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Island Flowers

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My husband and I took a cruise to a couple of the Caribbean Islands. Two of my favorite things about our visit was the endless blue green water… and the flowers! One of the islands we stopped at was St. Maarten. St. Maarten is a small island in the northern Lesser Antilles, east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The island is divided by 2 countries. The Dutch side, Sint Maarten, and the French side, Saint Martin. The north eastern side is on the Atlantic Ocean and the south western side is on the Caribbean Sea, which does effect the growth of different flowers and plants. Many of the same flowers we enjoy here in the Tampa Bay Area grow in St. Maarten, such as Lantana, Hibiscus & Oleander and they are everywhere! On a tour we learned that the island claims a National Tree which is  known as The Flame tree or the Royal Poinciana. It is originally from Madagascar and grows throughout the Caribbean.  The tree symbolizes emancipation and blooms from June to September with beautiful red, orange & yellow blossoms.

The July Tree

The island has mountains and lots of greenery. Though because of the dryness of the soil, the terrain is perfect for cactus and ferns. One of the more unusual cactus plants that grow on the island are called Ladies of the night” most probably because flowers open only after night fall and will close up at sunrise

Ladies of the night    night time flowering                                                                                                                               There were plenty of different cactus plants that lined the roads and they grew all over.

cactus & fern - st Maarten

One thing that cannot be denied about this Caribbean island, no matter the Dutch or the French side… it is a beautiful place to visit.

Great Bay

Now go out and have yourself a wholesale flower-filled, vacation kind of day!  

Anniversaries Of Any Kind

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My anniversary was a few days ago. Dorelle’s was earlier in the year.

Flowers, almost always, are part of the gift of choice for this occasion. Sometimes dinner and a card go along with it. (Though personally, I think jewelry or a trip is a great idea along with the flowers….just in case anyone out there was wondering). Usually the flowers given are a small bunch of assorted flowers, or a dozen roses, and/or whatever the local florist or grocery is selling that’s already nicely packaged.

joke

Wouldn’t it be AWESOME if instead we were presented with a bouquet that was similar to what we walked down the aisle with? All prettily wrapped and decorated? What about wearing either a boutonniere or corsage for the day? If for nothing else than to show co-workers that he/she is a happily attached spouse?

My dad always gets my mother a dozen red roses for their anniversary. I’m not sure that she had roses when she walked down the aisle 65 years ago, but I do know she really appreciates getting them now. Somehow I think we two girls get the short end of the stick on our anniversaries. We never get flowers. Maybe the guys think since we have them around all the time we don’t want them.  (What are they thinking?… Of COURSE we want flowers!!.. and wine, and dinner too!!)

My other half and I haven’t been together a very long time, but definitely long enough to wonder where the time went.  I’m thinking some years shouldn’t count because we sailed right through them with barely anything out of the ordinary occurring. Sometimes though, inexplicably, it feels likes we’ve been together forever… maybe because some years are so much bigger than they should be. Dorelle has been married a long time. I give kudos to her and her other half for making it through with still alot of affection and no blood spilled.

I think we two girls should celebrate some kind of anniversary. We’ve known each other a long time and we’re with each other more than we are with our respective spouses. We should give each other lots of flowers and wine…with some chocolate thrown in for good measure. One thing I believe is certain, we’ve known each other so long, OUR relationship is more mature than we are.Now go out and celebrate with a wholesale flower-filled day!