PANSIES SMILING

Already on February 10, I took these photos of our SMILING PANSIES

Due to my bronchitis I took a lot of rest...

 

After lots of freezing nights and also rain, the pansies that Pieter planted early at the end of November.

They hardly showed, nor could lift their faces up...

So I waited for better days to capture them—February 10.

The entire length of Fiberglass Window Boxes along the driveway's retainer wall.

Also captured our 'ever flowering' Rosemary.

We started with several new trailing Rosemary plants as they are evergreen and always blooming.

A paradise for bees—year round!

Another view, now the other direction towards the house.

Now walking around and showing you our Fiberglass Window Boxes at the kitchen bay window and veranda.

And on February 10, our Japanese Magnolia started budding.

Hoping there will be no more frost...

Our kitchen bay window, where the middle Fiberglass Window Box is showing the BEST progress yet.

Also you see the blooming orchids...

These orchids were a gift from a friend's daughter and her husband, given to us on June 17.

They bloomed a 2nd time and flowers were so HUGE that one stem is kind of broken... not fully severed though. 

Yes, IF the sun is out, we enjoy our breakfast in the sunshine. 

SMILING PANSIES also on this side of our home!

We opted for this color to match our Golden Mist home.

We also have blooming Rosemary as patio pot plants to keep our bees happy!

Are you also enjoying some spring flowers?

Related link:

Our Golden Mist Home and Quercus Virginiana Grand View Gold | Previous post by me

SPRING in Our Garden — Post Accident

 This year's beautiful spring happens without me being IN it...

Can't walk, cannot go outside so Pieter captured it for me on my iPhone.

Hard to imagine what a driver without LOOKING can cause to another human being's life!

Our entire household is affected.

An elderly husband becomes the care taker...

Our kitties are unsettled...

Needing assistance with laundry and making the bed and on and on.

A very painful and also costly thing.

Needing a private driver to go to places where I used to drive.

On and on.

For missing the spring flowers, dear friend sent these on February 23, for enjoying indoors...

From my bed, I could see through the balcony door our Red bud Cercis Canadensis blooming on February 25.

Sending Pieter with my iPhone to capture them for me...

BUT my Pieter does NOT see the pink flowers due to being color blind!

This photo shows the wood trail below, that Pieter did newly built while I was in Limburg, The Netherlands one final time...

In front of our garage is this stunning Azalea pot plant, also on February 25.

Heavenly Azaleas...

Those stamens are so pretty!

Also on February 25th a sweet bouquet delivered by some kids from our Church and one street down from us.

You also see our pansies in our fiberglass window boxes happily blooming and more pot plants on the patio that bloom.

At least for me SOME spring flowers that I can enjoy without being outdoors...

My ugly rash and itch has subsided, a nasty side affect from the Medrol Dosepak, to reduce the swelling.

The swelling has gone down and cuts are healing with scabs formed.

My left leg hurts most around knee and ankle, where it is so severely cut and bruised aside from the Proxima fibula being fractured.

My calf is extremely tender and painful to the touch—hard to get any decent sleep with it and my right leg with the knee fracture and knee immobilizer.

BUT my nasty night sweats are also gone it seems—making progress!

Short legged and chunky Speckie girl on February 27, 2022...

Yesterday, our youngest senior kitty of 13, Speckie came home from the Animal Clinic after 3 nights, where Pieter brought her on Friday morning.

She was very sick.

Turned out after some blood work that her kidneys are not shutting down but in bad shape — just like mine. She also had a bacterial infection and got antibiotics and fluids.

Let's hope her Chronic Kidney Disease does not progress too fast...

Thanks for all your comments and prayers.

Spring in our Garden

 This was a lovely week with sunshine!

Spring is unfolding beautifully!

February 9, I walked over onto the neighbor's property to capture our blooming Japanese magnolia from there.

Just showing the bay window area from our home and the blind wall where the dining room is, no windows on that side.

Now from our side towards our home...

LOVE those perfect flower buds and there were already some petals on the ground.

Wanted to capture them because it would rain in the later afternoon and night.

A pine warbler is enjoying lunch on the tray from our previous Sharp microwave, set on the oak stump.

Happy daffodils near the Japanese Magnolia as you can see by its petals on the ground...

Our Fiberglass Window Boxes are filled with yellow pansies.

Tiggy–Tiger girl is head butting one of the planters...

That's the one where that poor friend cat often lies in for looking at us.

Our Renewal by Andersen bay windows look nice from outside!

A closer look at the yellow pansies.

Also the Vintage Woodworks parts on veranda door and under gable.

Pieter bought the pansies early at our local Home Depot just to make sure we had enough for all window boxes.

On the veranda side they got planted mid January but the bay windows after the Andersen windows were place on January 17.

I've hung the crocheted curtains back after Pieter drilled tiny holes into the fibrex of the new windows.

That worked perfect and after laundering the curtains and then stretching them out while still wet, we hung them on their 925 sterling rings (thin ones!). See post below this one...

Yesterday's photo—dark due to a dreary and rainy day...

The hand crocheted curtains hang perfectly on the new windows.

Detail of screws that Pieter pre–drilled into the fibrex material from Renewal by Andersen windows.

And my 925 silver rings.

Our 2nd Japanese Magnolia is near the flowering Camellia Sinensis Tea Plant.

Now I'm standing on the wood trail for capturing some flowers from our 2nd Japanese Magnolia.

They look perfect against our veranda.

Tiggy Tiger girl came to smell our Narcissus...

