Notice

ATTENTION!!! Please do not steal my content! ALL of the content on this page is property of Tootsie Time is not to be copied and used elsewhere unless with the expressed permission of Tootsie! There have been a lot of my photos found on various websites and none have permission. Removing the watermark is not permitted under any circumstances. My work is MINE to share, and should never be seen with someone else's name attached to it. That is stealing!

:)

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Happy Holidays To My Blogging Friends (and a quick announcement)

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Fertilizer Friday will take a small break from the weekly flaunting! This is a crazy time of year for everyone...and there is just no time to search for photos, snap new ones...or upload and link in...not to mention running all over the place to visit all the other fantastic gardens....so I have decided that Fertilizer Friday needs to take a teensy little break for the holidays. There will not be a linky put up this week for the Dec 24th flaunt…or one for the Dec31st flaunt. Fertilizer Friday will resume on January 7th 2011…so get your photos ready…you can link in more than once on the 7th, or just have one HUGE post! I look forward to seeing you and your gardens ever week in 2011…
With that…I wish you…
Merry Christmas to one and all,
I have a list of people
All written in a book -
And every year at Christmas time
I go and take a look.
And that is when I realise
That those names are all a part -
Not of the book they're written in
But of my very heart.
For each name stands for someone
Who has crossed my path some time -
And in that meeting they've become
A treasured friend of mine.
And once you've met some people
The years can not erase -
The memory of a pleasant word
Or of a friendly face.
So when I send an email
That is addressed to you -
It's because you're on that 'Special list'
Of folk that I'm indebted to.
And you are one of several folk
In times past that I've met -
And happen to be one of those
I don't want ever to forget.
And whether I have known you
For many years or few -
In some way you have had a part
In shaping things I do.
So this the Spirit of Christmas
That forever still endures -
May it leave its richest blessing
In the hearts of you and yours.
MERRY CHRISTMAS BLOGGER FRIENDS!
Until next time…hugs and smiles…and a very happy and safe holiday season to you all!
*)*)*)- you know who you are! I love to see you viewing me!
SEE YOU ALL IN 2011 (if not before!)
(¯`v´¯)
`*.¸.*´Glenda/Tootsie
¸.•´¸.•*¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´ .•´ ¸¸.•¨¯`•.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Oh we Still laugh....


I thought we could all giggle a little together today on one of my favorite posts...this is the story of my mom and I junkin', laughing and just generally being blonde. It took place in the summer of 2010...and it is one day we STILL giggle about often enough! I have recently had a friend comment that she and her mother read it and laughed till they cried...I love this post...and hope that you enjoy it. If you are re-reading it...I am glad to see you stop by!
At any rate....this one's for you Grammie!!!

