beet greens

"The people walking in darkness

have seen a great light;

on those living in the land of the shadow of death

a light has dawned."

Isaiah 9:2

Grace and Peace,
Jane

terrarium

My Grandmother would make terrariums out of berries and things she found on her hikes. Recently a friend gave me a gift and her daughter put some moss and twigs with leaves in the packaging so I put them in a jar and covered it with saran wrap like I remembered seeing at my Grandma's house. The other day, I noticed the twig had a tiny bud on it. What a wonderful gift to see in this cold winter season.

"A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from it's roots a Branch will bear fruit." Isaiah 11:1

Grace and Peace,

Jane

watermelon radishes

These are watermelon radishes from Kentucky. They taste like radishes but they are sweeter and milder. Very good and pretty in a salad.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

Gloria in excelsis Deo

wreath

I took this picture through the window of my front door. Today is the snow day that should have been. brrrrrrr! A blustery day indeed.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

white peacock kale

After working on a louisville farm for a season, Jamie is home for the holidays. She brought produce with her - beets, kale, squash, cabbage, watermelon radishes, turnips, and salad greens which included this white peacock kale..

Grace and Peace,

Jane

cranesbill geranium

Happy Thanksgiving

Grace and Peace,

Jane

brown leaves

This week I've been able to get some of the end of season stuff done in the garden. Putting away pots and plants always makes me think of the long winter ahead and the hope I'll feel when I get to pull them out in the spring. I am not ready though for these times of cold and darkness.

This is a line from a song going thru my head a lot these days....

"I am the tree,
bending beneath the weight
of His wind and mercy.
O how He loves us..."

(from the song -O how He loves us
by David Crowder Band)

Grace and Peace,

Jane

"ivy berries" on my house

"Lord, the feelings are not the same,
I guess I'm older, I guess I've changed.
And how I wish it had been explained,
that as you're growing you must remember,
that nothing lasts,
except the grace of God,
by which I stand, in Jesus.
I know that I would surely fall away,
except for grace,
by which I'm saved."
-Keith Green

Grace and Peace,

Jane

pumpkin

"I believe in the communion of saints."

-the apostles creed.

Happy All Saints Day!

Grace and Peace,

Jane

bittersweet

"weeping may remain for a night,

but rejoicing comes in the morning."

Psalm 30:5b

Grace and Peace,

Jane

zinnia

We have had a few hard frosts and our zinnias have been shriveling up. I'm having fun with textures in photoshop...which can make even a deadish zinnia look interesting.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

autumn joy sedum

"Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead - since he was about a hundred years old - and Sarah's womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he has promised." Romans 4:19-21

I fell in love with these verses yesterday. I never thought about Abraham and Sarah's old wrinkled barren bodies in the face of God's promise as an illustration of salvation and redemption. What we are and what God does. Thanks be to God. May I not waver.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

brooks

"For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land - a land with brooks and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills." Deuteronomy 8:7-9

Happy Birthday Brooks!

Grace and Peace,

Mom

japonese anemone

Yesterday I had some fun taking pictures with Henry and Linda and a "through the viewfinder" contraption that Henry made (that we attached to my camera). We spent a lot of time laughing about things being upside down and opposite as we wandered around my backyard snapping pictures. Some of the images turned out pretty cool and I can't wait to try it again!

Grace and Peace,

Jane

ps. what do you think Linda?

soccer season

These are the kind of pictures I have been taking these days. I'm enjoying the challenge of action, but I prefer plants that don't move much when I am photographing them. (Actually... this ball was sitting still which is why it's not blurry...)

Go Eagles!

Grace and Peace,

Jane

ps. song I am enjoying today: "Jesus is on the main line, tell Him what you want." sung by Mavis Staples on her cd - "We'll never turn back".

eggplant

Mike planted eggplant in a pot that he put in the sunshine on our driveway. The leaves were beautiful and fuzzy, and soon there were little purple flowers. A couple days ago, I noticed fruit...little eggplants starting. Will we have eggplant to eat this year? I have no idea.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

ps. I don't like to eat eggplant...but it's pretty.

tomatoes

We are nearing the end of our tomato growing time. I even froze some tomato sauce to use in soups and on pasta. I am inching toward canning...maybe next year.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

leaf

Monday Rain

Grace and Peace,

Jane

sunflower

This sunflower is in a vase by my window and I think this picture is kinda different, and bright, and sunny, and I'm still getting used to my new awesome lens.

Another quote for you: " I'm 98 percent sure that them there's roosters." spoken by an old seasoned kentucky farmer when he saw Jamie's "chickens". (Jamie was wondering why they weren't laying eggs.)

Grace and Peace,
Jane

another japanese anemone

One of my favorite quotes of the weekend:

"The world drinks to forget, but we drink to remember." ...spoken by Walter before serving communion.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

tomato

Our tomato situation.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

japonese anemone

"put your hope in the Lord,

for with the Lord is unfailing love

and with him is full redemption."

