I just don’t have much red in my home, but here’s a little from my dining room.

I love the red apples and placemats surrounded by gold and crystal.  The mirrored tray and another mirror in the room add sparkle.

Proverbs 25:11 “A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.

Oh my sweet bloggy friends… you all gave such thoughtful answers to my mystery drawing, and I couldn’t keep you in suspense any longer.  Vee from A Haven for Vee commented that she would love to be in EPCOT.  Miss Peach of Miss Peach Meowz said she thinks it is the wilds of Canada, and Lorrie of Fabric, Paper, Thread said that it looked like it could be from her neck of the woods (also Canada.)  Then Experiment_627 (DIS) hit the nail precisely on the head (I wouldn’t expect less from a fellow Disney lover), “The Canada pavillion at Epcot! Mmmm, Le Cellier filet…. “ 

Yes, it is Walt Disney World’s Canada pavilion in EPCOT.  And now I will tease and tantalize you with some photos from our trip last year. 

These are the gardens which greet you as you are coming into the Canada pavilion, and they are patterned after the beautiful Butchart Gardens in Victoria, BC.

The centerpiece of EPCOT’s Canada pavilion is a replica of the Château Laurier hotel in Ottowa.   This is an aesthetically majestic piece of architecture, and it houses the real treasure of this part of EPCOT, the wonderful Le Cellier restaurant. 

This restaurant is nestled in the bottom of the beautiful chateau and is fashioned to look like a wine cellar… hence the name Le Cellier. 

This is the famous pretzel bread that so tantalizes restaurant-goers at Walt Disney World that they cannot help themselves and must go to Le Cellier.  Seriously, it is some of the best bread you have ever put in your mouth.  But with or without the pretzel bread, I suspect Le Cellier would still be the most popular restaurant at EPCOT.

Then there are the wonderfully flavorful appetizers like this dish of Prince Edward Island mussels below.

But the true piece de resistance for me…

… is the Mushroom Filet Mignon.  It is just one of several steak dishes for which the restaurant has become so popular.   But, lest you think that is all they have to offer…

… now that is SOME MORE fabulous s’more!  And then there’s…

… the vanilla and maple creme brulee sampler.  Scrumptiously delicious (is that redundant?  Not where this dessert is concerned!)

As you can see, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  Thanks so much for all who joined in the mystery fun.  I hope to have another picture for your mystery enjoyment very soon!

No my computer is not back to life.  But yesterday was such a grand reminder that this life is not all there is, that it quite put the rest of life right back into perspective.  Eternity is such a very long time, and this life is so very short.  There is so much for which to be thankful that computer woes just seem so insignificant.  God is amazing, and as I look around to see signs of new life budding from trees, from shrubs, and from small green stems it is apparent that He is once again “making all things new.”  When I look at a rose like the one here, I ask myself, “Could man have fashioned that?  Could that be an accident of nature?”  The color combinations are so pleasing to the eye, the scent so pleasing to the nose, the softness of its petals so pleasing to the touch… Could I have made that? Could it be an accident?  The only answer I can come up with is “no.”

But I think it is this very thing, His imaginative design and creative nature, that He has put deeply into each one of us… the desire to fashion beautiful things, to create, to design.  And in each of us that creativity manifests itself in different ways… for one it is with words, for someone else it is painting, for still another it is decorating, or the ability to speak eloquently about a beloved subject, or the skill to capture a beautiful image with photography, or the ability to design a computer program, or the aptitude to understand finances, or the passion to garden… but we all have that divine spark of creativity.  It just blows me away sometimes as I read blog after blog and each person’s giftedness comes shining through.  And if this world is as marvelously diverse and excitingly creative as it is, just imagine what the next will be like!  Resurrection…

Life is really full of seasons… highs and lows, ups and downs, and everything in between.  But God is God throughout them all.  He is, He was, and He will be.  Never changing, yet ever new.  Count on Him.  For everything.  All the time.  No matter how out of control life seems to be, He is in control.  He is a refuge, a tower of strength, a present help in time of trouble. 

It’s as if I have lain down in a green pasture somewhere and let the warmth of the sun wash over me.  Peace and joy… unspeakable… yet too wonderful not to speak about!  May you, too, experience the joy of resurrection as you ponder what it truly means.

Well, spring is almost upon us… so I thought it was time to give Charm & Grace a fresh new floral bouquet.  I hope you like it.  I am busily working on the upcoming articles for the spring issue of Charm & Grace, so I thought I’d give you a bit of a teaser.

We will have features on flowers (of course) and some lovely photos of England.  We will see what April has to do with springtime.   You’re in store for a lovely “Gardens of the Web” feature… just in time for that first burst of color.  Discover why we’re having a spring fling… and much more.  I hope to have the articles out by next week, so stay tuned.  I promise you’ll be the first to know!

The new life that is all around is such a vivid reminder of what God does in us.  Rebirth, renewal, cleansing… all things that spring, with its freshness, beckons us to remember.  What a glorious time of year spring is (but, then again, aren’t they all!)

There are warm colors on the horizon, and there’s a nip in the air.  That must mean it’s officially autumn at Charm & Grace.  The autumn articles are published and ready for your leisurely perusal.  Take a virtual drive through some beautiful fall landscapes.  And don’t miss the feature on Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania.  Also, many of you may remember a wonderful long-eared rabbit gentelman from your childhood.  Uncle Wiggily pays us a visit for our literary feature this season.  See why the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most visited national park.  There are many beautiful photos, poetry, plus recipes and much, much more to enjoy! 

