Happy Sunday everyone!!!! I hope this finds you well and safe and somewhat cool!!!!!
Yesterday was beautiful here, and today will be as well. Yesterday there was not a cloud in the sky - just beautiful blue. Temperature stayed in the 70's and we had a lovely breeze. It was glorious. I was outside almost all day long!!! Today much the same - then the heat comes back.
Looks as if the whole week will be 90 and over. UGH! No rain to speak of either. This is sure the part of summer I don't appreciate!
Last week was hot as well!
On the critter front - my neighbor caught and relocated 4 groundhogs and 2 opossums in last week! There are still more out there. My goodness there are has been so many this year.
My little Fluffer Butter has decided NOW she wants to eat 'regular' canned food! After mommy got her lots of the gravies she liked!!!!! LOL. Stinker - I guess I am supplied with gravy in case it may be needed or for a treat.
Everything is really growing. Lots of blooms and tiny little veggies are starting. Grapes are just loaded. The flowers are going nuts. Lilies, lilies and more lilies!!!!!!!!
This past week:
- I did run to feed store for corn and thistle seed on Monday.
- Dropped off a huge donation to the mission thrift store
- I went through a bunch of Bi-pap supplies I found in closet. Hubs used a machine and always had tons of supplies on hand. He even kept used hoses and such. I threw away the used stuff and planned on donating the rest. *May keep it - it may be worth gold at some point. Some family use machines and who knows if supplies will dwindle. I will keep some for now.
- I actually turned the AC 'up' on the hottest days to use less energy. The house still felt cool enough, as the humidity was taken out of the air
- Made a gallon of lemonade - so refreshing
- Washed the inside of windows and all mirrors
- Cleaned all the wood floors
- Used rainwater when watering all the potted plants
- Got the hose out back all hooked up to the soaker hose in garden - it will be needed in the next week!
- Used dehumidifier (portable in basement) water in laundry
- Got the entire yard mowed and trimmed on Saturday - it looks so pretty and neat!!!!
- Played like Morticia and deadheaded all the roses off the 3 climbing bushes!! LOL.
- No grocery store this week
- Cut and drying basil from the yard
- Did a big house cleaning - lots of vacuuming and dusting. Still working on de-cluttering
- AC off and windows open yesterday and today - airing house. Enjoying it while I can!
Meals this past week:
Fried smashed potato topped with cheese and bacon
Cream cheese/veggie/ham roll-ups (on tortillas)
Tuna salad sandwich and chips
Tacos
Corn/shredded carrot fritters and leftover taco meat
Fried hominy/peppers and chopped steak
Warm chili/cheese dip and crusty Italian bread
Fritters - a can (drained) corn, 2 eggs, 1/2 C flour (I used baking mix instead), and seasoning. Drop on lightly oiled pan or griddle and fry until golden each side. This made 6 - ate 3 and froze 3. EASY!
I think I may be able to get a lot done inside this week - as it will be so hot outside. Maybe more de-cluttering, maybe some painting - we will see! I will still be outside every day - watering and checking on and feeding the babies.
What have you been doing this week? How are those gardens doing? Give us a shout and let us know how you are and what you have been up to.
I pray you are all well and safe. Wishing you a wonderful week. Stay cool.
Blessings to you and yours from my humble little home.
Romans 12:12
Lord, we ask Your help in staying positive in attitude and humble in life - that we may live our best lives for You and others. We give thanks to You for Your love and protecting embrace. AMEN
Wonderful weather there! I’m so glad you’re getting to enjoy this respite. You have really made the most of the cooler temps! What is up with all those critters?! - glad your neighbor did the catching and relocating so you didn’t have to.
ReplyDeleteIt’ll be nice to stay indoors in the cool and get things done while it gets hot again for you. Funny your Fluffy has decided she likes regular cat food now? We do love to cater to them ;)
We’ll, we have Covid, DH and I. He did an in-home test as he came down with the symptoms 2days before I did. We’re thinking it’s the omicron variety and are just praying our symptoms don’t get any worse or return. Apparently that’s when one would need to seek medical help.
