Amaryllis

Before Thanksgiving I purchased three big Amaryllis bulbs at a local nursery, dreaming of beautiful blossoms bursting forth at Christmas and lasting for weeks during the January freeze.  For several weeks only one of them grew.  Then the second began to sprout, but the third bulb did not even peak above the dirt until just before Christmas.  The first one bloomed in time for Christmas and really looked spectacular ... the second bulb peeped up, started to sprout, and  kept growing and growing and growing until I wondered if it would stop!  Then it bloomed in all its glory about a week after Christmas ... the third little fellow is sprouting well but no blooms yet!  It's been interesting watching them and wondering what will happen next.

I decided it was rather nice that one bloomed in time for the Christmas celebrations .... and then this second one that was getting taller by the minute bloomed about a week ago after all the decorations were dismantled and tucked away.  Instead of the naked emptiness that often seems to be left after the tree is down, there is a bright and cheery Amaryllis standing proud and tall.  And ... there is still the promise of the third bulb getting blooms later this month.  Rather nice.

I think I'll try this again next year .... and may try to save these bulbs in a mesh bag hanging in the basement.  Do you think they will winter over for another year when they are finished blooming????

With the evenings so dark and still and way too cold to go outside, I decided to try my hand at doing some watercolor. I love to draw and have painted with acrylics,  but I never did any water color painting,  It always seemed to me to be too hard to control or something.  I thought it might run all over the paper and get soggy and drool where I didn't want it to go.  After a visit to Michael's and a dig through my art supplies in the box here at home, I bought a product I did not even know existed.... water color PENCILS!  Using the pencils and also some water color paints, a wet brush and a pad of water color paper, I played around and experimented one cold night.  Then I got brave and decided to try a flower.

It was fun and relaxing.  The time flew by.  Before I knew it, the evening came to a close and it was time to go to bed.  I may try another picture and try to get better at this.  Perhaps something like a violet next?

Blessings,

Janet