Psalms – Cast Your Cares
Phlowers – Tulips
It’s tulip time at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.
Tulips come in a wide array of colors and dazzle the eye in mass plantings in the Longwood garden beds.
This bright purple perfectly displays the “Vivid Violet” of today’s Color Your World – 120 Days of Crayola Challenge.
My favorites are the coral-pink variety.
They are beautiful planted in abundance, but I prefer to zoom in on a smaller group and enjoy the beauty of the sun’s rays shimmering through each petal.
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Psalm – Praising God
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Phun – Paper Airplanes
Instead of coming back with what sounds like profound wisdom after my recent hiatus, I’m sharing a way to enchant children, and even a few adults.
Nothing can alleviate a child’s boredom quicker than a terrific paper airplane. When my youngest grandson asked for an airplane, Daddy and Papa were both busy doing other things; the task was up to me. I tried to fold a rendition of what I thought a paper airplane should be…it looked good…but flew like a piece of lead. Hmmm…what to do? Search Youtube of course!
I found this sensational five-minute video, followed along, pausing when I was behind, and OH MY, created a paper airplane that really FLEW and SOARED. I impressed everyone, including myself, with this small paper aircraft. We tried it in various weights of paper, all did well. Give it a try! I guarantee not only will children be impressed, but so will adults. Happy Flying!
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Pheathers & Phavorites – Barn Owl/Live Cam
I came upon this year’s nesting Barn Owl and realized it was time to repost the information for Cornell Bird Labs.
Take a look at the live-streamed “Bird Cams.” If you love birds you will love this site. To start the live cam click on the arrow. If it appears to be a still shot, look closely, you will see the soft movement of the owl’s breath. Thanks again to JaneM who shared this site with me.
Cornell Lab of Ornithology Bird Cam
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Praise – The Sting of Death Defeated
“”Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” ~ I Corinthians 15:55
Yesterday, I came upon this hornet’s nest, shattered, abandoned, with all its threats defeated. It seemed appropriate that it was being overtaken by the new life of the blossoming Spring trees; a perfect visual analogy to remind me that the sting of death was defeated by the Resurrection of Christ Jesus for all eternity. Hallelujah! He has risen!
“Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil” ~ Hebrews 2:14
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Plants & Problem-Solving – Defeating Damping Off Disease
Spring-cleaning my blog has yielded a few posts that should be bumped back toward the front of the blog. Here’s a good one for this time of year, preventing/treating damp-off disease.
The fluffy white substance on the surface of the potting soil is a seed sprouter’s nightmare. Damping Off is lethal to newly sprouted seedlings. Since I am trying to be as organic as possible this year, I wanted a remedy that would not break my resolve so early in the season. I searched the web and found some odd fixes: lemon jello, ground up moss sprinkled on soil, cinnamon & sand. There were also two remedies I decided were the most logical for me to use. One idea was weak mixture of hydrogen peroxide and water, and the other was a weak solution of chamomile tea. I opted for the chamomile tea.
I went to my local grocery store and picked up a box of tea with ingredients of chamomile alone. There were many other mixes, some with lemon, which probably would also work, but I was taking no chances. When I arrived home I boiled water, steeped one bag in two cups, and let it cool down. I used an old hair spray bottle to treat the affected area. These bottles produce small droplets. A bottle with a heavier spray might beat the small seedlings into the soil, killing them even quicker than the damp-off disease.
Twelve hours later there is no sign of the damp off disease on the soil. To read more check out this forum on Gardenweb. Gardenweb Damping-Off Forum Responses.
Coleus update: Almost all of my initial coleus plantings have four leaves. It’s time to begin potting them up into individual cups. I use Solo brand 3 oz cups. the seedlings are potted up in Miracle Gro organic potting soil as the growing medium. The coleus are already beginning to show amazing colors. This time of year is very exciting as I watch my sprouts and seedlings develop.
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Potions – Amazing Dry Skin Cream
As I ‘Spring Clean,’ I will come upon good posts that are buried in the archives and need to be brought forward. This repost is a good one. Many of you have probably seen variations of it on the web. I love this recipe. You can make it as inexpensive ($3.00, using dollar store ingredients) or expensive as you choose, using top-notch lotions. I have just mixed up a new batch of this cream. I would say mine is a medium-priced edition. I used dollar store vaseline, Avon Intensive Care lotion, and another leftover lotion I had on hand. I wish I had begun to use it sooner. Within a few days my dry, winter-weary feet felt smooth again.
As Sandra Lee says, “Semi-Homemade.”
