Bellingrath Gardens--Theodore, Alabama



We had a picnic before touring the gardens. The best quote of the day came when Jennalyn, with a look of disbelief, said, "I just ate half a chicken!" :)





~Jennalyn~





~Stop and smell the roses~





"Look, I don't want to wax philosophic, but I will say that if you're alive you've got to flap your arms and legs, you've got to jump around a lot, for life is the very opposite of death, and therefore you must at the very least think noisy and colorfully, or you're not alive."  ~Mel Brooks





The tropical plants were delightful! However, the greenhouses were suffocatingly hot; making me realize I would not be in a very good mood if I ever had to move to the jungle. 



Hibiscus bloom



There were orchids of every variety--so beautiful!

I hope some day to meet God, because I want to thank Him for the flowers.  ~Robert Brault

"Look at the trees, look at the birds, look at the clouds, look at the stars... and if you have eyes you will be able to see that the whole existence is joyful.  Everything is simply happy.  Trees are happy for no reason; they are not going to become prime ministers or presidents and they are not going to become rich and they will never have any bank balance.  Look at the flowers - for no reason.  It is simply unbelievable how happy flowers are."  ~Osho

Flowers have an expression of countenance as much as men or animals.  Some seem to smile; some have a sad expression; some are pensive and diffident; others again are plain, honest and upright, like the broad-faced sunflower and the hollyhock.  ~Henry Ward Beecher

Earth's crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God;
~Elizabeth Barrett Browning



"God writes the gospel not in the Bible alone, but on trees and flowers and clouds and stars. " ~Martin Luther



To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter... to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring - these are some of the rewards of the simple life.  ~John Burroughs

The fountains and gardens reminded me of how I imagined Toad Hall must have looked in The Wind in the Willows when I read it as a child.

~Kindred Spirits~

Every now and then,
when the world sits just right,
a gentle breath of heaven
fills my soul with delight...
~Hazelmarie ‘Mattie’ Elliott

If God had wanted to be a big secret, He would not have created babbling brooks and whispering pines.  ~Robert Brault

You're never too old to do goofy stuff. 

We took a guided boat tour and saw an osprey nest!

An alligator lived in this area!

I loved the front porches on the lakeside homes!

The oaks and the pines, and their brethren of the wood, have seen so many suns rise and set, so many seasons come and go, and so many generations pass into silence, that we may well wonder what "the story of the trees" would be to us if they had tongues to tell it, or we ears fine enough to understand.  ~Author Unknown

Nature is the art of God.  ~Thomas Browne



Friendship is a sheltering tree.  ~Samuel Taylor Coleridge