Grab a snack some kleenex (cuz you might laugh till you cry) and a coffee kids…this is going to be a LONG (and rather silly) post…ready? Good…lets get this party started!
I spent some time out at my parent’s farm this past week. The first day I was there was Canada Day…
We went for a walk around their yard…take a look at what we saw…054
When you first drive into their yard site, you are greeted by their land location, prominently mounted on an old wooden wagon that was left on the property years ago…
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It once was planted thick with portulaca, but since they do not live out here full time anymore…it has been re-planted with a pretty perennial ground cover…which…I do not know the name of…so if anyone can help us…
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…this is it. Anyone?
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Then off to the right…just a few feet away…you will see this…(the stakes show the kids where NOT to drive the quads…there are baby trees planted in this line…) The display is breathtaking.
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This huge square used to hold mostly marigolds. Grammie stuck a couple of Tiger Lily plants in about two years ago…and added some gout weed (snow on the mountain) in the lower part…and look at it now!
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so pretty when in bloom!
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(the bird is made of wood- not a real bird)
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This gout weed spreads like fire…and keeps the weeds down very well.
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Just up a little further to the left of the drive is this gate. My sister and I used to come to this area a lot when we were kids. It was the best adventure around.
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Just inside that gate is a dugout with an island right in the middle.
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My dad (Grampie) used to have an old dingy that we would put in the water and some oars that we would paddle our little hearts out all the way around this pond…we would stop, tie our dingy up and play on the island…we found all kinds of wonders there…salamanders, frogs, special rocks, pieces of wood…you name it…we had sooooooo much fun!
The dingy eventually was worn out and was taking on water…so it is no longer…(thank God- my kids would have given me heart attacks trying to row around that thing) but the memories that this area brings to mind are precious to me.
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Up the lane a bit further…we came across a path mowed into the trees.. There are a lot of these little teaser paths all over the place here…they lead to wonderful views of the gardens.
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That one took us to the greenhouse. I used to be so jealous of this building…I NEEDED one of my own soooo bad…and now I have one too. This one is not used at the moment…a spring snow storm caved a couple of the windows on the roof in…and since they are not full time out here..they are not worried about planting right now. When they retire it BETTER be fixed…cuz a greenhouse is a MUST in a yard this size! Ya hear me Grampie!!!!?
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Just a few feet from the greenhouse is the gazebo (which will be the subject of future posts…as I am working on a project with Grammie for this beautiful structure)
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I loved this years ago when I bought it for them as a gift…and I still do…it is bird bath with a fancy pigeon in it.
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The path around it is made from recycled bricks from the basement of the old house that once stood abandoned on the property.
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When inside the gazebo you can look right and see the old rake, the rock bed and…
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The “FORT” built for the kids nestled in the trees…
Look to the left …and you will see a man hard at work…
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That’s the ‘Duch”…helping Grampie…
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Who is hard at work cutting down dead and unwanted shrubs and trees…
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My lovely assistant ‘Busy’ was ‘assisting’ her big bro …
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okay…not so much helping…as riding around ‘bossing’ and stepping on the air valve of the trailer tires so many times that it had to be changed not once…but twice! (sorry Grampie- she IS lucky she’s so cute I’m sure of that)
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Where’s ‘ Georgie’ you ask?
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Yep! That’s her…up that big ol’ tree having a wonderful time enjoying the scenery!
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Right beside that gazebo…is a church pew from the old church we used to attend as kids. (they re-built it and used new pews…so Grammie and Grampie bought a couple as ‘park pews’… if you sit on that pew…you will be looking at…
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Heaven on earth! My dad built this space. It is actually two ponds joined by a pretty little arched bridge that he also built. The ponds were built when he had exotic birds out here. The Ducks and fancy geese that he used to raise, (among other types of birds such as peacocks and pheasants…etc) used to keep the weeds and grass from over growing in the water. Right now it is a bit grassy…but still just as pretty. The immediate pond is just round…the one behind the bridge has another island in it. I think it should get sprinkled with wild flower seeds…wouldn’t that look fantastic??? If they lived here full time…this place would be loaded with flowers…but alas…they allow it to be “au-natural” for now.
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Oh it is just sooooo pretty!
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walk with me some more…
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I see a path…and I NEED to take you there.
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Remember I told you guys how my dad is the KING of junkin’ and that the garage used to be referred to as the ‘superstore’? Well…to my utter dismay, the garage is now empty and there are cars parked inside! (how RUDE!!!!) What I didn’t know…is that not all of the ‘gold’ was gone…
See this? It used to be the pheasant house.
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This is the pump house…
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There a lots of ‘houses’ that used to hold exotic and expensive birds…but now…they hold the treasures that absolutely make my heart pound and my imagination race!!!!
