Nuggets of Joy

Joy: painted foam letters adhered to embossed metal. The fabric started out as red flannel with glitzy fabrics needle punched on thus making a one-of-a-kind fabric.

Nuggets of Joy can occur when a road runner darts across the back wall, or comes right up to the glass bedroom door and amuses Spencer, aka the very large male cat, and I by talking to us through the closed door. Other nuggets of joy happened when I discovered that I suddenly have a dozen followers of this blog. One of which I'd like to introduce you to. Laura not only has FM like I do but does amazing art and has written a book. I'm in awe.

Another follower, who is also a dear friend, is Pam.  I'm envious of her writing and of her approach to grow her skills.

Nuggets of Joy can be found in my backyard which is in the throes of being redone, well not the entire yard, but the raised bed area. The HOA insists that yards be completely planted during the first 6 months after purchase of a new house. As it turns out that is a hard thing to do; gardens aren't stagnate but change with seasons and how a garden develops which can take years. So, the original ground cover plants that took over the mounded area have got go; they're making the yard smaller than it needs to look, plus, they're overgrown and devoured by bugs. This is just one small area that I've tackled so far. My guy was going to start the work in November when the temps dipped below 90 degrees, but I'm now left with the work while his brain recovers from two strokes. To the left, out of frame, is the next area that I will also plant with cactus that were purchased last summer. I'm not fond of so many stepping stones in the garden, but the tree trimmers need places to stand.

This odd seed pod is from a white oleander plant. I've never seen a bloom do this before. Marvelous in a scary way; I imagine that birds might like to use it for nest building? Or, maybe they're smart enough to know about the poisonous plant. I grew up in the Land-of-Oleanders and never thought I'd grow them again, but they grow fast and were perfect for the side yard. They didn't let me down and now are providing much needed shade.


Quote: Practice random expressions of happiness. It might just catch on. Sally Huss