Enjoying the Garden Blooms

It’s been a whole month since my last post, but the fact is I’m quite busy. 

Summer is the busiest time for my family because of all the outdoor activities such as taking kids to the swimming pool, picnics, hiking and forest walks, going to the beach, as well as small travels to visit extended family... Oh, and I do a lot of crocheting too!

This year I’m not spending as much time gardening as I did in the previous years, but nonetheless my yard rewards me with some beautiful flowers to enjoy.

The best time to be in the garden is after the sunset as the air cools down and the life around is slowing down as well. I like just to sit on my patio for a short while and simply take pleasure in all things blooming in the yard.

Calla Lilies

This year my calla lilies are blooming later than usual. In the previous years they bloomed in January-February. We are now more than half the way into March, and only now the flowers appear.

I enjoy having fresh cut flowers on my dining table or dresser. So I picked two calla lilies and put them in a vase in my bedroom.

Nowadays I rarely buy cut flowers from the stores. Most of the cut flowers sold here are grown in Latin America, which does not really make sense to me.

I understand that lower production costs lead to higher profits, which are good for the economy, and yet…

Besides, being snipped off days or perhaps weeks prior, they don’t last long outside of the refrigerators. 

But as I said, I like having flowers in my home. And my own tiny yard is where they come from.

Now I have calla lilies, and my roses will start blooming soon too. I only have a few rose bushes, but even a single rose on my dresser looks luxurious to me. Later in the summer I will have gladioluses, which make lavish bouquets. I’d love to have some tulips too, but so far I haven't had much luck growing them.

Happy 4th of July

I made a small bouquet for America on her birthday. The flowers are from my garden. The pink rose is called Bewitched Hybrid Tea (it will open up in a few days, right on time).

Tomorrow morning I’m leaving for Idaho. On my way, I will pass through Nevada and Oregon. So this 4th of July weekend, I’ll get to see a bit of America. I’m very excited!

I wish you all a wonderful weekend and a great celebration of America’s birthday to those of you in the USA.

I'm linking to

Fresh Cut Friday @ Rose Vignettes,
Home Sweet Home Friday @The Charm of Home,
and Show and Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home

Baby's Breath

I found out that growing flowers from seeds is not an easy task. Some of the seedlings never showed up, others died in the Californian heat, yet others were attacked by slugs and snails.



My baby’s breath seedlings, however, survived all these hardships. And now a beautiful white cloud cheers up my garden.



I am going to dry some of the flowers, so I can enjoy them in fall and winter as well. I also hope to collect some seeds for the next year.



Today, I am joining:

Cottage Flora Thursday @ Fish Tail Cottage,
Home Sweet Home Friday @The Charm of Home,
Fertilizer Friday @ Tootsie Time
Show and Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home.

Thank you for stopping by and enjoy the rest of the week!

Lavender

Finally, lavender is blooming. I think this year I will not simply appreciate its blooms in the garden but will try to find a practical use for them. I know that lavender is used in soaps and shampoos though I don’t home make those (at least not yet). A lavender sachet or lavender potpourri, however, is something I can make.



Do you have any suggestions for lavender use?



Being in a lavender mood, I cross-stitched this small design. The free pattern is from Madame La Fee. I didn’t follow it exactly though. In the pattern, the lavender blossoms are pointing downward, but I wanted mine to point up, so I turned the bow upside down.

I don’t know yet what I will use this design for. Perhaps I’ll make that sachet. I also have an idea of making a set of cross-stitched cards with summer flowers. We’ll see.



I'm joining these link parties:

Show and Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home,
Home Sweet Home Friday @The Charm of Home,
Friday Favorites @ Simply Sweet Home.

Blue Nigella

I never found nigella flowers particularly pretty (I thought they were too simple) until I actually took a moment to look at them.

I think blue nigella is one of those flowers whose beauty cannot be noticed at a glance. You need to study them closely to see the loveliness of delicate layered petals, feathery leaves, and deep blue color. That is what I did last summer at a local park. Since then, these flowers are one of my favorite annuals.



I collected the seeds at the park, and now I can enjoy blue nigella growing in my own yard...



