My Spoiled Birds

 These are the three homes available to the surrounding birds.  Not too shabby huh?

I like to plant Clematis to grow around them.  The birds seem to love it.

Can you see how jammed packed they are with twigs?  Although there is a nest, I haven't heard the babies in the above house, only in the one below.

 Yes, there is a bird house beneath the purple Clematis.  And there are babies in it.  They have been chirping for two days as the momma flies back and forth to bring in some worms.

Can you peak inside?  It was hard for me to focus on the inside but it is packed with it's nest.

 There are babies in this one too but no clematis.  This one is inside my perenial garden.

We call this one the 5 star hotel.  Can you see the little twigs coming out?  These holes are so tiny too.  It's amazing to watch these tiny birds flying in and out.  I love watching them.  Hope you have a little haven for your birds.

Oh Yeah, It's Ikea!

So ever since I bought my little white slipcovered Jennylund chair for my livingroom I have been quietly coveting my couch to be white.  Now if you don't remember my livingroom couch is a lovely chocolate velvet couch from Ethan Allen.  I have had it for a few years and as much as I love it, it is a magnet for every hair, lint, dog hair, sock fiber, you name it, it clings to it.  I had been thinking of our home at the beach.  We have a house that we furnished almost completely with Ikea furniture and accessories.  I love my white Ektorp Ikea couch at the shore. It comes with slipcovers that you can remove and machine wash.  Believe me I have done it.  They are as white as the day I bought it.  I also bought an Ektorp chair with the same slipcover as well.  The slipcovers are so inexpensive that you can even by a back up.
Here are a few photos of our living room at the beach with our Ikea couch and chair.

Some photos were taken with my phone (sorry)

So after thinking about how hot our velvet couch gets in the late afternoon, I asked my husband if that would be a good idea.  He thought it was.  Just out of curiosity I went on Pottery Barn.com to see the competition.
Take a look.

This would have been the couch I would have selected, slipcovered (don't know if it's machine washable) white with three cushions.  Ready  $2,299.00
Now that's a lot of money for a couch I'm going to be swapping with my velvet couch in the fall and winter months.
Now take a look at the Ikea couch again

Price $399.00

Okay now you have to be kidding if you don't think that is the best deal ever.  Isn't it beautiful.

So here it is in my family room at home.

Here is another angle of the room.  My dogs always have to get their noses in the photos.  There is my Jennylund chair in the corner.  I am very happy with the room now and it is feels alot cooler with the slipcovered furniture.  Although my loveseat is a tweed fabric in grey I don't think it looks bad next to the white since my walls are dark grey.  

If you've never gone to Ikea, please do.  I couldn't live without it.  

Just added this for Dori, she's never gone to Ikea.  This above is my Ektorp sofa bed from Ikea with a flowered slipcover.  All slipcovers are machine washable.  This is a little sitting room off of my bedroom at our beach house that we decided to put a sofa bed so that when we have family or friends sleep over we have an extra bed.  We have used it countless times and it is extremely comfortable and easy to open and close.  I can do it with one hand.

And here is a picture of my Jennylund chair at the beach house with slipcover in beige gingham.  Also from Ikea is the big print of willow.  

Roses are red. . . and other colors too.

Okay, I know I just finished blogging about my Peonies and now I'm gonna blog about my Roses, but I just have to.  I won't say a word, just take a look.

 (Okay so I have to say a few words) This is a combination of New Dawn and Iceberg  They smell heavenly.  The morning that they opened I was consumed with emotion and couldn't speak for a few moments as I looked at each precious bloom.

 Peek a boo!  Even over my dividing wall.

 This is my front porch rose garden.

 My favorite of all, my sweet David Austin Constance Spry. (Above)  She has gone through so much in the past years.  I am just thankful that she is still with me and has the energy to bloom at least a few.  See above.

A Passion For Peonies

So remember all the Peonies I wrote about in my garden?  Well most of them have bloomed.  But as nature decides what to do when she wants to, my peonies are struggling to keep their petals.
We have had a few frigid days, mornings in the high 40's, and too much rain.  Today it has been non stop and although tomorrow brings a heat wave for the next 5 days, high 80's and low 90's with sun, it is unfortunately too late for the ones that have bloomed.  Today's rain is pulling them apart.
I almost cried this morning as I walked into my perenial garden in my raincoat and hood with scissor in hand to salvage whatever I could.  Normally I would never do cuttings this early.  I like to wait at least until the second week but the rain will abuse them today.  Even when I cut for arrangements inside I try to take the ones that are a little less attractive to leave the most beautiful ones outside. But today I had to cut as much as I could.  Take a look.  I filled my kitchen pitcher and two large mason jars.

 If you look closely at the white peony above, you can still see the fresh water droplets.  They were filled with water and I tried ever so gently to shake them, but for some, sadly it was too late and they lost all their petals.

 There is my mason jar with a few that had snapped short on the plant.  Stems weren't long enough for my pitcher.

"A thing of Beauty is a Joy Forever. . . "
I can look at them and smell them forever.

100 Followers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cheers!  To my 100th follower!  Woooooo Hooooooooo.  I can't believe I have 100 followers.  Thank you!

A Sea of Peonies

Aside from Lilacs and Roses, I adore Peonies.  All of the varieties. I feel addicted to them.  I love their smell and actually do cut them for my vases inside.  

Okay so for those of you who are not garden lovers or peony lovers you might want to click off now.  But I hope you dont.

 These peonies remind me of me when I was 2 weeks late with my boys.  They are about to pop!

 I have to be honest, I've never ever had this many in my life.  Two years ago we transplanted all the peonies that used to be in the front.  I had about 12.  Now this is what I have in my perenial garden.

 I tried to count them but it was too much.  There has to be hundreds of them.  I have many varieties and many colors.  They are so incredibly beautiful that I feel giddy just posting about them.

 Here's one peeking out through my fence.

 I like how the crimson color looks against my white bearded Irises.

 I don't own enough green wire holders to ever assist all of these little heads.

 As I was photographing them I almost felt as if they were giggling at me all huddled around smiling.

 They are not even open yet and to me they look beautiful already.

 We have a glimpse of two right here.  (above)

 Had to show you my wisteria in the background along my fence.  It too is about to burst.

 This variety is snowy white, that's not the name it's the color.  I don't remember all their names. I had kept them written down and lost one of my garden notebooks when we had a flood in our basement.  So I have no record of what I had purchased years ago.

 She loves them too!  I'm naming her Katerina (I love Vampire Diaries)

 A few more shots I promise.

Well stay tuned for my photos of these ladies in full bloom.  Enjoy!