A Sentiment

God knew what He was doing when He sent a gentle breeze and brought a lovely butterfly to set my heart at ease. The happiness of your friendship and the gentleness of your words have touched my life in special ways and now I feel assured. Thank you for your loyalty and for reading everyday. I only hope you find things to make a happy day.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Early Spring at the Grotto

Joe asked if I wanted to go over to the Grotto before it got dark. We hadn't checked on it up close since winter. We found that everything had come through our very cold and snowy winter...just fine. The picture below is Joe using a whisk broom...dusting beneath the statue. He brought the leaf blower, but he found that it wasn't needed. Everything was tidy. These pictures are dark, because of the hour they were taken. The gardens had been newly mulched. Enough mulch to cover the tulip bulbs that were planted in the fall. They will have to push up through a thick layer of mulch, I'm afraid. We planted Red Riding Hood tulips. Smaller in size, red in color, and a nice border plant.
We decided to plant lantana again this year. They did so well last year. Dusty miller did well too. The picture below is of the budded pear tree. There hangs the little partridge that I hung at Christmas time. Soon the two trees will be full of white blossoms.
The grasses are coming along, behind the Grotto. They should be bigger and pretty this year.I saw some lilies breaking ground too.
I planted six red knockout roses here. As you can just see the tiny red tips of new growth. They were pruned and look so wonderful. They were beautiful last year. I'm so glad that they came through the winter OK. We mulched them with leaves...putting a mound around each bush. The leaf mulch was removed when the garden was just mulched.
We sat on a bench and looked at the names on the pavers beneath us. Names of our family members are there to remind us of the days when they were part of our lives. Many people have purchased pavers...we hope that all the pavers will have names on them before long. Quite a few people stop here to meditate, pray, or just to rest and enjoy nature. It is becoming a favorite backdrop for 1st Communion, Confirmation, and we hope wedding pictures.This Grotto was built just last year, so it is a new addition to our Church grounds. Joe had it built and donated it to our Church. He drew up the first plans for it and hired the men to build it. He spent everyday, during it's construction, sitting on a lawn chair and supervising the building of it. Now it's there for anyone to use.

Balisha

6 comments:

Unknown said...

That grotto is beautiful! And the signs of new growth are always invigorating this time of year.

Anonymous said...

Joe did such a great job of designing and getting that grotto built. I am sure a lot of people will enjoy it for years to come. I got my new computer and got it hooked up. I love it. I did not realize how slow the old one was until I got this one. My neighbor gave me a big pot of hens and chicks. She noticed I had 3 pots with nothing in them! I was so thrilled to get them. I have seeds planted everywhere and watch them everyday. lol.

Barbee' said...

What a lovely personal project!

Diana LaMarre said...

I am so glad to hear that the Grotto made it safely through the winter. I watched as it was built last year and I can't wait to see how beautiful it will be this year.

What a great place for people to sit and remember family members. I love the idea of named bricks.

I think it's a very special addition to your church.

Balisha said...

Hi ONG, Thanks for saying that. There's a lot to be planted there this spring. Last year was just the beginning. Thanks for leaving a comment...Balisha

Balisha said...

Hi Judy, Barbee, and Zoey,
We were building the Grotto at this time last year. I guess I should have put this post on that blog, but didn't think many would read it there. It turned out so well and the people at our Church love it. Balisha