More reasons to love living in the south.

Winter here, is usually pretty mild.

We might get snow in January or February,

but it never lasts.

None so far this year.

What we do have right now is...

 Daffodils

My Sweet Husband found these blooming in the yard already.

Since we were expecting frost,

he brought them in for me.

Last year they bloomed in snow.

 Purple Pansies,

We planted pansies in the fall.

These always remind me of a song I learned in Sunday School.

The song was about "little purple pansies" being a drop of gladness.

They were my Mom's favorite flower.

Don't they just make you smile.

 Yellow Pansy

We have yellow pansies too.

They are quite hardy.

Our temperature got down around 20 degrees F the other night,

the pansies did not seem to mind.

Yellow and White Daffodil 

We also rehabilitated an old garden area in the front yard this fall.

I spent hours on my knees clearing the area.

Then I planted bulbs that had been uncovered by work in other areas of the yard.

There are only a few blooming so far,

but as you can see, well worth the effort.

I took this photo at twilight,

I love the way the late evening sun shines through it.

 New Garden Area

This is a view of the entire area.

I was not sure how well the bulbs would do as the tree in the center is a young oak.

Some plants will not grow under an oak.

 Mary in Camellias

We have three different types of Camellias.

Two are blooming right now.

I love the way this one seems to be blooming just for her.

 Large Camellia

 Smaller Camellia

This one is smaller and more like a rose.

One way to tell the difference,

Camellias have no perfume.

Another difference is in the plant and leaves.

These bushes are at least eight feet tall.

 Frost Bitten Camellia

We have not escaped winter,

Some camellias opened at the wrong time.

This one did not survive the cold.

 Frost Bitten Buds

Here are two of the smaller ones that did not make it.

 Camellia Buds Waiting to Open

Not to worry,

The bushes are still full of these.

Paper whites

Remember the Paper whites from the last post?

Here is a last view.

As you can see, the flowers are almost gone from this year.

We will plant them out in the new garden area out front with the daffodils.

Then we will have blooms again next year.

Hope your winter has plenty of bright moments so far,

and I hope your homes are as warm and happy

as mine is right now.

Cheers,

Kat



Wordless Wednedsday

"Running from the cat'

By Random Czar

(Wordless, but turn on your sound)

Christmas Gift.

Since the intended recipient has finally unwrapped their Christmas presents, I can show you one of the things I made for a friend.

Now what? Changes.

It has been a while since I posted.

The last few months have been quite busy.

Let me start with the beginning.

Paper White Narcissus Bulbs

I usually try to keep anything that is less than positive off this blog.

This is my happy place.

However, I need to explain a little of the bad stuff to get to the good stuff.

Paper White Narcissus 2
Several months ago, I left my job.
Finding a new job turned out to be more difficult than I expected.
In November, I finally succeeded and started in the middle of the month.

Paper White Narcissus 3

The new job requires a long commute,

and lots of changes.

Paper White Narcissus in full bloom
Now the good stuff
My new job is so very much worth it!
I am working with a bunch of great nurses who have made me feel welcome
and once again, I feel like I am doing the kind of job a nurse is supposed to do.
My Sweet Husband has been the very best support through out this whole thing.
Whether you realize it or not, your friendship and support has made it easier to get past the rough patches too.
I am still in school and my new job requires lots of hours,
but hopefully, I should be back to normal with posting from here.

Winter tree
So now for the regularly scheduled
(although a little late) post.

Christmas colored boat
Since our extended family could not make it home for Christmas,
My Sweet Husband decided we needed
a little road trip.

Kitty teapot
(It is probably a good thing this shop was closed,
I really don't need another teapot, but isn't it cute?)
We went to Savannah Georgia for Christmas eve and Christmas day.

Savannah Squirrel
Savannah's squirrels are not camera shy.
This one was having a lovely time.

This is what he was climbing in.
Savannah is roughly a four hour drive from our home,
but the climate is milder.
It is a great place for a short winter break.

Lighted Fountain in Savannah Square

Our hotel was located downtown so we were able to walk around and look at lights.

Jingle Bell Church

Savannah Unitarian Church

The song Jingle Bells, was written by the minister of this church long ago.

We attended the Christmas eve candle light service.

It was lovely, as expected.

We have been there several times before and are always welcome.

Christmas lights on another Savannah Square
We walked around before and after the service.

Christmas Eve in Savannah

More Lights

Hope your holiday was as lovely as mine.
Thanks for sticking with me.
Cheers,
Kat

Time Warp Tuesday

"And now, for something completely different" as Monty Python used to say.

OK, admit it,

how many of you are big kids?

I took a quick trip back in time the other day,

to watch

Donald Duck's Christmas on YouTube.

I can't remember how to embed the actual video here, but the link should work.

For some reason, this version is subtitled in German.

When you are done watching this one,

(it takes less than 10 minutes and will brighten your day)

Take a peak at this list

About.Com Free Christmas Movies

I have been watching them while I Iron.

They do take me back in time.

Next post will be more the usual.

But I really wanted to share these with you.

Let me know what you think,

Hope it makes you all smile.

Cheers,

Kat, and Spontaneous

Contest winner, and one happy cat.

Corner of Cat's Mind: What kind of nip do you grow down there in the South? Just a quick note about the contest I held last month. I took pictures of the prizes so I could show you. I wanted to wait till the winner, Catherine, received the package so she would be surprised.

She posted about the prize on her blog and her post is just to cute! So follow the link above and I will let Catherine tell you about it.