Father's Day

Sunday evening we "floated" into Salem, for a baseball game. It was pouring BUCKETS, until a few miles from the ballpark.

GO Volcanoes!

It didn't rain a single drop on us even with the ominus clouds looming over our heads.
We were prepared, with umbrellas, hoodies, quilts.......

Which gave the appearance of a unibomber cult.

The kids really had a fun time, and have been asking when we'll be going back.

There were huge plates of super nachos

and foot long hotdogs.

Josie's opinion is that there should also be foot long buns.

Thanks for making all of the arrangements, Kate.

Our peeps, as far as the eye can see.

Papa enjoyed himself.

Tori said, Papa must really like it, he's really LOUD.

????

Since it was Father's Day, I didn't pinch him too many times

for his emotional outbursts.

Guilt free Gardening

Welcome!

The pretty geranium from Anna, Joel, and the girls.

In addition to how their ruffly, cupped, leaves hold glistening, diamond like, water droplets;
I love the fresh acid green tiny blooms of Lady's Mantle .

And the sun and shadows on the tiny little champagne grapes,

(which make the yummiest, tart little homemade raisins)

The promise of dewy, summer morning, garden breakfasts of plump blueberries,

fresh,

hand to mouth.

Hearts-ease

I didn't plant any of it. It just re-seeded itself there.

I had struggled for years to have a nice little patch of it, like my Mom used to...

it never made it.
Now....voila!

A newer plant to me, in the past couple of years:

Jacob's Ladder.

(Do any Sunday Schools sing that song anymore?)

I love it's fern like, bracketed leaves.





With an extra UBER amount of rain, this spring, and family health issues;

I was feeling guilty about not getting a nice garden in.

Tori picked out a topsy turvy tomato planter for me for my birthday.

I put an organic "green Zebra" in it.






And planted organic Italian salad greens in potagers.

and a lone artichoke plant.

It's so tiny and yet, brings back memories of the vast fields of them, in nearby Castroville,

when we lived in Monterey California,

in the early years of our marriage.

Tori and I love artichokes. (Or is it the butter and lemon?)

There are a couple of squash plants, onions, and tomatoes, planted in the freshly weeded flower bed. I've decided to do what I can feasibly do, and then just like the hearts-ease...quit struggling, and be happy. "I like pesto as much as the next cat.....but why didn't you buy that organic catnip, when you had the chance?"

Tea Party minus the Politics

You may have noticed the needlework I was working on Sunday afternoon.

It's a teapot holder from a vintage pattern found here.

It's lined with a contrasting felt, and the layers are open in the middle, on the bottom half.

I thought it would make a cute hostess gift for a tea party that we were invited to.

Especially since our Bonny loves all things "tea".

You can't enter her country kitchen, without being offered a cup.

Friends often give her "tea" items as gifts.

(You may remember the wind chimes I made for her birthday)

This girl knows how to throw a tea party.

For embellishing her delicious scones: She has cute little tea themed spreaders for the butter, devonshire cream, lemon curd and the strawberry, and rose petal jams.

And this cute sign that claims "Will trade tea for gossip"

The girlies looked right at home in Bonny's old fashioned country kitchen in their vintage hats.

Bonny made little viola ice cubes for the water goblets.

The girls had brought their "fancy" dolls, and Bonny even provided doll tea cups for them as well.

There were fancy sugar cubes, with tongs...one lump or two?

And THREE kinds of tea!

This flowering one was called "Juliet's Kiss" and was a lovely Jasmine.

The cucumber sandwiches were a hit.....

and there were little chocolate ones, that had a salty sweetness to them.

The little stuffed tomatoes were yummy.

She made adorable little petit fours...

And pretty little puff pastry cups filled with fresh strawberries. The piece de resistance' were the little chocolate cups filled with bavarian creme, topped with fresh rasperries and a little chocolate filigree heart.

Bonny's kitchen has always been my favorite room in her home. I love the big old table in there, and the light that streams through the windows. She has an old vintage range. A few years ago, she and I did a re-do on all of her kitchen cabinets. They had been flat, birch ones, in need of re-finishing. We turned all of them into beadboard, using our router. We found reproduction hardware, and Bonny painted them out in white. We found a wallpaper that tied in her counter tops colors. It was a lot of fun.

She and I both have a love of vintage things and gardening. So for my birthday, she made me this planter with a thyme plant in it. Cute, huh?!

She spoiled us rotten. The girls had a blast, playing the old player piano, and running around outside with Toby.

He's such a sweet boy.

Bonny is one of the hardest working, giving persons, that I know. She has opened her home to friends and relatives who were between homes, for extended stays. Whether a person is there for a long while, or a few minutes: She is the living, breathing, definition of "Hospitality".

Unlike some people with welcome signs....she actually means it!

Nair do well

We had a sleepover last night.
At dawn's early light, as Jim was downstairs making our morning coffee,
the littlest peep crawled into bed with me. She put her cold little toes against my legs.
Peep: "I feel something on your leg"
M: "Ew, like a spider?"
Peep: " No"....."something pointy"

I knew I should've shaved my legs ....this month.

Sunny Sunday

Ooops! a gravity defying, non-rotated picture slipped past me.....
We have had such a wet, rainy spring, that a sunny day gets headline news around here!
Yesterday afternoon, we took full advantage of it. Jim took a book and I took some needlework and camped in our Adirondacks until suppertime.

Birdie made herself comfy at our feet, "sunbathing", and taking cat naps.

There was a slight breeze through the trees, and at times there was the aroma of chives...

and the next breeze would bring a waft of fragrance from the iceberg roses.
There is an old Southern saying: Don't sew on Sunday. For every stitch; you'll cry a tear.

I'm glad I'm not superstitious....they would have to be tears of joy....it was heavenly.

Copperfield

Last night, as I was closing the library blinds, I saw a beautiful sight. There was a slight wind and the sun was setting. It made the green grasses in our neighbor's field look like shimmery strands of copper. I couldn't take a picture at the time, so I tried to get one at the same time tonight. The wind was more still tonight, so it didn't have quite the same effect, but was still pretty.

A day on Pill Hill

It was a long day; but at least we had a room with a window. It was worth the wait. When someone you love, is no longer facing potential brain surgery....it's a good day.

God Is Good!

Meadowfoam Beauty

We took the back roads on our way home from the city today.

It's one of my favorite routes.

A sneak peek at the splendor to come...

A fluffy shag carpet of little white blooms, so amazing.......

Meadowfoam (Limnanthes alba) is a crop raised for it's seed, which is made into an oil used in cosmetics and personal care products.

Remember when people would have contests....how many jelly beans in a jar?

Would you care to guess how many little 5 petal flowers there are in this field?