Gifted

Pretty posie

Busy weekend — again. We hosted a festive garden party on Saturday to celebrate having been part of the recent flower show tour and it was lots of fun. Good friends and neighbors dropped by and many of them brought delightful gifts. Our neighbor Cristian brought me a cool suspendible metal sculpture he welded himself, complete with green glass bottle accessories! I love it and can’t wait to find the just the right spot for it. His pretty daughter, Augusta, was dressed in her garden party best, the graphic stripes of her dress and floral headpiece perfectly complementing the Rancho’s garden scheme …

Tads ranunculus

Neighbors Tad and Marilyn gifted us this gorgeous arrangement of ranunculus from their garden. Being that their front garden is very succulent-based, I was surprised to learn that Tad grows these in their backyard. I’m glad they mentioned that I could return the vase later; otherwise I would surely love to add it to my collection; it’s just as beautiful as the flowers it contains.

Faux bois succulence

This faux bois cylinder filled with echeverias was a gift from reader Miss Lena who drove in from Palm Springs. Looking appropriately like a fizzy succulent cocktail, this is one fun host gift. She chose this for me, having read here of my love for charming wood lookalikes — how cool is that?

Wheres Mary?

This last gift didn’t arrive during Saturday’s party, and in fact we’re not sure how long it’s even been here or who gave it to us. We only learned of its existence during the garden tour when a visitor pointed it out. Can you see it? It’s a little Virgin of Guadalupe figurine that’s been tucked into one of the rocks I placed on our corner …

Little secret

I’m pretty sure the figurine was placed here by a woman who was passing by the Rancho one day as I worked outside moving rocks for our dry stream bed. She complimented the landscaping and said she really liked the hollow volcanic rock on the corner, but that it needed a Virgin Mary inside it. Aside from the woman who placed her in the rock, and now us, not many people would even notice this little shrine and its colorful saint.

Good friends and neighbors: they’re the best gift of all. Thanks to all who attended the garden tour and the party!