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 šš» 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 š Coffee āļø Chickens š Breakfast š³ Picking up, cutting back, composting, trash duty, etc. Preparations for the coming seasonā¦ Plus Preparations for the coming week š February is only a few days away and I already have Spring Fever š
Thursday is Groundhog Day, the half-way point of Winter! Then itās a downhill roll into Spring ā¤ļø
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. Ā And the anticipation nurtures our dream.”
~ Barbara Winkler
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 moreā¦ I havenāt missed a sunrise or sunset in 2023 yet! No itās not a resolutionā¦ But I do really enjoy watching both šš Hereās a little collage of some of 2023ās best from the Beach!
Now is when the real work beginsā¦
āSunrise 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!ā
~ Mehmet Murat Ildan
Mark C.
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 Donāt 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! āļø What a storm we had last night! ā ā”ļø š„ Here we are changing seasonsā¦ Bye bye Summer, Hello Fall šš We have literally been on a West TN weather seesawā¦ It was 100 degrees on the last day of summer, So Hot š„µ Then the next day a 51 degree morningā¦ Then back up close to 90 today, but guess what – down into the 40ās tonightš®
Oh well, again the old saying holds true, āIf you donāt like the weather, just you waitāā¦
Now itās on to breakfast and then a little work in the Garden! I Love ā¤ļø 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.Ā Ā
And at no season, safe perhaps in Daffodil time, do we get such superbĀ color effects as from August to November.”
~ Rose G. Kingsley
Watch this short for the cutest puppy ever šš»
Have a great Sunday!
~ 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, Pondless Waterfalls, Sunday Reflections, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: Celebration, Coffee, Daily Blog, Daily Enjoyment, Daily Ritual, Daily Routine, Day Off, Family, Family time, Family Traditions, Feeding Birds, Feeding Koi, Feeding the Soul, Feeding Time, Fish Feeding, Friday Off, Garden Chores, Happy Labor Day, Holiday, Labor Day, Labor Day Weekend, Life is Good, Living the Life Abundant, Morning Coffee, Nursery Work, Saturday off, 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, Time Off, Watering Plants, Weekend Off, Work Life Balance
Labor Day Weekendā¦ Itās definitely nice to enjoy a few days off! There are still things that we have to do of course, but since we live at the Nursery & Gardens we also work for a livingā¦ Itās just another day in our routineā¦
Or is it?
I was reflecting on my labor in life, and In many ways my labor is my lifeā¦ I mean, I literally live at the Nursery/Farm that I work for a livingā¦ There are no days off when there are plants to water (or they die!) and animals to feed & water (or they suffer &/or die)! So I have done what anyone in my situation has to do, I have embraced it wholeheartedly! And I LOVE my Family! My āeverydayā Lifestyle! And I LOVE MY Job! ā¤ļø
āHe who works with his hands is a laborer.
He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman.
He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist.ā
~ Saint Francis of Assisi
Happy Labor Day šŗšø to everyone that Laborās out there! I hope you love your job too! šš»
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, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Sunsets, Videos, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: CAC, Certified Aquascape Contractor, Chicagoland, educational workshop, Extended Family, Family Traditions, Greg Wittstock, Master CAC, Master Certified Aquascape Contractor, Sunday, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday Gardening, 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 Songs, Sunday Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Thereās No Place Like Home
This Summer has just flown by for meā¦ I must be having fun right š Most Sundays are family days. Eat breakfast together, spend time together, etcā¦ Today is both different and the same š Today my wife and I are at a work conference that we attend yearly for training and CEU points for our certification as Pond/Water Garden Specialist. We have been working and training with some of these folks for well over 20 yearsā¦ So many of these folks are like an extended family!
An extended family I haveĀ
I am so gladĀ
To have you allĀ
I feel ten feet tallĀ
And I give you my allĀ
If you needĀ
You will not have to pleadĀ
I will feel gleeĀ
If I can give you what you needĀ
There is no needĀ
For you pleadĀ
My love for you all is a guaranteeĀ
Let me know you are in needĀ
And I will be there in lightning speedĀ
To help you all in your time of needĀ
So remember there is no needĀ
To pleaĀ
I will help you in time of needĀ
~ Keith Wells
~ Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Lake and Pond, Love, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Videos | Tags: #Bugwatchin, Beautiful Sunset, Bug Watching, Bugs, Easily Entertained, Entomology, Fun, Have Fun, laughing, Love, Love and Meaning, Night Sky, Nighttime World, Opacarophile, Spider, Spiders, Sunday, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday Gardening, 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 Songs, Sunday Sunrises, Sunday with Family, Sundays, Sunset, Sunsets
What a weekā¦ Work, rain, storms, heat, shipping delays, out of stock, yada yadaā¦ The āNew Normalā they call itā¦ But, all in all a good week! Lots to be Thankful for šš»
My reward was the weekend with my lovely wife on the river. Boat riding, swimming, photography, beautiful sunsets and then after darkā¦ Bug Watching! (yes, we are both easily entertained š)
There are so many opportunities to watch bugs at the river! I mean, itās kinda the only show in town š #bugwatchin
We rode around giggling like a couple of kids, eating ice cream, cracking jokes and yes, watching bugsā¦ I got her laughing pretty good š
Then we found this one, and watched for quite some time. She is pretty cool š·
What can I say, Iām a cheap date š
āStood on the ledge of my sleepy blue sorrow
back from the edge, guess I’ll see you tomorrow
can’t lie, not the first time I’m thinking of you
but the night bugs are out, life’s distractions will do
I looked to the west as the day slowly fadyded
turned up the volume of cricket and katydid
rhythm rubs life in the darkness outside
steer clear of the blue light or get yourself fried
With the zapper you took out the skeeters and flies
while spiders and ants faced the raider’s demise
yellow jackets and wasps, you chased from their hives,
but these night bugs are here for the rest of our lives
bittersweet bugs for the rest of our lives
Back in the house now, I roll down the screen
protecting myself from the lurking unseen
from the critters, which drawn by the lure of the light
make feast in their famine on food, flesh and fright
we handle the things that intrude in our spaces
the bugs in the dark and the unwanted faces
we roll down the screens and we listen to voices
those sweet summer sounds, and this night bug rejoices
With the zapper you took out the skeeters and flies
while spiders and ants faced the raider’s demise
yellow jackets and wasps, you chased from their hives,
but these night bugs are here for the rest of our lives
too many months have passed without hearing
the music which blends with the night bugs I’m fearing
I nearly lost hope for those sounds in my life
but these night bugs revive good ol’ summertime strife
bittersweet bugs, for the rest of my life
Stood on the ledge of my sleepy blue sorrow
back from the edge, guess I’ll see you tomorrowā
~ G Clair
Have a great Sunday!
