A Kid's Passion For Birds

 

My 3-year old son has always been passionate with animals but his all time favorite are birds. While strolling at the mall the other day, he saw at a pet shop these cute little birds. He was looking for a blue macaw, just like in the movie "Rio". I just told him that these blue macaws are rare and is already in Africa together with their family. So he settled for a pair of canary birds. He was so happy walking around with those birds in their cage. children loves to have their own pets, It is also a way of teaching them how to be independent and  how to care for another living thing. Their happiness also becomes your happiness as a parent.

Before heading home, we went back to the pet shop to look for a decorative bird feeder, but none was available at the moment. The store owner advised us to check the home and garden store. So we went there immediately and found these cute decorative bird feeders which has attractive finishes that could also be a garden decor. I let him choose what he wants for his birds, and without hesitation he choose the fly-through round feeder. The store owner explained to us, that the bird feeder has a beautiful polished copper finish that arrives bright and shiny, but it will age and patina over time to a soft green color. He doesn't mind at all and still insisted on buying the round feeder. When we arrive home, his father is already waiting for us at the porch. He asked his father to make him a pole, where he could hang his copper bird feeder. Without a second thought and even though his Dad is tired from work, he immediately gather all the materials needed to put up a pole.

They were both planning to make a birds house this coming weekend. My son was very happy and looking forward for the weekends to come. Our child or children are our happiness, they are considered to be blessing from our Dear God. So we must know how to love, care and nurture them the right way because someday these kids will also be parents like us. With good manners and right conduct that they learned from us, parents, they will also hand it down to their own family someday.

Adding Window Screens For Extra Protection

 

Preparing the room for the coming of our second child is becoming an addiction. I wanted everything to be perfect, I wanted our child's room to be most comfortable and safe for her. The room is almost finish now, but, we are still making some changes to be sure that everything will fall to it's proper places. We know that she can't appreciate yet everything that we are doing for her. But, I know somehow that she will soon feel that she is very welcomed and very much loved by everyone, especially us, her parents and her older brother. We added some window screen to make sure that mosquitoes won't easily get in our house especially her room. My husband made the wooden window screens, good thing there is you tube, he watch the steps carefully and bought the materials needed in making one.

My husband had to remove the window box before he could successfully install the window screen. After the installation, he immediately placed the window box just below the window screen and he also added some elegant standard faux bracket to our window box. He saw these faux bracket while shopping for the materials of our window screen. It is ready made and just needs to be painted with the same color of our window box and just glue them to the bottom of our window box. We were very happy with the outcome of the window screen. Now, our minds will be at peace knowing that even we open the windows at night, the mosquitoes won't get in to our little girl's room.

Life is simple, but we are the ones who actually make things more complicated. We find satisfaction after overcoming many complicated situations in life, maybe that's the reason that we choose the path that is more complicated. Just like in decorating a room, we can choose to have less decor or furniture, but we choose to add more because we feel that we will be needing it all.  At the end of the day, we should be thankful to God that He never left our side even in the most complicated situation.

Caring For Your Plants At Home

 

The flowering plants on my garden are already in full bloom even before the rainy season started. Now, I am afraid that these beautiful plants would loose all of it's flowers due to heavy rain. So, I decided to move or transfer these flowering plants to a much safer place. Some of them I placed inside a nursery at the back of our garden, while the others I placed them in our porch to make sure that I can still see their beauty when I leave and go back home. I had spared most of my free time last weekend together with my husband and son to make sure that these plants are safe. We have moved them from the garden beds to pots and planters as well as hanging baskets, so that they can be moved easily and more freely to any part of the house or the nursery.

Although it's a bit tiresome, but we really are satisfied with the results. Most especially, when we saw the cottage weave self-watering hanging basket that we placed as a visual statement on our deck. We are now assured that our flowering plants would continue to bloom naturally, without having to loose it's petals or flowers due to heavy rain. We are also very pleased by how our deck looked like, due to the flowers that we placed in a hanging basket. Now, we don't have to worry about making sure that our plants are watered everyday. It's all thanks to the cottage weave self-watering hanging basket, because it gets to do the job for us. Not only that, the hanging basket is also weather resistant, it simply means that it can adapt to any weather conditions.

Flowering plants are meant to beautify our homes and gardens. Even in public places like parks, hotels, restaurants and resorts, these flowering plants gives color and adds up to the aesthetic of any location.  So in return, we must learn to protect them in any way that we can.

Ways To Use Your Window Boxes At Home

 

Window boxes around the house has been prominent, since we have a lot of windows. I made sure that every windows has it's own window box with flowering plants to compliment them. Making sure that the flowering plants are trimmed and well-watered are just some maintenance that I do from day to day. Although having all these plants inside and outside the house might be too exhausting to take care of but, the good thing is that I get to exercise everyday without leaving the house and paying extra in going to fitness gyms. These plants also also have very good effect not only on physical aspect but also on our mental outlook on life.

