Staying cool

It's been so hot here lately, I have lost all interest whatsoever in working outside, and look forward to a respite brought by heavy rain... and the skies are teasing us, with clouds low and dark and full of promises... yet, the doors of heaven won't open up upon us...  hot hot, and dried beyond belief.  So dried it's been, that my funny husband, the Fisherman, have decided to paint the grass, or whatever is left of it... really, paint the grass!  Have you ever heard of such a thing? He he...  poor guy!  

Paint made for the sole purpose of camouflaging dead, dried grass?  Until the weather subsides, and the rains scatter away the heat and calm the land, bringing moisture near the soil and life to surface again... I am already looking forward to those pre-autumnal days, and keeping inside as much as my wild heart allows me...

It's been so much fun decorating our little white cottage in Shabby Chic again... I had forgotten how lovely all these things are... pastels, flowers, lots of it, textiles, little pretty things, pink things, baby blue things, dried petals and lace and such...  

I've been working inside during these hot days, and have been organizing my closet and getting rid of a lot of things in there...  I'm not returning to my past, so I have gotten rid of all my black work suits and winter attire.  Even if I decide to go back to work again, I won't be needing most of those things any more, because my needs, and sense of style have changed.  The same goes for most of my high heels, which are now gone too.   Now those days seem like a lifetime ago.  It always amazes me how our definition of happiness changes as we get older... the way you see life changes too, and experiences of happiness as being times when you felt excited, ecstatic, or elated, are now changed by moments of feeling peaceful, relaxed, and in total peace with yourself, with just the way you are, or the way you look, regardless of what others may think... in total peace with your Creator, and those around you... this kind of happiness is less about what lies ahead, and more about being content in your current circumstances... these feelings call for a total new style... a new closet, me thinks!

Stay cool, girls!  And may you enjoy each quiet moments with yourself...

Adios...

LINKING TO:

SUNDAYS AT HOME
DISHING IT DIGGING IT
BETWEEN NAPS ON THE PORCH
BERNIDEEN TEA TIME
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
THE SCOOP

The frog and the fishes

I'm so thankful and appreciative to the reader who shared her experience on the mystery of goldfish disappearing from her pond... we have several frogs in our pond, but I could had never ever imagined that the sweet frogs, dwellers of our pond were the culprit of the missing fishes... My poor husband was going bonkers. Off  his head researching the Internet on this matter and swore on all the fairies in my woods that it was a blue heron snatching away our fishes. Which, I always thought it was the craziest of idea ever, because I have never ever seen a blue heron around here in all the years we lived here.  Well, maybe one, but I can assure you this one is not a predator... hehe.

At least now I know...  those ladies in our pond, I'm now convinced are frog witches.  I swear I have already seen them and their spotted chests and bellies flying over the privets above our cottage. Pure magic they are...  Fierce and bold, mean and beautiful. 

The pond is looking so pretty these days with the amount of vegetation growing around it.  All the Elephant Ear bulbs I planted last year came back, and they are flourishing so well, so verdant and big and precious to me.  I also have a Macho Fern growing there, which I love and will have to figure out if these precious plants can be left outside for the winter... 

I can hardly believe this is the same pond of two years ago... 

 I cut some roses from the front gardens the other day...

Love how the white of the roses and dark purple of this simple vase look together...

And I am keeping the old gladiolus and Allium flowers that have dried in their vase...  they look so pretty... 

I can almost hear my sweet dear mom saying, "baby we need to throw those thing away, they're dead"...  What is it about dried flowers I so love?  

Remember that certain rose bush I'd judged of 'sterile' early at the beginning of this spring?  Oh, it had proven me wrong in more than a thousand surprising way.... yeah, Nature is just amazing, ain't it! 

Although slow in bearing its fruits at the beginning, this bush has surpassed me beyond my dreams.... Nature is so precise, it's faithfulness never ceases to amaze me...

Ohhh see that precious dark background of the magical woods behind?  

I'm sitting here, imagining I dwell in the magical world of the Inklings, on the fringes of the far West, in the pure lands the Holy Ones had made for themselves....

Oh, I hear little giggles.  You?  Yes, yes... and I can hear the swishing of bushes and low vegetation being pushed away... by fairies, I'm sure.  Or do you suppose this may have something to do with those witches of frogs?   Mindless bumpkins! You blithering bogvumpers! ;) 

I hope you're having a lovely day wherever you are.  It's been so hot and dried here as I've never seen. I'm sitting by my window, desperately waiting for the first sign of rain to reveal.  Oh clouds clouds come floating 'round into my forest, carry rain or usher storm! ;)

See you sooonnn, friends!

On a Saturday morning

Our little white cottage feels cozy, and wonderful on this cloudy Saturday morning.

I feel blessed, and happy that we get to stay home this weekend, free of the usual responsibilities of having to travel. So, home it is on this wonderful gray morning.

Enjoying our cozy little nest, and washing some of the white linen...

I am going to dwell only on lovely things, on everything that's beautiful and good, and not think too much on what's going on around our precious little world, and particularly in our country.... I'm leaving every bit of worry and disquiet of the heart in the heart of God. I know He cares. His silence speaks in a language we cannot understand, yet His love overpowers all shadows. It is true, and tender, and enough to quiet our trembling hearts. A universe of love inhabits his sad eyes.  I like to write. It soothes my spirit, and I like other things as well. Like for example, my new lace curtains in our dinning room.

