Spring is here!

I have been struck this week with Spring FEVER! So many plants popping up in the yard. My first daffodil has bloomed along with another pretty little purple flower (who knows what this is??).



Inspired by the gorgeous Andalusian horse in the "Trash the Dress" video (see post below for link), I painted a romantic grey horse in flowers. I should have him up on Ebay shortly.





Last but certainly not least, in all the craziness that was March, I completely forgot to mention the gorgeous tulip photo I won in Meghann of Little Studio Photography and Jewellery's giveaway. Can't wait to frame it, I think I have just the right place! You can have one of these too, here is a framed one that she has in her Etsy store!

Where have I been?

The answer would be nowhere in particular. Obviously not on blogger, I haven't made a post in about a week. I managed to get a good start on my garden. Planted 3 types of onions, sugar snap peas, beets, radishes and 2 kinds of lettuce. This week I have a man coming with a tiller to expand the veggie garden and make another flower bed (can't wait). So when the weather starts to get warm and the plants begin to push themselves up though the soil, I have a very hard time focusing on painting and art.

I also managed to complete two custom signs this week. I was thinking I'd offer a few custom signs right here on my blog instead of ebay or etsy. I have time for 2 or 3 in the next few weeks. If anyone is interested, please contact me. Price for something like the sign below with your horse's portrait would be $100 + shipping (price depends on your zip code). I only have this 11" x 14" shape available right now. Payment can be made through Paypal or by check. Turn around time is 14-20 days.



Also wanted to share some amazing videos made by Horsefly Films. I'm not web savvy enough to put them on my blogger so you'll have to follow these links...
Epona, Fairytale Horses
Trash the Dress
Oroz Caballos

Ahh, if only I was rich...

Longwood Gardens Orchids

We went to Longwood Gardens over the weekend to see what was blooming. Oddly enough it's one of my 3 year olds favorite places (and mine too). Not much going on outside - some crocus, aconite and a very cool Korean rhododendron that had no foilage but beautiful purple blossoms. Inside they were having a big orchid event so I snapped a bunch of photos of some really gorgeous flowers to share...

Welcome Spring!

And Spring arose on the garden fair,
Like the Spirit of Love felt everywhere;
And each flower and herb on Earth's dark breast
rose from the dreams of its wintry rest.
~Percy Bysshe Shelley



Only a few more hours and it will officially be SPRING! I can't wait, I had to make a quick blog post with some photos that remind me of one of the most wonderful times of the year. Can't wait to get out there and play in my garden. I have to get some onions, peas, lettuce and spinach seeds to plant this weekend. There are all sorts of veggies that don't mind growing in cool weather.

Still haven't been able to paint. I'm feeling much better but still have a horrible cough. Worked on a commission some today but since I haven't painted in 2 weeks it's taking me a bit longer than usual. That and my 3 year old is in the me, me, me phase and really doesn't like me getting anything done. How much longer is it until she's in kindergarten?

Well, onto the photos and then a few blog awards I've been given recently.

Pictures of my last horse when he was just 5 days old. Boy, I miss him. He was all head and legs then!




Longwood Gardens, one of the most beautiful places on earth!




I want to thanks the following wonderful bloggers for my most recent awards:
Gems by Jerri
Little Studio Photography and Jewellery
Sand & Sea Designs

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Even though I'm fighting the flu, I had to write a quick post to wish everyone a Happy St. Patrick's Day.
I have a wee bit o' the green running through my veins. My Grandmother's Grandmother was named Anne Frances O'Hara. Can't get more Irish than that! I have a picture of her somewhere but I can't seem to find it.

"St. Patrick's Day is an enchanted time -- a day to begin transforming winter's dreams into summer's magic." ~ Adrienne Cook

Walls for the wind,
And a roof for the rain,
And drinks beside the fire --
Laughter to cheer you
And those you love near you,
And all that your heart may desire!
~Irish blessing

Silent Sunday - Beautiful Eyes

Zebras Frolic

To celebrate my husband's birthday yesterday we went to the Philadelphia Zoo. It was a nice day, warm but a bit blustery. One of my favorite animals to watch are the zebras. They're usually quite calm, munching hay or snoozing under a tree. I guess the wind and warmer temps had them feeling a bit frisky because they were putting on quite a show (click on each image for a larger, more detailed, picture) .

Chasing each other, round and round their pen...



Biting legs and necks...






Bucking and rearing...





I just want to thank everyone for their kind comments about losing my Grandparents. It really means a lot to me. It will be a hard week.
Getting lost on the internet is my great escape today.

Middle Creek

I've been going through a very rough patch lately with some deaths in the family. I thought we would go out to Middle Creek Wildlife Area to see the snow geese and get some fresh air. There were thousands there today. I believe they expect well over 50,000. You can't get very close but the sound is amazing. Tundra swans are also there. Click on the photos if you want to see a larger image.

Also updated my playlist on the right sidebar this week. There are some great new and old songs on there. If you like it, please let me know! I'm really enjoying the first song, "Furr" by Blitzen Trapper. They just played at a church in Philly, I'm sorry I missed it.

Rare Bird?

While out for a walk the other day a flash of red caught my eye in a pine tree. At first I thought it was just an ordinary cardinal but upon closer inspection I realized it was a bird I had never seen before. Now I have three bird feeders and a birdbath outside my window. I love to take walks in parks and through woods. I have several books on birds. It was such a surprise to see something new. He was hanging out in a pine tree with his mate. Luckily I had a camera and was able to take his picture. Wish it could have been a better shot. Of course people reading this probably see these birds all the time and think I'm weird for writing about it. According to my book he's a white winged crossbill and they don't usually venture down this far south.




I felt like painting a few signs today since my daughter went to spend the day with her Grandmother. Both pieces are currently on Ebay.

Tiger Cheese

Sorry, this post isn't about tiger cheese (although that is one of my husband's favorite cheeses - the cheese with the tiger on the label). I've been tagged again, this time by Linda over at The Briar Rose Gate. I had to play along because this one seemed really fun. The rules are take the 6th picture out of the 6th folder on my computer and blog about it. Since I have two huge picture folders that contain tons of sub folders and hundreds of photos, I've decided to do two photos.
The 6th picture out of the 6th folder on my hard drive was of a tiger from the Philly Zoo (America's 1st Zoo!). It was taken soon after they built their new Big Cat Falls, a really nice enclosure for the large cats. This picture was taken in the winter, the best time to visit the zoo if you hate crowds. I think when we went that time there were about 10 people in the whole place. We had a great time sitting and watching the cats. Tigers are my husband's favorite animal and we'll probably go there on Monday, his birthday.



The second picture was from my external drive where I store most of my photos. Oddly enough this is another photo from Alkmaar, Holland which I just posted about a week ago. The 6th picture in that folder is of a lady wearing in traditional Dutch dress on the opening spring day of the town's big weekly cheese market. You can see the Kaas Museum behind her. I didn't go into the cheese museum because I don't care that much about learning about cheese. I was more interested in the local beer museum:)




So today the little one went to spend the night at her "Grammy's" house and I get the next 2 days to paint! I haven't had a moment to paint in over a week so I'm really excited. I have two signs started and two commissions to work on.
Off to paint now!