Or cheering up my garden table.



To share my pretty nigella flowers, I am joining the following link parties:

Cottage Flora Thursday @ Fish Tail Cottage,
Home Sweet Home Friday @The Charm of Home,
Fertilizer Friday @ Tootsie Time
Show and Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home.

Thank you for stopping by.

The First Rose Bouquet and The News

The roses around the neighborhood have been blooming for a while, but the ones in my garden are still taking their time.

My big arched bush of Cecile Brunner is slowly opening up its blooms. I can’t wait for it to fully bloom; it will be a spectacular view!

I couldn’t wait any longer to pick the first roses from my garden. The tiny blossoms of Cecile Brunner made a cute little bouquet, and it’s incredible how such small flowers filled the entire room with sweet fragrance.

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And now to the news I’ve been so much looking forward to share.

My little boy was born on the 15th of April. His name is Nikolai. We picked this name because it’s both Norwegian (my husband is of Norwegian descent) and Russian (I am of Russian/Ukrainian descent). We were considering English equivalent name Nicholas, but decided to keep it within our cultural heritages.

The baby is doing well, and so is his mama.

Mosaic Monday

It has been raining for several days now. The world outside my window looks gray and gloomy. I’m sitting inside my warm house, drinking hot tea, and looking at the flower pictures that I took last summer.

The variety of colors and shades the flowers come in amazes me. I ask myself “What is my favorite color of flowers?”, but it is really hard to choose. They all are so beautiful and unique in their own way.

Take a look and tell me if you can pick a favorite color.

White


Yellow


Orange


Red


Pale Pink


Pink


Lavender


And Blue.


Let’s add some Green as well!


I’m joining Mary at Little Red House for Mosaic Monday.

A Striking Floribunda

On my last trip to the local Rose Garden, I discovered a remarkable rose.
It looked as if some naughty artist took a palette and added pink brushstrokes to a white rose. In addition to its distinctive beautiful coloring, the rose had the most fantastic fragrance. Being intrigued by this rose, I wanted to know its name. And what a special name it has – Julio Iglesias!



I love Julio Iglesias’ romantic songs especially the ones in Spanish. There is so much passion and ardor in his voice. His love songs are full of drama and affection. And now I love his rose!
From the little research that I made, I found that it was bred in France in 2006. What beautiful tribute to a great singer.



Well, now I must have Julio Iglesias in my garden.

Today, I'm linking to Outdoor Wednesday at A Southern Daydreamer. Please, come and see other bloggers' outdoor adventures.

Steel and Roses

A few days ago, I went to one of my favorite places in my town – the Rose Garden. Usually, I walk between the neat rows admiring and smelling the roses. But this time, I had a different scheme.

I walked on the perimeter of the garden exploring the roses that grow by the steel fence. Some of the sights were just stunning. There was something magical and dreamy about the steel and rose combination. The mightiness and coldness of the steel bars and the loveliness and fragility of the roses balanced each other so well.

I wonder how come the idea of exploring the steel fence never occurred to me before. It’s really worthwhile seeing.





This week, I'm joining Claudia at Dipity Road for Friday Finding Beauty.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Gerbera Daisies

I always associate summer with flowers. Sadly, this month there aren’t many flowers in my garden to admire. That means I need to find other places full of pretty blooms; for example, city parks.

In one of them, I found a lovely flower bed of gerbera daisies. I didn’t expect gerberas at this time of year; I thought they bloom in early spring. But I was glad to find them.

As I took a closer look, I noticed other creatures admiring them too. I love this picture of an orange gerbera daisy with a praying mantis.



And this one with a bee is cute too.



Here are a couple more pictures of gerbera daisies. It’s funny how the mantis and the bee chose the most beautiful ones to sit on.





I am joining Macro Flowers Saturday.



Have a great weekend!

Spring is Here

The spring has truly arrived. The skies are clear and the sun is shining brightly. The air is filled with the fragrance of blooming trees. Every morning, when I go for a walk around the neighborhood with my son, I cannot stop admiring all the stunning touches of spring. The variety of flowers, blooming trees and bushes is just fabulous. On our walk today, we took some pictures.