A Magical Garden

Hi friends! How’s life? I hope all is well. We are preparing for our trip to Disneyland to celebrate Grace’s 8th Birthday! She is beyond excited! Claire on the other hand, has decided that sleep is rather over rated and has nightly parties in her crib – laughing, talking and calling out to me. I’m exhausted, to say the least! I’ll be glad when this little night owl phase passes.

Anyway…A couple of weeks back we visited a magical place right here in Lake Oswego – The Elk Rock Gardens. It was a gorgeous Spring morning, so Grace and I headed over there to stroll the many paths that crisscross this enchanting place. I, of course, took a plethora of pictures, so I thought I would finally share them with you…

What an amazing morning we had exploring this wonderful place! As Spring comes into full bloom, I encourage you to check out local gardens in your area! It’s so easy to forget about these precious places and just get caught up in our day to day tasks. So much inspiration can be found in nature!

Have a beautiful rest of the week!

xo,

Ivy

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May Flowers : Ranunculus

Hello there. How’s life been treating you? Despite the rain, we have had some lovely sunny weekends, one of which was Grace’s 6th birthday. It was a wonderful little family celebration and Grace had a blast.

Since the color pink was her first choice for party decor, I bought home bundles of ranunculus! One of my favorite flowers and a welcome guest at my table after a long gray winter! How can you not love all those ruffles?  To me, they are the next best thing to a peony, which by the way, are sprouting up in my garden! Can’t wait to see them!

After the party celebrations were over, I couldn’t help but do a little photo shoot with these wily blooms. Here are some May flowers for you…

I’m also in love with this beautiful vintage book – a recent find from one of my treasure hunting trips. Don’t you love pretty, old books?

Go treat yourself to a bouquet of fresh Spring flowers!

xo,

Capturing Fall

Hello there. Hope all is well in your world. Things have been a little crazy around here – good crazy – that is…but it hasn’t left me much time for my blog.  I was grateful to find a slow afternoon last week and a bright Autumn sun in the sky. Our sunny days are numbered now, so I knew this might be my last chance to get out into the garden and take pictures of all the gorgeous Fall color.

Are the leaves still turning where you live?

Have a beautiful Wednesday.

xo,

In the garden…

Hello friends! Hope you had a lovely weekend. I spent some time in the garden and took lots of pictures. I’m totally in love with the wisteria vine that covers the trellis on our deck. It smells heavenly and looks so pretty with fairy lights strung about. The blooms on our pink dogwood tree are fading but they are still so pretty in the last light of day…

The sun has been a little elusive since…but I’m hoping to see it’s shining face again soon!

Have a beautiful Tuesday!

xo,

Friday Escapes: Ireland

Happy Friday! With yesterday being St. Patty’s I thought it only fitting that we journey to Ireland today. I can’t wait! Let’s go…

Speaking of castles…you know I have a thing for them…what girl doesn’t? So of course, I found a gorgeous one for us to stay in! We are headed to Lismore Castle just outside of the town of Lismore in County Waterford. Map. If you want to stay at Lismore Castle you have to rent the whole thing out…it costs a fortune but I managed to pull a few strings and got us a deal. ;)

Oh and I have a surprise – I arranged for a coach to pick us up. Why? Because arriving at a castle in a horse drawn carriage is perfectly dreamy…

There is the castle up ahead!

Let’s check in and take a peek at our room and then we can explore the gardens.

So beautiful! Don’t you feel like a princess? Oh let’s stop in the drawing room and have tea and treats before we venture out…

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Let’s go for a stroll through the manicured grounds…

Well…I must leave you now my friends. Have a rest on this bench, smell the roses and breathe in the gorgeous fresh air of the Irish countryside. Hope you enjoyed our little trip to Ireland.

Have a fantastic weekend!!

xo,

Images via here, here and here. Sounds via here.

Flowering Branches

We’ve been a having a lot of rain lately and well…honestly… it’s getting a little tiresome but I am taking great pleasure in witnessing the slow bloom of all the flowering trees. Dogwoods, cherry blossoms, camellias. I’ll take them! Give me some brightness and beauty amidst the gray!

This weekend, I plan on going out into the garden and bringing in some of these gorgeous flowering branches. They make the most beautiful display. Inexpensive, dramatic and inspiring you can’t help but want them in your home. Check out these gorgeous images via Style and Home.com…

Don’t you love the deep shades of navy, teal and amethyst and how they contrast against the lightness of the blooms? So lovely!

What spring blossoms are you enjoying where you are?

xo,