August

Hello, hello!

August just seems to roll on endlessly, doesn't it. The summer days have acquired a sameness, a routine, dare I call it a bit of tedium? Picnic, BBQ, afternoon swim. Sandy floors and wet beach towels. Day after day of heat and sunshine.
Summer will last here through the end of September, there is no point is talking about crisp air and frost on pumpkins. Not til November usually. School here never ever starts til after Labor Day. And is only held in a desultory fashion though the September Jewish holidays.

But who is complaining!? Not me. Endless summer is fine with me.

Swimsuit. Shorts and tank top. Flip flops. Pony tail. I can be dressed and out the door in seconds. Remember winter's layers? It took me ten minutes to suit up for Mo's long walks.

I did begin drying ''botanicals'' to fill autumn bowls with a hint of fragrance.

Tiny roses that self-dried in their vase. Orange peels. Sunflower heads.

Last year's gourds still hanging patiently in the corner, well-dried by now.

On our walks I've been eyeing the drying hydrangea heads on neighbors' shrubs. I wouldn't dare just snip them off but I might ask if I see them being pruned. The other night Mo and I peeked through a park fence and saw this lovely sight!

A sunset wedding at the beach, in August. A perfect setting.  The gowns match the park kiosks, I see.

A new neighbor has this Nantucket basket on her bike. How cool is this! Right now I don't have a bike but it is on my wish list and I would def need a basket just like this. Nantucket Bike Baskets

Here are my August Pokeberry blocks:

Black-eyed Susans in an old crock is finished. I'm quite pleased, though on close inspection I see the design is a bit too symmetrical..

Not so sure about the robin's nest and apple blossom wreath.

I trimmed down and repositioned the leaves after I saw this photo. I think it will be okay....

Now my friend brought me his just-harvested giant--enormous!---sunflower to try to dry.

It measures almost 15" across and must weigh 15 pounds.

He pulled out most of the rest of the sunflowers...we're having fun, imagining the seed heads sprouting next year, and the landfill will be covered with giant sunflowers. Maybe? It could happen.

If the giant head dries nicely I hope for a display like this one from my Pinterest board.

image via Pinterest

Mo wants me to play! So I'll say goodnight. Have a wonderful week.

love

lizzy 

gone to the beach...

Blueberry Cornbread and Kitties

Hi! This week the farmers market was red white and blue---red tomatoes, white sugar corn, and blueberries stole the show.

Tomatoes for sandwiches, or to fry, or for my next project: quinoa-brown rice salad.

I love dark brown many grain bread sandwiches with tomatoes, mustard, American cheese.
The corn is just picked and very sweet.

White corn is prized here.

Though I must admit I prefer bright yellow, large kernel corn myself.
And blueberries.
So adorable. Look at this blue! And always in the sweet little turquoise paper boxes. If they didn't make your teeth turn purple they be just about the perfect fruit.

If I don't have time to use the berries immediately, I put them unwashed in a baggie and freeze them. Put in a colander and rinse well; pick off stems, pat dry when you're ready for them.

Lately I've been hearing mention of blueberry cornbread. I love cornbread,and have been waiting for the berries to arrive so I could make some.

I must have really wanted CB because I found two mixes in my fridge's pantry drawer. I'm not a purist. On a hot summer day, a Betty Crocker mix is fine, a quick way to have fun baking without too much work or angst.

I used the Krusteaz this time, the word ''honey'' on the label was enticing. I like things sweet and this was to be a dessert, so I added more ''sugar'' [Splenda.]

Fold in the berries at the end.

Sprinkle some real sugar on the top.

Next time I'm going to use my bundt pan so the cake looks prettier.
Yum.

Many yums!

I suppose summer is kitten season, isn't it. My neighborhood's feral cats here have been neutered and returned their usual haunts, which means they are healthy and safe but we have no new babies to love. My blog friend Kelley, who lives on the West Coast, does a wonderful job with feral kittens. Here is her link, for her current little guys. If we lived nearby I'd be tempted to bring them home for Mo [he gets lonely, banned from the beach fun as he is].
https://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/32662366/

My friend Mel recently adopted a kitten. This cutie is named Meekay, which is (phonetically)  the Japanese word for calico. She is a calico tabby kitten, also known as a calibby.

I love her white mittens and back legs, such a beautiful girl .

Her big friend is Spook. I remember Spook [patiently snoozing on the right ]being a tiny kitten, my how he has grown.

And my last bit of news is that my friend L and I braved the hot highways [and a Jimmy Buffett concert in progress] to go to Joann's for fabric for our little Dresses for Bolivia. Lori at Humble Quilts Dresses for Bolivia  We had such fun! We plan to have a sewing day soon, especially if we ever get a rain day. It's only rained twice , two mornings, since early June. Great for the beach, not so great so sewing indoors.

What are you all up to in the final weeks and days of August?
Have a great week.

love 

lizzy 

gone to the beach.........

windsurfer

Garden Peeping and the Plastic Goose Family has Big News!

Hi everyone! Another weekend is upon us. Why don't the weeks fly by like this in, say, April? Mo and I have shortened our walks due to the hot weather but we still enjoy our garden walks each day. Put on your sun hat, come with us! It'll be fun.

I'll tell you the Gooses' exciting news first in case you're bored by garden walks [but not, of course, by the lives of Lawn Geese, lol.] Nope they don't have new clothes, too bad.
They have a BABY!

Isn't that sweet. I try to imagine what she represents: The owners are the graduate and baseball player, and they have a new human baby? Or, more likely, a new grandchild? Or it's simply a misguided gift from the lawn goose catalog. We'll never know, I guess.

After we see the geese we walk by the koi pond. Sadly, for me, the koi are now hidden by the water plants which have massively proliferated.

I suppose it's cool and shady and delicious under the hyacinths, but only rarely do I catch a glimpse of a koi.

The secret beach alley is always so quiet and pretty.

Other places we enjoy...

Hydrangeas---too sunny and dry this years for a great crop, and no blues. These are old fashioned cone shaped hydrangeas.

These are lace caps, last summer they were deepest inky blue.

My friend who wanted a tropical garden is having great success. He is so proud.

He weeded out some of the earlier small colorful bedding plants I put in, like mini petunias and earlier, daffodils.

Their herb planter.

He left the sunflowers we planted. Hugely tall, 12 feet!? ''Dinner plate'' sunflowers, also known as Russian Giants.

My own sunflower, a transplant from thinning the seeded plants in June.

 Bumblebee bum---in my striped mini petunias. Good to see a bee of any sort, there's been very few. Though this year we do have an abundance of butterflies which is quite lovely. They add so much charm and movement to a garden, I think.

Evenings, when we take our longest walks, are coming earlier, the sunsets richly colored now with a hint, just a tiny hint---of pumpkins and October nights.

see the gazebo top, in a bit from the right?
And two tiny dots to the right of that, traffic lights far away?
Long ago, right in that exact spot,
we could see the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center,
glowing gold in the setting sun.

Have a great weekend. Savor each moment. Soon we'll be wearing our woolies and mittens and scarves. Too soon.

love

lizzy

gone to the beach................