Pictures of Contentment at Home

(Above picture is from Pinterest)

Hello Everyone,

Something ought to be done about the ignorant adults who  sneeze in your face in a public or private settings.  Even children know better!  I got a summer cough that Is only now subsiding but have been going ahead with my garden and house. Someone walked past me in a grocery store and that was that. There must be something each person who has been sneezed on can do or say to correct this national health threat.  I have been unable to talk much on phone or use Skype because of this cough so it put me quite out of circulation...no tea with friends for awhile and no making videos til this subsides.

On to better news.

Before I got this cough, a friend came to visit and oh, how I loved just having her and her grown children making the normal noise of a home with talking, laughing, music, footsteps on the wood floor, food preparation, helping with things, fixing things, napping in chairs, reading and talking about everything interesting .  We were so content at home I forgot to take them several places I had planned.

My friend gave me a big bag of herbal tea made from calendula, uva ursi, juniper berry and other things. The picture above is just the way I make a cup of tea from the huge bag of fragrant herbs. By the way the tea makes me feel great.

My own photos here show some progress in the decorative gardens:

When the lawn gets greener I will post a whole picture of the house, after I get the porch swept and cleaned up.  Outdoor work is like having another house to take care of! 

For those of you who do not have access to Pinterest, I have collected these pictures of the way people are using their own yards for "outings" and hospitality, even for just themselves.

You may remember my sheet tents a few years ago, and how the trolls where mocking them to derision. Well it wasn't long before there were similar things all over the web, and Pinterest had plenty of glamorous back yard sheet tents!  This one is from Pinterest but I do plan to make my own sheet tent area again soon!

The following pictures are from Pinterest.

This one is interesting because those waterfall type rain chains....

....like this,  below, which I have seen in garden shops, are quite expensive. 

If you do a rain chain search, you can see some quite elaborate versions that look like little umbrellas and my how lovely it would be to have one outside the bedroom window or living room window. Some are over $70!  These stacked teacups make a nice waterfall with no drilling or chains or work at all. I used to take all my beat up useless tea cups to donate at thrift shops but now I will keep them and make a stack of my own in the garden.

This is an animated gif from Pinterest but when I went back to the site I could not find the link. Maybe you can find it and watch the rain fall in the cups.

I will tell you one more story. It will never become a novel or a movie but it is free to you, and will give you something nice to think on today.

My friend from England who came to tea when I had a tea room, introduced me to her husband who was a gardener, caterer and worked at other things.

"I got tired of meeting the charmer and the social climber,  or the man who wanted to make a million dollars, and was thrilled with someone who cared about the home and the house. 

"On his days off work, what does he like to do? Mow the lawn, fix things--always looking around for something to repair, improve, paint or re-do.

" On weekends he takes the family on a car trip just for a few hours, somewhere for scenery. 

" Some people don't think that is very interesting but it is very comforting to me knowing he will be there for us and make the house a safe place to live in. For me, it can't get more loving or interesting than this!"