A COUPLE OF OUR GARDEN FLOWERS

 

I was a bit worried about the flowers out front. We have had a lot of heavy rain lately and early this afternoon (7-1-25), a very loud thunderstorm. At the first opportunity I checked them out and am happy to say that, for the most part, they are hanging in there. There were no perfect petals, many had fallen off and only two of the plants have blooms right now, the Coneflower and the Ditch lily.

I am hoping to plant more of them as time goes on.

In the photo above you can see a hosta in the top right corner. I don't know what color of flower it will produce yet. 

"Happiness is to hold a flower in both hands."

~Japanese Proverb~

The above photos are mine. Hopefully with a few sunny days and lots of tender loving care, the others will be blooming soon. 

Great minds think alike as the old saying goes. Our son just sent me the rest of today’s photos on his walk, before I had finished my post. I told him I was just about to add my coneflower pictures from the garden. 

Whenever he and our daughter-in-law are out on a walk, they will often send photos. We are a photo-loving family and often send what we have taken. Photography is a favorite hobby we all share. If there is anything they know his dad would like, they send those too. Today he was on his own and saw the flowers which he knew I would love, as well as the little lending library, and what came with it. I love the fact that some dear person had put an umbrella over the box. A talented person also painted the word ‘peace’ on its pole. There are several who have added to the story garden, which brings a smile to most. I recognize Alice in Wonderland, the White Rabbit and the Mad Hatter. Our son and daughter-in-law have taken their own books to that little library. On our recent tidying up of things and opening of boxes, I found several old children's books I used to read to him when he was little. I have asked him to add them the next time they go that way. They are still in very good shape, almost like new.

These photos cheered me. It is an important reminder that there are still many kind people out there.

I asked him if I could share and he said absolutely. Thank you son!

And thank you for stopping by everyone.

I wish you all a great day!

AT LAST, BACK TO THE FAIRY GARDEN ON 6-30-24

 On a very hot and humid day our walk took us back to Meadowlark Gardens. Reminder: no more hot and humid walks until it gets several degrees cooler. For some reason, it took us by surprise. We have been to this garden many times and if you ever wanted to weave through them all bit by bit, you will find them at this link. 

The Fairy Garden has always been a favorite and is just outside the visitor center's garden entrance. It is generally my first stop as I am always interested to see what changes have been made. This is the first time I have visited since it has been set up for the year. I usually tell Gregg that he can walk on ahead of me and I will catch up. I spend several minutes as my inner child and I have fun looking and taking photos. Then I walk on to find Gregg who hasn't wondered too far down the hill but is enjoying taking his own photos.

This area seemed more overgrown than it has been in the past. The plants have filled in considerably. There don’t seem to be quite as many fairy folk.

There have been a few new additions.

Some I can't remember if they are old or new, but I enjoy each one as if seeing them for the first time. Some are gone completely. Wear and tear has inevitably taken its toll.

The dragon is permanently on guard. I remember him from last year.

"I believe in everything until it's disproved. So, I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons. It all exists even if it's in your mind. Who's to say that dreams and nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?"  John Lennon

"Come Fairies, take me out of this dull world, for I would ride with you upon the wind and dance upon the mountains like a flame."  William Butler Yeats

"Spread your wings and let the fairy in you fly." ~ author unknown

One last photo of a little bird.

That's all for this visit from the Fairy Garden. I will be sharing other photos from the rest of our walk soon.

Thanks for putting on your fairy wings with me, and I hope your day is a great one.

WINTER WALK OF LIGHTS - MEADOWLARK GARDENS - PART 1

 Last night we decided to go down to Meadowlark Gardens.  We were there when they were starting to put up all the lights in late October.  You can see my posts here and here.  

I am very happy we were there at the very beginning, as it made me appreciate all the hard work that goes into making this event possible.  Thank you to Meadowlark and all its staff for making this a very happy evening for us, and no doubt for everyone who attended. 

We start off in the Fairy Garden.  

I overheard a lady saying that this fairy garden was "enchanting".  Couldn't agree more!  

Apparently this is their ninth year for the event, and there are between 75,000 to 80,000 visitors who attend. The tickets go on sale in early October, and we purchased our timed-tickets for 6.00 p.m. online at this link.  

The walk is open nightly Thursday, November 11th, 2021, through Sunday, January 2nd, 2022, including all holidays.   

If you are in this area and would like to visit, for more information their website has all that you need.  After purchasing online you are sent a ticket on your phone, which you show a person who scans the bar code.  We found a lady sitting inside the visitor center and there was no line, we just walked onthrough: https://www.novaparks.com/events/winter-walk-of-lights

The night was chilly but not so cold that I needed my gloves.  I was glad for my coat but by the time we reached the car at the end of the evening, I took my coat off.  It was a perfect night for walking.  

I just had a thought, we purchased our tickets that morning but if you do get them in advance, you may have to deal with bad weather.  That being the case, I read that though the tickets are non-refundable, you can transfer them to another night.

Throughout the garden the regular, cross-over paths are roped off so that people are guided in one direction.  With the number of people visiting even with a timed ticket, I thought this was a very good idea.  We are also asked to stay on the path and not walk on the grass, for obvious reasons, electrical connections and lights, etc.

Thanks for looking today.

I hope your day is a great one!

BACK TO THE FAIRY GARDEN...

 at Meadowlark Gardens.  We were happy to be there again and it was a bit of a shock to realize it was our first time this year.  In fact we were trying to figure out when it was, and we both thought it was sometime last Fall.

The Fairy Garden is in front of the visitor center as you walk out the door and go to your left.  It had a new sign.

I was happy to see a few of the older fairies and friends, and delighted to see the new neighbors in fairy town.

More gnomes have moved in and there were get-togethers to welcome the newcomers.  They were singing...

A Fairy Song

Over hill, over dale,
Thorough bush, thorough brier,
Over park, over pale,
Thorough flood, thorough fire!

I do wander everywhere,
Swifter than the moon's sphere;
And I serve the Fairy Queen,
To dew her orbs upon the green;
The cowslips tall her pensioners be;
In their gold coats spots you see;

Those be rubies, fairy favours;

In those freckles live their savours;

I must go seek some dewdrops here,

And hang a pearl in every cowslip's ear.

~William Shakespeare~

If you go to this link at Wikipedia, it describes fairies as being "...a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, German, English and French folklore), a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural." 

At this website you will read that "the Norse versions of the fairies are the wide variety of elves, and the disir that exist in the Teutonic traditions.  The Valkyries could be classified as fairies."

"The Female spirits known as the Disir (pronounced "DEE-sir;" Old Norse, Old Saxon idisi)  are one of the most enigmatic and vexing groups of beings in the mythology and religion of the pre-Christian Norse and other Germanic peoples."

"It was during the time of Queen Elizabeth I of England, where William Shakespeare (1564-1616) had popularized fairies in English folklore, in his play Midsummer Night’s Dream, with the characters Oberon, Titania and Puck (Robin Goodfellow). Earlier than Shakespeare, Chaucer (1342-1400) mentioned that the land of Britain was filled with fairies before the time of King Arthur."

If you pop into Pinterest every now and again, this link will take you to lots of ideas if you are interested in starting a Fairy Garden.  At this point in my life I won't be, but I do enjoy looking at the one next to the visitor center at Meadowlark Gardens.

It's been fun sharing the photos I took there last Sunday.  There will be others from the rest of the garden soon.