Fresh air and beautiful blue skies are good medicine. You and the kitties stay well🥰
Mary in OK
It must have been a fertile spring is all I can guess with the critters! LOL - Yes, I am glad he is taking care of it for a change - but only because they decided under his deck was the new 'fun place' to be this year!
DeleteOh yes, I cater to my babies - they get what they want!
So sorry to hear you are both under the weather. Prayers it goes away quickly. Fresh air and sunshine seem to be a remedy for many things.
Take care!!!!
Praying it's mild and passes quickly for both of you, Mary.
Delete--Elise
P.s. your lilies and all are beautiful! N
ReplyDeleteOh, how I LOVE your daylilies, Cheryl! I just love daylilies anyway, but yours are so healthy and luscious. When we lived in Ohio, those tall orange ones were everywhere, naturalized. And yes, I remember the critters, too. We had groundhogs and rabbits and moles galore. Thankfully, not possums or racoons, but they've been in other places we've lived. Here, we're told to expect fox, coyote, deer, elk... sometimes bear, bobcat or mountain lion. I did see bunnies racing across our property the other day.
ReplyDeleteWeather-wise, the monsoon is starting here. It cooled things off a lot when rain started yesterday. Also welcome to reduce fire danger. And with the rain, our son found where the wasps have been nesting at his house... in a crack in the pavement by his laundry room! He went out after dark and sealed it up with caulk.
We had the joy of visiting with long time friends who drove through the other day. They've spent 20 years in Cameroon, working for Wycliff, and are now stateside for good, settled in Indianapolis! Just got back from selling everything in Africa. They'll both continue to work for Wycliff in a part time, supervisory capacity to support missionaries in the field from your city.
Have a blessed week! --Elise
Dad originally dug lilies at the side of the road - he got all his flowers that way! I dug small patch from mom and dad's home a good 25 years ago and they just spread and spread.
DeleteI will take racoons and possums over what you have!!!! Yikes.
I have heard it is very dry out that way - hope the rain helps and doesn't create worse problems.
How wonderful that you had visitors from days gone by. I bet they had some interesting stories.
My lilies are just starting. I love this time of year with the flowers. We have tiny tomatoes and bigger tomatoes and lots of peppers and tons of basil. All last week I gave basil seedlings to everyone who came by to thin out my planting. They were all thrilled to get them! Hubby did drywall work in our kitchen last week and it is SO GOOD to have that job checked off the list!
ReplyDeleteI do like lilies too - just an old fashioned flower. Many people don't care for them.
DeleteMy basil is really crazy as well. I have opal basil - it is purple! It originally came from my folk's house as well.
Things are really taking off - it won't be long and we will all be swapping stories of what we are picking!!!!
Glad you got a big job off the list!
My mother was a huge fan of lilies and had many varieties. I like them too, but my front flower bed doesn't get enough sun to keep them happy.
ReplyDeleteWe had a very hot day (for us) yesterday, this morning it is humid and cool. Potential thunderstorms and even a tornado watch for some areas nearby. Of course, I watered all the containers this morning, I should have checked the forecast first.
Lilies do like that sun - mine get it almost all day.
DeleteJust like washing a car - do it and it will rain! LOL
Stay safe and cool!
Please be careful to keep the cats away from the lilies, just licking the pollen off their coat can cause kidney failure I learned this the hard way after losing one of my boys.....he was only three. jan
ReplyDeleteWow, that is scary. I have had both for years and have never had a problem. They stay out of the flower garden, but that is good to know. Thank you!
DeleteMy orange daylilies are blooming now also! The cream and the pink ones I transplanted are doing ok. I hope next week's heat won't hurt them too much. They had buds when I moved them.
ReplyDeleteI have bears here, and they tip over things in the garden looking for bugs and ant nests. Blackie is a good guard-cat: he notices the bear before I do and alerts me. Scary. Bear tipped over the flower pot at the foot of my steps, flower fell out. I repotted it this morning.
Stay cool this coming week!
MaryB in NC
Bears - oh no! That is super scary. I wouldn't like that at all.
