{Our Golden Live Oak 'Quercus Virginiana Grand View Gold' in April}

Just have to share with you our biggest garden treasure and that is the very rare, I do believe it's perhaps the ONLY one within the USA... Golden Live Oak 'Quercus Virginiana Grand View Gold.

We had tea on the balcony and I took this photo just this afternoon.

To the right you see the brown foliage of our sick Italian Cypress...

But this Golden Live Oak ' Quercus Virginiana Grand View Gold' looks stunning every spring! 
We have it now for 20 years and it is not a tall tree, like the Quercus behind it.

This  Golden Live Oak ' Quercus Virginiana Grand View Gold' has been a big influencer for selecting our Benjamin Moore Golden Mist color for the exterior of the house.
Don't you love this sight?!
Photo is from April 16 in the morning.

This huge 'Magnolia Namnetensis Flore Pleno' is framing our home nicely, as does the semi evergreen oak on the other side of the house.
All the Pot Plants on the Patio dwarf in comparison...

Turning around makes you see the Golden Live Oak as well as the huge Magnolia Namnetensis Flore Pleno with in the back another huge oak tree... 
We got many different oak trees on our property!

Looking past the Magnolia, the Golden Live Oak comes into full view behind the retainer wall, with our Acer Negundo Kelly's Gold Yellow Box Elder.
Stepping back now... To the right you can see the road.

View from our driveway where the two (one already died) Italian Cypress struggle for life and our Windmill Palm.
Against a backdrop from the Quercus Virginiana Live Oak, a green form.

The Acer Rubrum, or Red Maple, gives its best red and the Acer Negundo Kelly's Gold Yellow Box Elder, to the left is also a show stopper!
The above photo is taken this afternoon, from the balcony.

Also our Canary Island Palm (in a pot) is visible here.

This last photo is from April 14, less sunny and thus looking less golden...
Hope you enjoyed our Garden Treasure!
Wishing you a lovely new week ahead and always thanks for stopping by.
In one week I also will find time again to visit you... SORRY!

🌴

Related links to our Quercus Virginiana Grand View Gold:

Adam Black (who tried several times to propagate this tree!), together with Jason A. Smith from the School of Forest Resources and Conservation University of Florida/IFAS did show one of my photos towards the bottom of their Pdf: Presentation University of Florida
{Golden Live Oak 'Quercus Virginiana Grand View Gold' in Sunshine at its BEST} | my previous post with more links below

{Wearing my Escada Sheath Dress with Jacket}

On January 5, blogger friend Marie-Thérèse from The French Touch wrote about: Something Old, Something New and Something Essential and in the commenting she asked me how many Sheaths I have in my wardrobe...

Okay Marie-Thérèse, here is one of them!

On April 9, it was a rather cool day for Georgia standards so I loved wearing my Cashmere Wool Escada Sheath with Silk Leopard trim + Jacket!

Also wearing my thick Majorica pearls with this outfit.

Here you can see the comments about the very subject and some funny language details as well.

A Classic Sheath Dress in Dutch we call: 'Nauw Aansluitend Jurkje' or Tight Fitting Dress if translated. But if you search for 'Sheath' in Dutch it also will show a condom... only emphasizing the tight fit! 

But let's go back to Fashion...

Just love to wear this soft and warm Cashmere Wool with Silk Escada outfit. It is lined too.

Together with my Wolford tights and Escada suede pumps it works fine.

I also got to wear my Majorica pearls...

Come to think about it, since we both retired, we don't attend Congresses anymore so the need for dressing up is a lot less. 

Frankly, I'm more of a jeans and shorts wearing girl...

What do you like to wear mostly?

This was on April 9, with our Rose Arbor and soon our two white Eden roses will be blooming!

Things are always growing and time is going fast.

Proud for having scanned now 25 of my 33 photo albums; so there is light at the end of the tunnel. 

What looked like a mega task is diminishing now.

With perseverance and will power.

BUT, in tackling this job, I'm a bit too sedentary for my health...

In a week that too will change and we get back to walking and biking together and hope that will improve my health.

Went to see my Nephrologist on Wednesday and learned that both of my kidneys are functioning for 48%.

That hit me real hard; thinking about my Mom who died last year, after almost 8 years of kidney dialysis.

This means that my stage CKD (Chronic Kidney Disease) went from 2 to 3A.

Let's hope I will be able to reverse it somewhat! 

At least keeping it steady and not progressing...

Related link to previous post by me showing a Sheath Dress:

{My Lace Crocheted Gloves}

{My HEALTHY Breakfast with Home Baked Whole Wheat Bread}

Just LOVE to bake my own bread and yes, with all my photo scanning work, I still managed to do this. Using my favorite French Silform round bread form duo this works great.

 My actual Breakfast Plate!

Half an avocado, and a mandarin partly shown below left, rye bread with vegan cheese on top of my Home Baked Whole Wheat Bread.

For the rye bread with whole wheat I use Fleischmann's Soft Margarine made with Olive Oil.

At the top you can see the slice of my Home Baked Whole Wheat Bread, before I smeared Almond Butter on top!

That's what I eat every day for breakfast with a small coffee with cocoa added for health benefit and some coconut oil, and a mug of Trader Joe's Soy Milk because of its very low sugar.

The recipe I adapted a bit from this: Easy Whole Wheat Artisan Bread. 

For Whole Wheat Flour I used Whole Wheat Pastry Flour from Whole Foods.

For Dark Brown Cane Sugar I used Coconut Palm Sugar and that's it.

Best is to mix these dry ingredients very well, before adding the whole wheat flour and I did use a flour sifter!

The water should not be cold, rather luke warm.

In the recipe the warning is for not to overwork the dough so I used my Rosle Round Handle Turner for Non Stick Pans again, just click.

After blending I did minimal kneading and let it rise over night.

Here are the two batches, inside my Silform Moule Rond for Pain (bread)

Mine measure 7" diameter and are perfect.

Next morning, gently kneading it through again, I also did make slits in the dough, letting it rest one more hour, covered by a cotton tea towel.

My adaptation also is in the way of baking as I do not cover my bread and let it inside the oven for 65 minutes on 370°F instead. 

Voilà

The end result is also seen in the first picture.

Bon appétit!

Related links with previous posts by me:
{My 6th Blog Award & Secret for my Size and Weight}
{Flat Belly Diet Foods - Meet the MUFAs!}