Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Lake and Pond, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Waterfalls | Tags: Almost Spring, Chasing Chickens, Chickens, Coffee, Coffee Mug, Cold, Eggs, Free Range Chickens, Huevos rancheros, Ice, Morning Coffee, Ranch Style Eggs, Spring is Almost Here!, Sunday, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday in the Garden, Sunday Inspiration, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Sunday Mornings, Sunday Naps, Sunday Reflection’s, Vernal Equinox
Beautiful Sunrise 🌅, early morning chores, including breaking up ice in every bowl and trough… Cold 🥶
But the coffees is Hot ☕️ And breakfast was epic! We had black beans 🫘 and rice with applewood smoked sausage for dinner last night. Left overs almost demand my wife’s favorite breakfast – Huevos rancheros! 💥 ie; Ranch Style Eggs 🍳 But when I fix them… Markus T.’s Hillbilly Eggs 🍳 💥
Jo likes her eggs 🥚 over medium. I like egg whites only… But both have rice, black beans, cheese, sour cream, guacamole 🥑 & salsa 💥 It’s a meal 🥘
It’s the kind of breakfast that fills you up, warms you up, and let’s you skip lunch 😊
It’s a Cold 🥶, Sunny 🌞 Beautiful 🤩 Day! Don’t waste it 🙏🏻
“The sun is brilliant in the sky but its warmth does not reach my face.
The breeze stirs the trees but leaves my hair unmoved.
The cooling rain will feed the grass but will not slake my thirst.
It is all inches away but further from me than my dreams.”
~ M. Romeo LaFlamme
Enjoy this day! 🌞
~ Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: Anticipation, Breakfast, Chickens, Coffee, Coffee Mug, Frosty Morning, If You Don’t Like The Weather, Morning Coffee, Mud, Spring Gardening, Spring is Coming, 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 with Family, Sundays, Tennessee Weather
Spring is elusive. It tease’s us a bit. My Saucer Magnolias are in full bloom, my big Weeping Willow is leafing out. The ground is very wet, muddy in fact with more rain forecast all week… Then a cold snap is expected that will nip all these early plants and trees back. This time of year it’s always 2 steps forward & then – 2 to 3 steps back… But that is also part of the magic that Spring brings us 😊 Resurrection, renewal, regrowth… ❤️
It was a cool, muddy morning, but we got the chores done in record time. I fixed coffee ☕️ Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee to be exact (so good!). Had a simple quick breakfast (bagels & eggs 🥚) and then I got a pot of soup going for dinner (homemade potato 🥔)! No football 🏈 to tie me down this afternoon… Who knows what might happen! 😇
“The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size.”
~ Gertrude S. Wister
Have a great afternoon!
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Hummingbirds, Koi, Koi Ponds, Lake and Pond, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Pond Tips, Pondless Waterfalls, Videos, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: Breakfast, Coffee, Daffodils, Morning Coffee, Spring Gardening, Spring is Coming, 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 Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Trees
Up and at it this Sunday morning… Quick chores, feeding the animals, feeding us, coffee ☕️ goes without saying… Spring is in the air! Shrubs and flowering trees are busting open, some a little prematurely… But, it’s a beautiful thing to see.
This is when you can really see the coming of Spring. The trees changing color, the daffodils 🌼 blooming. Forsythia blooming, early cherry trees and plum and crab apples busting open… It’s hope and healing and medicine for those ailing from Spring fever 🤒 Get out and find your cure!
“Flowers clad in colorful t-shirts and vibrant shorts are swaying in the gentle breeze. Birds are singing. Trees start filling with leaves, and the branches laden with exploding buds look majestic. Balmy spring days are coming. I am happy, very happy.”
~ Bhuwan Thapaliya
Have a great day!
~ Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Videos, Waterfalls | Tags: Cabin Fever, Ice, Ice Safety, Ice Storm, spring fever, Spring is Coming, 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 Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays
Cabin fever. Spring fever. Call it what you want, but I got it… The ice storm we just thawed out from didn’t help either. Stuck in the house with plenty of food, water took up in every container & pot in the house, ready for the worst case scenario to unfold.
Luckily we dodged the bullet! But we did get some serious ice. The streets were dangerous, some branches and trees came down under the weight. Many people lost power. But it wasn’t like 1994! In 94’ we were out of power for 2 1/2 weeks! 😮 This one only lasted 3 days or so.
So we gathered around the TV 📺 and watched movies 🍿 We tried to stick to a ‘cold theme’… Insomnia, The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo. The Shining. Etc… But being trapped in the house gets to me… My Cabin Fever grew worse… I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for Spring!
“Flakes of snow swirled and danced across the porch. The Overlook faced it as it had for nearly three-quarters of a century, its darkened windows now bearded with snow, indifferent to the fact it was now cut off from the world… Inside its shell the three of them went about their early evening routine, like microbes trapped in the intestine of a monster.”
~ Stephen King
Have a great Sunday! Spring is Coming!
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, God Bless America, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: Breakfast, Chickens, Coffee, Morning Coffee, 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 with Family, Sundays
Good afternoon 🙏🏻 I always try to post a Sunday Reflections blog, and they have almost always been in the morning. The morning just got away from me 😂 Coffee ☕️ Chickens 🐓 Breakfast 🍳 Picking up, cutting back, composting, trash duty, etc. Preparations for the coming season… Plus Preparations for the coming week 😊 February is only a few days away and I already have Spring Fever 🍀
Thursday is Groundhog Day, the half-way point of Winter! Then it’s a downhill roll into Spring ❤️
Have a great afternoon!
Mark C.
