Tuesday, April 13, 2021

A WARM, WELCOMING SPRING...

 




For the past couple of years,

 I have written about the time
 known as Sprinter. 
 That is when the calendar says spring 
but the weather acts like winter. 
 However, that is not the case this year.
  This is the best spring in recent memory.
  The sun is shining, 
it is a little breezy
 but, oh, so comfortable.
  The air is fresh and 
it is obvious that spring has sprung! 



Wisteria budding out over 
the Secret Garden


"The slow breeze and the warm sun

Write our memories".

Debasish Mridha

It is still a bit cool in the evenings.

  Cool enough for burning fireplaces 

and the smell of wood smoke, 

when taking the dogs out before bed,

is delightful.



 

A few Cottage rooms 

have been released 

from the throes of winter, 

and I will show those in awhile,

 but first I want to tell you about

 the baby steps

 that are being taken around here. 

 I have been dragging my feet

 when it comes to 

rejoining the world after Covid. 

 My trip to Safeway last week, 

even though I got some pretty flowers, 

was a disaster.  

The Captain and I finally decided

 that we would take on 

something new each week 

to see how it could go.

  This week we decided

 to make a run to Trader Joe's 

to check out if that would work for us.  

We were hopeful 

as it is quite a ways to travel

 for no reason.



Trader Joe's has set up

 a pretty good plan.

  Certain spots are designated 

for lining up going into the store.  

A clerk stands at the door 

and distributes carts to those

 who want them 

and as approximately 

two shoppers exit from another door, 

then one shopper can enter.  

There are not too many shoppers

 at one time in the store 

and if you are watchful 

it is not hard to keep

 the required distance.  

We went in together and divided up the list 

then I want out to the car

 to turn on the air for the dogs

 and the Captain paid 

and loaded up the groceries. 

 On the way back home,

 we stopped for lunch at In-N-Out.

  On the whole, 

it was a very good day.  

Not only did we have a pleasant drive 

and got some more pretty flowers, 

the price of groceries is so much better.

  It was well worth the trip

 and a good start to using

 our first baby steps.



As you enter the Cottage 

you are greeted by

 welcoming words along with...




...a grouping that fulfills

 the promise of spring.







The shelf over the sofa in the sitting room

 is dressed befitting spring. 

 The whole-house wreath 

turns up now inside a fancy frame

 with some faux spring flowers adorning it.




A picture depicting 

some more springtime objects 

sits beside metal candlesticks

 in the shape of spring flowers

with a set of little birds

 and their small nest. 

 I like the exchange of

 spring colors played against

the touches of black.




The shelf 

and the sofa pillows

 add a cohesive touch.





...and the addition of 

pink and yellow tulips

 in a rustic tote 

completes the look.




A purposeful nod 

to the vibrant greens 

and soft colors of spring 

are displayed on the game table.




Because we live in the Gold Country, 

ore carts are a symbol 

of the days when gold mining

 was the sole industry. 

 It appears that Raggedy Ann

 is sitting next to an ore cart, 

filled with our

 one and only harvest of

 daffodils from the garden 

that bloomed in time for Easter Day. 

 But, in reality...





...it is just a cart

 being pulled by Goatzie

 along the dining room table

while her pal, Raggedy Andy,

 comes along for the ride.




The kitchen table

 got another round of springtime.

  Alstroemeria and some garden greens 

look elegant in a farmhouse container 

with a simple bottle of cream 

in the form of a candle

 from The Milkhouse Candle Co.

 that I purchased from 

Marmalade Mercantile.






I love the newest set

 of farm style dishes, 

but when I take them off the table, 

they still deserve to be seen 

and I didn't want to hide them 

away in a cupboard, 

so I added them to the crock shelf

 in the dining room.






I hope you all are enjoying spring

 in your part of the country.  

This last year

 has not been an easy one for most of us. 

 Spring is a new beginning. 

 Although not everything is 

as it should be yet, 

my thoughts are that,

 going forward,

 it will be a healthy, happy and hopeful

 season for all of us.





Stay Smart

Stay Well

Get Your Vaccine

Wear Your Masks


...Judy...




