Forget-me-not

Hello, Dear Friends, I hope that 

you have a little bit of sun shining through the window
 as you drink your morning coffee during these
troubled times that we all face each day. 

Our lives have, of necessity, become quite different 

than they were yesterday. 

I now hear the lyrics of that lovely, simple 

song, 'Yesterday', by The Beatles, in a much

more poignant and sentimental way.

The Forget-me-not is blooming and reminds me of 

what is most endearing in life.

Sweet moments and sweet memories.

I never know when these will come 

in this crazy, scary, beautiful life,

but when the Forget-me-not bloom,
I am reminded to cherish these
moments whenever I can.

They are everywhere this year.

A little gift.

I have an abundance of over-wintered pansies and alyssum 

 on the back deck that I am so grateful for, too.

Late last summer and fall, I gathered pansy seed pods 

from my plants and dropped them into some of 

my planters and pots. 

I was so surprised to see them grow. 

This is my Rosemary plant surrounded by 'Pansy Surprise',

my own special seed mix!

I was preparing myself for life in retirement
 by trying to grow my own from seed.
A flower habit can get expensive.
xx

I had no idea how the world would change
and how much these simple, happy flowers
would cheer us up. 

Can you tell that I love pansies?

It can get out of hand....

xoxo

And that brings me back to Forget-me-not. 

I started with one little plant so many years ago...

So wonderfully named. 

Don't you love the names of old-fashioned flowers?

'Bachelor's Buttons'

'Bleeding Heart'

'Kiss Me Over the Garden Gate'
and Pansy - 'Heart's Ease'

I'm sure you can add to the list! 

The tulips are blooming, too.

These are many years old, brought home in pots 

from a trip to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival,
here in Washington state.

It was my last trip with my Mom.  

She's been gone 9 years already. 

So many people are experiencing loss right now. 

Planting something beautiful in a loved one's memory

helps heal the heart. 

This is part of our parent's commemorative 

garden that we started all those years ago.
Both my and The Mr.'s parents are gone,
and now we are the senior generation.

We are losing this older generation quickly now,
and we need to honor them
and carry on their values, wisdom and traditions.

My Mom and Dad loved to garden.

I remember the hollyhocks my Mom
always planted along the back fence 

when I was a child. And the blooming crab apple, 

lilac, and hawthorn trees I helped my Dad dig up

from the old nursery that was going out of business,
when I was 12. 

We worked all weekend, going back and forth,
from nursery to home,

digging up and replanting mature shrubs left 

untended for years while the nursery sat neglected. 

The nursery was the same one that my Grandfather 

worked at during the Great Depression,
when my Dad was a young boy. 

My Grandfather was 12 years gone by then;

 gone since I was a baby. 

He died too soon from a worn-out heart,
damaged from a childhood bout with Scarlet Fever,
and a life of hard work - only 50 years old. 

My Father and my Grandfather were very close.

The loss must have been so painful. 

The trees in that neglected nursery were a 

direct connection to my Grandfather, and it is not until 

now that I realize how bittersweet the sentimental task 

my Dad and I were performing.

The last time I visited my childhood home, 

 3000 miles away, 

some of the same trees were still thriving!

Commemorative gardens or special plants can connect us with our loved 

ones in mysterious ways.
I planted a white rose when my dear Mother died,
and it bloomed for the very first time
more than a year later, on the very day my dear Father died.
xx

Angels in the garden are a lovely way to commemorate loved ones, too.

A gentle reminder of our connection to the divine

and hope of the eternal.

This tiny, historical church, illuminated from within, is
always a delightful sight to see in our little town.
It reminds us that faith is built from the inside out,
even while gatherings must wait.

I've been very busy these last few weeks.

I've been taking my 3 yr old grandson 

3 days a week to help my daughter and son-in-law, 

who are working from home with a 3 yr old

and 2 yr. old twin boys. I've been caring 

for them, along with their other Grandma, since birth. 

When I have spare time, and not working in the gardens, 

 I am upstairs in my sewing room. 

I've been making masks for all of my loved ones.

Here we are in early December at the Christmas tree farm.
(with one teenager missing
because of a new job).

It is getting to be quite a crowd,
and here's some sweet news: one more grandson on the way!
That will make five little boys under age five!
I need to keep taking my vitamins!
xoxo

I made some lavender sachets to go along with the masks. 

Lavender has anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties. 

This will help keep the freshly laundered masks sterile 

in storage. 

I made each family member two - one for laundering 

and one for wearing.

All packed up and ready to mail.  

Here's the link for directions if you would like to make your own:
The Button Counter Blog

 Presents to mail for my daughter's birthday.
Normally we would all get together in a big, noisy crowd,
with lots of yummy food, wine and birthday cake with candles.

Here's our birthday girl, Jennie in happier times.
She's our soon-to-be new Mom, with hubby, Steve.
We are so happy.

Although, it's not an easy time to become a new Mom.
xoxo

We moved the kitchen day-bed into the living room
under the window.
This came about because my old dog, Whitey Bear,
wasn't able to maneuver through the pet door anymore
with the day-bed there.

I made a few new pillows.
I've had some grain-sack fabric waiting for a rainy day :)

The red and tan color-scheme matches my living room rugs.

The needlepoint was found at a vintage shop and was once framed.

