Wednesday, February 24, 2021

Journals and Magnolia

 I have been writing a daily journal starting when my hubby, Will, died in 2016. Here is the cover of my new journal with a gardening theme.


 The above is a closeup of a portion of it. Below is the entire front cover, and the back cover is just as pretty.


This is my seventh journal, each one has a different cover, and all from the same publisher, and each has a magnetic clasp which holds it closed.  Each journal says "This is a Flame Tree Notebook" from Flametreepublishing.com My journaling is simple, I use stickers to brighten the pages. This is the first page of my new journal ready for me to write in.


 Below is another photo of my black tulip magnolia, taken on Feb. 17 2021. You can compare how the buds are more opened vs. the Feb. 1 photo in my previous post. The flowers are about three inches across now and when fully open about six inches across. I had this tree planted two years ago. I live in California, thus no snow at my house and I have a flowering magnolia. There are quite a few magnolias in my town, most of them white and some of them pale pink, so mine stands out with its bright color. All the magnolias are pretty, in my opinion.





I hope today finds all of you blog friends around the world warm and safe and healthy. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you, I got my second Covid vaccination on Feb. 19. I am happy and feel a bit more safe. Experts say even after we get the second shot we should avoid eating in restaurants and seeing movies in theaters. This is a LONG haul of isolating. In a few days I am going to a friend's house for coffee on her patio staying six feet part, since we both are vaccinated. My dog, Bounce, is invited, and we will take a walk wearing masks after coffee. My friend loves Mr. B and he loves her.
Today, Feb. 25, I added the above photo of my last year's journal. It has a metallic sheen to it and a Japanese temple and waterlilies and an egret. I tried to put the photo right after the other journal cover photos but of course, blogger did what blogger does, and here it is at the end of my post. I wanted to show you how varied the covers are by that publisher.

41 comments:

DawnTreader said...

'Congratulations' on the vaccinaton :) I expect it will be at least a month (probably more) before it's my turn to get my first shot...

Olga said...

OOOoo, I need to up my journal game, mine are kind of a messy mix.
That magnolia is so beautiful. Didn't even know there was such a thing. I loved seeing it.

Linda Reeder said...

Congratulations on getting your Covid vaccinations! We are scheduled for our second dose on Saturday.
Your dark magnolia is beautiful! We will have to wait a bit for Magnolias here in Seattle.

Marie Smith said...

Glad to know you are vaccinated completely.

The journal is a pretty one and such a good idea.

DUTA said...

Congrats for having had the second vaccine dose!
Please don't give up the mask and distancing, until we are allowed to do so (which will probably be when the pandemic ends).

Granny Marigold said...

Your Magnolia is absolutely beautiful. Such a gorgeous shade of pink.

Pom Pom said...

I'm glad you feel safe, Terra!
I love those journals and I love stickers, too!
God be with you today!

Ann said...

What a pretty journal. I've never been very good at writing in journals. I've tried but usually give up after a couple days. Maybe I should give it another shot. I've never thought of using stickers. That's a good idea

The Weaver of Grass said...

Your journal is a lovely idea.

Salty Pumpkin Studio said...

Happy vaccinations and coffee on the patio!

Jennifer said...

Your magnolia flowers are glorious! I love that deep rich color.

Great news that you're fully vaccinated! I'm so glad you can resume a somewhat more normal life again. I can't wait until we get our second shot March 12. I'll feel so much safer then. :)

Mari said...

I like that journal and I'm impressed you do it so faithfully!
Enjoy the time with your friend!

Juhli said...

Yeah for the second vaccination! The new journal and your flowering magnolia are both gorgeous.

Miss Merry said...

Congratulations on the vaccine shots! I am one year too young to get on the list for my state at the present time. My neighbor got her first shot today and she is very excited. I just can't wait, even though I know it will be a new normal. I tried journaling once. I did pretty well with a daily journal for several months, but could not continue after a very sad and shocking event. I think about getting back to it one day. I admire how long you have been able to do it.

Marcia said...

Your magnolias are beautiful. No flowers blooming here except what's inside. We had our first shots yesterday and look forward to no. 2 and then driving to see granddaughter #3 in Buffalo.

dori said...

This is a very nice cover for your new diary! The first sentence: THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD is so great! I also LOVE the Psalm 23 very much!

Congratulations for this beautiful Magnolia! It's interesting to see the same bush from the begin of this month.