Sharing today with:

Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda












32 comments:

  1. Your home looks lovely all gussied up for Spring, Judy. The wreath is so whispy, and the colors say look at me! I am fresh as can be! I enjoyed your post...not only your words, but all of the photos, as well. We are recovering from a bout with covid here. It's taking time....but with God's Grace and Mercy, we are improving. xo

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    1. Thanks so much, Debbie. Spring is special this year, so far. So glad to hear about the Covid improvements. Prayers that they continue..Take care and stay well..xxoJudy

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  2. Definitely looks like spring at your lovely cottage. Love the florals and your vignettes. So glad you ventured out. Love in and out. Happy outings Judy.

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    1. Thanks so much, Linda. Spring is really beautiful this year. It was good to get out and so far the baby steps are working..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  3. I was impressed with how TJs handles things, too. I wish one was closer. All those lovely flowers in your home. It is clear that spring has come to your cottage and not a second too soon. (I don't remember "Sprinter." It's a wonderful term!)

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    1. Jeanie, thank you so much. I really love to just shop at Trader Joe's. Everything seems so fresh and yes, they have the best flowers in the world. We can't always get everything that we want there but their prices are much better than any other stores we have access to, but it is quite a drive for us. Good thing we don't mind it. Two years ago, when spring was here but all it did was rain, I invented the word "Sprinter" and it sort of caught on. Thank heavens we didn't have to use it this year, but we did have a little bit of rain overnight, but that is OK and really needed..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  4. What a nice way to display a wreath in a picture frame. I may have to steal that idea from you. ;-) The color combination of those tulips are just wonderful! Just starting to get my Spring decor out. Not sure how much I want to do with the kitchen redo going to happen pretty soon. We will see. Glad you and the Captain were able to take your baby steps to Trader Joe's. We still do not go out much except to work our stores. We have to do that. Janice

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    1. Thanks so much, Janice. You can steal all you want, I probably stole it from somebody else!! Trader Joe's flowers are the best. I am not covering the Cottage with spring, just doing a bit in each room, if I don't I won't have anything to write about!! Baby steps seem to be working for us so we will keep trying..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  5. Those tulips look so pretty in your cozy living room. Glad you both enjoyed your outing. I don't know which I prefer more Trader Joe's or In n Out burger. We have a Trader Joe's here but not an In n Out burger, so we get them when we can. They are so tasty.

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    1. Thanks so much for your visit. Those little tulips are still pretty. It was good to get out. I agree with you about which one is better. For me though, they are equal!! We have neither one that close to us but they happen to be on the way of each other so we take advantage when we can..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  6. Your place looks lovely. Love those farm dishes you now have on display with the crockery. And love all the flowers. Glad you're taking those baby steps. Enjoy them one step at a time. Stay safe. Carla

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    1. Thanks so much, Carla. I appreciate your kind words. I love those farm dishes too so wanted to keep them where I could always see them. Baby steps are working so far, now it is getting harder to think of the next ones than taking the steps themselves!..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  7. Oh those plates look so good in your house, Judy! I have to do some rearranging...and I need more flowers!! xo

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    1. Thanks so much, Kim. I have you to thank for them. I just love them. We all need as many flowers as we can get..Stay well my friend..xxoJudy

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  8. Hi Judy,
    I love seeing Spring popping up inside your house and outside too. We are having a pretty good Spring here in Illinois too. Glad your baby steps are helping you find your new normal. I just got my second Moderna shot today so I feel good to have both in me now. I will feel good in two weeks when I have full immunity. Still will take precautions but will feel less anxiety about going to the store. Happy Wednesday. Have a great rest of the week. xoxo

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    1. Thanks so much, Kris. Spring is doing beautifully around here this year. It just makes me feel good. Baby steps are working but I can't truly say I feel more comfortable going places but it is getting better. I hope it works well for you and then you can teach me your secrets!..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  9. Judy,
    Love all the pretty Spring touches in your cottage..And I am glad your venture out worked out well for you and you enjoyed it!! we had a few really warm days with temps. 10 - 15 degrees higher than it should so everything is now budding and ready to bloom and we have snow predicted for early Friday morning....Thanks so much for stopping by!!
    Stay safe, healthy and happy!!
    Hugs,
    Debbie

