Someone I KNOW turned 73 Recently!!!

My life is so FULL  (in a very good way) and I stay so BUSY ---that I cannot stay up with blogging much at all these days.  If I get your blog posts via email--I always read them even when I don't comment.

I've been trying to publish this post all week ---and finally got it done.  AUGUST 5 was my 73rd birthday.. I cannot believe I am THAT old since I don't 'feel' it  (except when the old body aches--which it does at times).. ha

George asked me what I wanted to do on my birthday --and I told him,  "Anything as long as I am with YOU!"....   SO--we headed over to one of our favorite places,  BILTMORE HOUSE AND GARDENS in Asheville,  North Carolina  for the day.  Then we came back through Knoxville and had dinner at one of my favorite restaurants,  CARRABBA's.  It was a fantastic birthday for sure!!!!  Hope you enjoy some of the pictures from that day.

Beautiful Walled Garden at Biltmore (8/5/15)

Pink Waterlily at the Italian Gardens  (8/5/15)

The two main things I wanted to see this trip were the Italian Gardens --since the waterlilies and the lily pads are beautiful this time of year,  AND the sunflowers.

Beautiful rows and rows of SUNFLOWERS at Biltmore  (8/5/15)

Two Lovers in the Sunflowers  (8/5/15)

Zinnias in the Walled Garden  (8/5/15);   LOVE LOVE LOVE that color!

Yellow Hibiscus Blooms at Biltmore (8/5/15);  Not sure I've seen yellow ones before --but love them!!!!

Love the different colored Lily Pads at Biltmore (8/5/15)

More of the Walled Garden --and I love the huge CREPE MYRTLES in the distance  (8/5/15)

The Birthday Girl with all of her 'stuff'  (camera vest with all kinds of treasures--including water on a hot day;  and my arm carrier for my iPhone)--8/5/15

Beautiful Waterlily --in some of my favorite colors!!!! (8/5/15)

Love those Lily Pads;  Can you see the reflection of the Biltmore House in the water?   (8/5/15)

A beautiful CANVAS WRAP from George on my birthday;  This is the Governor's Palace at Williamsburg from one of our trips there (2012).   George takes these awesome pictures with his camera and ZAZZLE puts them on canvas for us.  I now have 16 of them from places we have visited.... Thanks,  Honey!  (8/5/15)

Son Mark and his awesome girlfriend,  Debbie,  sent me these gorgeous Peruvian Lilies.   Aren't they just fantastic?????   AND---they keep getting prettier and prettier with each passing day!  I told Mark and Debbie that the only thing better would have been if they could have hand-delivered them.  (They live in Texas,  BUT I hope they are visiting us sometime this Fall!!)---  8/5/15

Two people in love having FUN  (8/5/15)

George put a post of me sitting in this spot on Facebook recently,  asking people if they'd like to visit me in my "Summer Cottage"..... ha ha ha .... Wish it were mine ---along with all of the staff and helpers/workers...

We had a wonderful day ---and for me,  another great birthday!!!!

Hope all of you are doing fine...  God Bless YOU.

Big HUGS to ALL,

Emoticons

A Heavenly Experience 4/22/15

The title says it all...  George and I have season tickets to Biltmore House and Gardens,  Asheville,  North Carolina.  We try to visit there during all seasons.   You know about the last time we were there on 3/23/15 --since I shared the gorgeous orchids in a recent post.  If you missed that post,  click HERE.   We also saw the Daffodils on that 3/23 visit.

BUT--we should have gone back about 4/8 or 9 to see the Tulips there.. We didn't get there ---but did go on 4/22 to see the Azaleas....  Next year,  maybe we'll go all three times and see the Daffodils,  the Tulips and the Azaleas...  What a wonderful place... We feel blessed to have season tickets --so that we can choose when we visit.

THIS blog post is about our visit on 4/22...  We walked and walked and walked all over the grounds at Biltmore ---and I truly felt as if I had died and was in HEAVEN.  This was the prettiest we have EVER seen the Azaleas.  We got there at the perfect time...

SO---today I'll share quite a few pictures  (thank goodness I am not sharing all 160+ pictures I took)---and I'll do it with few words... Just grab another cuppa,  sit back and relax and I hope you will enjoy the gorgeous colors of the AZALEAS at Biltmore, 2015.  (Click on the photos for enlargements.)

Okay---that's enough for today!!!!!  I love flowers ---and remember one other time I felt like I did on this day at Biltmore.  Several years ago,  we visited Garvin Gardens in Hot Springs,  Arkansas at the perfect time to see tons and tons of Tulips blooming... I felt like I was in heaven then also.  BUT---this latest trip to Biltmore had to have been a highlight which we will keep in our memories for years to come.

Hope you enjoyed seeing the Azaleas....

Hugs,

Emoticons

ORCHIDS 3/23/15

On March 23, 2015,   George and I took a daytrip to one of our favorite places,  Biltmore House and Gardens, in Asheville,  North Carolina.  We have season's passes to Biltmore --so we love to visit there every few months to enjoy all of the different plants/blooms  during each season.

On this trip in Early Spring,  we saw Daffodils and Hyacinths mostly.   We hope to go back sometime this month to see the Tulips ... Then there will be another visit to see the Azaleas..... LOVE this time of year!!!!!

As we usually do,  we visited the ORCHID Room in the Conservatory... Each time we visit that area,  we see new and different orchids... Today I will share with you eight of the ones we saw during this latest visit.  Hope you enjoy the beautiful ORCHIDS today.  Click on them for enlargements.

Interesting,  don't you think??????  Different!

Another 'different' one;   Pretty,  huh?

 This last one was one of my favorites during this latest visit... I have never seen this one before with yellow/gold splotches in it.... Very nice!!!!!

Do you have a favorite today?  I love Orchids and have a friend in Florida who has many orchids and roses year-round.... That is definitely an advantage of living in a warmer climate...

Have a fantastic week.   Enjoy Spring and Nature!!!!

Hugs,

Emoticons