Tag Archives: Mother Nature

Buckeye: Lucky Charms

This past weekend I met two new friends — a sweet, young married couple just getting a start in life. They are both creatives, one a graphic designer and one a writer. They wanted to know about my writing and what I’ve done to grow my business. I thought about it for a moment, and although...

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Redding Trails: Lema Ranch

It’s been raining here for a few days and although I’m happy for the precipitation, I’ve been a baby and have stayed inside where it’s warm … until today. Out I went into the cold but dry weather for some much needed nature therapy. Destination: Lema Ranch. After a rather busy week of work, family...

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Morning Glory Memories

When I was a little girl, my sister and I loved to help our mom plant morning glory vines every spring. Once the weather was just right, in the early morning light, my mom would tear open the colorful paper packets and pour the hard, shriveled-up seeds into our soft, little girl hands. We’d kneel...

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Patience Found in a Ball of Yarn

Creatives. You know, those people you see at the coffee shop with acrylic paint pushed so far under their fingernails there’s a good chance their hands will never know clean again. Or the woman sitting at the table next to you snapping 93 photos of her beautifully plated food, oblivious that the temperature of her...

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Dutchman’s Pipe: Perfectly Happy in the Home Garden

Dangling from chartreuse vines, the  flowers of Dutchmans’s Pipe, or Aristolochia californica, serve as a reminder of Nature’s unique gifts. As the sun sinks lower toward the horizon, shining its rays through the delicate orchid-like flowers, burgundy veins that look very much like those under our skin, stand out against the antique-yellow petals, creating a lantern-like...

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Citrus Harvest: Mandarins, Buddah’s Hand and a Surprising Birdlike Friend

The sun has been shining and daytime temperatures have been in the low 60s. However, nightly temps have been dropping into the low 20s with last night bringing frost. Taking a risk, I’ve decided to leave the Meyer lemons on the trees in hopes they will ripen (and sweeten) a bit more. I wouldn’t dare...

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Weekend Wish: Take a Break

I’ve had a few people email or call wondering why I haven’t blogged lately. I didn’t really have a concrete answer other than the standard, “I’ve been busy.” Busy. Speaking this now, I realize I don’t really like the word. To me, it implies that I’ve been too caught up in the rat race of...

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Winner of the Chico Bag and My Orb-weaver Spider Surprise

Well, we have a winner! Cinnamon, a new reader, was able to positively ID the gorgeous orange flower: Mexican shell flower or Tigridia pavonia. Thank you Cinnamon! Your Chico Bag is in the mail. Now, I want to switch gears — from flora to fauna. One of my favorite pleasures in life is meandering through...

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ID the Flower, Get a Free Chico Bag

The first person to correctly identify this plant gets a free Chico Bag. This not knowing is driving me mad! I saw this gorgeous flower a few weeks ago while traveling with my hubby. As we walked along under a dismal sky, feeling the gloomy doomies setting in, this beauty popped out, bringing cheer to us...

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Buddha’s Hand, aka Long Duck Dong in my Garden

It may look like the Grinch flipping you the bird or like the spawn of a lemon that did the naughty with a squid, but it is a citron: Citrus medica var. sarcodactylis or Buddha’s Hand. Each lumpy finger segment is a fruit that can be used for jam, candy, or air freshener. If you...

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