Monday, March 30, 2009

Spring Inside!

Spring is having a hard time springing here in Massachusetts. So, I have a lot of Amaryllis bulbs and this is the first one to bloom this year. This one is called "Apple Blossom" and is one of my favorites. My daughter gave this one to me for Christmas 2007. This blossom is 8" across and 8" high and is truly magnificent. This bulb has 2 scapes with 3 blossoms on one and 4 on the other. So these flowers will last for a couple of weeks.



This flower is on the back opposite of the first blossom.




This is the other stalk and has not started to open yet.




This is the first blossom without the flash on the camera.

I love these flowers and feel so fortunate to have such good luck with them. I have pollinated them and I have 14 red ones. I started about 10 years ago with one. It seems I can't have ONE of anything, it is my nature to have collections of stuff....hehe I won't do any more red ones, but I MUST pollinate this one, it is so beautiful. It takes about 3-5 years to find out what the flowers will look like, so it is a long process, and one must be patient. (And have lots of room for them.)
I'll be showing some pictures of the red ones when they start blooming.
'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Foiled Milk Chocolate Eggs!

YUMMY!!!!

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean


Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Everything bunnies..........

Getting ready!
We are making hundreds of these little chocolate delights!

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean





Sunday, March 22, 2009

Chocolate bunnies all in a row, Oh My!

I will be seeing lots of these little guys from now until Easter,
one of my favorite holidays.
'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

Friday, March 20, 2009

Hey Chickies!

It's that time of year again.........


And ~~ta-daa~~they have a new color.............ORANGE! YUM!!!!!

'Til next time. Love ya, Jean

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Wearin' O' the Green!

It's nearing time for St. Patrick's Day, one week from today. Here are some pictures of my decorating for this holiday:

























Another table:







My front door "Wreath":

I will be wearin' the green, eating corned beef and cabbage, maybe I'll make some Irish Soda Bread and drink some green beer!

Have a wonderful St. Patrick's Day!

'Til next time, Love ya, Jean









Thursday, March 5, 2009

Another Flower Show!

These are my African Violets. I have 10 altogether. I started with 2! They have multiplied over the years. I have rooted some leaves, I have divided some and I have lost some to old age. I usually have 10 to 12 at any given time. The one below is just starting to bloom. If you look close you can see a little stalk of flower buds. These will start to open in a few days and then a lot more little stalks will start to grow and before I know it, it will be covered with pink flowers. I have a light stand that they stay on all the time. It has a timer to control the lights and it is on for about 16 hours a day. They don't require much care, I water with fertilizer from the bottom about once a week and pick off the dead leaves, and repot them once a year in the Spring. That's about all they require. The African Violets will bloom for a few months and then they rest for a month or so and then they start to bloom all over again.


This has a few more bud stems:


And this one is starting to bloom, too:



This one has more flowers:




This is a purple one that I love:





And another purple one:



This is a baby one that I started from a leaf. It has about 3 or 4 centers and I will be dividing it into 3 or 4 plants in a few weeks. Then it will probably take about 6 months for them to start blooming.


I have 3 more pink ones that are still resting--they will probably be showing some buds any day now.

I love my African Violets and I love it when they are in full bloom. That should be another week or so. I can't wait! Just as I can't wait for Spring!
'Til next time, Love ya, Jean

Sunday, March 1, 2009

A Beautiful Floral Show!

I was supposed to go to a Spring Flower Show today, but unfortunately we had snow and I didn't want to drive 45 minutes in the mess to get there. Also, I didn't want to worry that it would be worse by the time I was finished looking at all the flowers, the vendors booths, and all that goes with it. So, I decided to make my own flower show, right here at home.........



First, here are some roses:


Some more roses:
A little birdie and some sparkly rocks:


More sparkly rocks and flowers:



Then we have the daisies:




More daisies and a rose:





And a roundup of all of the beauties........





A few more beauties: more daisies, a tulip, a palm leaf, and another rose.

This is my collection of old brooches, and enameled pins. I love the flowers and I have been fortunate to find so many. I have not spent much money on them, most of them I have found at yard sales or thrift stores. It's fun to pull them out and look at them. And then at times, I will take a few out and lay them on my dresser where I can see them and enjoy them. Sometimes, I will even wear one of them, they are so pretty. I hope you enjoyed my little show 'n tell, talk to you soon.
'Til next time, Love ya, Jean