Tuesday, May 14, 2019

Friends, Happiness, Cats and Violets

Here is a darling card I received from Diane, Diane Wants to Write a long time blog friend and penpal, it came all the way from the Philippines. The African violets are from Wei, a friend in town, and she moved here all the way from China when she was a college student.
The card says "Do one thing every day that makes you happy." I am always on the look out for those things. The card itself does that for me. I am going to buy a frame for it, it is 5 1/2 by 5 1/2 inches. Actually I might frame all 4 cards from Diane, they would look cheery hanging as a group on a wall.
Now I will look up how to care for African violets. I love that color! I think it will thrive with my orchids near my patio doors. The light is from the east, and I will set the pot in water for an hour once a week with a bit of plant food until the soil feels damp. If you have better African violet care tips let me know please.
Here are two more cheery cards from Diane:
The card with the bear says "Do small things with great love." I recall reading that Mother Theresa said this.
The following card from Diane arrived today, it is funny and I added it right now.

I like having fun reminders around my house that give me smiles. Violets and cards from friends, that will do it.

38 comments:

Tammy@T's Daily Treasures said...

How nice that you are able to receive cards all the way from the Philippines. I like the messages on them. The Kuwait postal system is pathetic. 5 pieces of my personal mail all lost a couple of years ago. I have no doubt it arrived here, but what they did with it after that is anyone's guess. :(

Betsy said...

What fun cards!!!! I love them all and the violet is the exact same one I gave to my Mom on her last Mother's Day before she passed. Dad gave it back to me and I had it for almost 25 years before it died. I think it was a record with a plant for me. Thank you for the memory. Have a wonderful Tuesday my friend!
Blessings,
Betsy

Jeanie said...

What lovely mail you received! That's such fun!

Junkchiccottage said...

Such sweet gifts. How nice. Have a great week.
Hugs
Kris

kath001 said...

I once bought several small African violets as gifts, and for some reason or other got stuck with them. I can't keep a cactus alive, but I had those violets for years, and they thrived and got so big. I think because they lived near my kitchen sink...they were under the florescent under-cabinet light and right by the water source so that I couldn't forget to water them (I spent a good portion of my day doing dishes back then, so they got a lot of my attention). Nobody who knew my track record with plants could believe it. :)

Yours is very pretty, and I love the cards!

Granny Marigold said...

I have an African violet exactly that colour. It's blooming but that's just because I bought it that way. I don't have much luck getting them to rebloom and usually give them away to someone who has that 'knack'.

Barbara said...

Words do a lot to make me happy and a lot of times we do find them on cards. I also save quotes I like from Pinterest. It's often the nudge I need to make my day.

Linda said...

What a good friend and such great cards! Framing them is a wonderful idea!

Susan Heather said...

All lovely cards and the African Violet is a great colour.

Starting Over, Accepting Changes - Maybe said...

Sweet gifts like that make a day so much brighter.

Carole said...

Love your cards - and their messages. Cheers from Carole's chatter

Pamela M. Steiner said...

I love that card too. That is frame-worthy for sure!! As far as your violets go, I planted mine in pots that have a special saucer attached to the bottom with a port to pour the water in from the bottom. Never water from the top. And, a friend gave me a bottle of African Violet food a couple of years ago, and it lasts forever, because you only add 7 drops to a quart of water. I water mine every week, using the water that has been diluted with the 7 drops of food, and that is enough to water all three of my larger violet plants. I keep them in a sunporch room that has good eastern light and also some southern exposure, but not direct southern. They have done very well. I pluck out the dead blossoms and leaves and just be sure to do the watering once a week from the bottom and they should be good. Enjoy!!! It is the one houseplant I have managed to not kill. LOL.

Barb said...

Hi Terra~

Thanks for visiting my blog, I always love to hear from you! Your African Violets are just beautiful, I'm sure you have them blooming beautifully all summer. The cards are just beautiful and I love the positive sayings on them!

