The Thrill of Fresh Flowers

Today. the photos in this post show floral treasures found at my niece, Marisa's, darling cottage.

Apparently, she has double green thumbs because her flowers are gorgeous.

Flowers are one of the best parts of being alive.

Because they are so precious, many posts from this blog, throughout the years,  have been about flowers.

Sometimes I wonder whether this should have been a flower blog from the get-go.

At this point, after 17 years of doing this blog, it doesn't really matter.

 I just truly enjoy sharing my love of flowers and of life, itself, with anyone who wants to read my posts.

WHAT IS YOUR ABSOLUTE FAVORITE SUMMER FLOWER?

Have a Sunflower Sunday....

Sunflowers go back a long way in history.

According to information written on them, Native Americans cultivated them as far back as 3000 BC!

The perky, "happy" flowers have been used for food, oil, and ornamentation.

A very precious niece, who has two green thumbs, gave a beautiful sunflower she purchased to me during a lovely patio dinner at her cottage this weekend.

It's now on the little table in my apartment, lighting up the area as well as my heart.

It is wished that each of you reading this post has a happy, sunflower kind of Sunday!  

Tall, Majestic Hollyhocks

Hollyhocks are perennial plants that sometimes grow so tall, one has to look upward to see where they end.

They come in many colors but the deep cranberry is extra special.

They love bright sun and are very easy to grow.

They are known in the Japanese culture.

Did you know they date all the way back to the Crusades?

According to information found on the Internet, hollyhocks have been used to make a salve that was "good for the Crusaders' horses which were injured on their hind legs, or 'hocks.' "

These lovely plants would look great in any English garden or, for that matter, any countryside garden. 

The ones shown in this post are in my daughter's garden and is one of dozens of flowers she grows.

The flowers are also in the Mallow family, according to information written on them.  

Other Mallow family flowers are cotton, hibiscus, okra, and marsh mallow.

Hollyhocks look a little wild but are quite unique and beautiful.

It's a joy to sit near them and watch hummingbirds take sugary sips  from a feeder.

Hip, hip hurray for hollyhocks!

HAVE YOU EVER GROWN HOLLYHOCKS?

Candle Warming Lamp

 

Living in a small rented apartment, it is highly suggested to refrain from burning candles.

Doing so can cause the white ceilings to become black!

Because of absolutely loving the scent of candles,  thoughts of buying a candle warming lamp started to fill my mind.

It was a great joy to find a variety of those kind of lamps lining a couple of shelves at Marshall's. 

One with a pretty scalloped glass top turned out to be my fave. 

It can be set at two hour use or more and then it automatically shuts off.

 It sits on a light colored wood base. 

So far, it's a little disappointing because I don't smell much fragrance unless the nose is very close to the melting candle wax.

Maybe this will change as the top of the candle keeps melting?

Will scent ever fill a room?

Does anyone know the answer?

The little lamp was not cheap for my budget so I'm not so sure it was a good decision to buy it but hope springs eternal.

DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE WITH CANDLE WARMING LAMPS? IF YES, WOULD YOU PLEASE SHARE?

July 4th Photographic Memories

 

July 4th, 2026, is now a memory.

A wonderful parade in cooler temps brought hundreds of onlookers to the streets of a New England city in Western Massachusetts.

Fife and drum corps are among favorites in any parade.

There's something about their music and booming drums that sets the heart beating fast and furious.

The parade brought smiles to many faces and remains one of the holiday's best memories.

Today Writing Straight from the Heart is sharing some photos from the Fourth of July parade.  

Enjoy!