My Grama's Soul

Gardners, by nature, are a hopeful lot.  We'll take a seed, a small cutting or a small starter plant and nurture it till it grows.  Part of this is the love of seeing the metamorphosis of the seedling to the full grown plant or bloom. We garden with the hope that our efforts will produce something useful and beautiful in the end.  Sometimes things die, but that does not prevent us from our continued gardening efforts......we don't GIVE UP.   I believe that the events in our world happening right now can correlate to a gardner's efforts in their own home. Our world is FULL OF plant loving people who garden for beauty, necessity, hobby or just for the love of getting their hands in dirt...and each one of us does this with hope in our heart's that our plant will survive and thrive. We know that we need to stick with what works and neglect the rest.  So right now stick with the positive people and people who believe we will not ...

JUST SAYIN'. Found this somewhere on the NET. JO

Look at this beautiful hibiscus bloom....is there anything more lovely?   Any person who says there is no divine order to our world surely must be mistaken. With all the tumult around us constantly I challenge each of us to simply "go outside and smell the roses" or hibiscus for that matter. Just show gratitude for all this wonderful planet has to offer.  Instead of "whining" about what you don't have look around and see what you do have....and it doesn't cost a dime! Me on my soapbox today....Just sayin' xo Jo

I've posted before of the difficulty  of a spring or summer garden in Arizona.  In fact, gardening in AZ can be a challenge any time of year....here.   We have lived here going on three years now and I never tire of changing things around or sprucing things up.  In fact, at 70 years young I still get a kick out of decorating and fluffing up my house. These are photos of both the front and back gardens of our home.  Most of these plants have been here for the whole time and they just keep thriving in spite of AZ weather.  As you can tell.....I like a "full garden" look and the more the merrier I say.   For all of you who are still dealing with snow and slush....here is sending spring to your corner of the world. ENJOY!! JO

My mom passed when I was 31....so she has been gone a long time.  I still miss her...but I, like many of you, have been fortunate enough to have encountered many other surrogate  mother's during my lifetime. My beautiful Aunt Ruth, my wonderful sister-in-law Sandy, my perfect friend Jan...my other  terrific  friend, Mary, just to name a few of the women who have so influenced me during this trip called "life". Thanks to all of you and here is wishing all the mothers out there the very happiest of mothers day. Stay well. xo Jo

What a wise quote for the beginning of 2016.  I plan on staying PRESENT this year and enjoying every minute of it. xo Jo quote:  Values.com

Allright......I will admit it.  I love having things in my home that are homemade...not store bought...and are like nothing you will see in someone else's home.   I also love mixing the quirky with the refined  ~~ something homemade with a fine piece of art. Since downsizing and moving I'm finding myself with many things that I can no longer use or are just simply wrong with the feel of this house.  So I end up taking things apart and reusing them in new ways. The little lamp above was made from an old lamp base from World Market and a shade that had ripped and torn over the years.  I incorporated various lamps parts of other fixtures that we are no longer able to use here...and  voila'!  A new little lamp that is both funky and artsy at the same time.  My dear husband loves the idea of the shade being there and yet not being there.   I only use a flicker bulb in these lamps as they are really more for decorati...

"O.K. God--you take care of the quality.  I will take care of the quantity." Julia Cameron At this point in my life.....I am just stuck!  There, I have said it...and am going to have to do something about it. I don't like being in this spot.  This last year of my life has been so very unsettling, with my huge move and downsize, Brad's serious surgery, and my son's death; it seems as though true JOY is just out of reach.   This isn't a case of the "blues or depression"....I'm still getting on about the business of life.  The passion is gone.  Things I once loved doing, blogging, painting, making jewelry just being creative in some manner have all fallen aside and piled up behind my wall of "being stuck". Friends tell me that this will pass since I have certainly had a lot going on...but I DON'T LIKE BEING STUCK.  Since I believe there is a direct connection between spirituality and creativity...in fact they ...

OH My......are their some geraniums amongst that lobelia?  It is springtime here....and everything is blooming like crazy.  We don't have a very long spring so I always revel in all the flowers and greenery that just explode. These flowers are from the side yard and are so very pretty I wanted to bring them inside. I always pick flowers from my garden when I can as I love to have fresh flowers inside my home.  It also saves a ton of money when you don't have to buy them at the store. Unfortunately the geraniums will not be long lived here as they are really a winter flower in AZ.  They can't stand the tremendous heat of our summers.  The roses, on the other hand, will bloom during April and May....they actually like our AZ heat if they are planted in the right spot in your yard. I've been fortunate to meet a Master Gardner at one of our local nurseries here.  Sheri, works for Sunset Nurseries here in Phoenix and is alwa...

What if someone told you this would be your last day on earth.....you have exactly as the sign above indicates. How would you handle yours? be blessed, Jo

"There is a time in your life for everything~~but not everything all of the time." Anonymous  It seems as though when I take a little trip...I always spend some time reflecting about my life and the improvements I hope to make when returning home. All of us have the same 24 hours in each day and yet it seems as though I often fill mine with trivia and just "puttering" around the house.  I set little goals for myself and let other things get in the way.   This year I have turned 68 and have vowed to pursue some of the goals I have long neglected.   These goals are really fairly simple, actually....but it is just a matter of MAKING TIME.  I want to begin a solid exercise program, as I am having some knee issues and know this will improve my overall health.  I want to get more involved in being creative.  It seems as though I have just let that part of me disappear.  I want to spend more time with friends getting out of the...

Arrived home at 9:00 p.m. last night.....and went right to sleep... Just a little post today with a little trivia... There are over 800,000 people living in the city of Amsterdam with 1.5 million bikes.  Everywhere you turn...bikes, bikes and more bikes. I believe they are some of the healthiest people on the planet.  Sometimes I wish we in America would follow suit and rid ourselves of these gas guzzling cars and jump on our bikes! Have a beautiful day....will post again as soon as I am recovered from my travels. much love, Jo

Do you know anyone who is absolutely UNABLE TO LIVE A BEAUTIFUL LIFE?  Unfortunately, I do. It is one of the saddest things I have ever seen.  I have often wondered why some people are able to see beauty everywhere and make something out of nothing and others can't see past the end of their nose.  This certainly is not a criticism it is just an observation. I don't think it is matter of your childhood environment or a case of having money or not.  I know plenty of people who had less than stellar childhoods and  who barely have two pennies to rub together and they still THRIVE on beauty.   I know I had a extremely difficult childhood and I was never TAUGHT to make MY LIFE BEAUTIFUL.  Somehow along the way I picked it up...and I have lived in some pretty dismal places during my lifetime.  Yet...I have always made them beautiful in their own way with whatever I had on hand. Using something in a new way to sp...