Winter day down south. . . . . . . . .

It felt different this morning. Really like a winter day.

 I was out out on the front porch just before 7 AM.  

Scattered more birdseed along the rail, flipped the frozen WELCOME 

flag which had become tangled around its pole in the strong night wind, 

and noticed the fountain was frozen solid. The birds use it as another

 place to drink and bathe. A word to Bob later and he was out melting the

 ice with the tea kettle of warm water. Within minutes many birds arrived 

and I took a lot of photos through the window.

 I'll sort through them and share with you later.

Tall and elegant, the now blooming Apple Blossom amaryllis is part of my

 tiny tabletop "garden of earthly delights" and a third flower is opening with a

 fourth still in bud. There are new pots also, both from that quick run to

 LIDL yesterday which was mainly for salad greens and veggies. 

Snow, perhaps several inches coming today, we need to be prepared.

I couldn't pass up a pot of fresh bright green basil to snip, and of course the

 blue hyacinth in its own glass vase (just $2.99!) called out to be taken home. 

Who doesn't love a hyacinth before the garden ones appear in spring.

The fragrant aroma is wafting toward me as I write.

Note: These hyacinth bulbs are grown by a Women-Owned business in Pennsylvania. 

Way to go ladies, thank you.

The green bud in the the righthand pot will hopefully be another tall stem, 

and is the third amaryllis I've managed to regenerate this winter!  

As mentioned previously, patience and care often brings them into bloom

 over and over, so although good quality bulbs are somewhat expensive, 

you can get many years of pleasure from them.

Take care today, and over this weekend if you live in the areas where

 very cold and possibly dangerous, weather conditions are expected.

Here the southeast, and mid-Atlantic, may be bad with snow, ice and 

windstorms. Firewood at the ready, soup made, warm socks pulled on!

Yesterday flew off into the history books. . . . . .

 

. . . . . . however, like all the recent January days, it left me with some gentle, 

simple thoughts.

~ An afternoon cup of excellent tea as 4 o'clock rolled around ~

This is one of my favorite black teas, a gift from friends Marilyn and Jim in

 Oregon who stopped by to visit us last year. It as our second meeting as

 we visited with them several years ago when travel was easy and safer.

Marilyn is your 'go to' tea lady - and her lovely blog Delights of the Heart

will inspire you with tea info, poetry, photos, kind thoughts, and so much more.

This blend similar to Earl Grey, is No.55 Lord Bergamot, by Portland, Oregon Teamaker Steven Smith.

"A flavor somewhat superior to traditional Earl Grey. Fragrant Ceylon Dimbula and Uva are artfully combined with select teas from India's Assam valley, then scented with bergamot essential oil from the realm of Reggio Calabria, Italy." 

Teamaker Steven Smith

I find one silky tea bag fills my smaller tea pot with enough for two good sized

 cups of delicious tea. I like the note on the tea bag envelope, 

"Steep 5 minutes, while pondering the Earl's affair with the Duchess of Devonshire."

A Scottish shortbread - Walker's my favorite - always goes well well with tea.

~ The power of a flowering bulb ~

Once amaryllis get going they grow so quickly.

Last evening the four buds on the second bulb to bloom

 looked like this.

This morning, the buds have changed a lot.

What fun it would be to have a time-lapse camera to film all this.

~ My thoughts in regard to new books - I love new books ~

. . . . . . .will have to wait until another time.

I have a lot to share about these particular ones, so please come

 back if you would like to learn more.

They are thought-provoking: covering good-for-us food, 

objects of art, gifts for special people. . . . . .you know who you are.

Meanwhile, enjoy this day. We have bright sunshine, cool 

temperatures and a forecast of much colder days and 

nights ahead with possible snow/ice come Friday.

Firewood is piled near the door. Thoughts include even more cups and

 mugs of tea, coffee and hot chocolate - and perhaps toss in a warming

 snifter of cognac later when the flames are dancing on the hearth.

 Trying out a couple of new soups will mean a quick trip out for 

vegetables tomorrow. 

Then curling up with those new books, knitting, writing, listening to old

 recordings of Yanni, Kitaro, Enya, whilst writing - all of whom bring back

 so many memories. 

My history.

. . . . . and speaking of flying, a Mockingbird arrived to nibble crumbs on the

 front porch rail. Birds seem to know when snow is coming - they

 stay closer to the house and porch, and of course I love that.

Icy conditions. . . . . .and smart birds!

Garden birds are smart...........in many ways!

On Sunday, during the ice storm, which thankfully didn't cause any major damage

here in our area, I noticed the potting shed in the back garden provided shelter 

for many birds, especially House finches. . . . . . 

. . . . . . and this adorable Titmouse tucked under the roof overhang.

The finches, male and female, gathered together and shared covered

 spaces for over an hour when the freezing rain was falling.

Male Eastern bluebird and female House Finch

Female Eastern bluebird

Male Northern cardinal

Male Northern cardinal and House finch - boys together!

Male House finch

Thrasher considering frozen suet

Female Towhee

Female American robin in the fig tree today - sunny, dry and cold.

This post is especially for the many bird lovers out there - hoping these 

beautiful creatures visit your gardens too.