August Begins: Flowers Inside and Out, and Some Drawing

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Good evening! Yes indeed it is August---the second month of summer has begun. A heat wave is coming again, happy to report my main AC is replaced and cooling beautifully. Summer's halfway point is mid-August, lots of time to enjoy every moment. I'm trying to plan--and do---one fun summery thing each day. Today I swam in my pool, despite the intense shoulder pain I have. So serene and calming.

 Mo and I enjoying my deck garden still, especially loving the new white windscreens and privacy. The cannas are a surprise success. I read up on them after being gifted with them for Mothers Day and discovered I had been planting the tubers too early and too deep.

In the end I left the volunteer marigolds in the smaller canna pot. They don't ''go'', had hoped to put neon impatiens and lime green sweet potato vine but they are brave and cute and flourishing, 

so go, marigolds!

The zinnia crop is odd. Good thing I impulsively bought the Dollar Store seeds this spring. They are growing well and blooming nicely The large flowers last a really long time.

Terrible crabgrass in the area of the pot with the Baker Creek seeds! Were their seeds contaminated with the weeds? Like most crabgrass I can't get ahead of it and the roots are long and tough.

One Baker Creek plant has grown, the peppermint zinnia. I may a have a chartreuse zinnia coming from that batch too. Nothing on the other fancies.

The coreopsis and lilies pot is a bit in the doldrums,  though a few wildflowers also Dollar Store seeds, have continued to bloom. A bachelor button! Borage, baby breath, etc. The yellow coreopsis should rebloom in a few weeks as I deadhead it rigorously.

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Indoors, my Trader Joe flowers. The stocks were messy, I always forget that because I love their sweet old fashioned charm.

The ranunculas didn't last long but I do love having them.

Tiny bouquet in seaglass bottles. Much less to cut and bring indoors with the seeds failing in the big pots.

Bac on the deck, the gerbera daisy is blooming nicely. I thought I ordered cut flowers in June but this is what the grocery guy brought me.

Mo continues to adore deck time.

I found an ice cream that won't make him sick  and I don't give him his jerky stick chew at the same time. Either no chew or later, like now when I am doing boring to pug things like typing my blog. In the photo you can see his special ice cream bowl with the snowman, he sees that bowl and he gets so perky, dances all around. Pugs are 100% food motivated, but he is happy with only a few spoonfuls. [Dogster doggy ice cream]

He looks so fresh and sweet after his bath Monday!

But the groomer was rude and also nearly doubled her rates, from 50.oo to 80.oo. No tip for her anymore. Why do people, especially people performing a paid service think it is okay to be rude? What is their intention, to make me upset and angry? A NY behavioral mystery.

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And here is a recent nature journal cartoon page:

I also bought myself this cute little watercolor set. 

Color me a lazy b#$%ch but I was annoyed that the little watercolor blocks came double wrapped, in both paper and cellophane. That's an hour I'll never get again, spent with a letter opener prising off all the layers and refitting into the box.

This is my usual little travel or field box. I love it but there are a few colors that this set's pigments just cannot produce: sharp pink, purples, bright orange / cheddar, turquoise. My colors!. 

So I added the second set. 

All because getting out my large box of watercolors and real papers seems like too big a commitment when my work is not so good, yet? ever?

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Mornings on the deck are very hot now. Too hot to eat breakfast or lunch outdoors. But by 330 Pm the sun moves and usually a breeze begins. We will not have cool weather til November now and very little rain. Tomorrow we will finish the TQC Tiny Sampler maybe. 

Today I wore my boho cotton top from Old Navy. It is either too big or there's a flaw in the pattern. It sort of just falls OFF. Swimsuit underneath but still. At least I love the fabric.

Have a good rest of the summer, enjoy each day.

love

lizzy

gone to the beach....

Out and About! So fun!

Good  morning on this foggy Friday as we say goodbye to July. The first month of summer is almost done, hot and dry [yet humid] but still lovely. I just washed my big windows, rain will no doubt fall within 24 hours. This weekend is the anniversary of my/ our moving to this tiny beautiful oceanfront home. So many years ago, just a young couple in their 20s looking for a weekend getaway.We never had a single thought or worry about where the future would take us, good times, sad and bad times.

The other day L and I got out for one of our Just for Fun girly shopping trips. Out and abouts are few these days, as we are no longer young moms with an afternoon hour to kill before school let out. I cherish each time we do meet up, so inspiring. Happy retail therapy, shallow as that may seem.

Here we go! Where else!

Home Goods was lovely, clean and empty [masks worn]. ALL about Halloween though, more on that in a minute.

They did have some items left of earlier offerings. Only one cute fish,"Coastal"---driftwood inspiration, if only my beach actually had driftwood.

Great very tall planters. "Outdoor". How I wish I could have lifted them to bring home. The big ones

[waist high] are great bec they bring the flowers up to sitting eye level. One fills the base with plastic bottles or baggies of styrofoam peanuts. 

Don't these fun chairs look painful, lol.

And the Boho Marketplace, vintage-y hippy things I love every year. Lots of great pouffes and cushions.

Love these bolsters and also the pouffe below, never even noticed it in the store.

Then, yes, it is Halloween in retail world. 

Wonderful glass pumpkins.

Cute and different pumpkins, like Tim Burton Nightmare Before Christmas designs?

Loved this pumpkin like my pineapple.

Too expensive.

Black scary stuff?

We shopped fast then went on to Trader Joe's for fresh flowers. All so pretty.

I also grabbed a box of heirloom-ish cherry tomatoes even though I promised we wouldn't really take the time to shop..

For a delicious Ina Garten summer salad, so simple but amazingly good with real summer tomatoes.  I used tarragon instead of basil, because I like tarragon better and basil-tomato is a smidge trite. And add a teaspoon of sugar/ honey/ sweetener.

 https://www.instagram.com/p/CgerxKQLuwj/ 

@inagarten               click here

Want to guess what came home with me?

New water bowl for Mo, flowers, tomatoes..

Room spray, because candles are less effective in the summer with open doors and windows. Though FYI Home Goods had a great stock of fall scented candles.

Smallish puzzle for those first dark evenings in October. I am hoping I can do my puzzles again, as my vision is improved though I will have one, maybe two/ more surgeries this coming winter. But at least now I can see the pieces I think.

Poppy red ranunculas! ❤

Blue-lavender stocks/phlox.

The orange bolster! Had to have it. 

Nancy asked me if orange is my favorite color, I said No, but really/ maybe? Yes? I am picturing late October cottage with creamy linen pillows and this accent of orange. 

Soft and sweet, no scary skulls ooor spiders/ ghosts/ skeletons for me this year.

All hand embroidered.

And though I cannot find the photo it was the most adorable pompoms and tassels, [happy sigh].

 Not sure I grabbed the right one though.

I save the TJs bags for garden deadheading as they don't blow away, but I kept this one thinking I will cut out and save the cute old time-y motifs in case I ever start my junk journal.

Mo is still lying by the AC, hope springs eternal in Pug world. I haven't heard from the appliance guys recently though. Don't look too close but you can see where water intrusion [forced in by high winds/ storms, not a real leak] and rust and roadwork dust have damaged the unit and the electric baseboard heaters below.

Something for the weekend!

Enjoy these last days of July!

love

lizzy

gone to the beach...

one evening, a bit foggy...