Roses, Home and Nesting

"The Bible does not say very much about homes;

it says a great deal about the things
that make them.

It speaks about life and love and joy
and peace and rest.

If we get a house and put these into it,

we shall have secured a home."


~ John Henry Jowett

Isn't that a nice quote? It was in my daily calendar for March 29th, and it seems to fit with what I've been trying to accomplish in our home the last week or so.

Unfortunately, the three of us like to have our things around us, so piles of items surround our areas. We all like books and magazines, and then there are DD's college papers, text and research books, and lots of my stitching projects. Then there's the dining room table, where I like to sit to do paperwork and write letters, or wrap presents, or cut fabric for sewing.

These things normally don't bother me since we don't have a lot of company or do much entertaining, and it's just us (and we're comfortable with things the way they are).

BUT.... our daughter is graduating from college in early May, and we'll be having two house guests. So, I'm trying to get the house back to "company ready". It's good incentive for me to do some spring housecleaning that I'd normally put off in favor of sitting and stitching or reading :)

Since I haven't been doing much stitching this last week or two, I don't have any photos to share of my work. I decided to add a few more pictures of the roses, instead ~ just to make this post look a little prettier. These are the same roses that were in the last photo, and were taken on Monday, April 2nd (the other pictures were taken on March 27th).

It's amazing how fast those blossoms all opened up, and now those two bushes are full of large flowers. When I took the first pictures on the 27th, there was just one fully opened rose on each bush. The orange is always the first one to open, and then the yellow rose bush is next (although the blossoms are a peach color when they first start out). There are a few more bushes that are still just green, but will be getting buds soon.... a pink one, a pale peach one, and a lavender one.

A few friends have asked how we have roses so early in the year. We live in a part of Texas where it's warm most of the year. There's always something blooming and green, and the roses start to bloom in March and continue all year. There's usually a time in late summer when lots of the blooms are gone and then start up again a few weeks later, and then they continue blooming throughout the fall and winter.

I always laugh at our Christmas photos outside... there are Christmas decorations up, a few of the trees are bare, a few of the trees are still turning autumn colors, and our roses are in full bloom. The fall pumpkins are always still out, too. In fact, we still have one of them sitting on the front porch in perfect shape (although a little dusty after a recent heavy rain storm). I have no idea why they last so long here, but they do. I think I'll include a photo of the pumpkin that I took on Monday to share with my autumn friend, Heidi :)

Now, I think I'll get those photos uploaded so I can share some spring with you. You'll see the orange roses, the yellow roses, the impatiens that come up each year in small pots I keep on a wicker chair on the porch, and then the pumpkin :)