It creates a cozy alcove.
I blog from the vintage treadle sewing machine cabinet
(the sewing machine inside still works).
I can see the television from there.
I multi-task.
xx
I'm watching the British comedy, 'As Time Goes By'.
Has anyone been watching, 'World on Fire' on Masterpiece Theater?
It's a brilliant reminder that generations before
us fought hard for our freedoms and we must
honor their sacrifice and try to be just as brave.
xx
I'm a big fan of 'Masterpiece'.
I loved 'Victoria' and now I'm excited
to watch 'Sanditon' again when it starts the new season.

xx

Here's my old boy, Whitey Bear, deliberately
refusing to give me a smile.
He hates his picture taken :)

He just had a bath and is extra fluffy.

He has really slowed down.
His favorite thing to do is lounge, although
he can muster up some sass when need be.
He's my sweet protector.

We put the old English buffet where the daybed was.

After all the furniture moving to accommodate
his needs, he still refuses to use the pet door.
It's those old, creaky joints...
I'm starting to relate.

Kai lies in the way all the time, anyway.
xx

So we are opening doors at all hours to let the old guy out
for bathroom breaks.
That's o.k.
He'd give his life for ours, it's the least we can do.
xx

The buffet holds all my barware.
I want to stain or paint the crates underneath.
The large one holds extra wine-glasses
and the small one holds party supplies.
You never know when you might need a paper umbrella
or two.

I rather like the old buffet here.
Maybe for a while.....

The wild cherry trees are blooming.

They grow everywhere and are especially pretty along the edges
of the fields and woodlands.

So pretty in the landscape against the drama of the evergreens.
This is my country road to home.

A row of pear trees along the driveway of a sweet little cottage
on my way out of town.

A weeping cherry and mountain laurel make a charming welcome 

to a lovely Northwest home. 

Home has become everyone's haven. 

We are so very fortunate to have a home. 

Home is what you make of it. 

There's no place like home. 

You can take a tour of some sweet, 

vintage cottages in my little town, here and here.

Spring reminds us that we must be strong,
resilient, and tempered by the difficulties life
brings our way, just like the flowers that bloom
despite the harshness of winter.

xoxo

"The best way out is always through."
-Robert Frost-

"He who has a why to live can bear
almost any how."
-Friedrich Nietzsche-

"The art of living lies less in eliminating
our troubles than in growing with them."
-Bernard M. Baruch-

A Country Drive

Hello, Dear Friends. 

I hope that spring's silver sunshine is 

shining down and giving you pretty blooms 

to brighten your day. 

Here in Washington state, near the foothills of 

the Cascade mountains, flowers are blooming, 

birds are singing, and the trees are leafing out.

And every few days, we actually see the sun! 

We do live near Seattle, after all, and everyone

knows that Seattle is known for its prodigious rainfall. 

We get on average, about 40 inches of rain per year. 

Most of that falls between December and June. 

The glacial creek that runs below our little mountain 

is running high, and late at night, when the sounds carry 

far, we can hear it rushing and gurgling on its way to 

Puget Sound. 

Sometimes it sounds like lonely voices lost in time....

All the rain fills up the wetlands and helps the 

skunk cabbage (lysichiton americanus) bloom. 

This plant is a delicacy of the American black bear

as they forage for food after a long hibernation. 

Ramblin' Man has just washed and filled the gas tank 

of my trusty 2005 Ford Ranger, so we can take a drive. 

The countryside is so green and lush and punctuated 

by the prettiest flowering trees this time of year. 

This little apple tree grew all on its own from 

apples we used to feed my children's ponies, 

when they stayed in the little pasture that 

belonged to our neighbor on long summer days.  

The ponies are gone, (they lived with us the rest of their lives)

 the pasture is now unused and overgrown, 

and the dear, elderly neighbor has long since departed this world, 

but this little tree stands in remembrance of those

sweet, childhood days.  

After driving down from our little mountain, 

the road levels out here, surrounded by pasture, 

before snaking down and around sharp curves 

and landing on a broad plateau that hosts 

the tiny, historic logging town we call our own. 

It is full of the most charming little cottages. 

A fairly new library.....

Vintage shops.....

Beautiful churches.....

And tree-lined lanes. 

There's a narrow roadside park that runs the length 

of the town where people love to walk and picnic. 

This time of year it is especially pretty 

with cherry trees all in bloom. 

This lovely park can be seen by all who travel 

the busy two-lane highway that runs 

all the way to Mt. Rainier. 

In summer the highway is full of campers, 

outdoors-enthusiasts and tourists, 

and in winter; skiers, snow-shoe'rs and snow boarders

on their way to the local ski resort 45 miles away.

Between 1 and 2 million visitors from all over the world

visit 14,411 ft. Mt. Rainier every year.  

I try to avoid this highway when I can :)

So, I drive the back-roads, which might take longer, 

but are so much prettier. 

Right now the dogwood trees are blooming in 

the most gorgeous shades of cream and rose. 

And colorful rhododendron and azalea bloom in every shade. 

This time of year is so lovely and so full of promise......

Beauty is everywhere. 

But all roads lead to home! 

Thank you for coming along with me, Dear Friends! 

xoxo

"Two roads diverged in a wood and I - I took 

the one less traveled by, 

and that has made all the difference"

- Robert Frost -

xoxo

Today I am linking with:

Floral Passions - Floral Bliss

It's a Small Town Life - Thankful Thursday

xoxo

Won't you join the fun?