Honeeeeey I'm Hooome!

Happy PINK Saturday everyone!

I know I'm reaching a little bit on the PINK theme but I've been gone so long and I have lots to share, so I hope you'll cut me a little slack this one time!

We left two weeks ago to attend my youngest dd's college graduation in Ohio. It was a wonderful day and we are so proud of her! 

 She graduated with honors with a Bachelor of Arts in Music. This Fall she will begin a two year program to be certified as a translator in American Sign Language then she plans to pursue a Masters in Music Therapy. 

 Oh to be so young and have your whole future ahead of you!

And while we were in Ohio, 

we picked up the newest addition to our family. 

 Meet Bella! Isn't that the cutest little PINK tongue! 

Poor little Bella has been through the mill, literally and figuratively. 

She was born in a puppy mill in New York where she spent the first eleven months of her life. She was then taken to a horrible dog auction. 

 This chain was welded around her neck for the auction and shows her auction number and USDA tag. 

If it weren't for the wonderful rescue group HALO, she would have been sold to another puppy mill where she would have spent the rest of her life in a wire cage forced to continuously breed. 

 There's that cute PINK tongue again!

Bella is a purebred Havanese and turned one year old in April. After she was rescued from the auction, she spent the next two months at her foster Mom's, learning how to be a pup and how to trust humans. I have wanted a Havanese for a long time so when Chipper passed away in April, I decided to see if there was a Havanese rescue and thus discovered HALO. She is the sweetest little thing and is learning so fast. 

 When she was rescued her beautiful coat had been shaved down almost to the skin and she only weighed 10 pounds, as you can see in the pictures HALO took of her. 

But she has already gained two pounds and her hair is starting to grow in. She has quickly learned how to walk on a leash and has only had two "accidents" in the house. 

 Everyday she makes me laugh as she grabs my slippers and adds them to her collection of stuffed animals on the couch. 

You can read more about HALO at their website! 
And please stop by How Sweet the Sound for more inspiring PINK posts!

Scripture in Pictures Sunday

 You may click on the picture to bring up a larger sharper image,

then right click and save. 

Please stop by Spiritual Sundays where Ginger and Charlotte have more inspiring posts waiting for you!

Vintage Pink Seashell Bowls!

Happy PINK Saturday everyone!
Today I want to share one of my favorite treasures that I inherited from my Mom, 
this set of six vintage seashell bowls!
I love the soft PINK, yellow and turquoise borders on these bowls!

 The gold rim is such an elegant touch.

 The hand painted shells and corals are exquisite! 

 I don't think my Mom ever used these and I have never used them either!

 A number of them also have splashes of Lavender. 

 The bowls are not very deep but would be perfect for the soup course. 
They are approximately seven inches in diameter.

My Daddy bought these for my Mom at an auction many years ago. I don't know anything about these bowls but they do have this gold mark on the bottom. 

There is also a teeny blue stamp on the bottom of each but they are impossible to read even with a magnifying glass. If anyone has any information about these 
I would love to know!

Please stop by and visit with Beverly at How Sweet The Sound where you will find more inspiring PINK posts!

And Tasha at Frugalicious Me for even more PINKNESS! 

Have a wonderful weekend, xxoo Nan

Great Gunnera!

Welcome to Alphabe Thursday and the Letter G!
Holy cow, Great Gunnera! No... this is not something your High School Health teacher was embarrassed to discuss! 

Great Gunnera is a very unique and uncommon plant. 

 (Honeysome Aquatic Nursery)

Often called Giant Rhubarb and sometimes called The Dinosaur Plant, it is a native of the tropical forests of Costa Rica, Columbia and Brazil. The plant itself can grow to be ten feet high and just as wide, with single leaves reaching 4 to 6 feet across! 

 (photo found on Flickr)

Gunnera prefers wet, boggy soil and so it is a perfect plant to use beside a pond. It also prefers some shade, especially in hotter climates. I'm told it does not like cold weather nor does it like hot humid weather. I've also read that is very finicky and difficult to grow. Despite all this, I decided the unmatched drama of the foliage was worth a try! I located a nursery in Oregon, Forest Farm, that carries tuber plants at a very reasonable price. I ordered three and was very pleased with my purchase. Not only was the service fast, but the tubers were a really nice size with a great root structure and at least 3 new leaves on each plant. When the tubers arrived, I removed them from the small pots they arrived in and transplanted them into large pots for a few weeks so they could become acclimated to our climate. This past weekend I decided to plant them in the ground. I planted one at the edge of the pond near the waterfall, one towards the back of our yard in a very "natural" area and the third I planted in the shade garden off the side screen porch. 

 This is a shot of the one I planted near the pond. The other plant in the picture, the one in the far right,  is Alocasia Portora, another giant, tropical plant!
I can't wait to see how these guys perform and I'm hoping I'll have some spectacular pictures to share with you over the summer!
Please visit Jenny at Jenny Matlocks for more inspiring Big G posts!