I Can't Believe it is August already!!

I hope everyone is having a great summer!  Happy August!  I cannot believe it is August already-how time flies!!

It has been a hot and humid one! First it was really dry and drought like conditions but then the rains came.  It is drying out now.  My gardens are thriving and I am thankful for that!!

Here are some photos of my gardens:

One of my favorite daylilies.

Here is a bouquet of my glads.

I picked the last glad for the year.  

My miniature pink rose has been going strong all summer!

One of my beautiful dahlias.

This red dahlia is so pretty.  The color is just so beautiful!

My veggies have been growing also!  Here are some things I have harvested.  The tomatoes are having a hard time with the ground being so dry and then wet.

Several tomatoes, a cucumber and chives from my garden.

The bugs have been really bad this year.  Every time I go out into the garden just for a little bit, those mosquitoes and flies bite the heck out of me!!  Here is a little (well not so little) visitor I had the other day!

Huge grasshopper on my dahlia!

Riley has been growing also over this summer.  I think he must be done growing now, well he might grow a little bit more.  He has developed quite the personality!  He is so strong, much stronger than any of the other Goldens I have owned.  He actually went to go see my neighbors little boy, forgot I was attached to the leash and got it all tangled around my finger and my finger got broken!  Very painful but all healed now!

I'm sorry to say I had been really sick for over 2 weeks.  I actually thought I had COVID.  I have never had COVID but it felt like what everyone was describing.  I didn't have COVID but I did have a very stubborn upper respiratory infection.  I ended up having to go to the Dr. twice and the second time she gave me a steriod and that cleared it up!  I cough every once in a while now but not too bad.  Don't ever want to go through that again!

I also celebrated my 65th birthday on the 23rd of July.  I was sick, so it was a quiet day.  Glad I made it around the sun again!!

Everyone have a lovely rest of your summer because before you know it Fall will be here!

Sherri

Happy July 1st!!

Happy July 1st Everyone!!  I hope this post finds you all well!  It is a hot and humid one with a nice breeze this morning.  It has been so hot here but finally last night we had a nice rain!!  We actually had a thunderstorm too.

My veggies and flower gardens are doing well.  I was a little worried with all the heat (the sun has been so intense).  The yellow squash doesn't seem to be producing anything yet, lots of blossoms but no squash.  I see some green beans coming on the plants and my cuke vines are out of control!  I picked my first tomato yesterday.  It was really big but I'm sure the heat has something to do with that.  I have been watering every nice, except last night I saw the rain coming.  My flowers are starting to fill out and alot of the daylilies have scapes with buds on them.  Some are blooming also.  Here are some of the plants in the garden:

Black-eyed Susan from my friend, Janice.  Thank you Janice!

Coleus in one of my containers.

Daylily

Daylily

Daylily

First Dahlia of the season!

This is my side garden.  The plants are starting to fill out and I love the way it is all growing even in this heat!

Sundial Pink Cone Flower

I just love all the different colors and I can't wait until everything has grown to the right size next year!  I try to buy alot of perennials so I have repeats every year.  I fill in with just a few annuals.  Great way to save money also!  My ferns on the front porch have grown even more:

These are my Boston Ferns on the front porch.  I bought these pulleys, which I thought would be great.  You just pull them down to water them and then push them back up.  Well while they are hanging, they twirl and now that has messed up the pulleys working.  I think I'll have to take them down, fix the pulleys from being twisted and somehow stop them from twirling around.  I hope I can make them work again!  The concept is great!

This summer I have also made 2 wreaths for the front door of our church.  Every Sunday I would go into the church and there would always be 2 empty hooks (one on each door).  I thought wreaths really need to be on there not just these empty hooks.  I asked one of the older women who seems to be in charge of flowers for the altar, changing the cloth colors on the altar (which is now my job) and a few other things around the church about me making the wreaths.  She said you just go ahead and it will look beautiful!  I went to Hobby Lobby and got everything I needed and this is what I created:

 I think it looks much better than 2 empty hooks.  Sometimes you just have to pitch in and do it!!

I have taken on a project I never thought I would be getting into!  I am sewing by hand an 18th Century Man's Working Shirt for Mason!  He has taken an apprenticeship at Colonial Williamsburg and he has to wear authentic clothing.  Hence the hand sewn shirt.  It has been very interesting researching this sewing project.  I am using linen thread, which is run through beeswax to keep it from breaking down and going through the fabric easier.  I will be putting bone buttons on this shirt.  I am working with a pattern from Burnley and Trowbridge (Purveyors of Accurate Goods for Historical Fashion).  I am sewing right along and it is taking shape.  I'll post it when I'm done with it!

