Kaseys Korner

Amaryllis 'Apricot Parfait'

A couple more Amaryllis photos and a message.

Amaryllis 'Apricot Parfait'

And now the message:  I've made a decision that I've been thinking about for quite a while ~

I've decided to no longer keep blogging.  

The few people who follow my blog know that the past four years have been filled with heartache and loss.  After each one, my heart was into blogging less and less and my posts more and more sporadic.

Above:  Amaryllis 'Rembrandt Van Rijn'

I won't close my Typepad account immediately but there will be no future posts.  

Amaryllis 'Half & Half'

It never really "took off" anyway & some of the other reasons I started it are no longer pertinent.  Most of my traffic is from Pinterest and people pinning my photos.

Muscari "Azureum'

I can't imagine giving up photography so hopefully I will pop up with an Instagram account (or something) in the future as a forum to share photos.

For those of you who have left me kind messages over the past 8 years, thank you.  I've appreciated them all.  I feel I "know" you although most of us have never met.  Maybe that will be remedied one day...  For now I want to concentrate on a few different avenues and ending the blog will free up a little time and relieve a little pressure (for even tho I haven't been posting often, it's always on my mind that I "should.")  All the Best ~ I will be with you in spirit this gardening season and quietly doing my part to make it a good one.  

 

In memory of Butterball

Not many words, too heartbroken.

Lost my faithful greeter, gardening companion & protector last week.  

The photo above is the last one I took of him.

There are so many memories during the course of our journey together.

I feel guilty about his last two years of life.  I was so caught up in the intensive process of rehabbing my daughter that I almost missed the way he was aging so quickly.  I remember being shocked when I realized his hearing was going.  I wish I could have given him more of my time.

He never held it against me.  Another reason to love dogs. No matter what I was doing, he had time for me & was part of it.  Especially in the garden.

I can't even look out there right now & not see him.  He was such a big part of building it, always up to "help," inspect or just keep me company.

I am completely lost without him.  

Our house is so quiet.  

I have been struck by what a life force he was in our home.

I really hope there is truth to the Rainbow Bridge poem & he is waiting there for me.

I love you Butter Boy.

 

Amaryllis 'Pink Glory'

A weather foreward before we get to the most incredible "wait-worthy" Amaryllis I've shared to date....

Our winter has been consistently cold & snowy (have I mentioned this before??!!  or more likely, how many times have I mentioned it?!!)  ha ha.  I haven't seen the ground in my back garden since Thanksgiving weekend until, finally, at the end of January, a tiny little patch of earth was exposed ~ can you see it in the two photos below, to the right of my blue raised bed??

My dog was so excited.  He's been plowing thru snow for over two months now and being a senior citizen, it's not an activity he enjoys anymore.  

HOWEVER, his reprieve & the slight thaw was extremely temporary.

On the morning of Feb 2nd, (3 days after the above photos were taken) we woke up to 15.1" of fresh snow.  

Can I get a collective groan??  

Please make it loud & excruciating, if you please, to match how I'm feeling buried in this never ending pile of white.  ugh.

Above:  Hanging out the entire snowy day, intent on getting a meal.

Okay, now that's out of my system, we can move on!  I just wanted everyone to be aware that NOT all of us are experiencing a warm 'El Nino' winter...  or maybe I was hoping for a little sympathy?!!!!  :)

But here, HERE is a bloom that must have been expressly designed to buoy spirits.  'Pink Glory' has impeccable timing too, her blooms coinciding with the arrival of our latest snowstorm.  How did she know???

I've been beyond eager to get an up close & personal look at her ~ I fell instantly in love when I saw her photo on the Royal Colors website last Fall.  Although it's unusual for me to place an overseas order, I just couldn't forget her and caved to temptation.  I was hoping, in real life, her beauty would exceed her photograph.  I have not been disappointed.

The impulse to click "buy" feels completely justified....

She's a little reminiscent of 'Gervase' (the reddish/pink striping?) but with the added bonus of being double, or is it just me??

Regardless, I definitely have another bulb added to my list of favorites.  

btw, in case you're wondering how long this endless parade of Amaryllis will continue, I promise to group the next blooms in one post & find other topics to focus on after that.  I have a pantry re-do I'm currently busying myself with, maybe that will be finished to share soon?   Hope you are staying warm!