Every house in our neighborhood also have their own way of using window boxes. Some puts it in their patio, while others, hangs it in their veranda. It really depends where you want to place or display them. I remember, one of our neighbors invited us on their housewarming party. When I used their washroom, there I saw a beautiful window box with mixed bougainvillea vine arrangement. At first glance, I really though that flowers were real. I can't resist but to take a much closer look and feel the flowers to check. I was really amazed to find out that, it is an artificial mixed flowers and vines. I was fooled by my own eyes and laughed silently at myself. There are really numbers of ways in which we could use these window boxes as decoration at home. We can even use either live or faux plants to go with our window boxes. There is actually no limitations in creating your own style and design at home. It's up to you and your imagination, what place you want to present your guests with when they come by and visit.

Our life is also like a house full of windows. people can take a peek into our lives with these windows, but they would never know ho we really are until they enter our house.

Designing Your Own Living Wall Indoors

 

Time and effort are the two components on having a great project on our home. Designing a green wall which is diverse, eye catching, intriguing and simply a pleasure to look at is a complex task. Not everyone has skills to design and create their own masterpiece, that is the reason why others would hire people to do the work for them. Who wouldn't like to see plants as their paints and walls as their canvases. If you want your wall at home to be unique and simply a beauty to look at, you would need a strong eye for design and a whole lot of creativity. It also requires a strategic planning and an in-depth knowledge of countless plants species. You have to make sure that the plants you add to your living wall is appropriate for indoors, as well as their growing conditions should matter too.

There are actually many designs that we could copy from the web, or you could infuse your own ideas with the existing designs that you see on the web. While we were buying a gift for my mother in-law last time at a flower and gift shop, I saw a nice wall decor that they hang just behind the counter area. It is tuscan dragonfly wall plant. I got so interested by how it was cleverly design and made. It also has a removable glass wall hurricane at its top. I wanted to buy it as well, but the receptionist said that it was not for sale. And it was bought online by the store owner. The tuscan dragonfly wall planter is lightweight which makes it compatible to any wall types. I ask for the website where they bought it, and got surprised that we were buying from the same manufacturer. Because I have been busy these past few weeks, I was not able to check their website. But now, I am just waiting for the shipment to arrive. I am so excited to see the product and I already cleaned that area where we will hang the planter.

There are many benefits that we could receive in having a great living wall system or just by having plants indoors. Let us not take for granted the beauty they give and the healthy benefits that we get from them. Always remember, that indoor environments may be as much as ten times more polluted than the outdoor environment. So we must make our move, to clean the air inside our houses too.

The Beauty And Benefit Of A Window Box To Our Home

 

Window boxes are not always part of every house. Others say that having these window boxes might be too grandiose or extravagant. But what we really didn't know is that, window boxes have their benefits aside from being aesthetically beautiful. These window boxes bring life to an otherwise flat and boring facade of your house. They add depth  and dimensions, as well as, color texture and seasonal change too. Let us also not limit the use of window boxes t under windows, just because their name says so. A window box can also give dimension and interest to a fence, an expanse barren wall or even to a lifeless deck railings of your home.

Designers and architects in the past do not consider window boxes as part of the landscaping grounds or neither they are under the category of planting. But as years passed, these window boxes seemed to tie the house to the lawn and gardens, and thus help to produce the immediate effect of a harmonious space. They are particularly valuable in conveying a cozy and lived-in atmosphere to a new house. There are also many things to consider when adding a window box to your home. Just like, what type of plant could be best placed in a window box, as well as the type of soil let us not forget how we could water these window boxes. Because of our modern time, designers and manufacturers were able to make a self watering window box. These self watering window boxes are very helpful especially to homeowners because they won't have to worry about their plants, the self watering window boxes will definitely keep plants watered for up to three weeks outdoors.

Window boxes really do add a level of detail we don't normally see in a landscape. It also take a bit of your effort in terms of finding the right window box for your home and mounting it properly, as well as, tending it to the plantings and arrangements.

Junior Gardener In The Making

 

Gardening has given us a lot of benefits, not only physically but also mentally. Another good thing that I and my family was able to gain, is the fact that our son has also been participating and planting his own plants. It was really a good form of exercise for him, as well as a good form of bonding moments for us. It is much cheaper because, we do not have to go out of the house and spend money. Instead, staying at home and maintaining our own plants made our family closer to nature and understand the importance of these plants to our lives and environment. My son has a couple of flowering plants and fruits and vegetables planted on pots, he visits them everyday and checks to see any improvement. He also keeps tracks and draws the changes he sees in those plants.

A few days ago, my husband bought a fork and spade pot holder set for our son. Since, he has a passion for gardening and plants, we might as well support his hobbies. The fork and spade pot holder set holds a tiny terra cotta pot which is perfect for houseplants, as well as herbs for cooking. It was very rewarding to see, that as a family, we all share the same hobby and interest. Most children all around the world today are fond of computer games, cellphones, tablets and all other high-tech gadgets, I am just thankful that our son is different from them. Yes, he plays those high-tech gadgets too but, he sets limitation for himself and prefers to be with us while doing our household chores or taking care of our beloved plants.

Having plants to love and nurture gives us something to take care of which can enrich our lives. Knowing that we provide a happy environment for plants and flowers, it also helps us to feel fulfilled and needed.