A Backyard Sanctuary ...

We have a very narrow, but long, backyard area which is enclosed by a wooden fence.

We planted shrubbery and flowers along the fence right after we moved in two years ago, but it still lacked something.

This spring I bought several birdhouses, some functional and some decorative, and my husband attached them to the fence for me.

[Click on pictures to enlarge them]

I added a few garden accessories and statuary, and now I love looking out my office window at my little "birdhouse garden" ...

I saw these three tin birds at a local garden gift shop and there was no way I could leave them there. I had a perfect place for them ...

The morning glories in the background of the picture below are the ones Avery (my three-year-old granddaughter) and I planted back in the spring.

They're fading now, but here's a picture of them when they were at their prettiest ...

There's a story behind them, if you'd like to read it, in my post called Sharing Simple Pleasures with a Granddaughter.

This little statue is called "First Love," and I've moved it from house to house through the years, or I should say that my husband has moved it, because it weighs a ton ...

Although this pretty little girl statue is not in the backyard, I wanted to share her with you anyway. I've had her for a very long time and she's my favorite.

She sits on the edge of our pond in our courtyard and makes me happy every time I see her ...

This is a path leading from the front courtyard area to the backyard. I took this picture early one morning when the sun was just coming up and there was a mist over the pond and waterfall ...

For the story of how the path was made, please read my A Stone Path, Bridge, and Courtyard Waterfall post.

The last picture I'd like to share is the view I have from my office window of my lantanas. Butterflies love lantana and they're so pretty fluttering about ... I'm going to miss them this winter.

To every thing there is a season, and it's always kind of sad to see the flowers of summer fading into fall. But each season has its own special kind of beauty ...

The glory of fall foliage in the Blue Ridge Mountains ...

And snow drifts piled high in New England ...

Winter in Texas ...

And perhaps we'll even get snow in Mississippi this
year, like we did on New Year's Eve 2000 ...

I would love to visit all these places, but the next best thing is experiencing the beauty of the changing seasons through the words and pictures of my blogging friends ... and I look forward to it.