I love, love them... I like that they are lace, that they offer privacy and yet don't hinder light from still coming in... the room feels like a white, soft cocoon.

I got them here:

And I totally love how they look from the outside... truly romantic, and lovely.

I pruned the roses the other day...

Even the spent roses are so dear and lovely to me...

The view outside from our breakfast table early this morning was incredible... everything is radiantly beautiful outside, and the hummingbirds have arrived.  I spied the first one this morning.  A black little thing with no brilliant colors on its throat.  So I have cleaned and filled their feeders and now I wait.  I will be strolling the gardens as soon as I leave here... will be enjoying and exploring for little, big things and breathing in the mystery of the woods beyond...  I found another lovely shawl the other day and cannot wait to wear it. Every day is a blessing from God. And I consider it a new beginning. Yeah, everything is beautiful. 

Life in our little white cottage

It must be hormonal... something to do with hormones, I'm sure, because hormones influence the way you respond to things and play a huge role on our moods... in a huge way.  And thus, I'm finding I get easily frustrated by little nothings these days... minor details, like for example that all... all, but one of our darling dear fishes are gone! We counted nine last night before coming in for the day, and this morning only but one remains. The pond looks terribly lonesome and quiet. It is so sad.

I gathered up a bouquet from the garden this morning... Asiatic lilies. The fragrance oils of these flowers are the strongest when their blooms have been opened for a while. It is a glorious, sweet perfume that only pairs in enchantment to the mystery and deep shadows in the woods behind them, where they grow in my garden...

I love the whiff of perfume on the air each time I walk by them... It's like walking right into a French shop around April.

Last evening I went to the herb gardens and collected some basil leaves... to make fresh basil pesto for dinner... Pesto spread on French bread, along with cheeses and the yummiest of organic tomatoes, also grown in our gardens... 

I feel a tinge of nostalgia whenever I'm here.  A feeling of having been here, or in a forgotten other garden long, long time ago.  I have everything I need.  I am blessed.  True contentment, true peace, realizes this. 

I could say that I made this recipe as I went along... or I could say that the fairies whispered it into my ear... And so this recipe is dedicated to the fairies who protect our gardens and keep all sorts of critters from eating our goodies... 

This is the best pesto I have ever, ever tasted. It is so yummy, we had it over our bread at breakfast again this morning. I doubled the garlic amount on my recipe because I simply love garlic, but you can surely follow the fairies' recipe, just as is... ;) Ok, ok... click to see the recipe I followed, if you wish! ;) 

 

I'm still working on my Shabby Chic decor in my favorite room. It's been so much fun bringing in all the pretty things, and everything is just looking so beautiful... how could I'd ever distanced myself from this trend, I just can't tell... but I'm back to Shabby Chic, at least for now...

I will show you more soon... and thank you for all your comments on our previous post.  It was fun reading! I am an Instagram user now... it took me a while to figured out how the program worked, and I'm still not sure, but I've been posting some pics there... hope to see you around!

Back home

After two weeks of togetherness, my little cottage feels empty. We took mom and dad back to their Florida home over the long weekend, and got back home to our little white cottage late yesterday evening... mixed emotions permeate my little heart, which right this moment is a flower in its imperial glories, denying all beauty.  And it rather wants to stay tucked away under the shades of that part of the garden of life where it is damped, mournful and where evil imps and fairies taunt the spirit and laugh at you, and make you shed tears. But I won't... I simply refuse to surrender to gloominess and sadness and chose to concentrate in the open blue sky under the sunshine of my Heavenly Father's eternal love... that's what I'll do!

The Asiatic lilies are all in bloom. Early this spring, I moved every bulb from wherever I had planted them originally and put them back in the ground in one big clump.

Now, rather than blooming here and there as they were supposed to, they are all blooming in one same spot, providing a solid mass of beautiful, showy flowers...

And always, always... the dark green lushness of the mysterious woods for a background... to cover tears and vanish sins...

I love this place... I love it with all my heart, and with all the depths and offerings of my humble soul. I cannot love this place any more than I already do... my heart finds its rest here, I find my voice in the green suppleness that suffocates it and in the darkness that shrouds it... and when my eyes searches for miracles, I find them here too. 

Roses are found everywhere... carrying in delicate petals the sounds of my name...

...and at the pond, a miracle had unfolded... babies--dozen of baby fishes were born this spring!

It is so beautiful here and so lush with all the lovely plants growing there, it is hard to believe this is the same place I saw that first day when I discovered our little white cottage... unbelievable, really!

 
 

I found this lovely mosaic hummingbird birdbath for a few dollars at our Goodwill.  I had to laugh out loud when I discovered it, because it almost felt as if God himself, knowing me, had it confectioned just for me... and there it was, unseen and untouched, until I laid eyes on it... how beautiful, and lucky for me!

I've been cleaning and decorating our little white cottage all day today... playing around with dear little treasures, such as flowers and textiles and moving things around... I'm loving the color pink these days, and are favoring the Shabby Chic style over my usual modern, black and white decor.  So I've changed everything in our guest room, which it is also my playroom, my gypsy room and my everything in between room, and made it into a lovely, pink, girly place to be... for now.

Tomorrow, I am planing on working on repainting, or retouching parts of the white walls and trims and I will be also working on the tile grout on the kitchen floors as well... but for now, I'll enjoy all the little precious moments, as they come... one by one, like little blessed raindrops sent from the house of God. 

And how are you doing?  Anything exciting going on in your woods?  Oh, I do hope you are having a splendid day!