Everyday Living

Dressed for Spring!

April 13, 2015~ Outdoors

“This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise,

The morning light, the lily white, declare their Maker’s praise.

This is my Father’s world: He shines in all that’s fair;

In the rustling grass I hear Him pass;

He speaks to me everywhere”
-Maltbie D. Babcock

Our very old water oak loses a few limbs from time to time.
This dogwood, so far, has escaped being struck by a large branch!It has often been said that the dogwood bloom is a reminder of the
cross of Jesus!Azaleas are popping out everywhere with a wide variety of colors!The large pink blooms appear to be a “pride of Mobile” variety!Our snowball bushes are near their peak!With a close look, you can see raindrops hanging on the petals!Our friend, Joann’s natural landscape!A close look at the red azaleas that are seen from a distance in
the previous picture!The white azalea blooms almost resemble clusters of fairies!Life-giving water-refreshes and restores!Black Creek below Noccalula Falls! April Wisteria really makes a statement!It seems these large wisteria vines enjoy being hosted by a big pine!The blooms look like clusters of grapes!Our friend, Joann has mastered the art of relaxation!Maybe Joann doesn’t get to use the hammock as often as she
would like, someone has to keep the lawn mowed!Something about the color of the sky above the dogwood bloom
makes this photo special!We are convinced that we need a few of these Yoshino Cherry trees
in our landscape!The little ones are looking for a big meal before
siblings hatch and demand their share!Certain types of Japanese maples add wonderful contrast against the
shades of green that are abundant in spring!Oreo thinks he is hidden!Tulips…they depart too soon!

“All things were made through him, and without him was not
any thing made that was made”
John‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬

Linking with Pieced Pastimes , It’s Overflowing , Be Different Act Normal , Silver Pennies , Life on Lakeshore Drive , Thoughts From Alice , Pink When , Mod Vintage Life , Coastal Charm , My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia , The Dedicated House , Dwellings-Heart of Your Home , Savvy Southern Style , Ivy and Elephants, French Country Cottage , From My Front Porch To Yours , Stone Gable , Confessions of a Plate Addict , Worthing Court , Between Naps on the Porch , Cedar Hill Farmhouse , A Stroll Thru Life , The Style Sisters , The Charm of Home , The Winthrop Chronicles , Cornerstone Confessions , A Delightsome Life , Imparting Grace , Craftberry Bush , Posed Perfection , Katherines Corner , My Romantic Home , Chic On A Shoestring Decorating , Rooted In Thyme , Share Your Cup, The Enchanting Rose, Alabama Women Bloggers, 21 Rosemary Lane, Northern Nesting, Oh My Heartsie Girl, Cozy Little House

Simple + Southern Sunday No. 25

April 12, 2015~ Simple + Southern Sunday

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, ‘therefore I will hope in him.'”
‭Lamentations‬ ‭3‬:‭22-24‬

Each week, on Simple + Southern Sunday, we share a church, usually
because it caught our eye with it’s beauty! But this week, it’s a little
different. The church below was founded in 1829, and this particular
building was built in 1903, but has been maintained immaculately!
And I would love to let you all in on a little story that is so very dear
to my heart!

