SPRING BULBS IN THE GARDEN

Today I thought I'd share some of my
spring bulbs that are the first to
arrive this year.

Frankly, it's not that warm today.  I had 
considered a "Tea In The Garden" photo
shoot but changed my mind when I felt the air.

Like many of you, last fall I planted
bulbs all around and wondered how
many might make it through the winter.

At the end of last summer I dug out
one more little flower bed area into the lawn.
It doesn't seem all that big now but
it took me quite a while to get it done.

I am really glad I got that done.

I hope your spring is coming along and I
send my wishes that you be healthy and
keep safe during this difficult time!

PLEASE CHECK OUT MY BERNIDEEN'S TEA TIME ETSY PAGE

 I would love for you to check out

my Etsy Page which is

Bernideen's Tea Time:

I have been sewing and

shipping things:

This is one of  three different types

of bird cozies:

My cozies come in 4 completely

different sizes:

LEARNING SOMETHING NEW OR SOMETHING YOU KNEW BUT FORGOT

When we lived in Colorado Springs and

 I got a new camera, I figured out how to take

aperture photos.  You know the type of 

photos where you zero in on something

but the background stays kind of blurry.

After we moved - I forgot what I had

learned so this week I looked at the manual
for dummies but I must be really dumb because
I couldn't figure it out again.  This is what

 I love about the internet - you can find

instructions that make sense - right? 
 And by the 

way guess what
 has returned:

I do not like these birds.  I am happy to see
springtime finally arriving in Missouri.

Twice I have taken the wreath off my
front door because the purple finches
try to build a nest on top of it.  Can someone
please explain to me why they call them
purple finches when the male is red?

So I love all the daffodils that are
blooming now and the tulips are
coming just behind them!  Last
year I planted those double tulip
bulbs but really I find they are
so heavy they fall to the ground
so no more of those in the future.

I decided to use an older floral
on the door instead.

If you would like to practice
aperture photos:

This is for a D5100 Nikon:

Setting Up and Shooting in Aperture Priority Mode

1. Turn your camera on and then turn the Mode dial to align the A with the indicator line.
2. Select your ISO by pressing the i button on the back of the camera.
3. Press up or down on the Multi-selector to highlight the ISO option, then select OK.
4. Press down on the Multi-selector to select a higher ISO setting, then press OK to lock in the change.
5. Point the camera at your subject and then activate the camera meter by depressing the shutter button halfway.
6. View the exposure information in the bottom area of the viewfinder or by looking at the rear display panel.
7. While the meter is activated, use your thumb to roll the Command dial left and right to see the changed exposure values. Roll the dial to the right for a smaller aperture (higher f-stop number) and to the left for a larger aperture (smaller f-stop number).

TEA BY THE WINDOW

I thought I would set up a little tea time by

the sliding doors today and enjoy the

view of what is becoming a green back

yard.  We have had lots of rain and the

bulbs are coming up.

This morning they had a "senior hour" at

the market so we took advantage of that

and picked up some things.  I bought a

small package of pink roses and a stem of

baby's breathe to go with my daffodils.

I hope you love tea as we are

having some.

I have a collection of English Bone China
cups and saucers that I love.  

The spoon is a commemorative of
Queen Victoria's reign 1837 to 1897.

We have a warmer day today
so I am excited about that.
It could reach 70 degrees.
That should really draw the 
bulbs out of the ground.  

During this time we are staying in our own
homes and we can still go out into our yards.

I hope you are well and take care!

THE FISH THAT GOT AWAY OR THE TEAPOT ANYWAY

I know you all have a story to tell and

since we have "time to our hands" I

thought I'd tell mine.  About a 

month ago I was bidding for several

things on ebay.  I am sure many 

of you have done that before.  Back in
December I purchased 2 sets of antique

staffordshire dogs for my mantle - I 

wanted to go with white ones so
these arrived and are very old and
I love them.

If you are looking for the old staffordshire
dogs, they are reasonable right now from
England.  We have an unusual area next to
our kitchen called a Hearth Room and I
use it for my more formal furniture.  I don't
really have a dining room and our living room
area is more casual.

Now that we are retired we live in
a different way as it is just the two of us. 
 So one day earlier this year I saw a 
single white dog available and frankly
 really cheap on ebay. I thought I 
could add it in the middle.  Of particular 
interest to me was the fact that it was from an
 estate in the Lake District so that thrilled my
 little heart as I could imagine Beatrice Potter
 herself had been to visit the home where it 
came from. (not really)  I asked the couple
 how much the shipping to the US would be as
 they had not done that and naturally this can
 be expensive.  They said it was 10:00 PM
 at night there so I should not buy it but
 rather wait till the morning and they 
would post the shipping.

You are already guessing how this story is
going - right?  

Well, when I went to my computer in the
 morning - someone had purchased it of course
 and the selling couple apologized and said 
that had certainly never happened 
before - ha!

Now that was just my warm up story.

This happened the next day.  I had also
 been watching a certain historic type teapot 
which could never be used because of a
 large cracked piece in it.  The thing is
 though - it would make a great display
 piece.  It was very cheap too and no one
 was interested in it but me I thought and it
 was coming up for final auction the next
day in the afternoon.  I was ready
and excited but there was just one
little problem the next day.  I still don't
know why but my computer wouldn't let
me on online that day.  I tried all day
to no avail.  Someone got this teapot
really cheap: (ebay photos)

You can see the crack rendering the handle
useless to the right back.  But isn't this amazing
 with Queen Victoria in 1837 at her Coronation
 and in 1897 at her Diamond Jubilee! 
 Whoever has it -
I hope you love it!

  Here was the back:

So that's my FISH THAT GOT AWAY story......