Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Hummingbirds, Koi, Lake and Pond, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Videos, Waterfalls | Tags: Autumn, Autumn Color, Autumn Leaves Falling on Water, Autumn Poem, Autumnal Equinox, Colorful Foliage, Cooler Weather is Coming, Crazy Weather, Fall Color, Fall Gardening, I Love My Family, If You Don’t Like The Weather, Love, Love and Meaning, Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, Predicting Weather, Seasonal changes, Seasonal Interest, Sunday, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday in the Garden, Sunday Inspiration, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Sunday Mornings, Sunday Naps, Sunday Poem, Sunday Quote, Sunday Reflections, Sunday Songs, Sunday Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Tennessee Weather, Waterfall, Weather Lore, Weather Signs, Woolly Bear Caterpillars
Good Morning! ☀️ What a storm we had last night! ⛈ ⚡️ 💥 Here we are changing seasons… Bye bye Summer, Hello Fall 🍁🍂 We have literally been on a West TN weather seesaw… It was 100 degrees on the last day of summer, So Hot 🥵 Then the next day a 51 degree morning… Then back up close to 90 today, but guess what – down into the 40’s tonight😮

Oh well, again the old saying holds true, “If you don’t like the weather, just you wait”…
Now it’s on to breakfast and then a little work in the Garden! I Love ❤️ Fall!
“In the garden, Autumn is, indeed the crowning glory of the year, bringing us the fruition of months of thought and care and toil.
And at no season, safe perhaps in Daffodil time, do we get such superb color effects as from August to November.”
~ Rose G. Kingsley
Watch this short for the cutest puppy ever 👇🏻
Have a great Sunday!
~ Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Love, music, Sunday Reflections, Waterfalls | Tags: Biscuits and Gravy, Breakfast, Breakfast Tomatoes, Bring Your Friends, Eggs, Family Breakfast, Family Dinner, Family time, Fried Rice, Friends and Family, Friendship, Good Friends, Good Times, I Love My Family, Japanese Art, Koi = Love, Love and Meaning, Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, Old Friends, Sake, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Inspiration, Sunday Mornings, Sunday Reflections, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Sushi, Time, Time flies, Time in a bottle
I got a late start on my blog this morning… We ate out with great friends last night and we were up fairly late ⏰ But to my defense I did do several things outside this morning and I fixed breakfast for everyone. Last night we dined in Japan with sushi 🍣, Sake , edamame and rice 🍚
But this morning I went old school with Coffee Sliced tomatoes, eggs, and biscuits w/gravy. Like my grandma used to fix 😊 A world away from Japan 🇯🇵

It sure is nice catching up with good friends! Eating and visiting with friends is one of the great pleasures in life! 🙏🏻 And it’s always a blessing to have breakfast with my family on Sunday morning 🌞
“Eat at a local restaurant tonight. Get the cream sauce. Have a cold pint at 4 o’clock in a mostly empty bar. Go somewhere you’ve never been. Listen to someone you think may have nothing in common with you. Order the steak rare. Eat an oyster. Have a negroni. Have two. Be open to a world where you may not understand or agree with the person next to you, but have a drink with them anyways. Eat slowly. Tip your server. Check in on your friends. Check in on yourself. Enjoy the ride.”
~ Anthony Bourdain
Have a wonderful Sunday! 🙏🏻
~ Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Sunsets, Waterfalls | Tags: Declaration of Independence, Family, Family Fun, Family time, Family Traditions, Fireworks, Happy Independence Day, I ❤️ This Country, independence day, July 4th., Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, Sunday, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday in the Garden, Sunday Inspiration, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Sunday Mornings, Sunday Naps, Sunday on the River, Sunday Poem, Sunday Quote, Sunday Reflections, Sunday Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Sunrises, Sunsets, USA
Are you proud to be an American? 🇺🇸
When the anthem plays, do you stand and put your hand on your heart?
Do you feel that pride, do your eyes well up, does the feeling swell in your chest?
Tomorrow is the celebration of Independence Day 🇺🇸 God Bless America 🇺🇸
“The United States is the only country with a known birthday. All the rest began, they know not when, and grew into power, they know not how…. There is no “Republican,” no “Democrat,” on the Fourth of July, — all are Americans.”
~James Gillespie Blaine
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Sunsets, Waterfalls | Tags: Believe, Dogwood, Easter, Easter Sunday, Easter Sunrise, Easter Weekend, God, God Bless, God Bless America, I Love My Family, Jerusalem, Jerusalem Donkey, Jesus, Lamb of God, legend of the dogwood, Love, Love and Meaning, Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, Peace, Peace on Earth, Pray, Prayer Garden, Prayer in the Garden, Prayers, reflection, The Presence of God
I was thinking of the stories of the bible we learn from childhood and how they meld into real time in our lives… It’s Easter weekend and I wanted to share these two stories that I have always loved that tie into Easter.

