Searching--Searching--Searching

Where in the world is BETSY????? We are searching high and low for her.  Do you have any idea where she is???

Is she out dancing????

OR  sunbathing????

OR eating?????

OR  sleeping???

How 'bout water skiing???????  (yipes)

OR----maybe she has joined the OPERA.... Ya think???

Finally,  some real help in finding her!!!  We had a visit from the one, the only Inspector Blog-a-rusky!!!!!   He spent days ---I mean minutes  (or could it have been seconds???) searching for Betsy.   He finally found the following picture hidden right in plain view:

Message to all friends:  BEHAVE and don't do anything I wouldn't do for these next 3 weeks.. I'll miss all of you!!!  Please don't forget me!!!

Hugs,

ALL pictures and illustrations (including the last one) came from the internet!

Individual Roses in our yard 2011--Part II

If you missed Part I of our roses,  click HERE.  Today I'll feature 7 more of our beautiful Hybrid Tea and Grandiflora Roses.  Above is one named SUNDANCE.  Below are more.

MELODY PARFUME

SUMMER of LOVE

AROMATHERAPY

SWEET FREEDOM

TOUCH of CLASS

WILDFIRE  (love-love-love the color of this one)

Hope you enjoyed seeing more of our individual rose blooms.  I'm sure I'll be sharing more with you in future blogs.

Have a wonderful day.
Hugs,

Waterfalls along Parson Branch Road, Smokies

First of all,  if you missed reading my first post about this road and this area,  please click HERE and read that post before reading this one.   I don't think I emphasized enough how truly BAD that road was in certain spots...  I'm sure there are times when it is not so bad --but this may have been the 2nd worst back road that George and I have driven on (the first being Potato Patch Mountain in GA--in the snow and ice).  There were huge ruts,  mud holes --which you could almost disappear in,  etc....  As pretty as it was back in that area (and it was),  there was at least one time that I wasn't sure we would make it!  BUT--we did.....  AND---the beauty we saw made it all worthwhile.

Today,  I'll share that beauty with you.  We saw three new waterfalls along Parson Branch Road.  The picture above shows the first of these waterfalls. Note that the road crossed right OVER it.   We had several 'water crossings' like this one...

We drove over the creek/waterfall,  then stopped and walked back to get some pictures... I didn't try to walk back across the water--but George did (of course).  He managed to get his feet wet --but that didn't stop him!!!!!  Afterall,  this was a new waterfall for us... ha....

George took the picture above.  Isn't it GREAT????  He said it was worth getting  wet!!!!! ha... This waterfall is PANTHER CREEK FALLS.  We have never driven so close and OVER a waterfall before, like this one!!!!!

This is the one I showed you in the last Parson Branch post.  This is TRIPLE FALLS on Parson Branch.  It's the prettiest of the three waterfalls in this area.

The above picture shows another water crossing. Again,  we crossed and then parked to get some pictures.  This time,  George didn't have to get his feet wet!!!

He was able to get down to the bank to get a great picture... Isn't this a pretty little waterfall?  Its name is LOWER FALLS on Parson Branch.  You can see the road near the top of the picture.  This area was truly GORGEOUS-----which made the bumpy road all worthwhile!

Here is a picture of George down on the creek bank.....  And NO--he didn't go wading  (although I'll bet it was tempting)!!!!! ha ha

Finally,  I'll close with a beautiful picture I took of Parson Branch --as it headed on down the mountain.  This is just the type of place which would be wonderful on a hot day (like we have been having).   Take a picnic lunch and find a big rock... AND--let your tootsies dangle in the water--without your shoes on (of course)... ha

Have a wonderful day!!!!  And don't be afraid to go to places like this...  I promise you that I'd go back again in a heartbeat...  It is truly a marvelous area of the Smokies.

Hugs,

Anthony Chapel at Garvin Woodland Gardens, Arkansas

I posted a blog on this subject in 2009---so some of you might remember it.  However,  I have many different bloggers now than I did in 2009.  SO--I'm going to show it to you again with pictures taken from our last trip to Arkansas the end of March, 2011.

On our way to Mt. Nebo,  we took a side trip and stopped at Garvin Woodland Gardens.  If you missed seeing that blog and all of the beautiful flowers there,  click HERE.  The Anthony Chapel is next door to the gardens.  This gorgeous little chapel was designed by Fayettesville architects Maurice Jennings and David McKee.  The 5.8 million dollar chapel complex was funded entirely through private donations.  Begun in September of 2004,  the chapel was dedicated on Sept. 30,  2006.  It was named after benefactors,  John Ed and Isabel Anthony.  The chapel sits on a hillside overlooking Lake Hamilton.  As part of the complex,  there also are Bride's quarters,  Groom's quarters,  and a beautiful carillon.

An elegant blend of native wood,  glass and stone,  the 160 seat chapel is a serene sanctuary where visitors to the gardens can pause to meditate and have their spirits renewed.  I sat there and wondered how many weddings have taken place at this chapel.... I also thought how wonderful it would be to have been married there.  This is one of the prettiest chapels I have ever seen.  Pictured above is a photo of the chapel as we approached the door.