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    1. Thanks so much, Deb. So far our weather has been behaving. We have had a very little bit of rain but not enough to hurt the tender blooms on the flowering trees. Usually they bloom all pretty and then we have huge amounts of rain and wind. We certainly need more rain but hope it waits until after the trees are through blooming. My lilacs are finally starting to bud out..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  10. Dear Judy, what a lovely post. You really have a lovely, warm, and sweet home! Loving it, still haven't done much here. Been helping a friend ready her condo for sale. Hugs, Sandi

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    1. Thanks so much, Sandi. I appreciate your kind words. If someone were to help me to ready this house for sale, they would have a very BIG problem on their hands, so I say you are probably pretty busy..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  11. Oh you put me to shame Judy! I haven't done a thing indoors to depict Spring yet! It doesn't feel much like Spring here yet, though has been a little warmer and some sunny days.. but is so DRY here and dusty, as the winds howl lately along the dusty just-plowed fields.. and we get a house full of dust! We did buy a peach tree to plant, and I bought a little bucket of yet to bloom daffodils. After they bloom (if they do), then I'll plant them in the ground somewhere. With the winds, I'm just not much in the mood to go outside and do any yard work. Unfortunately, we don't buy fresh flowers due to our very tight "senior" budget. Maybe I'll have some in our yard this year. Last year's yard blooms were few and far between. Your house does look lovely and is ready to greet the nicer days soon to come I hope! Your trip to Trader Joe's sounded fun and glad it worked out just fine for you. Take care.........Marilyn

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    1. Thanks so much, Marilyn. I didn't go all out for spring decorating, just a few things here and there. We still are having nice weather but we do need rain badly. All of my daffodils have vanished except one little clump and they did bloom for Easter but things are always much slower in our garden than anyone elses. Sorry you are having to deal with dust. I wouldn't like that. Jerry is building me a planter box and I am planning on planting a cutting garden. Hopefully, then I might be able to pick from my own garden..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  12. Love your Spring decor. I need to set out more spring in my home.. Just picked some azaleas and tulips for vases. I do like your wreath in the picture frame. Nice to get out and about and glad it went well for both of you. Betsy

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    1. Thanks so much, Betsy. It was nice to take a little drive but sure do wish things were closer to us. We do not have much good shopping in our town but they still want us to shop locally! We are working on a cutting garden for the summer. Hope that works out and then I might have some of my own pretty flowers..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  13. Hey Judy! Your spring touches are very cheery! You are right about the farm plates. They need to be seen. So adorable. I'm glad your Trader Joes trip was a success. I'm so glad your spring has really arrived. We are cold again this weekend. Enjoy your spring days! J.

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    1. Thanks so much, Jacqueline. It is getting a little easier to go out and about, but always keeping an eye out. I really love those farm dishes. It was cold here last night but days continue to be beautiful..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  14. I love spring, pretty photos ❤

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    1. Thanks so much, Kinga. Spring and Fall, two of the best seasons. I love taking pictures of them too..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  15. I love the care and thought you put into your decor, I'm too busy living outside to focus in since we purchased here... I met Linda of life and Linda, we both are hoping we can meet you in my rose garden soon, it should be in full bloom I bet in a week or so, pencil us in 😉!

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    1. Thanks so much. I appreciate your kind words. If I had space and a garden like yours, I wouldn't spend so much time in the house either. I know that Linda enjoyed meeting you. It would be nice to get together once our counts start going down around here, in the meantime I sure do enjoy seeing your beautiful virtual garden..xxoJudy

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  16. Me again! Thanks so much for stopping by!! Thanks too for letting Angela know that you liked the room box she sent me...I know she really appreciated it!!Stay safe, healthy and happy!!
    Hugs,
    Debbie

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    1. You are welcome, Deb. She certainly is talented..xxoJudy

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Your comments are so special to me...Judy