Mark C. ā¤ļø
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Love, music, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Videos, Waterfalls | Tags: Best Mom, Cookout, Cookout by the Pond, Great Mother, Guys Cook Too, Happy Motherās Day!, I ā¤ļø Mom!, I Love My Mother, Mom, Mom is Special, Moment of Zen, Motherās Day, Motherās Day Breakfast, Motherās Day Gifts, Motherās Day Ideas, Motherās Day Lunch, Sunday Breakfast, Sunday Brunch, Sunday Inspiration, Sunday Morning Coming Down, Sunday Mornings, Sunday Reflections, Sunday Songs, Sunday with Family, Sundays
Today started early… Straiten up the house, spray off the porch and food prep for lunch… Not just any lunch mind you – Its Mothers Day! š„
Iām gonna keep it short today, because lunch is coming quick! Happy Mothers Day to all the moms out there! I hope you all have a very special day!
“There ought to be a hall of fame for mamas
Creation’s most unique and precious pearls
And heaven help us always to remember
That the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.”
~ Glen Campbell & Steve Wariner
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Herbs, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, music, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Sunday Reflections, Sunrises, Sunsets, Waterfalls | Tags: Beautiful Day, bird call, Birds, Birds and ponds, Breakfast, Coffee, Coffee Mug, Feeding Birds, Flowers, Fresh Lemonade, Get Outside, Homemade Lemonade, Lemon Trees, Lemonade, Love, Morning Coffee, nesting birds, Pottery, Potting Containers, Spring, Spring Gardening, Spring is Here!, Spring Planting, 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, watering, Watering Plants
All I can say is āWhat a beautiful morningā! I think every bird in the world is singing the song of Spring! Ive been up and out since early… Coffee āļø āļø Breakfast āļø Watering āļø … We have moved pottery a bit and potted some things up as well. Its mid-morning break time, so I thought I would write this little blog and fix some homemade Lemonade š Nothing tastes as good as a fresh glass of sweet lemonade on a spring morning.
I just Love Spring!
āItās lemonade in a cardboard cup between the legs of a freshly tanned, sunglass wearing, brown eyed girl. Itās a white Jeep, blaring Enrique loud.
Itās the sweat beneath the dark curls. Itās the country song that brings tears to your eyes. Itās the lessons learned, the mistakes made. Itās the future ahead, bright and beautiful. Itās the laughter, memories. Itās the good things in life.Ā
Itās Spring.
~ Alixis Russell
Iāll see yāall in the house about dark:30…
Mark C.
Filed under: Family time, Food, Fountains, General Blog Entry's, God Bless America, Koi, Koi Ponds, Landscaping & Gardening, Love, Nursery, Outdoor Lifestyles, Pondless Waterfalls, Sunday Reflections, water garden, Waterfalls | Tags: Aquatic Plant Fertilizer, Aquatic Plants, Butterfly Plants, Garden Maintenance, Gardening, Greenhouse, Greenhouse Report, Hydrangeas, Limelight Hydrangeas, Oakleaf Hydrangeas, plants, Spring Gardening, 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, watering, Watering Plants
What a BEAUTIFUL Day!!! šš¼ What do you do on an Sunday in the Spring, when you own a nursery, with limited help and beauĀ·coup plants šŖ“? You water šæ and then you water šæ some more… And in between, you clean and cut back and fertilize, ad infinitum… But, on a day like today, its not an awful deal…
āSpring drew on…and a greenness grew over those brown beds, which, freshening daily suggested the thought that hope traversed them at night, and left each morning brighter traces of her steps.ā
~ Charlotte Bronteā
Iām going inside… Been a long day š
Mark C.
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 ā¤ļø Aquatic Plants, I ā¤ļø 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, āHappy Vernal Equinox! Iāve been hollering āSpring is Comingā since February, and finally – here we are š¼ 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 š 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 š
Now that Spring is here, its time to go to work!
āOh, 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.
Yāall Have a Beautiful Sunday!
Mark C.
Carter's Water Garden 