Best autumn blessings to you from Charm & Grace!

We have just returned from eight days in Michigan…eight perfectly beautiful days of tempteratures in the upper 70s and even down in the 50s some nights.  I have never been to that part of the country, and I must say it is very beautiful.  Between weeping willows and blue spruces, I think I could get quite used to it.  I wanted to get to Mackinac Island, but we didn’t quite make it that far.  I will have to save that special spot for my next trip that way.  We visited Spring Arbor, Ann Arbor and Detroit. 

The males in the group were very excited to see “The Big House.” (photo left) For those of you who don’t know, that is the University of Michigan’s football stadium.  And it is indeed a big house!

I have come home to find that it has rained significantly since we left.  The flowers that looked parched and dried out when we left are actually looking good today.  I was concerned that I would not be able to water them for that long, but I needn’t have worried.  They are all perking up quite nicely.  

I didn’t have a lot of time for blogging this week, but I took a ton of pictures.  I have gotten a new digital camera since I last posted, and I have been having so much fun with it.  Some of the pictures are quite beautiful, but some are really terrible.  I still have a lot to learn about the features.  There are so many beautiful things to take pictures of, and I am looking forward to sharing some of mine with you.   The campus we visited had the loveliest pots of flowers all over the grounds… (photo right) geraniums, morning glories, daisies, etc.  It was a pleasure just to walk along the sidewalks, surrounded by the beautiful scenery and the cool breezes.  What a lovely week!

As of yesterday summer is officially here, and I must say it is here with a vengeance. Does it just seem hotter or is it really so? I think it must be the lack of water from the heavens that makes it seem so. I am doing my best to keep the green flowering things moist enough to survive in the midst of quite an unfamiliar drought. It is amazing how creative one can get with conserving water, and as my family and I have observed, we should have been doing it all along. It only makes sense to save the water that runs out while you are trying to heat the water before showering. It also makes sense to catch the condensation from the air conditioner and use it. We have become quite resourseful since being threatened with sanctions. Along with quite a few new plantings in our yard, we are also trying to keep tomoatoes, peppers, and squash plants alive and productive. We are fervently praying for rain.

And now, with the official start of summer, comes the finalization of the summer articles for Charm & Grace. There are so many fun summer subjects with which to deal, I am quite enjoying myself in the process. However, I am still learning so much about the ins and outs of web design and coding, that it really cuts into my creative time. Hope to have the new articles up and running sometime tomorrow. So, I must get to the task at hand. May you find something joyful among the summer articles which will enrich your day! TTFN… (that’s “Tigger-speak” meaning Ta Ta For Now!)

I suppose a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but some roses have very appropriate names. For instance, the Tropicana rose (left) is a wonderfully citrus-scented beauty with a bloom the color of the meat of a ripe grapefruit. Really, a picture can’t do it justice. This is one rose that really should be viewed in person. The deep coral-orange of the bloom is breathtaking. I have enjoyed quite a few blossoms these past couple of weeks from the last rose bush in my rose garden to bloom. I must say, it was well worth the wait.

However, the weather has taken a definite southward turn (or northward if you are measuring it by degrees.) This week we will see temperatures in the upper 90s and 100s. And while that is fairly typical for our area, it is not typical to be experiencing a stage III drought alert. We need rain and need it badly. We are being threatened with sanctions for overusing our water resources. This means no extra watering of outside plants, and so I must admit that my roses and other flora will definitely be suffering (rather scorching!) I have planted several things this spring which may not make it if we don’t see some rain and soon. Well, enough about our depressed water situation. There are still so many things that summer brings… swimming in cool blue water, late afternoon siestas, a nice walk through a local botanical garden (preferably in the shade), and family time for things (like picnics and day trips) that we don’t always have at other times in the year.

I am wishing, for your family and mine, time to be together often and to find many ways to celebrate summer!

There have been some spectacularly cool late spring days these past few weeks. Being outdoors has been so refreshing. There are beauties blooming all over my yard. The hybrid tea roses are outdoing themselves. At last count there were eleven blooms on my bush called Gypsy, there are several Tropicana buds, along with a few Tiffany and First Prize buds. Next week they should really put on a show. The rose bushes are only one year old, so I am very impressed with their performance. Along with the roses, I have had yellow and orange daylilies, pink and white hybrid lilies, and lovely hydrangeas. I must admit, the drought is really taking its toll on my oak leaf hydrangeas which are too far away from my watering source to water regularly. I picked the first gardenia blossom today and the scent is just fabulous. I have it sitting on my computer as I type, so that I can enjoy the aroma.

These past few weeks have been a lot of fun with the ending of school and beginning of summer. We have been making plans for all the summer fun we’re going to have. Although I am a little worried that as it hasn’t rained in days and days, that this summer may be full of cloudy, rainy days. Let’s hope not; the kids are looking so forward to having the freedom to golf and swim. And speaking of golf, I got an e-mail from my mother today. She is in the United Kingdom for a few weeks. Here’s what she had to say, “….we are going to St. Andrews today. Rode the beautiful countryside yesterday …. Lots of sheep, castles. Had lunch on the bonnie, bonnie banks of Loch Lomond. Saw Prince Andrew. Walked nearly 6 miles… We are well.” Well, indeed. Now, if that doesn’t sound amazing, I don’t know what does! I CANNOT wait to hear about the trip and see wonderful pictures of the Old Course! Maybe she’ll even let me share some with you.

Til then, dreaming of bagpipes…