DeleteThat is way too close for comfort if you ask me - the steps!
Stay safe!!!! Hope it never tries to get in.
Stay cool there as well.
Your flowers are so pretty. The last few days were lovely here in MN, and I had the windows open for the fresh air. But today the heat started, 97 for our high and 100 tomorrow and hot the rest of the week as well. This morning we went to early church service, then got a cup of coffee and sat down by one of the lakes near our home and just enjoyed the lake and people watching. There's lots of shade there, so it was lovely, but started getting hot, so we came home. Our little garden plot is doing well, but we are going to have to be diligent about watering. I'm thankful that, for now at least, we don't have any watering restrictions. May your week be blessed!
ReplyDeleteWanita
My goodness, you have the heat back already! Ours starts tomorrow and the hottest being Tuesday and Wed. they are saying. Today is still just lovely.
DeleteYour morning sounds so peaceful and relaxing.
Yes, glad I can water as well. I would figure something out - one way or the other. Sure want the garden to thrive.
Stay safe and cool and keep that garden watered!!!
There has been company in my house for >2 wks beginning with a visit from 4 friends from Britain. It was full with meal planning/prep, sight seeing including a 3-day trip to Jasper, AB, entertaining. The only thing to rain on our parade was a car breakdown (bearings) & the challenge of random covid testing from the airport. Seeing my home province through others' eyes is inspiring and makes me very appreciative of where I live. There was a one-day turn around, just enough time to change bedding & clean bathrooms and 4 more house guests arrived for a local music festival. The garden and flower beds are in need of a good sprucing up. There are still some bedding plants to put in. The irises and lilacs are blooming and the peonies are budding. There have been many bear sightings in the past 2 wks and it gives me great pleasure to observe them at a distance. I'm looking forward to a return to routine. Cheryl, your diligence in caring for your space always motivates me.
ReplyDeleteCheryl, you were one busy woman this week! Those flowers are gorgeous. You inspired me to clean up my flower bed this morning. No tiger lilies blooming yet, the front yard is too shaded by the tree across the street. Stella D'Oro lilies are blooming in front, and they plus an ornamental sage, roses, gaillardia, and spiderwort are blooming in back with hostas and cosmos in bud.
ReplyDeleteGoing to be very hot and humid after tomorrow here. We've enjoyed very beautiful weather the past couple of days. Even had to run the furnace for Husband this morning; it got down to 48F last night. We really could use some rain. My rain barrels are almost empty.
The veggies are coming along. The peas have blossoms. I found a total of 8 volunteer tomato plants. Mowed and weedwacked Saturday. Weeded the onions this morning and found a dime. Who knew gardening paid so well? LOL!
DeleteBeen culling fabric from my Project Linus supplies. I've decided to continue making blankets but not as many. The culled fabric is being cut into 5-1/2in squares for kits. I'm trying to get the stash into a little better shape with only fabric I'll really use.
After an episode this week when Husband almost collapsed, I took his blood pressure and found it very low and called the Dr. I told her I thought he was overmedicated. She took him off one of his BP meds, and he seems stronger and his BP is more normal. We'll continue to monitor it.
DeleteWent out twice last week. Gas at Costco was $4.89/gal. Aldi had a lot of sparse shelves. I also went walking at the trail one day. Haven't been getting there nearly enough, but the hot, humid weather is a killer for me.
I've been reading the news (too much) and from what I've seen, grains and grain products are going to become the next shortage by autumn. I inventoried my baking supplies and pasta and will be stocking up even more on my next Aldi visit.
DeleteI took advantage of the cool weather yesterday and baked chocolate chip cookies for Husband for Father's Day (with Butter Dogs for supper!), and made 18 Strawberry/Oatmeal muffins for the freezer. We got 6 quarts of strawberries in last week's food box! Even after giving away 4 of them, it was still more than we can eat, and I already have a year's worth in the freezer.
Reading "Peter the Great" by Robert Massie. Very interesting history of Russia at that time. Also been reviewing and indexing on Family Search. Good way to kill a hot, humid afternoon.
