I love this time of year....

I need to say...

this is a beautiful time of year.

If I had my choice this would be my full time season.

 I got a plant in Florida...

It was a stick...

I put in the soil and it grew.

I wrapped it and brought it in out of the car to the hotel rooms each night as we traveled home...

so it would not freeze.

I purchased potting soil on the way home and a pot.

That is one of the first things I did when I got home...

I planted it.

Now it is a big plant with a bloom.  It is amazing...

all from a stick.

Angie is doing her Senior project...

she is volunteering and doing service for the Children's hospital and Ronald McDonald house.

We went to SLC so she could receive her orientation.

Afterwards we went shopping...

She loves Zebra stripes...

she found purses...

and clothes of all kinds in Zebra.

 

 At the nursery she found a Zebra watering can.

 Dani looked out our sliding glass window and saw a moose drinking out of my waterfall pond.

 Now that is something you don't see every day....

 These two worked so hard...

they are enjoying a creamie...

Jordan and Dani

 Angie is filling out forms and training on the computer.

 Three guys 'planning' their day.

Saturday morning I was mowing the lawn...

I looked up and there was...

Ben and Steve in the cab of the pickup...

Dylan Ross and Jordon in the back waving at me...

they were headed out to fix fence.

It brought a tear to my eye.

All those guys are 'mine'.

 Jordon thinking?   

Hum.

Saturday night after Jayden and Angies help...

My yard was in perfect condition.

I haven't seen it so beautiful.

Sunday morning I took pictures...

the pictures don't even come close to showing how beautiful it is.

 Quiet garden

 duck pond area

 up by the pump house...

 volunteer daises behind the pump house...

 Bench out the back door...

 back terraces and waterfall pond

 Lavender patch out front of the house

 path to Ben's house

 Sainfoin field is in bloom and so very pretty in pink

 Garden is up and boarded by the Sainfoin

 The grass under that Ash tree is as tall as I am...

I got lost in it.

 Ben's pigeons like my shade, they hang out here a lot.

 back side of the pond

 My little vineyard

 So I like teapots

 Hard to see but there are four humming bird feeders hanging on this planter hook thingy.

 Waterfall pond with out the moose...

Actually I have seven fish in it right now.

Yes I love this time of year....

It is perfect.

In the parable, of the ten virgins, oil can be purchased at the market.

In our lives the oil of preparedness is accumulated drop by drop in righteous living.

Attendance at sacrament meetings adds oil to our lamps,

drop by drop over the years.

Fasting,

family prayer,

home teaching (visiting teaching)

cotrol of bodily appetites,

preaching the gospel,

studying the scriptures--

each act of dedication and obedience is a drop added to our store.

Deeds of kindness, payment of offerings and thithes,

Chaste thoughts and actions,

marriage in the covenant for eternity--

these, too, 

contribute importantly to the oil with which we can,

 at midnight refuel our exhausted lamps.

Midnight is so late for those who have procrastinated.

--Spencer W Kimball--