Mosaic Monday: Spring at Little Red House

Did you all have a nice weekend? It was quite lovely here -- my busy weekend turned out just fine. My daughter PR'd in her track meet, we had a great time in Philadelphia with my son and his girlfriend, and our visit to Fordham was wonderful.

And I didn't have to go to the dentist after all. Glory Hallelujah. ;)

I've gathered just a few images here of our beautiful spring in New Jersey. The cherry blossoms are from a nearby park. The daffodil, forsythia and hosta leaves are from our garden here at Little Red House. In fact, the forsythia was given to me by a dear friend from high school, who grew it from cuttings taken in her own garden. I always think that is one of the most wonderful things about having a garden -- so many of the plants may have stories or memories attached to them. Do you have any special plants in your garden with stories or memories that go with them?

Now let's have some mosaic fun! Here are the instructions:
1. Publish your Mosaic Monday post.
2. Once it is published, click on the title of the post. This will lead you to the static link for your post. The static link is the page with only that post on it. Copy the url from your browser at the top of the page.
3. Paste the url into the appropriate Mr. Linky box in this post.
4. Type your name in the appropriate Mr. Linky box in this post.
5. Click on "Enter."
6. Please link back to this Mosaic Monday post so that your readers can find other wonderful mosaics.
That's all there is to it! It's always a good idea to then check and see if your link is working. If you have any questions, feel free to email me: mrcarroll(at)optonline.net. I can't wait to see your mosaics! Here is Mr. Linky:

Crazy Busy

This is going to be a crazy busy weekend for us -- my daughter has a track meet today and we have to be in Philadelphia this evening for a birthday dinner for my son's girlfriend. To top it all off, I may have to make an emergency visit to the dentist. Aaarrrgh!

Tomorrow we will be spending the day at Fordham, for accepted student's day. I'm hoping to be home in time to put Mr. Linky up for Mosaic Monday sometime before 10:00 pm Eastern time. Although I have no idea what I will be posting...

Have a wonderful weekend, dear bloggers!

Among the Violets

In Victorian times, the violet stood for faithfulness. These little beauties pop up in our lawn each spring, faithful harbingers of the season.

I remember picking them as a child, and bringing them inside as a gift for my mother. I still love them inordinately -- the way they appear almost overnight, with their heart-shaped leaves and delicate nodding blossoms, the way they remain shyly closed till the sun coaxes them to open their faces.

Some people count them as weeds. Google "wild violets" and you will find countless articles on how to eradicate them from your lawn. I can't imagine our lawn without them. And how beautiful do they look among the morning dew drops?

"O wind, where have you been, That you blow so sweet? Among the violets Which blossom at your feet. The honeysuckle waits For Summer and for heat But violets in the chilly Spring Make the turf so sweet." From Sing Song, a Nursery Rhyme Book (before 1873)

Going to the Birds

Do you ever feel like you live the most boring life imaginable, and no one would be interested in anything you could possibly write about?

No, of course not. Because all of you lead wonderfully full and interesting lives. You paint furniture. You create fabulous scrapbooks. You visit exotic places.

All I do is spend way too much time taking pictures. lol

I went to a nearby park on Monday to get some pictures of reflections in the water for my 365 blog, Beauty Unspoken. I came away with a photo of a Canada goose taking an afternoon snooze. :)

And also a pair of mallards preening in the sun.

There was a big sign, in Spanish and English, warning that it was against the law to feed the waterfowl. But as I walked around the perimeter path, a car pulled up and an old woman got out. She went to the water's edge, right under the "Do Not Feed the Waterfowl" sign, and tossed some bread into the water. Then she got back into the car and drove away.

Instantly, some Canada geese, the mallards and a pair of swans appeared. And I got my reflections shot.

Sometimes the planets just align, you know? And I feel as though my life is not going to the birds after all. ;)

Mosaic Monday: Sherbet Colors

I'm really inspired by color lately -- salmon and soft purple seem to be favorites here at the moment. So sunsets and quince blossoms and hyacinths make up my mosaic this week. They remind me of sherbet -- the kind I used to love as a kid -- where the color was almost as delicious as the sugary sweetness. :)

I'm hoping to get some spring cleaning done in the garden for the next few days. Our seventy-degree weather is supposed to continue into the middle of the week, and with all this rain and warm weather, things are growing by leaps and bounds. How wonderful is that after such a hard winter?!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. We certainly did!

Now let's have some mosaic fun! Here are the instructions:
1. Publish your Mosaic Monday post.
2. Once it is published, click on the title of the post. This will lead you to the static link for your post. The static link is the page with only that post on it. Copy the url from your browser at the top of the page.
3. Paste the url into the appropriate Mr. Linky box in this post.
4. Type your name in the appropriate Mr. Linky box in this post.
5. Click on "Enter."
6. Please link back to this Mosaic Monday post so that your readers can find other wonderful mosaics.
That's all there is to it! It's always a good idea to then check and see if your link is working. If you have any questions, feel free to email me: mrcarroll(at)optonline.net. I can't wait to see your mosaics! Here is Mr. Linky:

A little of this and that...

We have had the most beautiful weather here for the past two days -- sunny and 70. Suddenly, there are flowers popping up everywhere, including these beautiful blue Scilla Siberica. They are tiny, but oh so beautiful in flower beds that are still just waking up.

And they self seed, which I love. Right now they dot my beds with blue. You have to love a flower that is so enthusiastic. They are tiny, and look quite delicate although that is misleading. They have been through cold and drenching rain, and still they shine.

Another spring miracle in fact.

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And I almost forgot -- here is the lucky winner of my giveaway. Random.org chose comment #8.

And that comment was from the wonderful Jane, of Blondie's Journals. Jane, you are such a sweetheart, and I am thrilled to send you the two dishes! Could you please email me at mrcarroll(at)optonline(dot)net and give me your snail mail address?

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Are you all up for Mosaic Monday this week? I'm a little behind on everything, but I hope I'll be caught up by Sunday. Mr. Linky should be up by 10:00pm Eastern time. Hope you will play along! :)

Hope Rekindled

“Expect to have hope rekindled. Expect your prayers to be answered in wondrous ways. The dry seasons in life do not last. The spring rains will come again.”

Sarah Ban Breathnach

May your hope be rekindled. May your prayers be answered. These are my wishes for you in this season of new life, dear bloggers. :)