To answer your questions on my blog...yes, on the other side of the headstone it has Doug's last name, and the date he was born and died. He was a cowboy, so the carvings on the back are of calf ropers. He was an awesome young man, only 19 years old when he passed away. We were excited when we found his beautiful resting place.

Enjoy that gorgeous flower and please post pictures of it's progress!!!

Hugs and Love,
Barb

Blondie's Journal said...

I love all of the cards but the first one really makes me smile. Something we all need to do! I think there are so many beautiful cards out there to purchase, many on quality paper. Yes, frame them as art! But yours are extra special as they came from friends!

Jane x

Henny Penny said...

I love those cards! All of the verses are good reminders, and will be pretty framed. African violets would never bloom for me until we moved into the cabin. Now I have three in my little kitchen window which gets the morning sun, that bloom continuously.

Lin said...

oh, those cards!! Love the messages!

Linda Reeder said...

I have no luck with African violets. I do love your cards!

Lark said...

I love these! thanks for sharing. :)

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

What upbeat cards. Oh to be able to, "Do one thing every day that makes you happy."

I'm not good with houseplants at all.

Enjoy the rest of your week ~ FlowerLady

only slightly confused said...

Some good advice in those cards. You can get some really good tips on African Violet care on line. I can tell you the little I know.....the pot should be 1/3 of the width of the plant crown in size, water from the bottom. Let them dry out completely betwen waterings, don't get water on the leaves if you can help it and use an african violet specific soil and plant food. Do not place in direct sunlight. That's all I got.

Billy Blue Eyes said...

nice reminders, I like the cards. Long time since we had African violets, I miss them on the windowsill

Tanza Erlambang said...

lovely messages on the card

Fun60 said...

I haven't seen African Violets for a long time. They were one of my mum's favourite houseplants. I like the cards. How kind of your friend to send them.

Simply Shelley said...

What sweet cards,and a neat idea to display them. I love hand written letters from far away places...they are like little presents in the mail. I have a few pen pals,one from Ireland. Blessings

Shug said...

African Violets are a favorite of mine.....Hand written notes are becoming an obsolete thing...Happy to see that some still exist.
Happy Memorial Weekend

Debbie said...

i too like having fun reminders around my house that make me happy!! flowers are always a plus!! thanks so much for your kind warm thoughts today!!

Diane Writes said...

Hi Terra! Apologies, I don't anymore blog hop and comment these days. But sure enough, I will never stop sending you postcards. Especially, the happy and feel good cards. I'm so happy that you love each cards. And I'm more than happy because you even have plans to frame them. yay!

Thank you to everyone here who also appreciated the cards. Let me take this opportunity as well, if anyone here among your friends would love to receive postcards from the Philippines, please don't hesitate to email or drop by my blog. :D

Wishing you a great week ahead!

Ramana Rajgopaul said...

Thanks for visiting my blog and commenting. You have a nice blog too and I intend visiting as often as you post. I have subscribed to your posts by email.

Changes in the wind said...

Hi there, thanks for stopping in and leaving a comment! Hand written notes are not common anymore but always appreciated when recieved.

Susan Kane said...

Should make that happy momentos around my house. They are in some curio cabinet. African violets!!

Gattina said...

That is an excellent idea to have this phrase "Do one thing every day that makes you happy"in front of you especially when you wake up in the morning and try to find something !

Liz Hinds said...

They are lovely cards. What a kind friend.

Sandi said...

Be truthful, gentle, and fearless...POWERFUL words!

My Tata's Cottage said...

I love your cards! You have such an amazing friend. It makes me sad not enough people send old fashioned mail theses days. I love it and when I do receive something I jump for joy! I prefer kindness anytime. Thank you for sharing. xo

Retired Knitter said...

Such unique and positive cards. In these times, these little reminders are so important.

Cynthia said...

Wonderful messages for times like these!

Blondie's Journal said...

What a nice thing for your friend to do...lovely gifts! I love getting anything from overseas. Even the stamps excite me!

Stay well, Terra!

Jane

Lauren at Wonderfully Made said...

It's always fun to receive actual MAIL but especially in these difficult days! Definitely a boost to the spirit and those cards are so adorable!