THE GREATEST LOVE OF ALL – “For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have Everlasting Life.” ~ John 3:16
Author: Timelesslady
Married with children and grandchildren. Reader, writer, painter - maybe a bit of an artist. Gardener... Led by the Spirit.
Plant & Quote – Fortitude
“Patience and fortitude conquer all things”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Wild Garden Cress is a very hardy plant…or as some would say…a weed. This beautiful specimen, regardless of the frigid temperatures, is growing between the rocks bordering my front gardens. Garden Cress is a plant with fortitude. No matter what the conditions I can usually find sprigs of it in my yard.
Wild Garden Cress is an edible weed. A terrific article with good information can be found at The Potager Page.
A synonym of fortitude is courage. I think this amazing little plant has plenty of courage.
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People – Throwback Thursday/Sisters
My sister and I, October 30th, 1977. I am the bride, just barely twenty years old. She is my Maid of Honor, aged seventeen.
On February 4th I blogged about packaging seeds for my sister in tea packets . This is the sweet email I received in return:
‘Hi Kathy,
Thank you so much for the seeds. When I first saw them hanging on the back door I thought you were sharing tea with me. I even turned on the tea kettle went to the bag and then saw the writing, ha, ha. Thank you so much, I may start some of them today. Talk soon!
Love, Sue’
My sister is so talented and versatile. She wears many hats: nurse, beekeeper, gardener, skipper of a boat, hockey coach, friend, wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, aunt and SISTER. I am blessed to be her big sister.
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Phlowers & Poetry – Daffodils
Today’s Color Your World – 120 Days of Crayola color is Goldenrod. I don’t have any goldenrod flowers on hand, but I do have the promise of daffodils growing in my garden. Yesterday, I walked around the yard and found the promise of Spring in the midst of a nice clump of daffodil leaves.
“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.”
~ William Wordsworth
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.”
~ William Wordsworth
The entire poem by William Wordsworth can be found here: I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud by William Wordsworth
Daffodil Photographs were taken at Longwood Gardens Conservatory, Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.
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Photo Challenge – Timeless Stone
“This week, think about Time and portray it photographically.” Haddonfield, New Jersey
These beautiful churches, created with stone, fascinate me. I love to look upwards and imagine myself in another century, amid the many souls who have walked beneath the steeples, crosses and outer walls of these amazing houses of worship. I hope when I am gone on to a better world these churches will still stand, a testament to the eternal nature of God’s love.
“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.” ~ Psalm 90:2
The exterior molding surrounding the stained glass window is a soft gold.
Beautiful churches can be found in many towns all around the world.
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Praise – Light
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Place – Sweet Shop
Color Your World – 120 Days of Crayola – Fuchsia
Today we drove to Haddonfield, New Jersey and strolled around town doing a bit of window-shopping. We stopped in the Posh Pop Bakeshop and tried their coffee and rose macaroons. Delicious! Fuchsia letters labeled each jar: Tiffany, Vanilla, Rose, Neapolitan, Chocolate and Nutella. I sampled the rose and it was fabulous! One day I would love to make macaroons.
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Phun – Solving Mysteries/The Scent of Violets
I come from a long-line of women who love to read. The china hutch was my grandmothers. Granny was an avid reader; I think she would understand why I am using her hutch as a library, rather than keeping my mismatched china pieces inside.
When I read the blogs of other readers, I am interested by what they loved as children. Although I still read daily, I’ve never quite found the magic in books that I did as a child.
Recently, while reading the blog of Joeyfully Stated, I came across a mystery:
“My grandmother must have bought them used, because they were well-worn paperbacks. I have absolutely no idea what they were, or who wrote them. Yes, I have Googled, thank you. My memory describes them to me as Southern turn of the century historical fiction. Each book focused on a young woman in a specific family whose surname I do not recall. Each book included a mystery and clean romance in the plot lines. The ghost matriarch of this family (Augusta? Agatha?) haunted each girl with the smell of violets. You can read the entire post and comments at: Joeyfully Stated’s Blog Post – A Ghost So Old I Can’t Remember Her Name.
If anyone has a twinge of memory as to what these books might be titled, and where they can be found, please comment here or on the Joeyfully Stated Blog. Thanks!
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Product & Plants – Tea and Seeds
I love Salada’s Lemon Lively green tea blend. A little honey and a teabag in boiling water bring me a few moments of peace.
I also use the tea packets to share seeds with relatives and friends. Early this morning I was at my desk, wrapping some new varieties from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds in foil and inserting them in tea packets, to give to my sister later today.
I love products that have packaging that can be recycled. At this time of year I save salad containers and other clear plastics to use as miniature greenhouses for seed starting. Gardening is expensive and it helps to find good ways to cut corners by recycling. Happy Gardening…Spring is on its way.
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Photo Challenges – Optical Illusions/Black and White
Another winter day means time for one more Wordpress Challenge. Today I’m taking part in Cee’s Black & White Challenge-Angles and Lines. I’m using a close-up of a wooden soldier that was in my collage of the Mullica Hill Alphabet posted on January 18th. I find many angles in these photographs.
When I took this photo I didn’t notice the cigar the soldier held in his mouth. I studied the picture, trying to figure out exactly what made up the cigar. Hmmmm???? The question became: Was it really a cigar or something behind the soldier. What do you think?
Aha! Upon a closer look, the shadow told the tale.
Just an optical illusion after all. I’m still bamboozled by what is creating the illusion. I’ll have to visit the town again and take another look…soon!