This was taken from inside the chapel looking toward the altar.  The dimensions:  138' long and 57' high. There are 9860 square feet of glass walls, and they used 4800 square feet of stone walls.

As  I sat and meditated inside the chapel,  I took my camera and pointed it straight up at the ceiling.... Amazing, huh?  There are 1230 square feet of glass skylights.

Here is a picture of the altar area. There were 126 tons of flagstone used in the floors and sidewalks.

Here is one of my favorite pictures of the chapel, taken from the altar --looking toward the door where we entered, at the back of the chapel.  There are 11,000 square feet of roof area,  and 65,500 square feet of structural lumber.

This is the Anthony Family Carillon.  It is the newest addition to the Gardens.  Composed of sixteen,  54 feet tall steel columns clad in copper,  the lofty bell tower welcomes visitors to the chapel.  The Carillon is played for weddings, memorials and other special events.

Finally,  here is a picture of the chapel from a distance.  It is very secluded and can barely be seen --even in winter when the leaves are not on the trees yet.

If you want more information about the Anthony Chapel,  you can google:  "Anthony Chapel,  Hot Springs, Arkansas".

+++++++++++++++++++++
Many of you know by now that my sweet little mother-in-law died yesterday morning, June 6.  Mom Katherine (Kay) Adams was 91 ---and she and Dad (who is almost 99) recently celebrated their 71st wedding anniversary.

Mom died peacefully at home ---and now she is displaying her gorgeous SMILE in heaven above.  George did a tribute yesterday on his blog.  Click HERE  to read his post if you didn't see it yesterday.  The funeral will be Wednesday in Hendersonville, TN.

I apologize to all blog friends for not visiting your blogs this week.  I luckily had/have all of my blogs ready to publish for the remainder of this week.  I'll catch back up with you and your posts as soon as possible, although we are also getting ready for a HUGE 3 week trip. Please don't give up on us!

Have a wonderful day,  and give those whom you love, a HUGE HUG today!
Hugs,

Lilies in our Yard--Part I

Many of our Lilies have started blooming since the weather has been so hot the past couple of weeks.  Usually they don't bloom here until the end of June--but this year is different.  Some of our Day Lilies are also starting to bloom --so I'll share more in a later post.

Today I will share some of the many varieties of LILIES we have in our yard.  Above is a favorite named LOLLYPOP.  Below are more.

Here's a bunch of LOLLIPOP LILIES.

JUANITA LILY

A group of JUANITA Lilies blooming in the Lamppost flowerbed;

REGALE LILY

TREFFER LILY

TINOS LILY

MONTENEGRO LILY

As you know,  we have lots of deer around.  Now that it's gotten so hot and dry here,  the deer come into the yards looking for their lunch.   We spray something entitled Liquid Fence in order to keep the deer away from our yard and flowers.  It works about 98% of the time ---although during times like this,  we have to spray more often.  The Liquid Fence doesn't harm the plants nor the deer --but they just don't like the taste.  SO--they stay away MOST of the time.

However,  this past week,  one lone deer enjoyed some of our flowers --including the gorgeous Montenegro Lilies (like the one pictured above).   I'm glad we at least got one picture before they were eaten!!!   Since that latest visit,  George has been spraying about every other night... So far--so good!!!

Hope you enjoyed seeing some of our Lilies.  Hope you also had a nice weekend.  We are still HOT HOT HOT.. BUT--we got a tiny bit of rain yesterday ---so thank God for what we got....We are so dry now--so that rain helped!

Hugs,

Individual Roses in our yard 2011--Part I

As most of you know by now,  we have 57 different Hybrid Tea and Grandiflora Rose Bush varieties in our yard.  I already showed some pictures of the 'overall' look of the roses in our yard.. Click HERE if you didn't see that post.

Today I'll start showing some of the individual blooms  which we have had so far this year.. Above is a beauty called PERFECT MOMENT.  Below are more.

SWEETNESS

VETERAN'S HONOR (Like Double Delight which I showed in the other post,  Veteran's Honor is another all-time favorite of mine.)

WELCOME HOME

CRESCENDO (a new rose for us this year)

PINK PROMISE

A CAPELLA

Hope you enjoyed seeing some of our individual rose blossoms today... Wish you could be here to SMELL them.

Have a wonderful weekend---and don't forget,  whatever you do,  to "Stop and Smell the Roses"!!!!  I will see you on Monday!

Hugs,

***IMPORTANT QUESTION:  George and I are doing some traveling this summer. We'll actually be in about 10 different states (including a tiny bit of Nevada near Las Vegas)...  IF you live anywhere near I-40 in Tennessee, Arkansas,  Oklahoma, Texas,  New Mexico,  and Arizona;  OR if you live anywhere near I-70 in Utah, Colorado, Kansas,   Missouri, --or I-24 in Kentucky----we'd love to meet you somewhere IF it works out... We will be on a schedule --so this would be a 'quick' hello --as we have to continue on our way!!!!!   Just asking!  Don't feel pressured.... But--it would be great to meet some of you --if convenient!!!  Email me if interested --and I can give you more info... Thanks!!!