Gardens – Page 2 – Oh, the Places We See . . .

Redbuds first, then dogwoods.

Although the highly anticipated white dogwood blooms (stars of Dogwood Arts Festival 2015) are making progress, they’re still in the half-open, pale green stage. Lovely, but not in full bloom. That’s just the way it is here in East Tennessee. You’re blessed with redbuds sporting their characteristic purplish blooms first. And then the dogwood show […]

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Staying calm at Nashville’s Gaylord Opryland Hotel

Stay calm? At the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center? Is that not an oxymoronic question in itself? With 2,711 guest rooms and 171 suites on six floors, you would think it an impossibity to indulge in rest and relaxation. Especially when an event such as the conference I attended last week — Learning Forward 2014 […]

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Travel theme: Blossom

Sometimes, photographic opportunities are as close as our own backyard! For this week’s Travel theme: Blossom from Ailsa who writes Where’s My Backpack, we’re sharing some of the white blossoms we’ve enjoyed this spring — by traveling right here at home! Blooming behind the screened porch, early April: White Star White Magnolia From the tree […]

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Last Yellows: Knoxville, TN

Perhaps it happens to all of us, but today as I was driving to work, I saw something that compelled me to pull over, grab my camera, and snap away. The morning sun (perhaps stronger now after the time change) streamed across the lawn of Graystone Presbyterian Church in South Knoxville. In those few brief […]

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Four fun fall things to do at Green Bluff, right above Spokane!

When I asked one of the educators I work with what I could see traveling from the Spokane airport to where I would be working in Priest River, Idaho, he immediately said, Green Bluff! And he couldn’t have been more “right on”! Green Bluff, about 15 minutes from Spokane (Travel north on US Hwy. 2, take a […]

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Boise’s Botanical Gardens ushers in fall with festive affair!

Nothing says fall like a Harvest Festival, and thanks to the Idaho Statesman‘s Do it today column on October 5th, I discovered something in Boise that would be fun to do after a morning of grazing my way through the downtown Farmers Market. (Click here to read about my market adventures!) The Idaho Botanical Gardens on […]

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It’s Panda-monium at the Beijing Zoo!

We’ve just returned from a trip of a lifetime — a Viking River Cruise appropriately named Imperial Jewels of China — with an itinerary spanning several cities from Beijing to Shanghai including sights and sounds we had only hoped to see. In the next few weeks, we’re posting highlights of the trip and our impressions of the […]

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Seven Springy Things to Do at Blooms Days 2013

Even with occasional downpours threatening the festival at the UT Ag campus, Blooms Days 2013 (May 11 & 12, 2013) at the UT Gardens blossomed forth with colorful flowers, eager volunteers, and guests in the hundreds admiring, strolling, photographing, and buying. The event has become a rite of spring! And I was there, along with all […]

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Dogwood Arts Festival 2013: The secret beauty of Open Gardens

Yes, it’s true. I write this blog from Knoxville, Tennessee — home of the Dogwood Arts Festival. So, of course, I’m biased. But if you’re ever in Knoxville at festival time, you’ll agree with me: Spring shows off its finery nowhere better during this puttin’-on-the-pastels time of year! Several years ago, my husband and I lived in […]

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Eat local, meet local at Boise’s Capital City Public Market

Traveling to see famous sites is one thing. But if you don’t stop for local finds, you’ll just be missing out, I say. Like Boise’s Capital City Public Market where foraging for food and meeting farmers and other famous folk is just plain fun! Take this guy for instance . . . just packing and […]