Downton Abbey??? Not Exactly- The Biltmore Estate

If you've never watched the series on PBS called Downton Abbey, you don't know what you're missing. I never thought I'd be watching a series on PBS other than documentaries. This series has everything (and I mean everything): mystery, history, great cast of characters, beautiful period costumes, romance, etc. It's a British drama series that aired in the United States with its first episode in January 2011. I've been watching it since the first series. If you have a chance, at least watch the first season because then you'll get a good background of the characters as well as the time period. After that most likely you'll be hooked. Think I'm kidding? Check out all the awards this series has won: Downton Abbey

One of the terraces shaded by wisteria and trumpet creeper vines

What does Downton Abbey have to do with The Biltmore Estate? Well, not much I guess other than when I first saw The Biltmore last spring the first thing I thought of was: Downton Abbey.

Quite a few years ago, our daughter attended a wedding at The Biltmore and she was pretty impressed with it and suggested we visit it. So on our way back from Florida last year we decided to take a tour of it.



The Biltmore Estate is a tourist attraction and a private estate located in Asheville, North Carolina. It's not to hard to get to, and the parking was great. You stop at this checkpoint and pick up your tickets. Actually, I thought it was an expensive tour ($63 each), however I think it might vary depending on the season.

The Biltmore Estate was built by George Washington Vanderbilt III. It was built between 1889-1895. It's the largest privately owned house in the United States. It is still owned by one of the Vanderbilt descendants.

Unfortunately, you are not allowed to take photographs inside the house. But the tour is a self-guided one, and you can tour the house at your own pace. When we were there it was April, and it looked like it was going to rain any minute so we did a tour of the gardens before we toured the interior of house. I posted a link below to the official Biltmore website if you are interested in seeing some lovely photos of the interior of the building.  The house has 250 rooms, 33 family/guest bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, 65 fireplaces, and 3 kitchens.

Italian Garden

This year from February 5, 2015 through May 25, 2015, The Biltmore Estate will be featuring an exhibit from the Downton Abbey series of their original costumes. More than 40 costumes will be on display throughout the house. For more information you can click on this link: Dressing Downton Abbey

If you are in the area, at some point you might want to visit this spectacular estate. The gardens and grounds were designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the father of American landscape architecture. Within the 250 acre property there are 40 acres of manicured gardens and grounds (Note: we did not tour all of the grounds.)

There were so many tulips and daffodils blooming in their gardens that I thought I was in Holland.

Additional Information: Biltmore Estate - Wikipedia (this link will give you a better description of the interior of the house as to: size of living areas, landscape, history, etc.)

The house was opened to the public in response to requests to increase area tourism during the Depression and to bring in money to preserve the estate. The house was opened to the public in 1930.

The Conservatory

Original stable now used as a gift shop.

There is also a winery on the property and they offer complimentary wine tasting in their Antler Hill Village & Winery. It is housed in their original dairy barn.

Glad we toured the gardens when we did because then the rain started.

The official website: The Biltmore In this website you will find several photos of the interior of the house.

If you missed my previous post on another castle in the United States you can check out Boldt Castle at this link: The Thousand Islands Region - Boldt Castle

Hope you enjoyed your tour of The Biltmore. 
Thanks for reading my blog post. 

Feel free to leave a comment.

Through The Year~

Looking back on 2014. . .

January of last year started off with little snow. I kept myself amused watching and photographing the birds and wildlife. I should say squirrels instead of wildlife. Mostly squirrels around here. I saw a few rabbits, but our squirrels checked out the bird feeders on a daily basis. And you can tell that we feed them well.

 I had fun watching their antics while my husband was thinking "if the red squirrels get in the garage they're going to make a mess". Our garage is actually a pole barn so we've had lots of wildlife take residence in there over the years. The squirrels built a nest in one of our vehicles while we were out of town for a few weeks, and at another time a raccoon made himself a nice bed in a storage cupboard we had stored up in the rafters.

A few times my husband and I would take a ride during February and March to take some photos of the area barns, birds, and other wildlife. We saw some eagles around the Oswego River, but  we weren't able to get close enough to get some great photos of them. Because the Great Lakes had so much ice on them last year, the eagles moved up the river to seek food. If the rivers are flowing fast enough they won't freeze over.

We also had our share of snow last winter as well. While going through some photos this picture caught my eye. It was taken in our backyard during one of our snowstorms the end of January. (Taken from inside of course.)

Not a great photo of this fox, but my husband took it passing through our back yard last February.



While the garden was  still taking its long winter nap, my husband and I traveled to Florida to enjoy some winter sunshine, warmer weather, and visit with family and friends. Of course I usually have to convince my husband that he will have just as much fun playing golf in Florida as he would if he stayed up here downhill skiing. He enjoys the winter up here playing in the snow and never complains unless he's complaining about not getting enough snow for his outdoor activities.

