Charleston Part Five, Doorways and Courtyard Gardens

Hi folks!  I'm still here, just can't seem to find much time to post (or visit) at the moment.  Life has been quite busy with our family, our home, and our Duncan.  ;)  When I first started my blog almost four and a half years ago, things just weren't as busy around here as they are now.  But -- I still look at all your blog posts almost daily, and I will still be visiting, it just might take me a little longer to get there.

Wow, it's really hot here now!!  It's not even the middle of May, and already temps. are in the 80's and very muggy.  I would love to have had a few more weeks in the 70-degree range, but we have to take what we can get.  It was about this time last year that my husband and I took a short trip to Charleston, South Carolina -- what a wonderful and unique city!!  Charleston is famous for its courtyard gardens, and we saw lots of pretty ones.  Those serene and shady gardens are beckoning me right now, so come along with me for a tour.

Finally -- The Guest Bedroom

Happy Friday everyone!  I want to thank you all for the nice comments you've left for me over the last week or so.  I'm very appreciative, and I haven't forgotten about you.  I posted on Monday and haven't been back on the computer since then -- until today.  I'll be paying my regular visits to everyone in the next day or so.

Back in January of this year, I gave a very brief, sneak peek of what I was doing to our son's old bedroom to give it a new look and turn it into a guest bedroom.  I really thought I would finish it sooner and would be showing it to you during the winter months.  That didn't happen, so here it is finally, almost completely finished.  This is a long, picture-heavy post, folks --just wanted to give you fair warning.  :)

DIY Basement Room Renovation

I came across some old pictures of our basement this weekend.  I'd forgotten we took these pictures, so I thought I would share a little renovation we did here about nine or ten years ago.  We did this ourselves -- we're not carpenters, so it's not the same as a professional job.  But we think it turned out pretty well; our family and friends definitely seemed impressed.  :)  There's a big difference in the "before" and "after."  I don't have a lot of pictures of this room; I need to take some more first chance I get.

The Wardian Case

A few weeks ago, I found something at our new Hobby Lobby that I've been searching for the last five years or so.  It wasn't an urgent search because it wasn't one of life's necessities, so I could afford to be patient.  But I was happy to find one and really happy with the price.

Mother Nature Calling

Hello and how was your weekend?  Ours was really nice; we had beautiful spring weather.  I felt a little like we were in our own episode of "Wild Kingdom" though.  Do you think these little guys are cute?

Southport Cottages

I can hardly believe it's Sunday night again -- another weekend has flown by.  I hope yours was a good one!  A few weeks ago I shared a cute cottage in Southport, N.C., for St. Patrick's Day.  Here are some more Southport cottages for you.

My Favorite Gardening Books

Happy Friday everyone!!  I've intended to post about gardening books for a few years now, but that plan ended up on the back burner while I wrote about other things.  Now that spring is here again, I'd like to share some of my favorite gardening books with you.