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Showing posts with label winter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label winter. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

The Promise of Daffodils





The Daffodils in our backyard are poking their little green noses out
of the soil.


From this viewpoint the little sprouts look like green mouths with tiny green tongues!


Winter doesn't last long in southern California. Sure, we still have some rainy days ahead and ten weeks or so of chilly nights. But those of you buried under snow wouldn't quite equate that to what passes for winter in your neck of the woods!





I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

WILLIAM WORDSWORTH



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Sunday, February 10, 2013

A Day of Surprises ~

It's winter and it's cold, but nature always manages to entertain and surprise me. Here in Southern California we expect annual howling Santa Ana winds, which can blow up to 70 miles per hour, along with some liquid sunshine every February. However, yesterday I enjoyed a temporary break from the winds which were replaced by a surprising downpour of hail! Yes, because I reside in the land of almost perpetual sunshine, I like love rain~

 
A local school posted this photo of their football field, along with some hail-angels!
 
 I've never seen that much hail in Orange County all at once. It reminded me of a deluge of hail we experienced once in New Mexico.
 I was driving when the hail began. Hail *pinged* off the hood of the car, turned sidewalks white, and had people running for cover. It was funny to see bare spots without hail under large canopied trees!
 Roofs were covered in hail and so were parked cars. Alas, the hail melted quickly and by the time I stopped the car and retrieved my cell phone camera (note to self, always keep a camera in the car!) most of the magical-looking white mantle had disappeared.
 
 Once I was home, I discovered Mother Nature wasn't finished with my day. Look what we spotted in the backyard at the feeder...
http://d2zntewxcgdtk7.cloudfront.net/Black-headed_Grosbeak_b57-13-046_l.jpg

After a bit of online research I found that this handsome fellow is a Black Headed Grosbeak. He enjoyed some sunflower seeds, investigated the birdbath, cast a disinterested glance at the wild cottontail rabbits nibbling grass nearby, then flew off.
We were so excited! We've never seen this particular species in our yard before. 




I receive so much joy from simple pleasures! With Spring ahead I know there will be more little things to smile about, and additional surprises from Mother Nature.  I'll keep you updated.




Friday, December 21, 2012

Winter- It's Official!

Happy Winter-time! Late dawn, early sunset. Short day and a long night. For us in the Northern Hemisphere, the December solstice marks the longest night and shortest day of the year, after which the days get longer. I've been enjoying picturesque snow scene photos on so many of your blogs and it makes me wish for a white Christmas! Alas, here in southern California we have blooming flowers and swaying palm trees, so I have to enjoy your 'winter white' vicariously. Instead of snow dusted trees, we have bright yellow ginkos


I came across half a dozen Gingko trees in a large patch of deep green grass - each bright yellow tree had a 'skirt' of fallen leaves at the base of it's trunk. The day was slightly overcast, and the yellow was so bright and cheery that I just had to take a photo.


These sunny colored leaves danced and curtsied in the breeze. When I returned home I felt like doing a little dance myself; I had special mail waiting to be opened! 


 Thank you, Marjolein and Carol, for taking the time to craft a handmade card and send it to me! What a sweet surprise. I ooohed and ahhhed over them - love the tiny bell around the reindeer's neck and the nifty way the Santa card stands up.

 
  Here is a glimpse of the mantel. There are nutcrackers and soldiers made of wood, metal, cloth, glass and wax! There are nesting toy soldiers, a wee soldier inside a bell, and even a wooden bowling pin set. It is nice to have all the decorating done, and now we can do a few fun things before the big day. Today we went to see The Hobbit. Loved it!


 Hope you are caught up with your to do list and get the chance to enjoy this first day of Winter~

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Winter begins~

Did you mail your letter to Santa? Got those presents wrapped? I found a cute thing to tie onto packages that is free! Heidi at SewCraftCreate made some fun tags for you; click on the link to go there and print them.
I think I am ready for the big day~ I've put finishing touches on the decorations. My creative daughter used a paragraph from A Christmas Carol, put it in  script font, then superimposed the word 'Joy' over it. She printed it out on cardstock and I inked the edges with Ranger Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I placed it in our old typewriter and set it in the foyer, next to our  guest book. How does it look? I got the idea from another blog which actually used 3 typewriters to spell out the word joy, but we only have one typewriter, so this was my solution.


The typewriter is sitting on an old Singer sewing machine, and you can see our tree behind it with sun streaming in from the window.


Like so many of you I like a relaxing cup of tea in the afternoon!


Tea today was in my Brambly Hedge 'Winter' teacup in honor of the first day of Winter, December 22.


I had toasted Cranberry Walnut bread from Trader Joes.


The artwork on the cup is by Jill Barklem. She depicts charming mice in rural settings. The scene on this set has Mr. and Mrs. Apple just sitting down to a cozy dinner in front of the fireplace.


    There is a snow mouse inside the cup~


I like the size and shape of the handle~


When the first snow falls, the mice will have a Snow Ball~


But right now, they are settling in for the evening with dinner and a good book~ Mrs. Apple drew two chairs up to the fire and brought in their supper on a tray.


I love the soft blue rim and intertwining branches~
Perhaps this tiny tea set, below, would be the perfect size for Mr. And Mrs. Apple? It is sitting under my daughters' ornament tree in the family room.


See Santa carrying a fir tree?


Wishing you a merry Winter~
(Happy Channukah to those who celebrate it!)




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