Whiling Away in Paradise

And that is exactly what I have been doing! Whiling Away in my own little tropical paradise : )

Welcome to several new followers! I apologize for my absence. The truth is that I have been sick...AGAIN lol. But such is the life of someone with Lupus :) Be Strong and Carry On!

Thanks so much to my dear blog buddies who have sent emails, cards, and have connected with me on Facebook :) Ya'll mean the world to me!!!

You really can't keep a good girl down, so no matter my ills and pains... I still manage to putter around, have fun, play, joke, and laugh, and mess around with Facebook. ( well, except when I had pneumonia, pleurisy, and costochondritis all at the same time! eeek!) I just didn't feel like blogging or anything :(
BUT when I felt mediocre I was puttering around and workin' on Paradise, and I was of course taking pictures. ( well, except when I had pneu...oh, see above lol)

I knew I wanted to share this when I felt better, and that day is here!

I have had a LOT of fun playing with the shell arrangement! This big Murex is the one I got last year for my birthday from Momma P. This is a mixture of bought and found shells, with dried orchid blooms.

There was one person in particular I thought of, and think of when I play with/look at this.

So pretty with all the purples and whites.

The Scotch Bonnet was a Gulf find. I have found a few now, to date...but my hubby has found more than I have. He's a Scotch Bonnet Magnet!

Love that little white sharks eye with the purple spiraled center! See it? It's to the right of the orchid.

Yeah, those are hubby's worm shells! :P He's a magnet for those, too! I'm sure glad he's on My Team :)

It's a fair trade :) He gets to be on my team when it's Fend for Yourself night. hehehe

I 'borrowed' the urchins from my Christmas decorations.

Love this angle, too! That is an awesome wormey!

I've done quite a bit of rearranging my shells around the house. Project Paradise is a work in progress, but we are certainly getting there!

I'm looking forward to sharing it with you!

AND

I have been playing with another craft, and can't wait to share that, too!

Oh, it's SO good to be back! I've missed ya's so much!

Paradise Cove

Welcome to Paradise Cove, my little inland hide away :)

We got rid of the azaleas and replaced them with tropical plants. We have Red Sister Tai Marginella's, Crotons, and Umbrella plants. That tomato plant is still going nuts around the mermaid by the front door!

My asparagus ferns made it through the winter! Sorry for the blur..don't know what's up with this pic.

I cut down this side of it...it was spilling all over the walkway, and this thing has thorns!

That rusty thing is part of an old torpedo from the Navy in Washington DC. I had a friend whose dad worked there. I've been packing this thing around for nearly 30 years! I love it!

Hubby built this lighthouse many years ago out of buckets, chicken wire, and concrete mix. It could use a new paint job.

This mixture of variegated and colorful plants has made such a nice change!

We had to buy a new Palm to replace the one by the pond. Notice how much smaller it is?

I have my 'children playing & shelling' statues around the palm and pond.

Love his little dive mask and bucket of shells at his feet! Sweet!

Here they are together playing on an innertube...you can barely see it for all my shells lol.
These were a Mother's Day gift years ago.

The more weathered this gets the more I like it :)

If I don't like you, I'll tie this anchor to your ankle and toss you in the sea! LOL just kidding...
but if I like you I'll toss you a life preserver! hahahaha Not that it would help hehehehe it's wood.

You've seen this area from a close up view. Remember the gargoyle around Halloween?

I really like pretty things, and especially tropical blooming plants. This pink Mandevilla is going to be gorgeous climbing up the rope ladder I'm hanging here! This driftwood log came from Daytona after Sandy went by last year. I found a bunch of coconuts, too. They're in the house :)

One more thing we added to the front yard!

I have been trying to grow a palm tree in this spot for 10 years :(
This year I went with a beautiful Peach Hibiscus Twisted Topiary :D

This is a better picture of it.

It is LOADED with buds!!!!!!!

The grass will be green soon :) I can't wait!

And that is just the front yard. We worked on three sides of the house, and I did a little out back....and did some new stuff out in the screenroom (All of that in 2 days!) And I did do SOME playing will shells while I was sick....I just didn't make jewelry with them!

So, I still have pics of our new tomato garden, and Fern Gully. When everything is all filled in and growing well in a couple of months we will do the tour again....if it's as lovely as I am dreaming of, then I will have to share it :D

So stay tuned! I have a few more things to plant, and I'll finish knocking my photos down to size and be back as soon as I can!

Today I'm going to continue my search for replacement cushions for my wicker set. I have looked nearly everywhere...I just may be making them :( but I don't want to. I have a bone to pick with Martha Stewart for not continuing her line of cushions that go with her line of wicker furniture....unless I am mistaken and you know where I can get them????!!!!

It's so good to be back :) I missed ya'll!!!