Arbor Day At Brynwood...

Backyard looking in

This is a project I've been wanting to do for quite a while. The first

time our son and daughter-in-law visited, they brought a tiny star jasmine

 bush as a gift for us. (It's the one on the right side.) I immediately got a

second one to place across the walkway from it when our pool was built. 

Since then, they've grown like gangbusters. I've kept them pruned, but I got

this idea to put an arbor between them to create a "secret courtyard" from

the "Holidome" (pool area) into the backyard. After months of growing, the

 bushes were starting to close off the courtyard, so I needed to get this done.

Holidome toward courtyard

 The arch I ordered arrived on Friday, and I was anxious to get it installed.

After last Coffee Club, I hurried home and opened the box. Handsome

helped me get it put together and we carried it around to the courtyard.

It was a bit of a chore lifting up the overgrown section I'd been grooming

to cover the arch once it would be installed, but between the two of us we

managed to place it without damaging either of the bushes. After we got it

 into its proper place, we arranged the stray tendrils, trimmed the overgrown 

branches and stood back to admire the vast improvement we'd wrought.

Courtyard looking toward backyard

 I'm not finished yet either. I have empty pots to fill with flowers, and perhaps 

a new working birdbath. (The raccoons broke the one on the left side of this 

picture, and because it has oak leaves and acorns on it, I just can't bring myself

 to toss it!) I think the next birdbath will sit closer to the ground to protect it. 

Oh! Wouldn't one of those rocks with the cupped-out centers be cool?

I may add a few Adirondack-style chairs or a bench to this area, too. It's a

 nice quiet place to just sit and enjoy the view! We also have a chiminea

in the courtyard, and we could sit out there on cool, Florida-style winter 

evenings and enjoy the fire. I'll have to give that a little more thought. 

There's no rush, after all. I'll take my time so it's "just right".

My little snoopervisor

 Handsome, Tag and I hope you had a great weekend, too.

P.S. My Sewing Organizer pattern is now available!
Just click on the link to my shop in the left sidebar, or go to
"Brynwood Needleworks" shop on Craftsy. Thanks for looking!

Tuesdays With Tag - Living The Good Life...

 Hi! It's Tag again!

Today, I want to tell you about another benefit of our Holidome.

Massages.

Yup. After-swimming massages.

 Mom puts my towels on the chaise lounge and says,

"Here, Tag. Time to get out of the pool."

I admit that sometimes I don't come running right away.

I loooovvveee my swimming pool.

 But, once I get up on the chaise, Mom starts massaging me

just like at those swanky spas. Then next thing you know...

my tongue is hanging out!

 I swear these massages are just about as much fun as swimming.

I lose track of time and when Mom's finished, I'm almost all dry!

I really do appreciate that you stopped by to visit again.  

So, um, do you think you could show yourself out?

The screen door's that-a-way.

I'm going to finish my posh massage and then have a little snack.

I know. I've got it rough, right?

I'll be back to see you again next week. 'til then...

"More Waggin', and Less Barkin'!"

Meet Hyram...

Hyram is our new resident gnome. He moved from our granddaughters' house to ours. He's a ramblin' man who enjoys the fun things in life. He is the product of Granddaughter One and Grandaughter Two's artistic endeavors, and we love him.
I'm told there is a wonderful shop in their town where you can walk in, choose the greenware piece (anything from coffee mugs to little figurines), and then paint them to your taste. From there the shop employees take the painted pieces, place them in a kiln and fire them to bring each piece to life.

Our granddaughters actually painted this little gnome and sent him to Florida to keep us company. They also glued a magnet to the back of a sweet little turtle and now it proudly sits on our fridge.

As for the gnome - we never know where he'll turn up. He's pretty independent, and gnomes are well-known to be mischevious. They're also friends to all wild creatures. Imagine my surprise when I saw him out in the Holidome chatting it up with one of our resident pool geckos! The geckos love the Holidome. They eat ants and other insects. Apparently, the gnome and the gecko were discussing local cuisine.
We decided to name him "Hyram" and he's going to become a chronicler of our travels this year. We're going to take him wherever we go with the Flying Cloud and then take his picture in each place we visit. Sort of like a 3-D Flat Stanley.

We'll write about the different places, states and landmarks, include a few mementos from each stop, and then at the end of the year, I'll put together a little journal of all the photographs and put everything into a gift box to give to our granddaughters. We did this a number of years ago for our grandson and he still has it.

