Pion Design - A Peaceful Christmas

Hello Everyone!

I love to mix and match Pion Design collections, so today I am sharing a wintery Christmas card featuring the papers from this year's Christmas collection "Long Ago in Bethlehem", and last year's collection "Greetings From the North Pole".

  

Pion products:

Long Ago in Bethlehem - Church PD9406

Long Ago in Bethlehem - Holy Scripture PD9410

Long Ago in Bethlehem - Borders PD9411

Greetings From the North Pole - Midwinter Night PD7601

Greetings From the North Pole - Snowflakes PD7604

Pion Design Palette - Pion White I PD6101

***

So I've been quite anxious to show you some photos of my almost finished garden patio, but I thought I should perhaps start with what it looked like before the construction. 

There was no roof and we tried two different umbrellas and one heavy duty gazebo. All three of them busted from the wind, and all three of them had dark brown fabric covers, which meant not only was the patio dark, but it made the house dark too. It was a dumping sight for every leaf, twig and piece of garbage that the wind carried, and the flooring was a complete disaster! Basically it was gross!!

It ended up being a big giant garbage area since it wasn't a usable space.

The clean up...

My first purchase for the new patio was my bird bath fountain...

First we built the frame which was quite tricky to design. I had to follow building codes, but yet allow for the storage room door at the end, the air conditioner unit, and how it was going to be constructed... since we are on the third floor, there's no way to get around to the outside to hammer in nails.

We installed clear corrugated roofing panels which will allow for lots of light but keep the elements and the garbage off of the patio. This part was also tricky since we couldn't get up onto the roof to attach it like you normally would.

Next I installed this 10" shelf to cover up the round plastic railing. This will give the squirrels a safe place to move around and a great photo environment for me.

I installed some lattice thinking it would give us privacy, but as you can see, it doesn't work that well. This autumn I will be replacing it with proper privacy lattice so people cannot stare up at me!

And last but not least, my carpet! This was a game changer. It's so easy to keep clean and it covers up that nasty nasty nasty flooring!!! It makes the whole patio feel like a piece of outdoor heaven!

So I set the fountain out, plugged it in and bought my first plant (which died because we had a cold snap, oops). 

Next time I will share some photos of the mostly finished patio as it looks now. Until then, no post would be complete without a couple of cute squirrel pics, so here we go...

"Listen lady, I haven't seen you in months... I'd take a heck of a lot more than just two peanuts if I could fit them in my dang face! 

~Missy~

"Nope, it wasn't me who ate all the cookies! I'm totally not guilty and you can't prove a thing!"

~Mama Maxine~

Oh Baby Kay, I do hope you grow into those ears! Lol

That's it for today. Thank you for stopping in and for all the amazing comments. If you have any questions or interesting tidbits about today's wildlife, please let me know.

Wishing You a Happy Christmas

Hello Everyone!

I'm excited to share with you today, my first holiday card featuring the new Christmas collection from Pion Design, "Long Ago in Bethlehem".

Pion Products:

Long Ago in Bethlehem - Shepherd's Watch PD9402 

Long Ago in Bethlehem - Mary and Joseph PD9401

Long Ago in Bethlehem - Blessings PD9407

Long Ago in Bethlehem - Church PD9406

***

I hope everyone had a good week. I got my railing planters installed finally, which gives me a wonderful layer of privacy and a great spot to hide the squirrel and bird food dishes. Still need a new couch and some new cushions for the chairs, but I feel like it's finally taking shape. Is it just me, or is a garden patio something that always needs just that one more little something. A project that never really gets finished. lol. 

"We don't need to explain our love. We only need to show it."

~Paulo Coelho~

"Crap, there's another one! I really need learn how to carry two peanuts at once!"

~Baby Cardinal~

When the light catches a male Mallard just right, their feathers are brilliant green, aqua and blue. The slightest movements can cause a colour change and it is magical to watch when they are wet!

"I am Mario. I bring you the love and I wish to be mine!"

"OK Mario, that's nice. Now can you back up a bit!"

The most amazing thing about being new to wildlife photography, is experiencing something for the first time. I actually squealed when I saw this handsome American Toad on the pathway. I took a few photos, then gently guided him to the safety of the grass. Thanks for my first toad experience little dude!

"FINALLY! Something to look at while I eat, that's NOT a frog's butt!" 

~Neddie (formally known as Nadia)~

 "Oooh myyyyy gaaaawd! Could the buffet line move anyyyyy slowwwwer!" 

~Petie~

 "Human, stop teasing me! I know just opened opened a bag of cashews, now hand 'em over!" 

~Baby Kay~

"Grateful for the corn, but any chance you could set this down on the ground next time? 

This dangling corn thing is playing havoc on my back!" 

~Mistro~

That's it for today. Thank you for stopping in and for all the amazing comments. If you have any questions or interesting tidbits about today's wildlife, please let me know.

Pion Design - Celebrate Togetherness

Hello Everyone!

Today I'm sharing another romantic card designed with the new Pion Design collection "Patchwork of Life". During the summer, there are always lots of weddings, engagements and anniversaries, and this card would be great for any of those occasions.

Pion products:

Patchwork of Life - Meeting Tom PD9205

Patchwork of Life - Borders PD9211

Patchwork of Life - Family Quilt PD9212

Pion Design Palette - Pion Green II PD6108

***

Christmas will be here before you know it, and Pion Design has released a sneak peek of this year's Christmas collection, "Long ago in Bethlehem". Release August 3rd!

***

This has been one of my favourite summers with regards to the weather. I can't believe how mild it has been, with lots of rain and very few days over 35 degrees! I spend my time walking the trails and sitting on my new garden patio. It's almost finished, so I will post pics when it's finished.

Chickadee-dee-dee-dee.

I don't see many of these wonderful birds in the summer time. I sure do miss their morning songs and sweet personalities!

My first ever Great Blue Heron! I almost squealed when I rounded the end of the lake and there he was! What a gorgeous bird to see up close. Another one to cross off my wish list for this year!

My first time getting to see a Swan busking (raising their wings in the shape of a heart), so amazing! The lady trying to feed him thought it was a sign of friendliness. I didn't have the heart to tell her he was actually in attack mode. Lol.

"Mum, Mum, Mum, Mum. I think we're being watched!"

How excited was I to see my first baby Raccoon!! And what a cutie he was, hiding underneath his Mom's tail, so adorable!

"The sun makes me sooooo seeeeeepy!" 

~Baby Kay~

"No, I did not lick the cookie bowl clean! What would make you think that!" 

~Petie~

And in the corn cob corner, weighing in at just 400g, we have Teddy the Squirrel! Oooooh, he's going for the difficult full-face technique, scoring a 9.8 from the judges! That's gonna be hard to beat folks!

I would like everyone to meet a new visitor to the Johnson Buffet. This handsome little dude is named Porter and he is so unique with that gorgeous frosted tail! He's very shy, but very brave and I can't wait to get to know him better!

These are the flowers that I decided to plant along the railing. Unfortunately, there's nothing but stems left, as the squirrels love the yummy petals and buds. Oops. I am now in the process of replacing them all with Marigolds, rumours say squirrels won't eat those. We'll see. lol

That's it for today. Thank you for stopping in and for all the amazing comments. If you have any questions or interesting tidbits about today's wildlife, please let me know.