Rest

"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavey-laden, and I will give you rest."

Matthew 11:28

Friends

A couple of weeks ago, I entered a give~away at

Gina's Simply Heart and Home.

I had only been following her blog a short time

and had only made a few comments.

Well, I won ~ a sweet little tin of notecards featuring

Cicely Mary Baker's Flower Fairies.

This post is not about the give~away that I won,

but about a new friend made.

(It amazes me that friendships can be made having never met a person,

but simply by communicating with others here on the internet.)

Yesterday, I was not feeling well because of a headache,

and just a little "down in the dumps."

Gentleman Farmer picked up the mail from the mailbox on his way home

from work, and laid it on the kitchen counter for us to peruse!

There, amongst the junk mail (no bills! Hurray!) was

the sweetest little envelope addressed to me.

Don't you love to get real letters and cards in the mail?

It is fast becoming a lost art to corresponde with

a hand written note through the postal service!

Upon opening the dainty little envelope I was delighted to find

this adorable little card with seed packet!

From Gina!

Just because!

My spirits were lifted and my heart was full of thanks for a new friend made!

Thank you Gina for your sweet and generous spirit, and to all
of you dear blogging friends that daily support and
bless me with your sweet, funny and encouraging comments!

"A friend loves at all times"
Proverbs 17:17

A Good Man

" A good man out of the good treasure of the heart,

bringeth forth good things."

Matthew 12:35a

Gardens: Part 4

After leaving the Heritage Rose garden, we headed back to

our own Washington State.

With the daylight hours lasting till well after 8 o'clock

we stopped at one last garden.

We needed to stretch our legs and this is a favorite

place for us whenever we are driving by.

Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens.

(Please visit their web site for all the history of this lovely place.)

While we were too early for most of the gardens we previously visited,

here at the lilac gardens, the season was near the end.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Let's begin our tour at the front steps of Hulda's home.

We are greeted with majestic rhododendrens (above)

and thriving hosta's (below).

Along the walkway

An inquisitive Jay watches as we stroll the walk.

Can you find him?

Doublefile Vibernum

(I would like to have one of these!)

The view in the back looking toward the house.

If I remember correctly, this late blooming lilac shrub

is named Miss Kim.

A little fairy blowing kisses

and forget~me~nots

all around!

More late blooming lilacs

above and below.

This single lilac cluster was gigantic! (above)

Gentleman Farmer has big, hardworking hands.

He holds a bloom for comparison!
(below)

Two beautiful Weigela.

Daylilies

Wisteria Arbor

Sweet Rocket

A beautiful golden rose climbing the

water tower.

The Wind Mill

The Water Tower in the fading light.

The walk back to the parking area.

The bed below, surrounded by boxwood

is Hulda's "FlatIron" bed.

Be sure to read about it on the website. ;~}

Time to say goodbye to Hulda's beautiful gardens

and head home, still two hours away.

~*~

I hope you enjoyed the garden tour as much as I did.

This was Gentleman Farmer's Belated Birthday gift to me.

Thank you, Darling, for devoting an entire day of flowers to me.

~

"My beloved responded and said to me, 'Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come along. For behold, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers have already appeared in the land; The time has arrived for pruning the vines, and the voice of the turtledove has been heard in our land. The fig tree has ripened its figs, and the vines in blossom have given forth their fragrance. Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come along!"

Song of Solomon 2:10-13

New post in The Reading Room.

~~~

"As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for Thee, O God."

Psalm 42:1

Gardens: Part 3 and a Winner!

After tearing ourselves away from the vivid iris garden

and catching a bite to eat,

Gentleman Farmer and I took route, following a map from the

peony garden, to a farm called Heritage Roses.

Being a weekday, and the time 4:15pm, we realized we didn't have

much time to get to where we were going before

closing time. We arrived with 15 minutes to spare, and the people there said we

could be in the gardens until dusk.

This was more than enough time to browse the grounds

as with the peonies, the season had not really started.

We shall have to go again a little later in the month, perhaps next year.

Here are the few flowers and a blooming rose or two that we saw.

(Sorry, Wendy, no David Austens! :~{ )

******************

Near the entrance of the store.

A tree in bloom along the driveway


An early blooming rose

A hedge rose near the entrance of the strolling garden.

Yellow rose ( sorry, I didn't realize my camera was off macro!)

Stately foxgloves in the rose garden.

Dainty Columbine

A clematis in the Meditation Garden

White rose heavy with buds.

A garden blessing.

(Click on image to enlarge if you care to read the blessing)

**********

"Let us rise early and go to the vineyards; Let us see whether the vine has budded and its blossoms have opened, and whether the pomegranates have bloomed."

Song of Solomon 7:12

**************************************

Now, for the winner of my 100th Post Celebration Give~Away!

All the names of "Followers" from my Six blogs

are placed in, what else, my sewing basket!

Gentleman Farmer ~ er... I mean Random Generator,

chooses a name.

The winner of the Mending Kit is.....

Nadine from Nadine's Nook!

I am extra thrilled because Nadine is a

fellow Washingtonian!

Congratulations, Nadine!

Please email me with your shipping address

and I will get your package sent out right away.

~

Thank you all, dear friends, for your sweet comments and

welcome encouragements these past few

months. It has been so enjoyable "meeting" each and everyone of you.

Blessings to you all!


"Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win."

I Corinthians 9:24

Flower Gardens: Part 2

After our delightful visit to the Adelman Peony Gardens,

Gentleman Farmer and I were a little bit hungry.

Being totally unfamiliar with the area, we just started driving.

We didn't find anything to eat yet, but

after just a couple of minutes we saw a sign saying

"Iris Gardens up ahead".

Of course we had to stop in.

Down a very long, winding gravel drive we came to a field

with a small, but quaint iris garden, food for the soul!

~

Tomorrow ~ Heritage Roses

(and, don't forget, tomorrow morning is the drawing

for my 100th Post Give~Away! Last opportunity

to become a "follower" and enter the drawing is

midnight tonight!)

~

"For behold, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone.

The flowers have already appeared in the land;"

Song of Solomon 2:11&12a

Oregon Flower Farms: Part I

A few weeks ago, Gentleman Farmer and I took a drive down to Oregon to visit some commercial flower gardens. I took so many pictures; each flower is my "favorite"!

I did want to share some of them with you.

We spent the entire day visiting four different gardens.

Today I am sharing pictures from Adelman Peony Gardens.

(They have an online catalog at http://www.peonyparadise.com/ )

The season was just beginning and most of the Peonies were not yet in bloom.

What was in bloom was amazing!

Please enjoy some of my favorites!

:~}

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden

of Eden to cultivate it and keep it."

Genesis 2:15

(Tomorrow ~ Iris Garden)