Perhaps I should add a cd of the Allman Brothers "Ramblin' Man" to include with the album. What do you think? ("Lord, I was born a ramblin' ma-a-a-an. Tryin' to make a livin' and doin' the best I ca-an...") giggle Gotcha! Sing it with us, now! Those mischevious gnomes. So sneaky!

Take Good Care Of Yourself...

If you live in a state where you're currently digging out from under inches or - Heaven forbid - feet of snow, I don't expect you to have an ounce of sympathy for me. But, honestly girlfriends, it's going to be freezing down here the next couple of nights!

Handsome and I spent time yesterday afternoon protecting a few of the ornamental trees in our yard. Now, it looks like all the pygmy date palms are wearing shower caps! Let's not even talk about the fact that all my good sheets are now out in the yard. sheesh!

I'm not going to show you what the plants in the Holidome or the back yard look like, either. My huge star jasmine bushes (planted when we first moved here) are safe, but look like they're in a witness protection program hiding under sheets - and the covered plants in the Holidome make it look like we're getting the ceiling painted! Stylish, don't you think?
We've really perfected our technique of whipping those sheets around as we wrestle control from the wind. We've got quite the collection of heavy duty clips and clamps to secure the sheets to the trees so they stay in place. We're quite a sight to behold.

These protective covers will only have to stay on the trees two nights at the most, but it's the second time we've had to do this already this winter. Perhaps the next snowbird to cross the border will close the door behind them. It's really cold for those of us used to southern Florida weather! I've become a real whimp since we moved here...and I love it!

I remember being in first grade in Wisconsin. My teacher's name was Mrs. Kerr, and I loved her dearly. I recall the end of one specific school day that winter. She was helping each one of us bundle up so that we could walk home. Our parents didn't drop us off and pick us up each day. We walked - in my case three blocks - home. I had warm clothes to wear and a particularly jaunty black and white scarf. As she bundled me up, she sang "Buckle up your overcoat, when the winds blow free. Take good care of yourself. You belong to me." I still smile when I think of this sweet teacher.

I hope that wherever you are, you're warm and safe from your weather. If you have to travel, please be careful, and "take good care of yourself. You belong to me."

"Festivus" In The Holidome...

Two of my nephews...Del (Tres) and West (who is also my godson).
They walked in, saw the Holidome and immediately changed
into their swimsuits. The waterfall is a perfect jumping perch...
after striking a few poses for their auntie.

Boys will be boys, and even my soon-to-be-51 year old brother
had to show his sons how it's done - lots of air, just the right
amount of "lean" to put the most skin in contact with the water,
and the resulting tsunami of water.

Kes couldn't stand it. She ignored my "suggestions"
(considered "commands" any other day of the year!)
that she stay next to me, and instead spent the afternoon
in the water swimming with the guys.
She was thoroughly smitten with my nephews and couldn't stay
away from them all day! I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

It was more than a little cool sitting with my mum and
sister-in-law and giggling while we watched the wet entertainers.

Of course, what contest would be complete without
the "Feats of Strength"?
West was the winner, hands down!

Our Weekend In The Holidome...

I hope all of you had a super weekend. The weather in south Florida was perfect. It was sunny, breezy, warm and not too humid. Around Brynwood, we spent the weekend enjoying the weather and our yard. Handsome has a new Kindle (which he loves!), so he and Kes took to the chaises and got in a little sun time. (I did, too, but no photos, thank you!)

On Sunday, we swept the deck and pruned the plants getting our pool ready for the house-full of family and friends that will be arriving soon. (Hmmm. I just noticed that the waterfall isn't running in this photo. It's much prettier when the waterfall is on.)
We built this pool after we purchased our home, and in order to have the sun on the water year-round, we needed to move it away from the house. Our back yard is on the north side of the house, so during the winter, the house' roof line would put the pool in shade. Because of where we decided to place it, we have sun on the pool all day, every day - but it required a huge, honkin' pool cage to keep the bugs and critters out and still be attached to the house. From the day we beheld the finished and screened pool, we nicknamed it "The Holidome", and we use it almost daily.
Oh, yes...and so does Kes. After patiently waiting for what must have felt like forever to an impatient Labrador, she decided to just jump in and cool off. No wonder we have to clean dog hair out of the filters! Such is life in The Holidome. Yeah, I know...we've got it rough...really rough.