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This one used to be the bantam house. It also held some fancy Geese at one time…and even some sheep! It is just magical to me with the moss growing on the cedar roof…154
Even the tree outside this little house is pretty with it’s yellow moss…inside that house…is junkin’ GOLD I tell ya!!!
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But Grampie…isn’t parting with his stash just yet…he’s HOGGING the goods!!! (I call it wasting---just shameful!) Yep! I am ticked! He has so much good stuff…and most of the sheds are LOCKED to keep people like ME out!!!! Yep! I was disappointed…the things he could do with some of that stuff…man!!! I would be posting everyday for years just to share the projects!!! But NOOOOOO… Grampie is ‘SAVING’ it…WHAT EVER!!! I will be back…and I will be loading that junkin’ gold into my truck…even if I have to sneak in the back way when he’s sleepin’ and raid the place…hee-hee!
I went home ticked off!!! But…two days later on July 4th…I drove the 2 1/2 hours back to the farm…still obsessing over the sheds filled with gold…that I can’t have!
Grammie was laughing at the dismay on my face at all the fun I was missing out on…so she suggested we do a little junkin’ /okay exploring of our own. Ready to do a little junkin’ Grammie style? Get ready to laugh guys…this is where the stupid starts!
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When we were kids, there was an old man that lived just across the country road from us. We adopted this old man…and he was like a grandpa to us. He has passed on a few years back, and his place has since been abandoned by his family- who has no idea what they passed up!
Grammie and I decided to take a walk over to his place just for the sake of memories. It has been years since I was there…and my sis and I used to go visit all the time, clean and play with the old guy…and just imagine being pioneers in the big old house. I was a beautiful place at tone time. Manicured yard…beautiful flower and veggie garden…LOTS of trinkets and treasures from the old man’s mother all over that house. We LOVED to visit and play!
Since it has been abandoned and sold, my mom is nervous to go in the drive way…so she points the way…through the trees…THIS CAN’T BE GOOD…but I go anyways.
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yep…we hiked our butts through the thick underbrush…
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kinda pretty isn’t it…that nettle isn’t the nicest thing if you get stung by it…but it does look pretty all under the trees…
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it looked so magical…like it would go on forever!
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Some of the HUGEST mushrooms this Tootsie has ever seen were in there too….
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HUGE!
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That’s Grammie’s hand! HUGE I tell ya!!!
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But we persevered…through the bush…only to have Tootsie’s heart broken.
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That big old house from my childhood memories…has been vandalized. DESTROYED! Holes cut in walls…ceilings destroyed…hardwood floors…devastated…you could see the sky from the first floor!!!
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Grammie said that until a few years back it was salvageable. That someone could have restored this once majestic structure to its glory. The house is over 100 years old today…and is in such a state of disrepair that it is not salvageable at all. I didn’t believe her. I desperately wanted to say that someone would be able to love it enough…to bring it back to life…so I talked her into going up close…up the front steps and peeking through the shattered windows.
And so we did. We managed our little feet up the decaying stairs…and got close enough to peer past the trash that is left on the veranda…I was crushed. NOTHING but ruins inside. The hardwoods are destroyed…every window smashed…the place was vandalized…every room is destroyed…the kitchen appliances smashed and tossed all over…just awful.
Now…Being me…I opened the front door a bit to take a better look…we walked into the living room…and at that exact moment we hear a loud voice say “please enter the code”
we were shocked…and SCARED. Grammie is looking at me… I am looking at her…and we hear it again.
“please enter the code”
I swear to you guys…we both almost loaded our panties! We were supposed to be alone…sneaking in for a little peek at a place that holds fond memories! Who the heck is asking us for a code???? ARE WE BUSTED???
RUN GRAMMIE!!!! RUN!!!
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So we –being the brave blondes that we are…ran…BUT…the voice came with us!!!
“please enter the code”
I stopped…looked at her and said “what the hell is the code?”
She says “I don’t know!”
We hear: “that is not the correct code. Please enter the code”
It was at that time that I realized…we were not busted…just stupid. The voice…was coming from inside Grammie’s pants. SHE must have bumped her cell phone on something, and triggered the voice command feature.
Oh how we laughed…and laughed…and laughed! We were crying we laughed so hard…partly cuz we were embarrassed…and partly cuz we were relieved that we were not busted! I was also laughing cuz…even Grammie’s pants are bossy sometimes!!! ha- ha-ha-ha!!! Grammie!!!! Ha-HA!!!
So…we headed back to our side of the road…again through the bushes…on the way I found an old heat vent. Very rusted out and very ornate. I picked it up…and took a piece of my childhood memories home as a keepsake. It will also always make me giggle a little when I remember how I came upon that thing…and the silliness of junkin’ Grammie style. hee hee. I am still laughing when I think of it!
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I WILL be back…this shed at Grampie’s stash…doesn’t have a lock on it…and there’s a couple things that I think have Tootsie stamped ALL over them! Since he is just hogging the good stuff...and wasting it by not using it...I think that I'm just doin' my duty as a junker...and hey...he can't get mad....after all...He's the one who taught me how to be a junkin' princess!!!
Stay tuned! It might be a midnight move! ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!!
So that’s my story. I’m still laughing about the crazy adventure I had with my mom…I have not laughed that hard in YEARS!!! I just had to share…I left kids at the farm…to spend a day or two with mom and dad…Grampie invited a sleep over…if they wanted to help out a bit with more tree removal.
I hope they don’t regret it!!! (Grampie and Grammie I mean ha-ha)