‘All purebred donkeys are born with a cross on their back. A legend says it is the gift our Lord gave to the humble donkey that carried Him into Jerusalem. According to the legend, the little donkey so loved his Master that he followed Him to Calvary. Grief-stricken at the sight, he turned away but remained at his station at the foot of the cross. The shadow of the Cross fell upon him and from that day all purebred donkeys wear the Master’s Cross on their backs.’

Jesus rode in on a donkey… Then he walked and prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane during the last days of his life. He knew what was about to happen to him and I think he chose a Garden to spend his last days in to give him the Peace, Clarity & Strength that he needed leading up to his arrest and Crucifixion (on Good Friday).


The blooming plants and feeling of Spring in the Garden bring Peace & Calm to the mind & Spirit, and in turn aid in ones thoughts and reflection…
There is going to be a LOT of Reflection for me during this weekend, and I hope to do much of it in my garden. I truly find peace and a clear mind outside within the garden. I hope you do too.
Have a Blessed Easter Weekend,
Peace 🙏🏻
Mark Carter
Filed under: Family time, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunrises | Tags: After the Storm, Be Ready, Carters Nursery Pond and Patio, clean up, Cover Plants, Frost Warning, Frosty Morning, I Love My Family, Late Frost, Loss of power, Love and Meaning, Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, Storm Damage, Stormy Weather, The Calm After The Storm
The rising sun revealed varying amounts of damage. Some lost trees, lots of roof damage, hail damage on cars, limbs and debris all over… Thousands still have no power this morning. BUT, in many ways we dodged a bullet! I haven’t heard of any deaths related to last nights storms! 🙏🏻 And it really brought many people together helping each other out, checking on neighbors, picking up debris, etc…
Here are a few images that local people posted of storm damage and a map of power outages that are still being repaired.




All our local workers are cleaning up and repairing damage as I write this. Things like this really bring things into focus. We must all count our blessings 🙏🏻
Now, heres an old cliche’ for ya’… ”If you don’t like the weather, just wait a minute, it will change”! Temps in the 70’s and tornados yesterday – Frost warning Tonight! 🥶

Have a great day! Count your Blessings! Love thy neighbor! And cover your plants 🪴 😊
Mark Carter
Carter’s Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, Tn. 38305
Ph.# 731-424-2206
http://www.cartercountry.com
YouTube pg. –
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6dPkQiE04jcr385SOL0gkw
Facebook pg. – https://www.facebook.com/mark.carter.775
Pinterest pg. – https://www.pinterest.com/cartersnursery/
Filed under: Boutique, Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Koi, Koi Ponds, Love, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: 1st Day of Spring, Aquatic Plants, Art, Art in the Garden, Art Show, Artistic Waterfalls, Flowers, I ❤️ Aquatic Plants, I ❤️ My Art, Love, Love and Meaning, Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, plants, Spring is Here!, Sunday, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday Gardening, Sunday in the Garden, Sunday Inspiration, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Sunday Mornings, Sunday Naps, Sunday Poem, Sunday Quote, Sunday Reflections, Sunday Songs, Sunday Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Sunsets, Vernal Equinox, Water Garden Maintenance
Good Morning! And, ”Happy Vernal Equinox! I’ve been hollering ’Spring is Coming’ since February, and finally – here we are 🌼 SPRING!

Yesterday we held our annual Spring Workshop and Customer Appreciation Day and so many people came out! We talked gardening, water gardening, Koi, and more. We ate some Wonderful Craft-made Pizzas 🍕 and saw some beautiful Art Displayed by a wonderful local artist – Matt Brown.