Well I better get sewing and I have to throw some laundry in the washer.  I hope everyone has a lovely day and stop and smell the roses or whatever flower you can!

Hugs,

Sherri

Summer is Definitely Here!!

 Hi Friends!  I hope everyone is well here today!  Well I don't know about where you live but summer has definitely hit Rockwell, NC!!  It is hot, humid, some stray thunderstorms, etc., etc.  I have been mulching like crazy around here but I have to do it early in the morning and usually about 2-2.5 hrs. is all I seem to be able to do in this heat!  Here is some of what I have been doing:

The mulch came from the main big tree in this photo. Nothing grows under here so I decided to create an "island" of the big tree and the cedar tree next to it.  Looks so much more finished!

This is 2 bushes (more like trees) in the front yard.  One is a crape myrtle (rt.) and the other is a deutzia (lft).  I created this island around them too.  

That is it on the projects for this season though.  It has about worn me out.  I do love creating as you know!  Some day I would like to put a nice cement birdbath between the deutzia and the crape myrtle.  I have alot of birds coming to the bird feeder in the front garden and to my hummingbird feeder.  All the flowers in my garden are growing and thriving.  I don't think I have lost anything, which is so good!  My friend, Janice from my church has given me some plants lately too, which helps with the cost of buying perennials, roses, etc.  She has given me a bee balm (red), Blue Salvia and Black-eyed Susan.  They are all doing so good!  The other day she may have created a monster-she showed me a new garden center on the way to Mooresville and it is wonderful!  Here are some of the flowers blooming in my garden now:

Daylily

Foxglove

Sombrero Adobe Orange Coneflower

Zinnia

When my girls were little in the summer we used to visit my Grandma and Papa every Wednesday.  She lived a little over an hour from our house.  We would visit, then have lunch and then visit some more before leaving to go home.  I had a Tropicana Rose in my garden and I swear that thing would know it was time to visit Grandma because she would bloom right before the visit.  I would cut one or two depending on how many were blooming and take them to Grandma.  She had this one bud vase she would put it in.  About 6 months before she died she gave me the vase and told me to always take care of it for her.  See below my Tropicana rose from my garden here and Grandma's vase:

Tropicana Rose in Grandma's Vase

It won't be this year but I saw this beautiful arbor with a gate.  I really think I can make this.  I would like to make this and then picket fence the backyard.  It would be great for Riley to run around back there.  This year is definitely out of the picture for this project but maybe 2025!  Here it is:

Two Saturdays ago I went down to Gold Hill, which is the little historical town below me.  I saw on FB that Gold Hill Flower Co was having an event.  You could bring your own mason jar (or they provide one for you) and they would have a ton of cut flowers out of their gardens for you to arrange in the mason jar.  I decided to go and I loved the experience!  Melissa, the owner was so nice!  Here is one of the bouquets I created:

Flower Arrangement I made at Gold Hill Flower Co.  I decided it would look beautiful on my table in the eating area.

Monday would have been John's 70th birthday.  I cannot believe that he will be gone from us for 5 years on 11/27.  Jenny posted this photo on FB and I just love this photo of him.  He was such a good man and everyone should strive to be the kind of person he was!

John

Well I am off to knit before I leave to have lunch with the Houses without Spouses group from church.  Once a month we meet at Longhorn Steak House and have lunch without each other.  They are a really nice group of wonderful ladies all widowed like I am.

Everyone have a wonderful week and enjoy your day!

Sherri

Summer Has Arrived in NC!

 Hi Everyone!  I know it has been some time since I have posted but the time has just gotten away with me with all the gardening and mulching going on around here.  There has been so much mulching going on here that has taken up so much of my time.  Pretty soon that will all be done and I can come on here more!

I have mulched every garden around the house (so that is 4 in all), yesterday I re-mulched another layer around the front and side of the house garden.  Today I mulched for 3 hours and did under the ash and cedar tree.  Nothing grows under there so this looks so much better as you will see in the picture below.

Mulched under the ash and cedar tree.

This is the front garden I re-mulched.  I think it is 6" deep now.

Mulched down the side of the house again also.

