What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

We had a terrific rain, thunder and lightening storm on Wednesday, breaking the drought. It didn't rain nearly enough though. And the heat remained steady throughout, no cool down at all. But then on Thursday, it dropped down to the mid 20's and it felt heavenly outside. 

Late season perennial flowers are in bloom...the pink and white hardy Phlox...If I had my time back, I would have planted many more of these to have more bright flowers to enjoy after all the lilies die off. 

 

August has brought welcome cooler temperatures here this week to the Ottawa Valley, Canada. The season of growing things with all the greens and the buzzing things is at its height...this meadow below was literally abuzz, so much so I would not walk through it. In particular, there was a large fly there we used to call stouts as kids. Have no idea what exactly is a stout but we were afraid of them as they could bite. 

It is not just the Goldfinches that tackle those spikey Bull Thistles. I've noticed two different kinds of butterflies giving them lots of attention too. Here is the Canadian Tiger Swallowtail in it's July brilliant yellow.

 

I got waylaid from chores this morning but for a great reason. The garden was ...

It's been dreary weather-wise this week. Very wet and also cold. Early mornings flirted with freezing but for one managed to hold at 0C. My winter jacket has been pressed into service again but I'm very thankful it is not snow like so many parts of Canada and the U.S. have been getting.  And the weather hasn't held back the wonderful growth surrounding the Wooden House. These tiny grape Hyacinth type flowers dotted the side yard. Their colour is gorgeous.

 A few photos of a reluctant spring here..

Do you know what this is?

One morning, I crept about because a Canada Goose was taking a nap on the far side. Like the little squirrel in the last post, I feared there was something amiss seeing it flat out in the grass like this. 

 Tony called me to take a look at this little guy on the back yard railing. He'd been watching him for some time and he hadn't moved.

Sorry the reflection of the front door glass is weirdly caught in this photo.

This week seemed super busy with various things and a big chunk of a day wasted with a stressful situation that ruined my creative mood. All was solved by the end of the day, but it was just maddening. When these things happen, I just have to slow down, and take a breath with a pretty dawn view, or marvel at the unexpected blooming of a violet in the kitchen. It just finished blooming a couple of weeks ago, and it was a delight to notice one morning that it had three blooms, and more to come.

The birds have ...

This is the last sign of the mystery pond animal. Something broke through the ice to make a path right to the hole in the bank.

 I have the bird feeders filled and the wood brought in for the day long fire.

 The last flowers to come into bloom in my garden are the Asters. The wild ones are also in bloom and like these, starting to fade. The sunlight lately has been wonderful and has that noticeable October slant. But shines strongly with a golden tinge that makes it beautiful. I've tried to capture it in this weeks' photos.

He finally took the plunge and immediately took ...

 In twos...

The two of us went down to the pond early evening during the time some call the Blue Hour.  As we turned a corner of the skating shack, I saw clearly two fawns lying together in the tall grass at the far end of the pond. Luckily Ned was entranced with something on the ground and hadn't seen them. I watched for a minute, then pulled him back to quietly exit the scene. No photo, just the beautiful image still in my mind. 

My indoor Geraniums have put on quite a show outside this summer. The heavy ...

There are loads of butterflies around this year. In particular, I love to spy a Comma flitting about. Because of how jagged the wing edges are, I think this is a male. Their spiritual meaning is unconditional love and faith. Wouldn't it be nice if we all had a healthy dose of both those things!

This little guy kept popping his head out. He's living in the tunnel under the back terrace plus has inherited what I imagine to be an elaborate tunnel system all over the property made by groundhogs that came before him. 

 It is always a treat to open the kitchen curtain in the morning. I never know what I might see. One morning recently -back when the sun was shining- this fellow was sleeping in the driveway. I watched him idly glance about, yawn and tuck his head back down for a few more zees. I wondered how long he'd been there; overnight would be unlikely as I know foxes have dens. I'm always surprised by how long and thin their snouts are and their bodies too. And what colour! Note: taken from a great distance and this is ...

Happy May to all! Though it feels a little like one step forward and two steps back, spring is getting here. Fresh snow out west; here no snow but cold overnight and early mornings have a chilly wind. But it doesn't stop the two who venture out every morning for a good walk. Of course, one of us is wearing a fur coat so he's going to be toasty no matter what. 

As another Ned said...

"What is the good of your stars and the trees, your sunrise and the wind, if they do not enter into our ...

They're Baaaack !

Turkey Vultures

We counted 25 of them today!

They enjoy roosting on the fence posts

at sunrise and taking a solar bath.

View my Instagram feed HERE

LuAnn Kessi

 I thought of some of my blogging friends on Sunday...those who spend time in arenas with the children involved in one sport or another. This is where I was this Sunday...the Kingston Invista Centre, watching Robbie with his team at the final tournament of the year. They'd won all their games right down to the very last one which they lost and there were tears. Life lessons of course, but much satisfaction that the boys had certainly come a long way skill wise. Overall, a wonderful season of hockey. 

On my To Do List this week...

I ...