church

A couple of weeks ago I took my Daddy to visit his sister, my Aunt Jean. She lives an hour from us in the town where Daddy grew up. On our trip home, we decided to take our time and drive by this special church that holds precious memories for him. As we did, my Daddy was able to share with me a couple of stories that I will now forever cherish! When he was about ten years old, he walked to church early on Sunday mornings during the winter months in order to build a fire in the pot-bellied stove. This was an important job, because it was their only means of heat! The congregation paid him fifty cents each week, which was a lot of money in the late 1930’s! As he shared another precious memory with me, his voice cracked and tears welled up in his eyes. When my Daddy was wounded in the Korean War, this congregation had a special prayer service for God to heal him and bring him home safely! God answered their prayers! That detour was well worth hearing those two stories that I had never heard from my sweet, Godly Daddy! I would love for you all to read more about his life here: Living Legacy. Ahh, the serenity of a stream running through a gorgeous farm on a
spring morning! A sunset with its unusual light on our pasture caught my attention
from the kitchen window! I had to run out with my camera to
snap this photo! “Uh-oh, hope I don’t get stuck this way!” Butch captured this rare site in rural Northeast Alabama-a covered
bridge built in 1934!
Ada and Harper are ready for a bedtime story in their matching pj’s! Seth and Allison went on a ten mile hike this past weekend to the
highest point in Alabama, Mount Cheaha. God’s beautiful world! Dinner at home…poached egg over bacon wrapped asparagus,
parmesan brown rice, and rosemary focaccia bread!Katy captured this old tractor sitting just off the side of the road on
the way to Georgia-very simple and southern! An artist painting Noccalula Falls on day one of the 7th Annual
Southeastern Plein Air Invitational You talk about airing out dirty laundry!
Our friend who is on mission in England (where there are no clothes
dryers) has no choice but to hang his laundry out to dry!
We love how Butch captured the diamond-patterned light shining on
the tracks inside the covered bridge seen earlier!

“I was glad when they said to me,
‘Let us go to the house of the Lord!’”
Psalm 122:1

Patio Possibilities?

April 9, 2015~ Decorating, Outdoors

We are talking backyard project again on the blog today! We have drawn our plans for the garden and will be sharing those with the landscaper in the next few days. In addition to the garden area that we shared a couple of weeks back (See here: How Does Your Garden Grow?), our patio is also included in those plans! To say that it is time for a patio makeover is a huge understatement, seeing as it was built many years ago. We enjoy eating alfresco from April through October and sitting and relaxing-that is its primary function. For the past few years, we have contemplated adding a screened porch (too much upkeep, I think). And we must take into consideration that we have a lot of critters…raccoons, rabbits, opossum, armadillos, turkeys, deer…you get the picture! Friends have told us some of them will manage to get through screening. I can just imagine waking up to find them all having a full-blown party on the porch!!! So a patio make-over is the decision we have made! I wanted to share some inspiration photos and include a few from our back yard space and talk pros and cons.

Most of these were taken from my Pinterest board: Outdoor Spaces.
Click the picture to go to the original source.

This example, with its coffered ceiling and lanterns, is a
dream space and probably not a reality! What a beautiful patio for eating. I love the brick herringbone
patterned floor! What’s not to love about this patio! I can see enjoying morning
coffee and quiet time in the comfy seating with the sound
of the trickling water fountain! A vine-covered arbor is great protection from the
mid-day sun. Of course, a fireplace would be a nice
addition-but how much would we really use it?
This is another example of an arbor covering! Enjoying morning coffee last year on my patio!
To see more of my Instagram photos,
click here: Pam’s Instagram patio As you can see, everything is in disarray on our patio! This is an ideal spot for dining out. I can imagine autumn
dinners with a fire burning! I would not choose a gravel surface, but I love the vintage table
and chairs with a nearby fountain! This partially covered patio has incorporated a sitting area with
fireplace and a dining space! Breakfast on our patio last summer!
You can see more photos here: Breakfast Alfresco! The large coffee table, mirror, vine covered trellis and furniture
offer an attractive space for entertaining! A fire pit has been a consideration and I love this small one! An arbor with a swing is always a good idea! arbor Butch built our arbor over 30 years ago and it was located in our front
yard with a swing facing our Appalachian foothills. We moved it to
the back yard and planted Lady Banks roses. I took this photo
this week! As you can see we have wide open space for our plans! But if we place a swing under the arbor, then we can’t enjoy dinner
under the roses. This photo is from last year!
You can see more photos here:
Reservations for Two Under the Arbor
I think the swing will win!

So many options-and if we weren’t concerned with a budget and upkeep, then the sky would be the limit. We so enjoyed your comments from our post about the garden planning and would love your comments about the patio and arbor. This will be an ongoing story until we can
share the finished project.
Hopefully that will be by the end of May!