She's a tiny but cute kitty!

Senior—just like her Mami...

On Tuesday it was 21°C or 69.8°F...

So we both rolled our bikes...

On Tuesday it was 24°C or 75.2°F

Followed by rain again...

Related link:

Kitchen Bay Window New Crocheted ROSE Curtains & IKEA Roller Blind | previous post with the 925 sterling rings

Our Kitchen Bay Window Before and After Renewal by Andersen | previous post by me

AMAZING recovery of Japanese Magnolia—after getting LIGHT and FOOD! | previous post by me

Our Kitchen Bay Window Before and After Renewal by Andersen

 On October 12, we both went ahead and arranged to have new windows installed by Renewal by Andersen®.

A sales representative came to our home and about a week later another person came to take exact measures of the thermopane glass that needed to be replaced.

Those specks are actually in–between the double glass...

To the left bottom my iPhone is visible.

We moved into our home in November of 1990, after it got newly built.

Sure, all windows were shiny and perfect but not forever!

We'd asked a local company if they could replace them but got told that it was impossible with that type of windows...

It got really ugly and in the beginning I thought that I lost it when cleaning windows...

Going back and forth from inside to outside and rubbing really hard—in vain!

So we contacted Renewal by Andersen and ordered new ones.

This sun glare was perfect for actually showing how ugly they became—embarrassing.

The wait for new ones has been quite long—three months but there they are... on January 17, 2023

The evening before I took this photo from outside.

Pieter had already removed the Flower Framers of Cincinnati window boxes a week ago.

The center window from outside and our white picket fence is reflecting in it...

Woke up early and checked the weather—perfect with rain later in the day!

7°C or 44.6°F and high 22°C or 71.6°F

At 10:20 AM the crew of 3 had arrived from Fayetteville, Georgia a good two hour drive.

Loved this logo on the t–shirt:

The Better Way to

a Better Window®

With a huge suction devise from outside and work from inside this was at 11:08 AM

At 11:10 the first of 3 was out... Pieter is looking on in the back.

At 11:36 the new one was in and I took a picture of how it looked so far...

At 11:41 getting the center window out...

At 11:42 the other side window was in.

They meticulously used drop cloths inside and outside on the patio.

We opted for the FibrexⓇ Energy–Efficient Glass.

At 12:27 a detail of the new window...

At 14:29 after they'd already left... All DONE!

The new windows face more outward.

To the left is the BEFORE and to the right is the AFTER and you notice that the entire window is more outward. 

Both of us can't get over the CLEAR view of our garden with birds!

Very pleased with them and they were excellent workers.

The special glass quality we chose is also keeping the heat out and the cold—Saving Energy on cooling and heating.

This also comes with a great Limited Warranty

20.10.10 Years

Glass & Fibrex, Installation, Hardware

Fully Transferable

Our Autumn Garden Blooms & HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

 The 2022 Autumn has been very brief...

On October 9, our Hydrangea paniculata, Limelight still blooming like it would not end!

More in detail with perfect sunlight.

This was already blooming on September 8—the longest lasting blooms we've ever seen!

Check post below about 'Our Garden Blooms in Summer

On October 21, Pieter did bring in a giant red Hibiscus bloom.

Placed it in our Repoussé Silver Rose vase...

Showing here its proportion a little better...

On October 30 when we left for North Carolina and Tennessee it was very dark and drizzling so I could not capture our Sugar Maple.

Photo got taken on November 4, day after our return and as you see—most leaves are already down and not even turned completely golden yet.

Pieter's open hand gives you a good idea about the size of yet another red Hibiscus bloom on November 7.

Love this red Hibiscus with its very special center.

A detail of its fabulous center—too bad our hummingbirds are already gone to the Caribbean.

Not the best photo taken on November 13—that late into the season.

But what I wanted to show here is that these petunias, the Blanket® Double Chardonnay in our Fiberglass Window Boxes remained like miniature plants...

Very disappointing!

Blanket® Double Chardonnay Petunia Plant ←click link

GrowJoy claims that one plant grows to mature size of 10–inches tall x 24–inches wide or 

25 cm x 60 cm.

Our plants sure did NOT do that, they remained very miniature as you can see by my hand as comparison.

In post below you can see them also

On November 19, our Hydrangea paniculata Limelight had turned pinkish from some near frost nights...

There were more buds but they did not turn out the way the first two did!

On our patio the summer blooming azalea still performs well as a pot plant!

Another great performer on the patio as a pot plant is the Rosemary—they bloom year round!

On Sunday, November 20 I captured our regal Camellia Japonica Debutante.

You can clearly see the now raised wooden walkway that Pieter finished in June while I was in Europe solo...

Holding one regal Camellia Japonica Debutante in my hand...

Mariette's Back to Basics wishes you and your loved ones a very HAPPY THANKSGIVING

And all those that reside outside of the USA, THANKS for your VISITS over the years!

Black Friday is always on with FREE SHIPPING at Spectrenoir on line ←click link.

Related link:

{Our Fiberglass Window Boxes & Double Cascade Pink Petunias} | previous post by me

Our Garden Blooms in Summer | previous post by me

{Camellia Debutante & Chocolate} | previous post by me

{Let It Be A Happy New Year} | previous post by me

{Our Camellia Japonica Debutante} | previous post by me

Espresso with French Macarons | previous post by me

Our Camellia Japonica Debutante in Winter | previous post by me

Pieter Captured our Estate + Progress for me to View While in Limburg | previous post with Petunias