Summer Goes Too Quickly

Summer is winding down, and I'm not quite sure how I feel about that. I think there are too many things that I wanted to do, but they never really happened. I didn't get to enjoy my back porch nearly as much as I wanted to, so trees are starting to turn shades of bright red, as the flowers continue to bloom and disappear.

August means the hibiscus are slowly fading away....

And that soon the dahlias will have to be dug up and stored for winter....

But then I will have more time to make whole wheat blueberry pancakes....

And I'll have more time for sewing, which is always a plus for me. I've decided my winter project is to learn how to knit. Now crochet, crochet I can do. Granted, there is a lot of cursing and frustration associated with crocheting, but for some reason I still want to pick up a ball of yarn and just make it work.

Do you knit? Is it easier or harder than crochet?

How does your garden grow?

I LOVE my "Elsa Spath" clematis. I have to say that it was one of those plants that was growing like a weed (oh wait, everything was) when we bought our place, and I had no idea what it was. A neighbor told me "oh, I think that has flowers on it or something". I decided not to rip it out of the ground and let it grow.

I'm really glad I did! There's nothing quite like a giant bouquet of purple flowers to welcome you home.

And I actually have pictures of quilt I finished! Of course I finished it in the car on the way to the baby shower, but that doesn't matter, right? And the pictures were taken at the shower after giving to the recipient, but I don't think she minded.

I've decided I'm quite a fan of the wonky long cabin blocks- I liked not trying to make them "perfect". I tried to make something neutral, since we don't know the sex of the baby, so I chose orange, yellow, green, and gray.

Now if only I could finish a project of my own!

Peonies

*Sigh*

I know I've been gone for far too long. So sorry.... I think about writing here all of the time. I take the pictures, write the stories that go with them in my head, but then I sit on my back porch with Duncan, or take a bike ride with Husband instead of posting all of it. Not that I'm using those things as an excuse to leave this space unattended to, but really, I am. I can't resist summer, what can I say?

What do you do when you have these beautiful flowers opening up all over your yard?

Or when your dog wants nothing more than to roll around on dead worms in the dirt pit that (was) your backyard?

I promise it's all green and lush and beautiful now.... if I can find another "before" picture, I'll happily post an "after" one too!

Yep, I think it's time for someone to go on a walk....