1. Gather Supplies: Big Mixing Bowl, Mixer, 8 oz Baby Lotion, 4 oz Vitamin E Cream, 4 oz Vaseline. (As you can see if you check out the blog recipe at bottom of post, I halved the ingredients they suggested)
2. Scoop out Vitamin E Cream and Vaseline into mixing bowl. Measure out 8 oz of baby lotion.
3. Beat until the mixture resembles light whipped cream. (This step took less than a minute)
4. Scoop into jars.
5. Slather on dry heels and hands. Even my husband liked it. I love it! Next time I will make the full batch. The hardest part was gathering up the jars and getting the cream into the narrow mouths.
Here is the original blog recipe in case you want to check out this one too. Enjoy!
Blog Site For Homemade Hand Cream
The cream makes a perfect gift!
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Phlowers & Pressed Phlowers – Periwinkle
I’ve begun pressing flowers again now that the weather has warmed and early wildflowers and foliage are emerging.
Periwinkle (Vinca minor) are one of the earliest flowers to blossom. An amazing groundcover, the ground vine can also become invasive if left unattended.
I pressed these periwinkle blossoms and stems only a few days before taking the photograph. Because I pressed in a hardback book, rubberbanded, and then microwaved, the flowers are ready to be used within a few days. The color of flower petals will usually darken a bit. The periwinkle blue of these flowers darkened to a Purple Mountain’s Majesty hue, a perfect choice for today’s Color Your World/120 Days of Crayola challenge. Always press more flowers than you think you will need to avoid disappointments, not every flower will press without blemish.
When the flowers are dry I remove them from the book I used for heating. If I leave them too long in the original book they could become impossible to remove.
As you can see in the photograph, the stem of the periwinkle easily lifts, but the more delicate flower is sticking to the page. I first lift the page and roll it a bit to help loosen the petals.
If rolling the page does not totally release the flowers, use a soft bristled paintbrush and gently tease the edges of the petals away from the page.
A pressed flower will stand on its own if it is dry enough to use in projects.
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Prompt & Past – Throwback Thursday/LC Smith Corona Typewriter
The WordPress Daily Post Prompt, ‘Shelf,’ was a perfect fit today for Throwback Thursday.
Probably few remember this early edition of the LC Smith & Corona Typewriter. Planning out this post brought back many reminders of my years of typing. What I miss is the sound of the old manual typewriters. I had forgotten that they ‘ding’ when you begin to reach the outer margins, a warning that you must begin a new sentence or hyphenate a word. For those of you who have never used a manual typewriter, the previous sentence probably sounds like a bit of gobbledy-gook. In that case, who best to demonstrate an old manual typewriter than the inimitable Jerry Lewis.
This typewriter was part of the family hardware store business for decades. Many a store invoice was typed out with its keys. When I researched the model the date it seemed to match best was 1927. The typewriter sat in our basement for years. Recently, while cleaning off shelves I came upon it and decided it was too unique to languish for more years in the dark and brought it upstairs. It can still type out letters and words, with a little help in moving the carriage, and I was able to type out a holiday greeting on parchment.
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Photograph – FLAMINGO pink
Color Your World – 120 Days of Crayola has been an enjoyable challenge for me through the winter months. On rainy days, when the view from the window is gray and dreary, I enjoy searching my photograph files for a pop of color. My entry for the Crayola color of, ‘Flamingo Pink,’ is a flamingo. In reality, the pink on his beak is closer to the actual hue of the crayon color.
This photograph was taken in December at the Cape May Zoo in New Jersey. I used it in a blog post then, but now I’ve cropped the flamingo’s head for a closer look. What an amazing bird. I also enjoyed removing the color…the flamingo is just as stunning in black and white. I hope this little pop of pink mid-March will brighten your day. The blessing of color…what a marvelous gift from God.
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Plants – Coleus Cuttings
The day is dreary. A perfect moment in time to do a little indoor gardening in preparation for the growing season. The coleus cuttings I took from my outdoor plants in the Autumn have thrived. Now, it is time to take cuttings from these indoor plants, continuing the cycle of growing coleus indoors and out each year.
I took several cuttings of the longest plant branches. An important next step is the removal of leaves that will be below the water line.
My recycled jelly jars are the perfect size for rooting coleus cuttings. Direct sunlight is not a good idea with clear jars, but green glass is supposed to be good for rooting in direct sunlight. I placed my cuttings under a grow light, but any soft, indirect lighting will work. Within four weeks I should have dozens of roots growing from the stem. At that point I will place the coleus in potting soil and grow on in the house for a few more weeks, until the danger for frost is completely gone. Coleus will not survive a heavy frost.
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Quick Tip – Spring Forward
“But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in your hand.” ~ Psalm 31:14-15
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Prompt – The Celandine Flow
When I read today’s Daily Prompt title, “Flow,” I immediately thought of celandine. Also known as the fig buttercup, celandine rivals the common buttercup in the wow power of its brilliant gold petals. Add to that, its propensity to follow the flow of running water, in this instance a creek, and you will find a wildflower that creates a carpet of gold to greet the early warmth of March.
