Monarch sunning herself on grape leaves.
Saturday.
Photo by Enchanted Seashells. Taken with my Canon Rebel T3i