“Every gardener knows that under the cloak of winter lies a miracle … a seed waiting to sprout, a bulb opening to the light, a bud straining to unfurl. And the anticipation nurtures our dream.”
~ Barbara Winkler
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Love, music, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Sunsets, Waterfalls | Tags: 21st. Birthday, Birthdays, Birthdays Are Special, Dad, Family, Family Pictures, Family time, Family Traditions, Good Times, Happy Birthday, Passage of Time, Proud American, Proud Father, Son, 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 with Family, Sundays, Time, Time flies, Time in a bottle
2023 is definitely off to a quick start for me. Back to work is an understatement… But certain things slow you down to pay homage and reflect on. Like my son turning 21 this past week ❤️ Milestones like this really make you reflect. Saying “time flies” just doesn’t tell the story, but in a way it does sum it up… Time is such an illusion. It slips right through our grasp and pours through our fingers, and we can never get it back. We have had a lot of time well spent together! I’ve made a point to spend as much time as possible with my family and with my son over the past 21 years! And the only regrets I can think of are the few things we didn’t get to do… YET! I feel very blessed to have him in my life and I look forward to what the future may bring.
The future looks bright for my little (6’3”) 21 year old son. What an impressive man he has become. 🙏🏻❤️
Sunday brunch and coffee are forthcoming ☕️ 🍳
“Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend” ~ Theophrastus
Have a great Sunday!
~ Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Outdoor Lifestyles, Pond Tips, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Sunsets, Waterfalls | Tags: 2023, 2023 Events List, Beach, Beach Life, Beach Therapy, Beautiful Sunset, Carters Nursery, Carters Nursery Pond and Patio, Family Business, Garden Planning, Garden Tour, Happy 2023, Maintenance Workshop, Photography, photos, Planning, plants, Pond Tour, 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, Sunrises, Sunsets
A new year and I have been busy planning for it! Business plan, events, pond tours, workshops, jobs, early buys, plant orders and more… I haven’t missed a sunrise or sunset in 2023 yet! No it’s not a resolution… But I do really enjoy watching both 🌞🌅 Here’s a little collage of some of 2023’s best from the Beach!
Now is when the real work begins…
“Sunrise looks spectacular in nature; sunrise looks spectacular in the photos; sunrise looks spectacular in our dreams; sunrise looks spectacular in the paintings, because it really is spectacular!”
~ Mehmet Murat Ildan
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Love, music, Sunday Reflections, Waterfalls | Tags: Elvis, Elvis Presley, Happy Birthday, 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 Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays
“Do you remember where you were when you heard that Elvis had died? I sure do. I really remember my mother crying and calling her friends. He was truly loved! RIP To the King of rock n’ roll!”
IF you remember where you were, leave a message or a short story… I would love to hear it 🙏🏻
“Some people tap their feet, some people snap their fingers, and some people sway back and forth. I just sorta do ’em all together, I guess.”
~ Elvis Presley
PS: AND – Happy Birthday to another cool cat – Zachery Hall 💥Have a Great Sunday!
~ Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Waterfalls | Tags: Christmas Countdown, Christmas is Coming, Christmas Season, Christmas Spirit, Christmas Tree, Happy Holidays, Holiday Season, Seasonal changes, Sunday, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday in the Garden, Sunday Inspiration, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Sunday Mornings, Sunday Naps, Sunday Poem, Sunday Reflections, Sunday with Family, Sundays
I have been blessed with overall good health, so when I do get sick 😷 it’s awful… I’m finally getting over a case of the Flu with a Bronchitis kicker… Believe me when I tell you, it sucks! Cough, weakness, exhaustion, etc… But, thank the lord, I’m finally feeling better!
We are officially in December! I’ve been getting my strength back by tooling around the house a little trying to help get ready for the next big holiday 🎅🏼
Our Christmas tree 🎄 is up & quite a bit of decorating has been done as well. I’m actually starting to get that feeling of Christmas 🙏🏻
We’ve got Lots to do before years end! My biggest challenge is to keep a work/life balance through the holidays so I get to enjoy the season with my family too 😊
In any case, Christmas is coming! Be ready 🎅🏼
“May you have the gladness of Christmas which is hope;
The spirit of Christmas which is peace;
The heart of Christmas which is love.”
~ Ada V. Hendricks
~ Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Love, music, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Sunsets, Waterfalls | Tags: Family, Family time, Family Traditions, Friends and Family, God Bless, Grateful, Gratitude, Happy Thanksgiving, Love, 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 Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Sunsets, Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Decorations, Thanksgiving is Coming, The Presence of God, Time, Time flies, Time in a bottle, Time Off
Time is so funny… Sometimes it drags on & other times it goes by so fast that you miss things. I say it all the time, but it seems like this year has gone by quicker than any year before 💨 Turn around and boom 💥 it’s Thanksgiving! We are hosting our family dinner here in a few days, so we have been busy straitening up, decorating and basically getting ready 🦃
After all these years of living and working and doing, the one thing I have figured out is, you have to be grateful for your blessings 🙏🏻 (Ps: I’m still working on it 😊)
With my hectic schedule it’s easy to push on and take things for granted just to get through this day and to the next… But you miss so many things in that process, the most important things. God, family, friends, rest, health & happiness can be glossed over and left in your wake… Maybe it’s like the spirit that comes over you at Christmas 🎅🏼 you want everyday to feel like that. ⭐️ Thanksgiving can be the same. I’m going to try to let my Gratitude exceed my expectations everyday and see what happens ❤️
“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.”
~ William Arthur Ward
Happy Thanksgiving 🦃 to Everyone!
~ Mark C.
Carter's Water Garden 