Also in Europe we hope for better immunity against Covid witht he medicines. But we still only had the medicine for the very old people. We hope, that everyone will be sheltered unttil autumn. May the Lord be our shepherd - THE LORD IS OUR SHEPHERD!

Many greetings from the Bavarian Forest, our Magnloia still is sleeping, but spring appears.

Betsy said...

Such a beautiful journal and magnolia. We're a long, long way from flowers here. It's usually May before anything starts showing up. :-)
I'm so glad you got your second vaccine. I'm STILL trying to get an appointment for Dennis and I'm under the age cutoff so who knows when I'll get it. My cardiologist says I have underlying conditions and should have been in the first group, but the state seems to disagree.
I did see a doctor on the news yesterday say that if both people have had the vaccine, you don't need to distance or wear masks. Only when in public places. I'm so looking forward to that day. I really wanted to have both of us vaccinated before we travel in May but I'm not sure that's going to happen.
Have a great day and enjoy that beautiful magnolia.
Blessings and hugs,
Betsy

Kathy G said...

I am getting so used to wearing a mask I think it will feel strange to go into a place without one.

Linda said...

Your journal is beautiful! I have used journals from the same publisher since 1985...not the same as yours but from Michel Design. 2020 was the last year they would publish so I had to find a new one for 2021. I need one with dates and spaces and I found something that works for me. Journal keeping is how I keep my years in order and how I can go back to a point in time. Now I am printing off my blog posts year by year. I have blogged since 2010 and am printing out one a month - with most years requiring four books - so I have some catching up to do.

We have had both of our vaccines, too.....and are doing as you are - still taking precautions.

mamasmercantile said...

So glad you got your 2nd vaccine, it must make you feel a whole lot safer. Beautiful journal, so pretty.

Jeanie said...

What a beautiful journal. I believe having one we love makes us more faithful in using them! And your flowers are beautiful.

Congratulations on your vaccine completion. Yes, it will be a long haul but we can relax a little bit and that will be a relief.

The Feminine Energy said...

Have a wonderful time with your friend. You will be perfectly safe if you do as you describe. Enjoy the fellowship... it is good for the soul & spirit. ~Andrea xoxo

Henny Penny said...

That is a beautiful journal, and so is the Tulip tree. That is the prettiest Tulip tree I've ever seen! My husband and I got our second Covid vaccine on Tuesday. So glad to have both. We feel safer too.

Sam said...

Congratulations on getting both doses of the vaccine accomplished. I got my first shot on the same day you got your second. My wife, who is four years younger than me, is scheduled for her first dose a week after I get my second one. It's a long haul, but we're getting there.

What happens next is going to be interesting. I suspect that even if told to continue doing what we've been doing for the last several months, people are going to say enough is enough after being vaccinated. We plan to lighten up a little bit after the shots, but we are not going to go crazy and reckless. Right now just hoping to make my youngest grandson's high school graduation in May...that would be a giant step forward.

oldgreymareprimitives said...

I tried journaling many times but for some reason felt pressured,and always quit within weeks, yet here I am after 12 years blogging and now on IG and I feel 0 pressure yet it's the same darn thing. Who knows? Can't wait for my second shot, but I will still be very careful, perhaps from now on as anything else will now feel weird after 14 months alone. Stay safe Stay well- <3

Nellie said...

Your journals are lovely! Very creative! I tend to scribble along in mine. We had our second vaccine dose on February 9, which means our vaccine immunity kicked in earlier this week. After almost a year of not going into stores, etc., we’ve been gradually reentering the public....wearing double masks and armed with gloves, hand sanitizer, and wipes....even aerosol spray! This still is not the time to take chances, especially with the variants that are developing. Also, the vaccine doesn’t give complete immunity to having the virus, just gives the protection of a less serious time. One step at a time!

Beside a babbling brook... said...

What a beautiful Journal.

Wondering if you or your friend, has side effects from the shots...?

📕 📗 📚 📙 📘

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

Such a lovely journal! I'm afraid most of mine have been whatever I can lay my hands on, sometimes just 8 1/2 x 11 typing paper and various notebooks. I did start my 1,000 gifts journal in a lovely book given to me by a friend. ~ That magnolia is a beautiful color!! Have a great weekend ~ FlowerLady

Britta said...

It is a very long time they keep us "inside" - people in Germany are becoming tired of it, and different from the USA our vaccination progress is very slow. So people with brain wear a mask (and in shops, trains, busses everybody have to - though many are very careless, and of course there is not much personal to control them).
Your magnolia is beautiful!
I write diaries since I am 10 years old (still have all of them, which brings up the question whether to keep them or not)

Christine said...