DeleteHusband has to have routine lab work done this week, and I will probably go to Aldi late in the week. Otherwise, I pray for a nice, quiet week and hope everyone else has one, too.
Love your devotional! The Urban Farmer was watching a fellow he likes on YouTube and he was going on about how depressed people are and they just have no hope. Sadly that is true for too many folks. There is an Answer for that hopeless and despair.
ReplyDeleteYour flowers are beautiful! Morticia indeed! I need to do that to my roses and give them a good soak. Doesn't look rain any time soon. We wound a soaker hose around the tomatoes, close to the roots. They seem to like it. Have baby green beans on and quite a few yellow squash. There is one eggplant ready and I found a recipe for eggplant with yellow squash and zucchini.
You get so much done in a week's time! I had intended to work on some of the flower beds this morning but the Farmer started poking through our "store" in the garage so we did that sorting and organizing instead. It all needs to be done so it doesn't really matter when.
I am reading the latest Jacqueline Winspear book. She is such a good author.
Stay cool this week!
There are a lot of depressed people it seems. I just see so much "what are we to do" stuff. I feel sorry they just don't have faith. One way or another - it will be OK.
DeleteI have a little garden - so the soaker is inter-twined throughout. I water the pots all separately.
You are lucky to have veggies already!
It looks like a lot when you list it out - but not really. I could do so much more and seem to waste a lot of time for some reason. Yes, it will all get done at some point - doesn't matter when. Good going on cleaning up and sorting the store!!!
You try and stay cool as well.
Donna, is that a Maisie Dobbs book? I've read the first six in that series and really enjoyed them.
DeleteThe past week was a doozy. We were hit with bad storms on Tues & Wed. We fared much better than some. We had a limb come down on the roof but no damage we think. We personally know a tree company and we called right away and they were able to come the next day to remove it. We also had 2 dead trees removed while they were here. And now I have A LOT of mulch for my beds.
ReplyDeleteWe lost most of the crops on our other farm, so will be replanting the soybeans. Insurance will pay for the damaged corn.
God protected us and our home/farm/cattle.
My workplace (HVAC company) has been swamped with calls to check units for hail damage.
My garden had some damage but I think it will come out of it.
I tied up my tomatoes and thinned the branches for air flow (found 3 tomato worms on one plant. ICK!!)
Harvested the broccoli. Lovely heads.
Moved the cloth hoop tunnel from the broccoli to the spinach and chard.
Weeded
Planted cucumbers and pumpkins.
Kept the calves watered.
This week I'll be prepping for our out-of-state family's visit. So excited to see them!
Oh my gosh what a mess. SO glad there was damage to your home and I am so sorry about your crops. I sure hope the insurance comes through and you can do a second planting.
DeleteOh, those worms are so icky! Home grown broccoli is so yummy - I used to grow it a lot.
You sure did keep busy. Very productive busy!!!!!!''
How wonderful that family will be coming to visit. Don't over work yourself getting ready!
Sunday again, so soon! Cheryl, you were a whirlwind of activities! Our weather has been so oppressively hot that just ordinary stuff inside seems to sap energy! An afternoon nap seems normal. My doggy just lays under the ceiling fan.
ReplyDeleteIt was a good week for sewing. My craft room is the coolest, as it's in the NE corner of the house. I had a huge laundry basket of mending and I just attacked it. I had forgotten some of it was even in there! I still have a bit more, but it felt so good to see the pile go down. I'm hoping to get my new kitchen curtains sewn this week. I'm tired of looking at the beach towel currently there lol.
Not many great store deals to be had last week. We got some OJ and replenished our bottled water supply. We had a water issue somewhat recently and it lasted for 3 days. We made a dent in our stash so I was glad to fill that again. The Mr. made a stop at Sam's on his way home from his side hustle. He picked up a box of greens and he brought us home their cafe hot dogs for dinner. Cheap and simple and it wasn't an inch outta his way.
We donated blood last week and each got a $5 Amazon GC. That's a fun bonus! We always save it for something we can't buy locally, like a big sack of citric acid.
