Welcome, Spring!

Today we are putting our house back into semi-order after a week of projects and spring cleaning. I finished wallpapering our entryway this afternoon. It went from this…



to this…




Much more spring-like, don’t you think?


I want to get a new entry console/chest and a new chandelier. I haven’t decided yet what color I would like for the chest, maybe a cream color or black.

Here is a picture of the front of the house all freshly painted. (It probably looks more yellow than it’s supposed to due to the amount of oak and pine pollen coating everything and blowing in from the “blue norther” that came through yesterday.)

We had to cut back so much of our landscaping because of the freezes, that the yard looks bare. But there are signs that things are coming back. These are shoots sprouting from the foxtail ferns that died in the last freeze.



Dianthus in the front flower bed.


Azaleas that have just bloomed this weekend.


One thing that has been nice this year is that we have got to experience the seasons, which doesn’t happen that often down here along the Texas coast. We had a cool and colorful fall, a cold, snowy (for Houston!) winter, and now we are experiencing a glorious spring. God is faithful!

Nevertheless He left not himself without witness, in that He did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness. Acts 14:17

I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in.  ~George Washington Carver

Happy 2nd Birthday, Katie!

I need a break!

I think that I need to go back to work Monday so that I can have a break from Spring Break! We started the week with painting the outside of the house. No, we didn't paint it ourselves. However, preparing for the painting and cleaning up after the painting is a real job. (And, of course, touching up where the painters missed with their paint sprayer.)

Next, I took down the wallpaper from our entryway and Dan painted the walls and trim. Yesterday I began re-wallpapering and I hope to finish by tomorrow afternoon. I'll post some pictures then. In the meantime, Dan has ordered fencing to be delivered on Monday so that we can replace our wood fence...a project that is long overdue.

It hasn't been all work, though. Judy and I did drive up to Navasota to go to the tea room at Martha's Bloomers.  It was St. Patrick's Day so they were serving a traditional meal of corned beef and cabbage. We opted for sandwiches and a delicious tomato soup so that we could save room for some blackberry cobbler. In addition to a tea room they have gifts and plants native to the area. After lunch, we managed to find a few things to spend our money on. lol

As we were getting ready to drive back to Houston, I realized that I hadn't taken any pictures. Judy circled the parking lot as I dashed around trying to snap a few shots. She was laughing at me because I wanted to take pictures of a red bud tree for Outdoor Wednesday so we had to stop the car again while I jumped out to take the picture. We were turning the car around when we saw another person walking up to the red bud tree with her camera. She must also have a blog! I wonder if she's going to link to Outdoor Wednesday??









We thought we might see some bluebonnets or Indian paintbrushes along the highway, but there were not many blooms yet. Everything is late because of our unusually cold winter.
Thursday we visited the most charming gift store named Out of the Box. It's located on Woodway at Chimney Rock. They have the most precious gifts and shabby chic items for the home. The Easter bunny (aka Grammy) found lots of goodies there! I’m going to have to go back for a cute little white soap dish.

Today we ended our week with a birthday party for this precious little girl. Guess how old she is?? Her outfit was purchased at She She Made. I loooove their baby and children's clothes.







Our precious Hannah also enjoyed seeing friends and family.



After the morning party this was what was waiting at home. How cute are they?

An Irish Blessing

Tonight I am having a bout of insomnia, so I've been visiting a number of new (to me) blogs. Bella Della is one of the ones that I discovered. I loved the picture that she has taken of a country road. The colors are just gorgeous!

You're probably wondering what this has to do with an Irish blessing. Seeing as how I'm in a St. Patrick's Day frame of mind after looking at so many blogs that mentioned it, when I saw this picture I immediately thought of the poem copied below. It goes well don't you think?

Bella Della

Irish Blessing

May the road rise up to meet you,

May the wind be at your back,

May good friends be there to greet you

And your table never lack.

May your life be filled with laughter,

and your heart be filled with song.

May God shine His light upon you,

As you live your whole life long.

Double Trouble

Last weekend when we were discussing putting our dog, Teddy, down, my husband and I said we were not going to have anymore dogs for a while. It hurts too bad when something happens to them. That lasted only a couple of days. We were too lonesome without Teddy.

So...now we have not one but two puppies. A co-worker had doxie-chon  puppies (a cross between a dachsund and a bichon) that she needed to find homes for, so I graciously took one of the females. Then, because I'm a glutton for punishment, I went back and got a male. I think our daughters think that we have lost our minds. Oh well...

So, here are the new members of our family:

Charlie

Lucy

Double trouble

Saying Goodbye to a Dear Friend

Teddy 2005-2010

This past Monday we had to put our sweet dog to sleep. He was diagnosed with kidney failure and we were told that there was no hope for recovery. We certainly did not want to prolong his suffering. He is greatly missed. We were blessed to have him as a part of our lives.

Spring has sprung...maybe

has

sprung...

maybe.

It is a gorgeous day here in Texas. Makes you want to run out to the nursery...with every other person in town. All of our yards look so dreary because of our cold winter. I'm not complaining because I know that compared to others, our winter was mild. But we are still going to have to replace many of our plants in our yard.

However...we can feel the promise of spring...new birth, new life, new growth. God is faithful!

I wasn't brave enough to buy a lot of flowers yet. My grandmother used to say you don't plant your garden until Good Friday. But I was able to make my tiny front porch a little more spring-like.

(I bought my urns at Ross and TJ Maxx. I love those bargains!)

Then He who sat on the throne said,

"Behold, I make all things new."

And He said to me, "Write for these words

are true and faithful."

Revelation 21:5 NKJV