Happy New Year!



Merry Christmas, Everyone!

It was 70 degrees and rainy this afternoon in southern NJ.  We even heard thunder nearby!  Hope you had a great day - and received everything you asked for from Santa!

Wishing Everyone a Happy and Safe Holiday!

 

Brynn and Friend

My husband took this photo through the kitchen window the other day of a deer visiting Brynn, one of our cats with feline leukemia.  You can see her behind the cat fence.  The fence is attached to a screenhouse and that is attached to an insulated shed.  Brynn shares her home with Steffi who has leukemia and AIDS.

 

Winter's Last Blast?

It has been snowing all day here in NJ.  We'll probably end up with 6-8 inches.  It's pretty - but it has been such an awfully long winter...

We originally purchased this barn to use as a studio,  It has been co-opted, however, by four cats: Jewel, Lotus Blossom, Sylvie and Fern.  I guess it's true, if you build it, they will come...

Nature Journal: Primrose

Primrose is derived from the Latin “prima rosa” and means “first rose.”

While I was drawing these primroses, I couldn’t get the song, “The Blacksmith,” out of my head.  It is a traditional English folksong I first heard performed by Steeleye Span.  Here is an alternative verse to the one that I wrote on my journal page that I had never heard before.  The third line is wonderfully alliterative.

“But where is my love gone
With his cheeks like roses
And his good black Billycock on
Decked around with primroses.”

 

Nature Journal: American Holly (Ilex opaca)

The big holly tree in my foundation garden was heavily laden with berries, but the birds have been feasting on them, leaving some branches with just a smattering.

Mocha, Banning & Jet