Good that you got your vaccine, Canada is delayed a bit.

Virginia said...

Your journal book is beautiful, I'm trying to find something at the moment to document my poetry in but as I type it I keep getting a little bit stuck, I've tried handwriting it but I make far too many changes, so that won't work, I was look at travel journal designs as an option, but it is still not quite right.

I know my Mum kept a journal for an academic doing a study on bereavement years ago, she wrote about my Dad in great detail and said it was cathartic for her at the time.

Your flowers are beautiful, living in Yorkshire we've only just got the pots at the back of the house to defrost, I'm hoping I can get some flowers for them soon to add to the spring bulbs we have.

I hope you are having a great weekend!

Virginia said...

Your journal book is beautiful, I'm trying to find something at the moment to document my poetry in but as I type it I keep getting a little bit stuck, I've tried handwriting it but I make far too many changes, so that won't work, I was look at travel journal designs as an option, but it is still not quite right.

I know my Mum kept a journal for an academic doing a study on bereavement years ago, she wrote about my Dad in great detail and said it was cathartic for her at the time.

Your flowers are beautiful, living in Yorkshire we've only just got the pots at the back of the house to defrost, I'm hoping I can get some flowers for them soon to add to the spring bulbs we have.

I hope you are having a great weekend!

Kay said...

I think I recognize the temple in your last journal. It's in Japan and called Kinkakuji or Temple of the Golden Pavilion according to Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinkaku-ji

I thought it was just Golden Temple.

Your journals are so gorgeous. I always kept journals, but now my journals are mostly just when I travel since I blog so often.

Barb said...

Hi Terra~


Your journal is just beautiful, and I love the idea of stickers...so pretty!

I have always loved Magnolias. My husband was working in Alabama for a while, they were everywhere there, mostly white ones. I have never seen a Magnolia the color of yours! You are so lucky to live where you can grow them. I live in Idaho, I'm sure they would never survive here!

I got my second shot the beginning of Feb., and it feels like new found freedom. We have eaten at restaurants, but the theaters here are still closed, not sure if I would attempt going anyway.

Have a wonderful week!

Hugs and Blessings,
Barb

Liz Hinds said...

I misread your post and thought they were extremely early tulips! Beautiful magnolias.

And the cover of your new journal is delightful.

Red Rose Alley said...

Your new journal is so pretty, Terra. I like how colorful it is. That's nice that you write in a journal. I do as well, but it's been awhile since the move to the mountains. So glad you got your vaccine already. It must have felt good to visit with a friend for awhile and have coffee together. I remember seeing your magnolia flowers, and that's the prettiest vibrant color, they're gorgeous. Keep writing in your journal, Terra. That's a special thing to do. : )

Happy March days.

~Sheri

Martha said...

Hi Terra. I love your gorgeous journal and that black tulip magnolia is magnificent, I've never seen one like that! You answered a question I had asked in my reply to your comment on my bog about where you live that you don't need AC. I've always assumed our weather was similar, but I guess not as much as I thought! I'm so glad to hear you have had your vaccines, no idea how long I might have to wait here in Florida. I hope you enjoyed the visit with your friend and keep on journaling. Thanks so much for stopping by to visit me today. :)

Bijoux said...

Those are the prettiest journals! I love magnolias. They remind me of Easter at my grandma’s. She had a pink/white one.

Buttercup said...

Love the cover of your latest journal. I'm three weeks out from the second vaccination and starting to branch out. I even looked at flights today. Not booking anything, but so much has started to feel possible.

Vagabonde said...

Your journals are lovely. I have never seen a black tulip magnolia. There are loads of magnolias around here, but they are huge trees with white flowers, usually. They are pretty though.

Blondie's Journal said...

Congrats on the vaccines! It is definitely smart to keep up the masks and SD until we are sure our social groups are vaccinated. And I doubt I'll ever stop when shopping or dining out. Now that spring and summer are coming, we in Chicago will be able to dine outdoors (and indoors if that's your preference).

I enjoy journaling- hence my blog name, but I've been somewhat busy. I hope to get back to doing a few pages in the morning. Your journals are beautiful. We have so many choices for journals, planners, and calendars now, nothing like when I was in my 20's, 30's, and so on. Just a regular lined notebook. I doodled in mine to make it pretty!

Take care and be safe!

Jane❤️