Outdoor Wednesday - Leaded Window

I love this version of a leaded window. The picture was taken in London on a walkabout.

Hop on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/ for some fun outdoor photos and stories.

Outdoor Wednesday - Historic Kirtland

Late summer last year we went to northern Ohio for a vacation. One of our stop off points was Historic Kirtland. Great place, with a lot of interesting history. I love all the attention to detail that can be seen everywhere.

Thanks to Susan @http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com for hosting this weekly fun event.

Outdoor Wednesday - Cucumbers

We tried growing cucumbers for the first time this year. They were growing nicely and the one "cuke" we ate tasted lovely. All of a sudden "poof" the plants started to wilt and die :(  Everything else seems to be growing well thus far.

Outdoor Wednesday - Buckingham Palace Detail

One of the things I really enjoy about traveling around Britain is having the opportunity to look at old stonework details. This one belongs to Buckingham Palace. It always pays to look upwards :)
As always pop on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/ to find out what some other outdoor participants have been doing.

Outdoor Wednesday - getting ready for the Olympics

Looks like the statues surrounding the fountain outside Buckingham Palace are already "ahead of the games". They have their own torch, laurel wreaths, and well honed athletes & swimmers already in place :)

They have already been practicing their winning flag ceremony.

Her Majesty has the best seat available with remarkable access to the sprinting events.

Enough of my whimsy, there is a lot of building work going on in Britain for the Summer 2012 Olympic games. Lots of building cranes in evidence in London and some surrounding areas. It's going to be fabulous.

Outdoor Wednesday - Where The Wild Things Grow

Wildflowers growing in crevices always look more interesting when they are at an historic building (Stirling Castle is in the background.)
As always hop on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com to see what some other participants have been posting about today.
I hope those of you that celebrated it had a wonderful 4th of July. This Brit had the opportunity to sing in two concerts :)

Outdoor Wednesday - The King's Knot

One of the first places we visited when we were in Scotland was Stirling Castle. This is one of my favorite views - "The King's Knot" know locally as "The Cup and Saucer". It is located on the Dumbarton Road near King's Park. This is what is left of a 16th century garden that was (supposedly) built on the site of a medieval jousting arena. The whole area that you see in the photograph was originally part of an extensive royal hunting ground c. 12th thru 17th centuries.
There are two very distinct sections to the King's Knot. The lower section was a "parterre" (a system of hedges, paths and flower beds) and the raised 9 ft high, section was a characteristic feature of gardens in the 16/17th centuries. According to old records there was hedges and canals in the Knot. Renovations and alterations have been done over the centuries.
Historic Scotland looks after the Knot and recently provided a grant (along with Stirling City Heritage Trust) for a geophysical survey to be taken. The aim is to try and find out more about this landmarks ancient history and maybe what "lies below".

Outdoor Wednesday - the Cicadas are coming

The 13 year cycle Cicadas are starting to come up out of the ground by the corner of our house. The whole area looks like it's moving, which is quite interesting to see. Cicadas are relatively harmless but when they land on you it can feel somewhat creepy seeing two red eyes staring at you.

Our large tree is slowly getting covered with Cicadas nymphs getting ready to molt. There's a goodly amount of their cast-offs at the bottom of our tree.

These ones have molted and are drying out.

While I don't mind the Cicadas too much I think I will be happy to leave them behind for a wee while when I leave for Scotland next week.
For more outdoor adventure hop on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com

And just to end on a pretty note. The weather has gotten hot all of a sudden and this morning my lilies bloomed.

Outdoor Wednesday - a flower :)

Our yard/garden has been devoid of much flowery evidence thus far. Our Columbine is in full bloom and the Iris are just starting.

We are in the middle of re-arranging some beds again. One of the forsythia bushes is now gone and we are creating this little flower area by our back steps. Just have to put in some more perrenials, annuals and mulch.

To see more Outdoor Wednesday goodness (and drama) hop on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/

Outdoor Wednesday - Waiting For Spring

For more Outdoor Wednesday fun hop on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com
Spring things are appearing in my garden. The mini Iris and Crocus have started to bloom. Little spots of lovely color amidst the remains of dead leaves.

Outdoor Wednesday - Treads or Tracks?

Well this one has the potential to be a good panel for part of a wall hanging.
For more Outdoor Wednesday photos hop on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com

Outdoor Wednesday - wee green man

Our wee, weather greened, cherub came with the house when we bought it. He has lived in many parts of the back yard over the years but now calls the back corner under a large tree "home". He "guards" the critter fence-line access to our neighbors yard. Some of his other "duties" over the years have been to help our flowers grow, keep the bunnies away from our veggies, chat to our bushes and "scare off" the squirrels.
He's had many secret adventures over the years i.e. been found toppled off his plinth. The birds, and Lucy love to visit him and chat.
For more Outdoor Wednesday fun visit http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/

Outdoor Wednesday - Tracks

School has been out since Monday because of this. We got about 3 inches and have had flurries since then. We have used up our snow days allotment already.
For more outdoor fun hop, slither or slide, on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/
For those of you up north in the middle of raging snow storms I hope you all stay safe out of harms way.

Outdoor Wednesday - Inside Looking Out

I love the center window oval in our front door. The various cuts of glass make fun distortions, shapes and designs when you look through it.

Outdoor Wednesday - Indoor Kitchen Christmas

I'm right in the middle of making a wreath and it looks like I inadvertently have a bit of a tartan/plaid theme going on in my kitchen. My new sparkly table cloth, shown above, is waiting for me to finish up a centerpiece of snowmen candle sticks.
Greetings to you all from my mischievous snowmen as they attempt to climb upwards ......... to visit .......

And over by our atomic clock our snowman is trying to decide if he wants to go Christmassy or stay autumnal :) Poor thing, he lost his nose in a severe frost a few years ago :(

The only blizzard I've seen recently has been courtesy of our snow globe. (Addendum - it's now Sunday and we have a real life blizzard. We were out driving in it for a little while. School has been cancelled for tomorrow.)

One of my twin snowmen is dying to sneak into the room and say hello but is feeling somewhat bashful.

If you want to see some stunning Christmas decorating hop on over to http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/ or click on the link in my side-bar.
Also head on over to http://suelovescherries.blogspot.com/ for some fun REDNESDAY.

Outdoor Wednesday - succulents

From a recent visit to Cheekwood.

Outdoor Wednesday - A "room" with a view

We get to see some pretty cloud/sky formations from our front and back porches. I like a lot of the delicate colors we see here.

Most of the time we get a gorgeous blue :)

With billowy clouds :)

Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and can enjoy the beauty of family, friends and nature.

Outdoor Wednesday - A rose goes to heaven

One of my friends died recently. After her funeral I took photographs of one of her favorite spots at her farm. It's an old cabin that she made useable.