Wordless Wednesday

More from Helen's yard

Can you stand another post from Helen's garden?  She has so many more plants than I do!  I thought we would just stroll back through there and see what's going on.  As you enter her small enclosed yard just off the garage and back door, you see this cute little garden plaque someone gave her.  I love the colors and, of course, the butterfly.

This birdhouse looks like it would be easy to make.

I may have to try making one of these;-)

A very old birdhouse and some day lilies.   Helen opened up a newer bluebird house to see if it was being used and a Chickadee flew out and chastised her severely!

This is the 'garden cat', which belongs to a neighbor.
Below, are some of the Day Lilies that were blooming.

 

The three pictures above are of a beautiful peachy/coral Day Lily that was hybridized by my 9th grade Home-Economics teacher.  She named it for her friend and former student, "Priscilla Reves".  It looks good enough to eat with a spoon!

In the front yard is a large Gardenia bush.

Their sweet fragrance is wonderful!

I have to show you this red Day Lily I found way back by the vegetable garden!

There is Garlic blooming back there, too.

The bumblebees and honey bees are loving the nectar of the pale lavender blossoms.

And here is Helen, pulling off the dead blooms.  As you might suspect, she can usually be found outside, working in her flowers!

 

We thought this was an oddity!  It's a running rose and it is blooming in, what appears to be, one big bouquet up in another shrub!

Name This Shrub/ Identify this flower

Someone gave my sister this shrub and they called it a Butterfly Bush.  It is nothing like the Butterfly Bush that I bought and she has never seen any Butterflies on it.  Any help in identifying it will be appreciated.   The first picture is how it looks before it blooms out full.

 

 

 

Update:  Some of my Weather Underground Wunder Photo friends identified this as Douglas Spirea.
Thanks so much Kathy and Hannie!

Mockingbird Bath

Yesterday I was sitting on the grass out near the Lantana, making pictures of the butterflies, when this Mockingbird landed on the corner of the garage.

"Hmmmm!  I see the old white-headed lady has put fresh water in the Tupperware birdbath!"

"Yep, it's fresh alright!"

"Guess I'll take a few sips before I bathe."

"I'm getting ready to jump in.  Hope it's nice and warm!"

"Aaaah!  That feels SO good!"

"Now, I'll hop out and shake the water off."  

" Now, I'll jump in and out about 14 times to amuse the old lady!"
 

"This should be entertaining for her!"

"I guess this is the end of the show.  It's time to get back to the nest and check on the babies!
 I hope the old lady enjoyed this as much as I did!"

This and That

Common Buckeye Butterfly~ lots of these on the Lantana today.

I had just put fresh water in the pan so the Bluebird thought it was a good time for a bath.

Towel, please!

Splish Splash!  This is so much fun!

Now up on the wire to dry out.

That was so much fun, I think I'll try it again!

Joy! Joy!

Look who's back!

They like to hang by their toes to eat!

Red Ruffles

The Bell Pepper will soon be ready.  There are some green tomatoes that are big enough to fry, also.  I may not be able to wait until they are ripe!

Memorial Day

 

For as long as I can remember, our Memorial Day has been set for the third Sunday in May.  This was the dessert I carried to our family gathering after the Memorial today.  For you who are not from the South, we set one Sunday each year when we decorate the graves of our family and friends and attend the worship service in the chapel.  We get to see friends and family on this day that we may only see once a year.   Like most other places where a day like this is celebrated, the crowds are getting smaller and smaller each year.  One day soon, they will probably cease altogether.  

Over the years, this special day has changed some.  In our family, it has been a day we looked forward to from one year to the next.  Grandmother would grow as many flowers as possible and on that morning, we would cut them and place them on newspaper.  We carried them to the cemetery and spread them on the graves.  We didn't use a vase or anything like that.  I remember roses and white and green striped ornamental grass, in particular.  In the early years the service was held in the Tabernacle.  It was a roof which was held up by large poles.  It had a podium, wooden benches, and there were no side walls.  The floor was dirt and there were little round inverted cone shapes in the dirt made by some kind of insect.  I guess only a child would notice something like that.

The cemetery is large and it used to be attended by hundreds of people.  I don't know how many were there today, but in the chapel for the worship service, there were about 60 people.  After the service, we met at my sister's home to visit and eat lunch.  Everybody brings food!!  Today we had only 11 people and there was enough food for three or four times that many!  Here is the recipe:

Strawberry Cheesecake Pie

2 Pie Crusts, slightly baked ~ I like to use Pet-Ritz Deep Dish crusts

8 oz. Cream cheese

2 Eggs, slightly beaten

1 Box  Powdered Sugar

1 tsp. Pineapple flavoring
16 oz. Cool Whip

1 package of Frozen Strawberries.  ( For this pie, I used fresh berries.  I cut them up, added sugar and froze over night.  Then semi-thawed and separated before adding to the Cool Whip)

Cream the cheese, sugar and egg until smooth.  Add flavoring and pour into the two slightly baked pie shells.  Bake at 350 degrees until set and lightly brown.  Let cool completely.   Mix Cool Whip and Strawberries and spread on top of pies.   Yummy!

I've been told that this type Memorial Day or Decoration Day is only observed in an area through Alabama and Mississippi.  Do you have a day like this where you live?