Celandine is considered invasive in some states. It can be toxic to grazing animals. On the other side of the problem of its invasive tendencies, is the ease of gathering and pressing, if you are a presser of flowers and foliage. Celandine retains its gorgeous gold color and presses well for me in traditional methods and in the microwave. Because it is very abundant, I never fear I am taking more than I should. Each year when I return to my favorite gathering places for celandine, I find the flow of flowers has taken over even more of the land.
The color yellow, at least in the realm of wildflower spunk (I’m thinking dandelions, buttercups and celandine here) usually signals, “Charge!”
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Pheathers – Spring Robin
Today I am busy, busy, busy cleaning mildew off the porch ceiling and washing down the warm weather furniture. Once it’s done the yard and gardens will call to me with more chores. I’m so glad I took time to walk and listen to the birdsong before I began all the spraying, scrubbing and rearranging. If I hadn’t I would have missed seeing this beautiful robin searching for worms.
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Photograph – Playground Harmony
On Friday, when I checked the topic for the weekly WordPress Photo Challenge, I was thrilled to find the title word of harmony.
Harmony
“The combination of simultaneously sounded musical notes to produce chords having a pleasing effect; the quality of forming a pleasing and consistent whole.” ~ WordPress Photo Challenge
Harmony, melodious, musical…all these words bestow on me an instant uptick in mood when I hear them. In my files, I knew I must have dozens of photographs perfect for depicting harmony, but none came to mind, and I couldn’t understand why I felt so blocked. Until today…
Today dawned warm for early March, the sky cloudless, almost like someone had colored its expanse with a Pacific Blue crayon. I took my grandchildren to a nearby playground, just three and almost four, they are the best of friends. Without any hesitation, they climbed the stairs and skipped across the bridge that spans two sliding board sections. As they crossed, they spontaneously began to sing, “London Bridge is falling down.” At such a young age, not in harmony of course, but in definite harmony with the spirit of the day and each other.
I thought this black and white photograph of them, wearing my oversized sunglasses, was a perfect choice for Cee’s Black and White Photo Challenge – Twins.
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Project – Faux Wooden Easter Eggs
I blogged about this project last year, and since it was one of my favorites, I thought it deserved a repeat.
I love the appearance of wooden Easter eggs, but they can cost a pretty penny when hand-painted and strung for hanging. I found an alternative, but I must also include a warning: these faux eggs might magically disappear before you can use them for Easter decorating.
I recently purchased a package of malted Easter eggs in my local drugstore. I chose them for their eye-appeal; covered in pastel candy, speckled in darker pastels, the malted eggs were small, delicate and irresistible.. While I was pondering all the ways I could rig them for hanging, I ate one…then another, and so on…and you know the end of my tale, by the time I had a plan in place half my eggs had disappeared.
To create a hole for threading, place the malted egg on a wash cloth or other thick cloth, pointy end up. Place a barbecue skewer, ice pick, heavy-duty toothpick, etc., on the top and slowly twist until it penetrates the outer shell. Continue twisting and applying pressure until the skewer reaches the bottom of the egg and exits through the bottom.
A thin looped ribbon was easily pushed through with a toothpick, and knotted on the larger end. Voila`, easy faux wooden eggs for a fraction of the cost. The eggs won’t last more than one season, but if they did I would miss the fun of making (and eating) them again next year.
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Planting – Butterfly Garden Host Plant – Dill
In the Spring, garden seed racks are available in almost every store I shop in. It’s hard to resist taking a moment to look over their display in search of something new. I’ve noticed almost every seed company offers a packet of mixed flowers that will draw butterflies. I enjoy growing flowers for butterflies and find zinnias are a favorite of the delicate winged creatures.
An additional way of bringing butterflies into your yard is to grow the plant/plants they use as a host for their offspring. Dill is one of the best for attracting swallowtail butterflies to your yard. Dill is readily available as a plant or seed in most garden centers.
Dill is easy to grow and a good choice for a child’s garden. The yellow flowers resemble a burst a fireworks, and the seeds they develop can be collected for cooking. The fern-like foliage is a perfect addition to many recipes. I sow dill seeds directly in the garden beds, and also start it indoors for quicker blooms. Give dill a try, you won’t be disappointed.
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Poetry & Photographs – Sunday Afternoon Walk & Browning
The year’s at the spring,
And day’s at the morn;
Morning’s at seven;
The hill-side’s dew-pearled;
The lark’s on the wing;
The snail’s on the thorn;
God’s in his Heaven—
All’s right with the world!
~ Robert Browning
