What's New?

First off, I apologize for the complete radio silence for the past couple of weeks, but I have been quite under the weather with a bout of bronchitis.

I took this photo November 13th.  Too soon for snow!

Anyhow, I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving (for those of you who celebrate!)!  I had a very laid back day with my husband at home.  Even though I am still feeling crummy, I did manage to make us a very mediocre Thanksgiving dinner.

Some very exciting news: we got a new furnace!

Shiny new furnace!

Old (ancient) furnace

We put off buying one last year, but this year the yearly inspection revealed a crack in one of the face plates, which is pretty dangerous.  Besides, the old furnace was built in 1983, and it was rather inefficient.  I'm guessing it was older than many of you, dear readers!  The new furnace is over 96% efficient and Energy Star rated.  Fancy!

In other news, I bought some stuff during the Sephora sale (after my birthday was over, so I didn't include it in my birthday haul post).  Unfortunately, I have been feeling so poorly that I haven't played with any of it yet.  

So, that's what's new with me.  How have you been?

Birthday Haulage

I got some stuff for my birthday.  It was nice that the Ulta 20% off coupon and the Sephora VIB sale coincided with it.

From Ulta:

Olay Regenerist Serum: This is a staple in my skincare routine, and I was out of it.  Not very exciting.

Olay Regenerist Cleansing Cloths: There were free with the serum.  Not very exciting.

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Eyeshadow Palette: Very exciting.

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Lip Pencil in Turn On: I have heard nothing but raves for this lip pencil, so I really wanted to try one.  Turn On is a slightly pearlescent cool rose.

Japonesque Pro Performance Lipstick in 05: I haven't heard anything about these, but the color looked so pretty I decided to try it.  This is a niiiiiiice lipstick.  I'll try to do a review soon.

From Sephora:

Josie Maran Pure Argan Oil: A staple in my skincare routine.  Not particularly exciting, but a nice, luxurious purchase.

Sephora Daily Makeup Brush Cleaner: A necessity.  Not exciting.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Tamanna Palette: Very Exciting.  I missed out on the Amrezy palette, but I'm now okay with that.  I read that this one is better quality, and the colors and packaging are beautiful.

I like the "Get the Look" cards that come with it.

I kind of have eyeshadow palettes coming out my ears (great visual, right?), but they are my weakness.

I also got some sparkly Tarina Tarantino pink gumball earrings.

And, I got some free cereal bowls with the purchase of some cereal.  I chose Tony the Tiger and Toucan Sam.

I bought a couple more things from the Sephora VIB sale which haven't arrived yet...

Yay for birthdays, right?

Mid/Late Fall Garden 2014

This is a continuation of yesterday's garden post.  It had been so long since I uploaded a garden post, that I needed to break it up into two parts!

Photos are chronological:

Mid September

I planted some new daylilies and bulbs.  I get very dirty when I garden.

These are daylilies "Nosferatu", "Barracuda Bay", and "Eleanor"

Hydrangea

I love how the blooms change from white to dusty pink in the fall.

We acquired a new Venus Fly Trap.  Variety: "Angel Wings"  This is a rare fly trap that has traps that are so convex that they can't close -- the closed trap is a new baby trap that hasn't opened up yet.

Early October

Chrysanthemum

This is the flower from the "Judith Hindle" pitcher plant.

"Judith Hindle" is the tall ruffly pitcher plant.

Sarracenia leucophylla

Sarracenia minor

Venus Fly Trap "Maroon Monster"

Hydrangea

 The hydrangea blooms darkened and got very pink in October.

Late October

Hydrangea

The leaves on the hydrangea bushes turned yellow while the blooms stayed pink.  I think the effect is stunning.

We bought a tropical pitcher plant (Nepenthes)!

I love the way a carpet of fallen leaves looks.

I guess I didn't take too many late October garden pictures.

Early November

Hydrangea

The hydrangeas are done, but I think the blooms still look cool, even though they are brown.

Chrysanthemum

Hosta

I think the hosta are pretty when they turn yellow.

Japanese Maple

We took all of the carnivorous plants in now that it is getting quite cold at night.

Whew!  That's a lot of changes in the garden!  Thank you for taking both yesterday's and today's garden tours with me!

Late Summer/Early Fall Garden 2014

I haven't done a garden update in ages.  The last one I posted was in August!  So naturally, lots has happened in the past couple of months.  Some late-blooming flowers bloomed, bulbs were planted, and carnivorous plants ate their fill before being taken inside for winter dormancy (we are putting them in the fruit cellar where it doesn't get warm, but doesn't get freezing for the winter).

Photos are chronological:

Late August 

Hydrangea

I wish I knew the variety, but it was in the garden when we bought our house, so I didn't choose it.

Sedum "Purple Emperor"

The bees love this one!

Hosta

I don't know the variety -- these were extra divisions from the Women's Club garden (we live down the street from the Women's Garden).

Early September

Toad Lily "Gilt Edge"

Sedum "Autumn Joy"

Chelone (aka Turtlehead) "Hot Lips"

The Caladiums were still going strong at this point.

Here are more panoramic type photos of the garden:

I decided to break up this garden post into two parts because it was getting so long.  Stay tuned for part two (mid and late fall) tomorrow!