Weeping Cherry Tree is Blooming!

This is one of my favorite trees in the yard... I wish I could blink and make it bigger, but it is rather slow growing and I love it anyway... I have to prune the bottom so I can duck my head and mow under it. I think it looks better pruned evenly.

Englander Pellet Stove

We purchased this Englander Pellet Stove from Home Depot and it is now hooked up and running. I absolutely LOVE it! I filled the hopper with pellets yesterday around 12:30 and it has hardly used any pellets. I turned it off through the night and back on again this morning. Our home is very well insulated and I have had the setting on 1, which is the lowest setting. If you have been thinking about purchasing a wood stove vs. a pellet stove, I would definitely go with the pellet stove. It is so easy to use and much cleaner than the wood stove. I am seriously thinking about putting one in the family room within the next few years to replace our woodstove. We'll see how the wood supply holds out ;) I still need to find a more appropriate hearth pad, but using this one for now. I would prefer a corner hearth pad and a darker color. Enjoy your day and be blessed!

Split Bradford Pear

We had high winds here on the mountain the other day and they split my Bradford Pear tree... Oddly enough, there was a large split at the bottom of the branches, however, the split was on the other branch. We cleaned up the broken branch and will have to take the rest of the tree down soon. Bradford Pear trees are known to have soft wood and break easily.

Pellet Stove Installation

The pellet stove pipe installation kit is complete. Because the vent on the back was in line with the electrical outlet, I decided to run the pipe up on the inside out then out, alleviating having to reroute the electrical wire to have the pipe outside. The pellet stove installation kit is galvanized, so I painted it flat black. The piece on the outside is galvanized and looks nicer than I thought it would. (I'll post a picture later of the outside piece.) Fortunately, my dad's roto saw did a great job. I couldn't believe how much drywall dust landed over the entire living room, just from cutting the 7" or so inch piece out.

The second hearth pad was shipped and it was white with missing grout and a chipped stone, damaged during shipment. The company that I bought it from said to keep both and offered to send another pad out as soon as I approved the picture they emailed to me. The pad that the pellet stove is sitting on is not for a corner, but at this point, I want my money back and I will purchase one from a local woodstove dealer when they stock this fall. I prefer one that is darker and more rustic and is actually a corner pad.

We still have to install the air vent to the outside. It is a small vent to assist the draft. After that, we will test it and make sure it is working properly and hopefully I'll be able to relax and enjoy it this fall ;) I'll let you know how well it heats after the test run... xox

Good morning Wednesday~

Last summer when we went to the beach on vacation, we also visited a beach where wild horses live called Assateague Island. I took this pic from the vehicle. We didn't get out and explore because we could drive and see them on either side of the road... I would have much preferred to park and walk and enjoy, but was outnumbered ;) I found their link if you are interested in checking it out. http://www.assateagueisland.com/

Cloudy here today and calling for rain. I managed to sell a few things on eBay, so I was happy to see that this morning. I suppose someone told my buyers that the economy is bad :)

Enjoy your day and be blessed. xox

Thank You Iva Mae

A few years ago, my friend Iva Mae's husband came over and opened his trunk to reveal a five gallon bucket of daffodil bulbs. Iva Mae sent him over to give them to me. She loved her flowers but was not always able to work in the yard. She was not healthy and suffered with emphysema and diabetes, and died not before she told me that she loved me. Every spring I look out into my yard, back and front, and smile when the daffodils begin to bloom one by one. I will always think of her when I see them. Thank you Iva Mae :)

More Spring Pictures

Daffodils, grape hyacinths, forsythia, Bradford Pears, the first few weeping cherry tree blooms, hyacinths, and new growth on my red rose bush ~


















It's late, but I wanted to post the pictures I took earlier today because if I don't do it now, I may forget :) Enjoy and God bless xox