Trilliums and Ripples

I spied some Trilliums in our woods the other day.. I'd been keeping an eye out for them for days.  So, in the afternoon I donned my old shoes and headed off for a hike to get a photo of these little beauties.  The first ones I came across had been chewed on a bit and so I kept on walking through the woods to find a pretty one.  Aha.. there it is.. stoop down.. hold still.. stop breathing.. *SNAP*  Isn't this a beauty?  Do you have trilliums where you live?  Here, they are one of the harbingers of Spring.

On my way into the woods I stopped at the top of our stream to enjoy seeing it from a different vantage point.  We have 3 garden sculptures, the top one is a Chinese soldier, the second one is a little Buddha that Dayle actually got while he was in Texas and in the Army learning to fly helicopters before they sent him to Vietnam.. and the third is my art nouveau lady.   

My red Japanese Maple has newborn leaves unfurling.. sweet.

The Trilliums are shy and don't look like much if you see them on the forest floor, you have to get closer to see them well.

Cutie pies.

We live in a 100 year old farmhouse and the woods next to our house were probably used for their wood stoves and fireplaces and they also serve as a windbreak for the house - this area is notorious for it's "East Wind" - sometimes we get heavy wind for weeks on end and months and months during the Fall and Winter.

I'm happy to see my Bleeding Hearts are already up and open!

Is there anything more amazing than a Bleeding Heart?  *love*

I am happy to show you something that I'd wanted to do for a LONG time.  I had 4 little pots of Christmas Cactus aka Zygotes.  They mean a LOT to me.  My first one was a cutting that my Aunt Helyn gave me from her HUGE plant in her home in Annapolis, Maryland when my sister Roberta and I visited her 10 years ago.  She put the cuttings in a ziploc bag with a damp paper towel.  Funny story is I was so busy when I returned that a few weeks later when I finished unpacking I found the bag with some rotten vegetable matter in it.. but one part of it was still "alive" so I took it out and stuck it in a pot outside and forgot about it.  Lo and behold sometime later I saw that it had taken root and was growing.  I am amazed at the fortitude of plant-life.  My 2nd one I rescued from my dying mother's room.. she always had a green thumb and had adopted this plant from someone else.. and it was dried up from lack of water.. and so I brought it home.  I also knew then that my mother was no longer herself if she'd let a plant die.  ::sigh::  ANYWAY... all of my plants needed repotted so I thought.. why not put them all together in one pot?  There are 3 different colors of them.  So, here they are in fresh soil in a big pot in a sunny spot.  Now to see how they do here.

I put the 3 vases of flowers that were given to us at the tulip farm in a place of honor on the table between our easy chairs.  

Now to show you the lap blanket that I finished.  I used KnitPicks Billow cotton yarn.  I also used Lucy at Attic24 blog's "neat ripple" pattern with the interlocking color motif.  The colors of the yarn line dictated the colors I used - they are muted, dusty colors and I like them a lot.

I laid this out on our king-size bed to get photos.. I think I need a "selfie stick" so I can get a flat out photo.  :-)  As I look at this, in retrospect, I should have put the two light colors on either end to balance it.  But.. it's okay, it will warm a child or a lap even if the colors don't balance.  :-)

This is our bedroom.. I love the skylights over the bed.. you know immediately upon waking what the weather is.  And I love that Dayle hung our old chandelier up over the bed not that long ago.  We got that light fixture for our first home in Louisiana.  Um.. in 1970.  :-)

And I had to share this close-up of the red tulips -- is there anything more amazing than this?  Well, I guess there is.. lots of things.. but tulip centers are cool.

Yesterday I met up with my two sisters, Denise and Roberta, and my BFF Shirley and we had lunch at the Cadillac Cafe.  I had the Cadillac Steak and Mac.  Oh my goodness.. it's so good.  If you're ever in Portland you need to go there and have that.  Then we went to Trade Roots - a clever name for an import shop - and I got a string of chickens.  Want to see?  I guess they're supposed to bring prosperity?  Bring it on!

Then we went to Sarah Bernhard's Bakery and I got the boys these Easter cookies and some apple fritters for our breakfast.  Nummers.

Now I'm off to swim soon.  I guess it's good to keep busy.. huh?  :-)

((hugs)), Teresa :-)