Sistertime!

My sister, Ella, is my only sibling.  We are 19 months apart in age...she being the oldest. She lives just a few minutes from me, and we enjoy spending time together whenever we can. Last week, we went to Melrose, FL and had lunch.  Afterwards, we rode about Melrose.  It was a beautiful Florida day!

Growing up, Melrose was one of those communities we quickly passed through on the way to the beach. We rarely stopped unless it was to pick up something we had forgotten to bring. 

Melrose feels like "old" Florida! There are beautiful historic homes and buildings, sparkling lakes, palm trees, citrus trees still covered in fruit and moss covered oak trees. What a fun and relaxing afternoon my sister and I had visiting this charming community!

The historical Melrose Woman's Club is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Such a beautiful and inviting entrance!

This looks like the perfect place to relax and unwind after a long day!

We saw several horses, but this one was our favorite! 

So pretty and sweet and even posed for a picture!

Buddies!

Beautiful and serene

There was someone swimming in the middle of this lake when I took this picture!!

Hopefully, he saw this sign!

So thankful for my sweet sister!  It was a great afternoon!

In butterfly news...I found this Monarch chrysalis on Tropical Salvia in my backyard!

Will hopefully see a Monarch butterfly in ten to fourteen days!

Hope your week is going well!  Can you believe this is the last full week of April!

xoxo,

Bobbie

Welcome to my blog!

I enjoy following other people's blogs so much, I decided to have my own blog to share a few pictures of all the things I love!

Spring has certainly arrived, and there have been a lot of butterflies fluttering around my yard. Did you know that butterflies were originally called flutterbys?

Butterflies are so much fun to photo! They can also be quite challenging! Just when you are ready to snap the perfect picture they take off! Sometimes, if you don't move, they will come back to the same spot. Patience is key!

Showcasing some of the butterflies that have been visiting my yard recently...

Palamedes Swallowtail on plumbago enjoying the warm sunshine.

Giant Swallowtail on pentas. These butterflies are the largest of all the butterflies in Florida!

Another beautiful butterfly that has made its appearance is the Spicebush Swallowtail. Love the blue color on this butterfly!

What a thrill is was to see my first monarch of the 2017 season on March 26th! So happy to have them back! If you want monarchs in your garden, plant milkweed. It is very important that the milkweed not be sprayed with any insecticide. It's so interesting to observe the four stages (the egg, the caterpillar, the chrysalis and finally the adult butterfly) that monarch butterflies go through, and I highly recommend it!

Recently, I purchased a blue passion flower vine and it has had its first flower! The flowers are only open for a day, but what an unusual and beautiful flower it is! This is a host plant for several butterflies including zebra longwings and gulf fritillaries.

I am going to end my first blog post with a Northern Parula that stopped by our bird bath recently. This tiny warbler is a migratory bird that winters in Florida. They will soon be leaving our area and heading north. So glad it came by for a visit!

Hope the rest of your week is wonderful! Remember to stop and smell the roses!

xoxo,

Bobbie