I love going to Florida that time of year not only for the warm weather and sunshine, but I also love watching the birds and admiring all the plants and flowers that are blooming. There are several species of our northern birds that spend the winter down there. And it's so enjoyable to see the local birds of Florida as well. It's nice to hear the birds, especially the mocking birds, sing that time of year. Up north here in the winter, you will hear the birds chirping, but they don't sing like they do in the spring. And the flowers- it's hard to believe that there is so much blooming down there while it's all white and cold up here. And I just love the intoxicating smell of the citrus blooms. So enchanting!

We had a wonderful spring last year in the northeast. We had lots of rain which helped all the perennials get off to a great start. It was a problem for some of the vegetable gardens though. Some seeds and seedlings rotted from having too wet conditions.

We had a very enjoyable summer as well. My perennials all did well, and had very little deer damage. Of course my husband and I were spraying regularly with a deer repellent and I think that helped quite a bit. Toward the end of the season, the deer found some of my hostas that I had planted out back of my house. I'm hoping they were just passing through and don't return in the spring looking for them. I hope I have better luck this year with some of my irises. I think they failed to bloom because of all the rain we had early in the season. I guess we'll see this year.

I'm not anticipating any major changes in our gardens this coming year. It's always a wait and see game for me.

My husband and I also attended Oswego County's First Annual Balloon Fest at our County Fairgrounds. I'm hoping they will put it on again this coming year, too. I was a little disappointed in that I thought there would be more balloons, but it was a beautiful evening and the balloons made for a beautiful sight.

I'm sharing this photo below, which is a picture of our road, because it just reminds me of a beautiful, warm summer day.

Our fall was gorgeous and warm and offered great days for relaxing rides and photographing the countryside in the Adirondack Mountains- what more can I say.

We had our first snowfall around the middle of November, but it warmed up and melted. Then we got another good snowstorm around the middle of December and that melted a few days before Christmas, so we had a green Christmas. But, New Year's Eve we celebrated with two feet of snow here! So, wonder what's in store for us next year???

We hope that 2015 is rewarding 

for you in many ways. 

We wish you a great year with good health, happiness, and peace!

Sue & Ted Link

Thanks for taking the time to stop by and visit. I really appreciate you taking the time to read and share my blog posts.

Feel free to leave a note in the 

comment section below.

Christmas Gifts

I was hoping to get some photos to post on this page of some wonderful Christmas displays with LOTS of snow, but I guess that's not going to happen.











Not much snow on the ground here at this time. About four inches, and by Christmas we probably won't have any snow at all left. It's supposed to get up in the 50's that day.

Am I complaining? Not really. I'm glad that the weather won't be too snowy or icy for those people that will be traveling for the holidays to spend time with family, friends, and loved ones.

We had snow a few weeks ago. But then our temperatures would fluctuate and we would get rain. So between the warmer temperatures and rain most of our snow is gone.

It got me thinking that Christmas isn't about the snow, the lights, the tree, the wreath, or the presents.










If there's no snow, there will still be Christmas. With or without snow, Christmas will come with all the busyness, stress, and preparations.



But, it's more than that and we all know it in our heart.  It's about His presence, not the presents.

And how do we keep that Presence alive in us? With a spirit of giving throughout the year.

And it's not just the monetary giving. Your time is your most precious commodity. To give the gift of your time is the most precious gift you can share with others. You could volunteer at a hospital, in a school, a senior citizen center, or a animal shelter. You could shovel an elderly neighbors sidewalk, or take them to the store. There are any number of places where you could volunteer.

What's most important is that we keep the Spirit of Christmas in our heart all year long.

I hope that 2015 will be a year of peacefulness, good health, and hope.

Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree. . .  I think this tree would make a good Charlie Brown Christmas tree

May the path you take today lead you to exciting places that fill you with happiness, peace, and blessings. 

Merry Christmas!

(With the exception of the last photo, the snowy pictures were taken a few weeks ago around the middle of December in our back yard. The last photo on this page was taken at our friends, Amy and Mark Himes, of Three Seasons Farm where we purchases our Christmas tree.)

Thanks for taking the time to view my blog. 

I welcome your comments.

A Time of Waiting . . .

Almost winter 2014-2015. Winter arrives in our area on December 21st, 2014 at 6:03 p.m. (EST). Also know as the Winter Solstice. Where the sun has reached its lowest point on the horizon, with it also being our shortest day.



Then, after December 21st, the days will start growing longer.

The longer days means that soon spring will be here again. So for many of us, it will be a time of waiting. . .waiting for spring.

But it also means that that is our official first day of winter. For some that means skiing, sledding, snowmobiling, and hiking with snowshoes. And for some of my photographer friends it means searching out those treacherous frozen waterfalls for just the right shot or walking through a snow -covered forest hoping the snow from the branches doesn't give way and fall on your head or camera.

And for others, winter means knitting or reading by the cozy fire drinking hot cocoa. Or playing games on your iPad or computer. (I fall into the second category.) 

There's another anticipated event going on this season as well. For Christians, like myself, it's the time of Advent. I always had a hard time understanding the meaning of Advent. I know it's referred to as "waiting for the coming (arrival) of the birth our Savior, Jesus Christ", that we were promised. But how do we anticipate that waiting in terms of this day and age. While trying to come up with an analogy for this, I thought of how we know and "wait" for spring in the dark and gloomy winter months. We KNOW that spring will arrive in a few months. How do we know this? Because it's how the cyclical/seasonal calendar works. It's how nature works. It's how the earth revolves around the sun. And Advent is the promise that God made to his people that he would send a Savior.