The Sun finally popped out late in the day and we saw the Full Moon after dark 🌝

Now that Spring is here, its time to go to work!
“Oh, give us pleasure in the flowers to-day;
And give us not to think so far away
As the uncertain harvest; keep us here
All simply in the springing of the year.
Oh, give us pleasure in the orchard white,
Like nothing else by day, like ghosts by night;
And make us happy in the happy bees,
The swarm dilating round the perfect trees.
And make us happy in the darting bird
That suddenly above the bees is heard,
The meteor that thrusts in with needle bill,
And off a blossom in mid air stands still.
For this is love and nothing else is love,
The which it is reserved for God above
To sanctify to what far ends He will,
But which it only needs that we fulfill.
~ Robert Frost, A Prayer in Spring.
Y’all Have a Beautiful Sunday!
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Koi Ponds, Love, music, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Sunsets, Waterfalls | Tags: A New Year, Christmas is Over, Christmas Season, Christmas Spirit, Christmas with Family, Closed for the Holiday, Family time, Holiday Season, Home For The Holidays, I Love My Family, I Love My Mother, Love, Love and Meaning, Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, New Years is Coming!, New Years Resolutions, New Years Traditions, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday Inspiration, Sunday Mornings, Sunday Poem, Sunday Reflections, Sunday Songs, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Weekend Off
The morning after Christmas has now come and gone… Why does it always feel like Christmas is so far away, then you blink and its gone for another year? Hard to grasp… But we had a good family get together and dinner, saw some beautiful lights and decorations, and tried to remember and stay true to the real meaning of Christmas.

Now we have to take all the decorations down, clean everything up and get ready for a new year… Ready or not, here comes 2022!
When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and the princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
To make music in the heart.
~ Howard Thurman
Have a great last evening of Christmas weekend! 🎄🎅🏻❤️🙏🏻
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Koi, Koi Ponds, Lake and Pond, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Pond Tips, Pondless Waterfalls, Sunsets, Videos, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: Carters Nursery Pond and Patio, Charity Pond Tour, Dancing In The Moonlight, Fall Pond Tour, Fund raiser, Garden Tour, humane society, I Love Animals, Jackson Animal Care Center, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, Moonlight Luau, Moonlight Pond, Moonlight Pond Party, Moonlight Pond Tour, Moonlight Pond Tour Video, Moonlight Tour, Pond Tour, Pond Tour Tickets, Pondless Waterfall, self guided tour, Ticket, tickets, Water Garden Tour, Waterfalls
It’s almost time! Saturday evening is our Annual Moonlight Pond Tour! If you didn’t already know, this is my Favorite Event of the year! It’s a ‘Magical Night’ & I hope you will come enjoy the Beauty & Moonlight

Tell your friends and share on social media please. The more the word gets out, the more money we will raise for the Jackson Animal Care Center!

What: The 17th. Annual Moonlight Pond Tour
When: Saturday, September 18th. from dusk (7:00) till 11pm.
Where: Beautiful North Jackson, Tn. in Madison County.
Why: It’s Fun, Affordable and it’s for a GREAT CAUSE! A truly Unique & Beautiful Garden Tour!
Tickets: $20 for the Pond Tour (no charge for kids age 12 and under)
Moonlight Pond Tour Tickets are ON SALE NOW at Carter’s Nursery! Call Jo or Sandra for more info at 731-424-2206
Mark Carter
Carters Nursery, Pond & Patio
2846 Old Medina Rd.
Jackson, TN 38305
731-424-2206
https://www.cartercountry.com
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Love, Sunday Reflections | Tags: Boil Water, Curfew, Donate, Duck River Flood, Flood, Flood 2021, Flood Relief, Give, Help, Loss, Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself, Prayers, Relief, Waverly Flood
With all the rain we’ve seen, this morning’s sunrise was a welcome sight 🌞 So many of our neighbors right up the road here need our prayers, and some help as well. I’m speaking about the flooding that happened yesterday in Houston, Humphreys, Hickman & Dickson Counties. Many families have lost everything, possessions, homes, cars, pets and much more, many lives were lost!



Many are confirmed dead and at least 30 people are still missing. These folks need our prayers, our help and some money to help them rebuild to boot… Many have no power, no edible food, no home to go back too. They are under a curfew and a boil water restriction, so you can’t even get a drink of clean water. Things happen so quickly 😢
Here is a link if you would like to send a donation – https://www.cfmt.org/giving-and-investing/become-a-donor/give-to-a-fund/tennessee-emergency-response-fund/
Sunday is a day of prayer for most. Let’s send some up for the people of middle Tennessee 🙏🏻

🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Love, Sunrises, Sunsets | Tags: Easter, Easter Sunday, Easter Weekend, Good Friday, Jesus, Love, Love and Meaning, Love Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself
He said “It is finished”, we didn’t understand that It had just begun. Be thankful for His sacrifice on this, Good Friday.

Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection, not in books alone but in every leaf in springtime. ~ Martin Luther
Peace & Love,
Mark Carter