We were invited to a "Come anytime between 11-2 BBQ" that was given by someone we pay for services. It was a thànk you to customers on his business anniversary date. It was at the park. Poor guy, I don't think he had any idea how many people were looking for a free lunch, even in 100° weather. We got there just after noon and most of the food and drinks were already gone!! He was very apologetic. We sat and chatted a bit and then went off in search of something cold. We stopped at the shaved ice kiosk and it was WONDERFUL!! Pure heaven in a cup!!! Then we went home and had lunch!
As for my reading last week:
On my nightstand - Gamble by Felix Francis
In my craft room CD player - First Family by David Baldacci.
With my Bible study - Beautiful in God's Eyes by Elizabeth George.
By my reading chair - The Quilt that Walked to Golden by Sandra Dallas. The sub-title of this book is Women and Quilts in the Mountain West. It's non-fiction and loaded with interesting history! I recommend it! I also have to mention that Sandra Dallas wrote a book titled The Persian Pickle Club that I thoroughly enjoyed. It's about a group of quilters in Kansas during the Depression.
See you on Tuesday!
You are on a sewing binge!! Good job. I think today if you offer a 'free' anything - tons of people will show up! It doesn't surprise me. At least you got a good slushy and had a nice time.
DeleteMy Coogy loves to lay under the ceiling fans as well! They are pretty smart!
You sure do read a lot. I don't get to much in the summer. I do reference books - that is about it until winter.
Stay cool.
It probably sounds like I read all day, but I really don't! The only guaranteed reading time is bedtime and my Bible study. The other two are when I can, like when I'm sewing. I'm not a big TV watcher àt all. I watch local news for about 15 minutes in the morning just to check in with the outside world, if you will. It's a mess, if you don't know!!
DeleteSeriously, I check the weather, things like utility issues, and ânything I need to know. If it were up to me, it would go on only for Friday Dateline and the occasional PBS show like Endeavor that premiered S8 last night. That gives me some reading time in the evening. I'd say that, except for the craft room, it's about an hour each day.
I have always loved to read, thanks to my Grandpa. Though only educated through 8th grade and in Spanish, he taught himself English and was always with a book, whether taking a break while gardening or waiting for a fish to bite. I think I mentioned he would even read dictionaries and encyclopedias if that was all that was available!!
LOL - hey, you can read whenever you want! I didn't think you spent the day reading! I just can't get into much when it is pretty out.
DeleteI am the same - local news - weather and local interests - done. I can't tell you the last time I watched national news. No need. I do get the paper (for now) and catch a lot. I think I will end that this month.
You grandpa sounds like daddy. He had 8th grade education and he was a wiz at math - could run rings around anybody. He did crosswords everyday - and they used to have time limits to achieve - and he always broke those. He was a pain to play Yahtzee with!!! LOL
As much as I hated math in school - I got a lot of his aptitude for that - though not as good!
Sounds like such beautiful weather, Cheryl. We had cool weather and breezes yesterday too and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Isn’t it great to get the cleaning and dusting done? I’ve been doing some of that this week too and my gosh things can get so dusty. Whew! I hope you have a terrific week.
ReplyDeleteIt was just gorgeous! I would call Saturday the perfect weather day!!!!
DeleteIt is nice and you just feel better to see things all clean and in place. Dust never ends in the summer!
You have a good one as well.
I am so jealous of your flowers. This week will be in the 80s and 90s as well and I am looking forward to it. My hubby says I am a hot house flower. Busy this week with wedding plans, me and hubs wedding anniversary and a visit from the oldest son and dil next week.
ReplyDeleteLOL - that is cute - a hothouse flower!
DeleteSounds like a busy week and a fun one as well. Happy anniversary to you both!
Glad you get to be with family!
You stay so busy, but then again you have alot to do with the yard and all. Your flowers are lovely my dear.
ReplyDeleteThanks - I could be much busier. Nothing else to do - so might as well work around here! My life is not real exciting!
DeleteDebby, that is a Maisie Dobbs book. Her writing takes right into the scene.
Delete