As Christians, let us also be respectful of our Jewish friends and neighbors as they celebrate their religious Festival of Lights or Hanukkah. Our Christian roots are in the Jewish tradition. Jesus and his Apostles were Jewish and they practiced their faith religiously. And we should respect all peoples' beliefs whatever they may or may not be.

So for all of us, let us take a sign from the heavens and earth and let us use this time of "winter" to rest and rejuvenate so that come spring we will be ready to plow the earth, plant the seeds, and bring forth rich fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

"We cannot stop the winter or the summer from coming. We cannot stop the spring or the fall or make them other than they are. They are gifts from the universe that we cannot refuse. But we can choose what we will contribute to life when each arrives."

~Gary Zukav

Links:
First Day of Winter- Winter Solstice 2014
Wikipedia- Advent
Hanukkah 2014

Thanks for stopping by-

Feel free to leave a comment. . .

Evergreens For the Season

I'm not sure what inspired me to write about this subject or even make these little arrangements, but thought I'd share with you some simple ideas for making holiday arrangements out of materials you might have growing in your garden or yard. It could be I was inspired by a friend and fellow garden blogger, Donna Abel Donabella and her blog Gardens Eye View. Every Monday she would link in to another blogger's blog that was hosting the theme "In A Vase On Monday". I always enjoyed the vases that she produced and displayed. So colorful with beautiful vases, and she would use plants that I never would have thought to use in a floral arrangement.

During this "fall/winter" thaw, now is the time to get outside to gather and trim some of your shrubs, vines, and perennials for winter arrangements. As long as you don't have a lot of snow to shovel off your gardens you might want to try making a few simple arrangements.

There are several items you can cut now outside for fillers in your arrangements. Some of these would include dried flower heads such as hydrangea, some grasses, and evergreens such as boxwood, cedar, holly, ivy, pachysandra, and vinca vine. I have quite a few of these plants growing in our yard so thought I'd gather some up and make a few simple arrangements.

I am by no means a florist, but I do have a few vases and some craft supplies that I can use for accents.

Bypass pruners

I thought about trimming some branches off our holly bushes, but the past few years have left them pretty scraggly looking. The deer got to them and trimmed them back pretty good, and then last year with the long, cold winter we had more of the branches died back. So right now they do not need any further trimming.



Boxwood. I'm going to start with the boxwood. I'm not sure exactly what variety I have. It may be English Boxwood. You will actually be pruning these bushes so you want to use a bypass pruner to make clean, sharp cuts without crushing the stems. It is actually recommended to prune your boxwood annually (which is also called plucking).

Boxwood

It should be done in late fall or early winter. You only need to prune 10%-15% of the shrub. You don't want to shear these bushes because then they will become a tight mass of branches which could lead to disease and breakage. What you want to do is to thin out the branches with cuts about 6" to 8" long. But don't over-prune it either. You want to open up the center so that sunlight and air can reach the interior, and also allow rain to water the roots. It will also help by letting the snow fall through the plant without damaging the branches. This pruning will help with leaf growth along the inner branches making it sturdier to hold up in snow and ice conditions.

Other items that I cut for these arrangements were white pine and spruce evergreens, variegated pachysandra, variegated vinca vine, a few Purple Palace heuchera leaves, and English Ivy.

Top: white pine branches; Bottom: spruce  branches

First you want to soak your greens for several hours. I soaked mine for about 2 hours. This helps to clean them off and they will last longer in your arrangements if they are soaked first.

After soaking your greens, you will want to remove the lower leaves and branches that will be under the water. Then re-cut the stems at an angle so the branches will have a larger area to take up water.

Soaking in water

To add some color to your arrangements you could purchase some carnations which are available in several colors. Or you can add dried flowers, pine cones, or purchased decorations. Whatever suits you, and don't be afraid to experiment.

Note: Live floral arrangements are highly flameable. Do not place your arrangements near lighted candles or fireplaces. Also, to help your fresh arrangement last longer, keep out of direct sunlight and away from heat sources. Remove and/or replace any greenery that becomes dry or brittle. And some greenery may be toxic to pets or children so keep them out of their reach.

I am linking in with my friend, Donna Abel Donabella as she is hosting the garden bloggers Seasonal Celebrations. Check out her blog post and you also might want to check out some of the other garden bloggers as they join in for this event. Thanks for hosting this, Donna. Here is the link to Seasonal Celebrations - Winter Wonders

If you missed my blog post from last year on Christmas trees you might want to check it out at this link: We've Got Your Christmas Tree



"Christmas is forever, not for just one day, 
for loving, sharing, giving, are not to put away
like bells and lights and tinsel, in some box upon a shelf.
The good you do for others is good you do yourself..."

~Norman Wesley Brooks 

(U.S. design engineer, 1923-2002)

"Let Every Day Be Christmas," 1976

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Would love to hear from you!