Psalm 130:7

buzzzz

This bee landed just as I was taking the picture. I was afraid of butterflies when I was little....fyi.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

blackeyed susan

I did get my new lens....lots to learn...happy. I also am realizing I need my girlfriends. They are my prozac.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

hawk weed

Last week Country Christie and I spent the morning checking out wildflowers. We visited and strolled while I took pictures and then we looked up the names to make sure we had them all correctly identified. This was a very tiny flower on the path.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

another zinnia

This is another garden plot zinnia. I planted a couple rows of them and they don't look like I thought they would from the package of seeds. I think they look like a zinnia/marigold combo. They are nice and bright and a happy surprise. Speaking of happy surprises.... I am thinking about buying a new lens for my camera....

Grace and Peace,

Jane

rudbeckia (blackeyed susan)

"Let everything that lives sing praises to the Lord!"

Psalm 150:6

Grace and Peace,

Jane

checkerbloom

"the Lord takes delight in His people."

Psalm 149:4

Grace and Peace,

Jane

daisies daisies

Our daisies were amazing this year. They were at their peak a week or two ago. I don't know if they like it cooler but they were tall and abundant and are still looking good. Happy Monday.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

more zinnias

"Let them praise the name of the Lord,

for He commanded and they were created."

Psalm 148:5

sunflower in louisville

We just got back from a glorious weekend in Louisville visiting Jamie. This sunflower was one of a huge bunch of sunflowers along side the road. We pulled over and I took some pictures. The evening light was beautiful and we spent some time enjoying the ambiance. Love Love.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

zinnia

I took this picture of a zinnia bud at the garden plot the other day. We are going to have so many zinnias this year because when I thinned them out at the plot, we planted the starts in all the extra pots at home. I just couldn't throw them out. There's such promise in this bud.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

black snakeroot, black cohash

I love it when the black snakeroot blooms along the side of our garage. It looks like they are just floating above the garden.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

broccoli

"Meanwhile, friends, wait patiently for the Master's Arrival. You see farmers do this all the time, waiting for their valuable crops to mature, patiently letting the rain do its slow but sure work. Be patient like that. Stay steady and strong. The Master could arrive at any time."

James 5:7-8 the Message.

wild leek

I recommend these disco songs if you need inspiration on your monday morning walk:

La Freak
Ring my bell
We are Family

Warning: people may stare.

Grace and Peace,
Jane

russian sage along our driveway

It has been the summer of the dust bowl! We have construction going on across the street. It has been amazing to watch a huge building disappear and are excited about the new elementary school that will fill the space. We are seeing the sun earlier in the morning these days, feeling the earth move as big machines break up concrete, and enjoying the neighbors as they make their evening pilgrimage around the block assessing the progress.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

hydrangea

Hydrangea Friday.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

beach grass

"O God of Light, Thy Word, a lamp unfailing,

shines through the darkness of our earthly way,

o'er fear and doubt,

o'er black despair prevailing,

guiding our steps to Thine eternal day."

Amen.

-Sarah E. Taylor

Grace and Peace,
Jane

daisy

Even with the bad weather, I was able to take some pictures on vacation last week. Actually the light was pretty good with the overcast skies. They are such a happy flower.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

stones

On our vacation last week it was cold and rainy up north. Seriously, it was 53 degrees and rainy one day! One of the highlights was visiting a remote beach where we saw a bald eagle, skipped stones, snapped some pictures, and found a couple petosky stones.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

hydrangea

It's hydrangea time in my backyard. This one is in my "alley" garden and I think it is called lace-cap hydrangea. If it's not, it should be because the blooms sure look like lace.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

tomato flower

This is going to be a delicious tomato some day.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

false indigo 'baptisia'

Baptisia in our backyard.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

clover

"I will be a Father to you,

and you will be my sons and daughters,

says the Lord Almighty."

2 Corinthians 6:18

Grace and Peace,

Jane

cranesbill geranium 'brookside'

"Teach me how to live to please you,

because you are my God.

Lead me by your blessed Spirit

into cleared and level pastureland."

-Psalm 143:10 (from The Message)

Grace and Peace,

Jane

ps. Jamie and I have started a blog to share what is going on in our garden and on her farm. Feel free to visit and maybe even comment www.farmandgardenposts.blogspot.com

another peony

Yesterday the rain stopped for a little bit and I took some pictures of the peonies in our backyard. I am ready for the weather to warm up.

Grace and Peace,

Jane

chives

These chives are in a pot in my backyard. They grow up every year and I am always happy to see the small purple flowers.

I am enjoying another book by Wendell Berry called Jayber Crow. It's kind of sad, and funny, and deep. It's going to be a Wendell summer for me. I'm hooked on his writing these days.

"I became a sort of a garden fanatic, and I am not over it yet. You can take a few seed peas, dry and dead, and sow them in a little furrow, and they will sprout into a row of pea vines and bear more peas - it may not be a miracle, but that is matter of opinion."- from Jayber Crow

Grace and Peace,

Jane

peony

Remember to stop and smell the peonies.

Grace and Peace,

Jane