Until then…
Hugs and smiles…you all and a big HELLOOOOO to my three favorite people! (you know who you are! Winks!)
(¯`v´¯)
`*.¸.*´Tootsie ¸.•´¸.•*¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´ .•´ ¸¸.•¨¯`•.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Fertilizer Friday/ Flaunt Your Flowers Dec.17/10

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HAPPY FRIDAY!!!! Friday is a BIG day for us here at Tootsie Time…(ok, just me…there is no one else here…lol) It’s a big deal because it means it’s PARTY TIME!!!! Fertilizer Friday is the day of the week than an ELITE group of gardeners from all around the world get together , snap photos, link up and Flaunt Their Flowers!!!

If you are new to Tootsie Time and Fertilizer Friday, I just know you are asking yourself…”How do I join?” Well…it’s easy really. Here’s all you need to know to become a part of this great group of gardeners, bloggers and friends:

If it is spring or summer where you live, you need to snap a few photos of what you have growing, blooming or just love to look at that is of the plant variety…if it is winter where you live, you may post past favorite photos…or indoor plants…whatever you like. The only criteria is that it is a plant or something growing!

You do not need to use fertilizer to participate in this party, but if you do, this is the reminder to fertilize weekly!

All I ask is that: Your post must include the logo above and a link to Tootise Time, or the linky will be deleted. I don’t mean to be harsh, but there have been a lot of people linking in and when the participants graciously click over to their blogs, there is no sign of Fertilizer Friday anywhere to be found. This is not fair to those who do follow the rules, therefore…well you know!

So? what are you waiting for? Get outside, feed, water, snap and post!

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In my neck of the woods, it is snowing, chilly outside and kinda cloudy. Nothing growing, except maybe the snow piles from the sidewalk. On the inside of my little greenhouse, it is tropical and warm.

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I have a few houseplants in here for the winter…okay…I have lots. haha

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My Loofa is growing along nicely…I am so worried I will kill it…that I don’t even look at it much. It seems to be loving that…so I’ll just keep doing what I have been…so far so good! :)

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Most of these plants in the greenhouse have to be moved back into my house when I start the planting of the annual seeds here in a few weeks. Some will stay in the garage for a bit.

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I have been cleaning, organizing and pruning…trying to get everyone in shape to go in the house…where the light is not as good, and the air is much drier.

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My big old Geranium is blooming again…

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…so is the purple Nico Swedish Ivy…remember a couple of months ago when I cut it right back? I love how this plant can grow!

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The blooms are not showy…but they are a nice surprise when it’s winter outside.

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My cacti that I started from seed is growing slowly, but surely…

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Everything is happy in here…

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The Begonia in the middle was cut right back last month, and is now blooming and looking like a nice round ball. I planted it two years ago from a seed.

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Philodendron is very happy in the greenhouse this year…I took a cutting from my large one in the house last May and this is how great it is doing!

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One of two Banana plants that I started from seed. This one is two years old now. I can’t believe how large it is getting…especially since last year there were bugs like spider mites, aphids…you name it on here…I had to cut it back several times. I just cut it back last month as it was getting much to large for the house…and the greenhouse!

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I have been busy setting the scene for the spring plant…sorting out trays, liners and pots. I purchased some bales of soil, and am just waiting for them to thaw so I can get dirty!

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A final shot from the window of the greenhouse door, as I close it tight for the afternoon…Oh how I wish I could just stay all day long in my little haven!

Now…it’s your turn…show me what you’ve got! I hope you are all ready for the holidays!!! I am almost done, still there are last minute things, and one more gift to buy. The kids finish school for the semester tomorrow…and it’s GAME ON!!! They are so pumped up for Christmas, and excited to share in the Christmas Concert at school tonight!

Until next time…hugs and smiles…and wishes for a warm, safe and happy weekend to you all! Many thanks to all who are linking in this time, it is such a busy time of year, and for many of us, there is nothing to flaunt!!! To those who just visit…big hugs!!! I will see you all very soon with a seed list for this year! I am soooo excited! See you soon!

oh…and to those three very special winks who visit so often, and who just love to love little old me…MWUAH! *) *) *) You know who you are…:) Good luck with your holiday endeavours!

(¯`v´¯)
`*.¸.*´Tootsie
¸.•´¸.•*¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´ .•´ ¸¸.•¨¯`•.