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Photographs – Challenges/Vibrant Top Ten Historical Sites on Tuesday
I love the challenges that WordPress, and fellow bloggers, extend to the blogging community. I enjoy the mental stretching and growth the challenges prompt in me. In today’s post I’ve fulfilled five challenges. Read or skim through the content of the post and see if you think I was able to incorporate all five as a coherent whole, and at the same time, stay true to my commitment to keep the word count in my posts low.
“This week, share a photo of Something Vibrant. Let’s wash the web with a rainbow of colors to keep the winter gloom at bay.” ~ Jen H./Wordpress Photo Challenge
These RAINBOW cottages stand in the Pitman Methodist Campground, now commonly called ‘The Grove,’ in Pitman, New Jersey. I couldn’t find a solid purple house, but did find some pretty lavender gingerbread to stand in its stead.
1. The Pitman Grove is number one in my Top Ten Tuesday Historical Sites, not because it is the best, only that it is the closest in distance.
Color Your World – 120 Days of Crayola. – Eggplant (Foundation Color of Cottage)
Below you will find the rest of my top ten historical sites for Top Ten Tuesday by Broke and Bookish Blog. I’ve kept this list exclusive to the U.S., but hope to someday compile a list of Top Ten Historical Sites Worldwide.
2. Rowan University, Glassboro, New Jersey – Site of Glassboro Summit Conference talks between Lyndon B. Johnson and Alexei Kosygin. I was in the crowd, but did not see Johnson or Kosygin, I was still in grade school. In the same crowd was a young man I would marry years later, he was able to shake the hand of Lyndon Johnson.
3. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – The City of Brotherly Love. There are so many historical sites in Philadelphia I have visited and loved. The Art Museum, The Zoological Society, Franklin Institute, Academy of Natural Sciences, The U.S. Mint, Reading Market…the list could go on.
4. The Jersey Shore The Jersey Shore from Atlantic City to Cape May. The ocean beaches, the bays…I love all the Jersey Shore.
5. Red Bank Battlefield, Revolutionary War Site. – This is a lovely place to go and watch air and river travel.
6. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania – Thousands of Americans from both the North and the South died here. There is still a sense of sadness in the atmosphere. It is hard to explain unless you have experienced it. Everywhere you walk and gaze, men died, giving their lives for the cause they believed in. A must-see if you are interested in American History.
7. Arlington National Cemetery – A place to honor those who gave their lives for our country. Also visit the grave of the 35th president of the USA, John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
8.Mount Vernon – Mount Vernon – Home of the first president of the U.S. – George Washington.
9. Williamsburg and Jamestown, Virginia – One of my all-time favorite areas to visit. My grandparents lived in the Tidewater area of Virginia, and in many ways it still feels like a second home to me.
10. Washington, D.C. – U.S. Capitol
A few more favorite historical areas on the East Coast: New Hope, PA, Brandywine Valley, PA, Batsto Village NJ, Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC, Block Island, RI, and Jim Thorpe, PA, the Chesapeake Bay, Easton, MD, Tilghman’s Island, MD, and others!
I love visiting these amazing historical areas, and hope to continue doing so in the future. Like so many of us, to accomplish all these goals and dreams I definitely need “Twenty-five hours in a day, seven days a week.” I hope all the dips and turns and strange nuances in this post of challenges has not been confusing. 😀
Search out a few challenges to take part in here on WordPress . If you aren’t a blogger consider starting one. I enjoy the challenges and meeting people from all over the world. Thanks for reading!
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Phlowers & Quotes – Pink Roses/Welcome February
“Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses.”
~Alphonse Karr
“One of the most tragic things I know about human nature
is that all of us tend to put off living.
We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over
the horizon instead of enjoying the roses that are
blooming outside our windows today.”
– Dale Carnegie
“Loveliest of lovely things are they on earth that soonest pass away. The rose that lives its little hour is prized beyond the sculptured flower.”
~ William C. Bryant
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Photographs & Praise – Winter Thaw
“A Psalm of David. The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein.” ~ Psalm 24:1
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Project – Color Your World/120 Days of Crayola – Scarlet Heart
The calendar will turn over to the month of February on Monday. I decided this beautiful Valentine’s Day stained glass heart was a perfect choice for today’s Color Your World – 120 Days of Crayola. color choice of SCARLET. You can find a quick video below of the process below. There are also step by step directions here: Stained Glass Crayon Hearts
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Plans – Theme Words
Keep at the goals, resolutions and dreams you made at the start of 2016. Remind yourself of the reward if you achieve success! These rocks collected on the beaches of Block Island, Rhode Island, were the perfect base/weights to hold my winter theme word letters, “COMMIT.” They are a good reminder to me to take a few steps towards my goals each day.
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Quotes – Wednesday Wisdom/Winter
Wintry weather often brings about a case of “cabin fever.” The antidote that works best is to get busy clearing out the “junk” in our homes and hearts.
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Photographs – Seashells and Snow
“This week show us something you’re optimistic about, or perhaps a talisman that helps you stay positive and hopeful, regardless of what life (and the weather!) throws your way.”
Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall…I dream of seashells and sunshine. A “little bit” of snow can’t diminish my Optimistic Attitude!
I also feel my spirit lift when I glimpse the beautiful “Cerulean” Sky.
Color Your World – 120 Days of Crayola – Cerulean
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Quote – Hudson Taylor
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Pheathers – Silent Saturday/Snowstorm
