Evening in the Garden of Good and Plenty

Leap of Faith turns into Enchantment Realized

When at the beginning of the year I decided to embark on this enchanting venture, this blog, I didn't know what exactly would come of it.  I knew I wanted to find one special thing about each day that I could highlight, and hopefully others would happen upon it and find a bit of respite from a trying day, or something to encourage a bit of a smile, or even something that would uplift a droopy spirit.  In the winter there were days upon dreary days where I just couldn't seem to find anything worthy of enchantment status.  But since spring has come, there's more than flowers blooming in the garden.  There truly is magic. 

And today was a particularly enchanting day for me.  I spotted a scarlet tanager in my yard.  The first one I had ever seen.  And it stayed, and it stayed and it stayed.  We spent the day together, this creature from the natural world and me.  It didn't seem to notice that I wasn't an expected part of the environment.  In fact, I spotted it when it landed at my feet!  I thought some orange ball had fallen from my tree.  And then it flitted back up into the tree.  I took a zillion photos of it and of course I am so thrilled to be able to share them here.  My garden is a magical place.  I built it for myself, and I never expected how many new friends or how many exciting adventures I would have without even having to leave my front steps.

My new friend, perched up in the maple tree

After I told it how pretty it was, it flew down from the maple so I could appreciate it more fully.

Then to the railing, so I could get a really, really good look.

The yellow-jacket eating demonstration was next.  Who knew?

And after a Be my Guest from me, another yellow jacket for good measure.  Beauty and practicality in one little package.  Amazing.

More posing.  Can't get enough posing.

A little house hunting.
Or should I say a little little-house hunting?

Now we're just getting cute.  Pretending to be a parrot.  Funny.

A wonderful aerial exhibition.  (That little house attracts so many visitors.)  Uh, watch your wingspan there.

 

More pretty posing.  I like the looking off into the distance.
Adds a bit of je ne sais quoi, don't you think?

And finally a bit of a bath after a busy day of eating anything that moved in the yard.  Except me, thankfully.

And that brings us back to the garden.  We can't forget the garden after all.  Still enjoying the wonderful tulips of spring.  And a special shout-out to the squirrels who so kindly refrained from digging the bulbs up and eating them this year.  A little cooperation goes a long way in any venture.

All I can say is that it was truly an extraordinary day.  For me, at least, and I hope for the tanager as well.

    

A Riot in the Garden

Well, there's been a riot in the garden.  The Bumblebee Irises have just gone crazy.  

The Forget-Me-Nots couldn't be sweeter

The Lady's Mantle reveals its most appealing attribute.
Gorgeous after a rain.

These little beauties, so delicate, so enchanting

The tulips are so short-lived.  This one is pretending to be a rose.  It heard that June was the month for those.

Lovely, Lovely Rain

It rained and rained this weekend.  Sometimes very hard and sometimes more gently.  The garden greedily soaked up all the moisture it could.   And this morning it's apparent how important a little drink at the right time can be.  Lovely blooms, lovely green. I just want to get lost in it for a while.  Oh, perhaps I will.  If you need me, leave a message after the beep.  

Mid-May and I Think It's Officially, Solidly Spring

The weather was perfect today.  There was some sun, some shade, a slight breeze, and it appears the flowers just loved all of it.