2 weeks ago I went down to SC to see Owen perform in Shrek Jr.  The local playhouse in Lake City had this production.  Owen played Shrek when he was 7 years old and then he played Pig #1 as one of the 3 little pigs in the play.  He and all the kids did a phenomenal job!!  I had lunch with my friend, Angela after the play then I headed home with Riley.  He was at Jenny's house while I was at the play and lunch.

Owen and I after the play was over.  Love that boy!

Owen was the second from the right.  Pig #1.

First Owen played Shrek when he was 7 years old and was told to go out into the world and start a life for himself.

My gardens are doing really great!  I have tomatoes forming on the plant, my first daylily bloomed and it was gorgeous, Lavender, butterfly bush and some roses have bloomed also.  I also harvested my Romaine Lettuce.  It has been so good!

First daylily to bloom in the garden.  Just beautiful!

First romaine lettuce harvest.  So delicious!

Now I have tomatoes forming on the 1 plant I planted.

Last Tuesday Riley went to Lazy 5 Veterinarians and they neutured him.  He has been doing really well but the meds they gave him really knock him out as you can see in the photo.  I bought him one of the air-filled pillow collars because the plastic one for the vet really bothered him.  He was much more comfortable in this collar.  His incision is healing up nicely and he only has a few more days of the meds.  He will be right back to his lovely, handsome self really soon!

Well that pretty much wraps up what has been going on in my life!  I have also been knitting a little bit and listening to audiobooks.  I hope that Summer has come to where ever you live and that you can enjoy it!

Sherri

This weather has been perfect for gardening!

 Hi Everyone!  I hope this post finds you all well and enjoying your Spring weather!  I have been taking advantage of this gorgeous weather and planting, weeding and mulching.  It is starting to get a little humid and very warm here now, so I need to finish up my gardening soon.

I have been putting in so many wonderful plants at my new house.  Things like foxglove, peonies, iris, coral bells (Heuchera), roses, clematis, astilbe, dahlias, etc., etc.  I have also planted chives, lavender, lemon thyme, a tomato plant and some romaine lettuce.  I have seeds to put in the ground like beans, squash, pumpkin,  and swiss chard.  I might be too late for the swiss chard though.

Clematis

Foxglove

Foxglove upclose

Front Garden

Iris

Part of Front Garden and down the side of the house garden.

A week ago I went down to SC to see Jenny, Kevin and the boys.  It is Artfield there.  We walked around town and saw all the wonderful art entries.  This year Owen had an entry in Artfield Jr.  He did an awesome job!!

Edgar Alan Poe Entry-Made from all watch parts, coins, etc.

The boys in front of the Railway Station which had the Artfield Jr. entries.  Owen created this dinosaur model as if it were a "dig".  He did a great job and should be very proud!!

If you look closely the art on the turntable shines up to the middle column and it is the artist, Salvador Dali's face!!  So amazing!!

I love this painting entry of a path through the woods.  

After lunch and walking thru the entries at Artfield, Jenny and I took a Sweetgrass Basket making class at Moore Farm Botanical Gardens.  It was alot of fun but not as easy as it looks!

This is my sweetgrass basket I made.  I'm proud of it!

While Jenny and I were at MF Botanical Garden we could see some of the flowers before they closed.  It is just beautiful there!

Foxglove at MFBG

Jerusalem Artichoke, Foxglove and pansies at MFBG

Hot Poker Plants at MFBG

Amazing sculpture of woman asleep under a blanket at MFBG

Moore Farm Botanical Garden

Rose at MFBG

Roses at MFBG

After going to MFBG, it inspired me to create a grouping at my house.

Deutzia blooming on a bush, a very tall bush at my house.

Plants I bought to make up some pots by the garage.

A cute grouping of lavender, basil and a pot full of coleus, little petunia, geranium and creeping jenny by my little fountain I bought.

This is my favorite time of year and my favorite gardening time.  Next year my gardens will be even better than this year.  The one iris bloomed out front, but I planted 5 more colors and they will bloom next year.  I also planted alot of peonies in many colors, they will bloom next year also.  I have 2 plants from a very dear friend of mine, Esther Gallup who is no longer with us.  I am so glad I have these plants from here and I will think of her when they bloom!  She was an amazing woman and lived to be 106!!

I hope you have enjoyed the tour of my gardens/plants, Moore Farm Botanical Garden, etc.  Moore Farm Botanical Garden is in Lake City, SC if anyone every wanted to visit there.  They have limited hours, so check their website for info.

Have a wonderful rest of your day and weekend!

Sherri