Samantha squirrel is looking very pleased with herself and she’s not sharing.
Category Garden Photography
Frilly Floral Friday
Our ‘Tropic Escape’ hibiscus has been flowerless for a while, but this week she’s decided to show us what she’s capable of. Her exquisitely delicate flowers look like they’ve been carefully crafted out of the finest tissue paper. What a pity that after all that effort, each beautiful flower only lasts for a day before closing up again, then wilting and dying. We should really appreciate Nature’s miracles whilst they last.
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.
Ruffled Feathers On Friday
Mr GBH looks as though he Halloween-partied quite hard last night and hasn’t yet got around to smoothing down his tousled feathers. I think the bed-head look quite suits him though.
Wishing you all a great weekend and a November filled with gratitude.
Where’s My Breakfast?
This morning, Woody wood stork came striding purposefully through our backyard and from the determined look in his eye, he was most certainly on a breakfast hunt. I pity any poor fish who are unfortunate enough to come into contact with that beak.
With his ugly, dark grey, wrinkly, bald head, it’s unlikely that he would win any beauty contests, but having such a menacing face which only a mother could love, probably accounts for the fact that wood storks are rarely preyed upon, even by alligators.
Wishing you all a very pleasant Sunday.
The Elusive Grandpa Igasho
Recently, I’ve been feeling quite doleful because of the hunting down and killing of iguanas in our neighbourhood, so it was a real relief yesterday to see Grandpa Igasho in our backyard. I first took a photo out of my bathroom window so as not to scare him away.
Then I crept outside, opening the screen door very quietly. He didn’t move and inch, so I guess he must have known that I meant him no harm and was only going to shoot him with my camera.
He really is a beautiful specimen and I’d miss him so much if he were to fall prey to the Iguana Control man who patrols here with his shot gun on a regular basis.
Alas, I don’t speak ‘Iguana’, or I’d tell him to set up camp in my backyard where, because I haven’t contributed to paying for the extermination of him and his mates, he would be untouchable.
Happy Sunday, everyone.
Mundane Monday In Florida
“What….Monday morning again? Well Mr. GE, if that was your weekend you’ve had it.”
“Wow, the sun’s out! I guess I’ll spruce myself up and take a walk along the edge of the lake and see what I can find for breakfast.”
Wishing you all a great week ahead.
Silent Sunday: A Rosy Glow
Know What I Did this Summer?
It’s good to be home again after our summer meanderings. No sooner had we returned from South Africa and England, than we were off on a road trip up to New Jersey to visit our family. There was just enough time to get the laundry done and for hubby to hurriedly tidy up the patio area which had become a bit weedy during the six weeks we were away. Several orchids were in bloom, which was a lovely welcoming sight.
Our son was taking the last week of the school holidays off work and as he had a business meeting in Virginia on the Thursday before, suggested that it would be nice if we travelled up earlier than we’d planned, picking him up on the way so that we could have him all to ourselves on the five hour drive home. We of course jumped at the opportunity and were soon on our merry way. It’s just over twelve hundred miles from door to door, so we made two overnight stopovers, the first in Port Wentworth GA, known as ‘Savannah’s Front Porch’ and the second night in Fredericksburg VA, very handy for meeting up with him in Middleburg the following lunchtime.
In St. Augustine we stopped to buy some novelties for the three grandchildren, a pretty shell-covered trinket box for each of the girls and a real alligator head for Max. He was over the moon with it, but his mom seemed less than enthusiastic to keep finding it on her kitchen top and absolutely banned it from the dining table. She should just thank her lucky stars that the big alligator wasn’t for sale.
On the second day, at South Of The Border, we made our usual stop for Quesadillas and Chimichangas at Pedro’s restaurant.
Our son and daughter-in-law had organised tickets to an afternoon matinee on Broadway to see Aladdin, which was a real highlight for us all.
The family are all taking tennis lessons, so of course we had to go to the first day of the US Tennis Open. It was a really hot day, with very little shade and hordes of people with the same idea, but once we’d managed to get in, we enjoyed watching a few opening games. Thankfully I’d had the forethought to put sunscreen on, but hubby who is very anti-cream, got his knees and arms rather burnt.
A visit to the Metropolitan Art Museum the following day, had us all marvelling at the wonderful exhibits displayed there.
My personal favourite was this exquisite 1923 Tiffany window, titled ‘Autumn Landscape’ made solely from leaded Favrile glass with no paint added.
After being there for a week, we decided to leave for home a couple of days early because of the Dorian hurricane forecast which at that time included Florida in its path and we did the journey in two days instead of three. The last day was quite grueling, especially for hubby who did all the driving, but we had this friendly-looking cloud creature to cheer us on our way.
It was, as always a relief to get home again, and even more of a relief when Dorian didn’t visit our area at all. I think we’ll just spend some time right here in our comfort zone before we go off on our travels again. It’s far more relaxing.
Wishing you all a splendid weekend.
Cee’s FOTD Challenge: The Lovely Vanda
We have just returned from a road trip to visit our family in New Jersey. Just before we left, I took this photo of my Vanda orchid coming into bud over the fish pond. I’ve had this orchid for five years and it flowers very frequently, always with more flowers than previously. It really is the gift that keeps on giving.
Now the gorgeous purple lady has thirteen flowers and two more stems with more than a dozen buds bursting to come out. It was a lovely welcome home.
I’ll tell you more about our trip next week. Happy weekend to you all.
The join in Cee’s ‘Flower of the day challenge’, just click the link.
Just Another Rainy Sunday Afternoon
‘Woody Wood Stork’ and his backing group ‘The White Ibis’, singing in the rain. Another amazing scene through my bathroom window.
Hope your Sunday weather is brighter than this.
