29 August 2010

The Greens of Summer

With a little color thrown in!



















Fall is just around the corner!

26 August 2010

Update on Garden House

I thought that before I got started for the day I would give you a quick update on my garden house. I've got the base coat on the outside, and have been playing around with the trim colors.

Hubby has planed the french doors twice already not counting when it was put in. We have had such high humidity this summer that the doors have just swelled.

Shelves are being put inside.

Here you can see that the sheetrock has been put up which is what hubby and I did together. Then I did the taping, sanding, muding, and then I painted everything. We did have our neighbor/painter put a kilz coat on the rafters and windows then I went back and painted all of them. If you notice above the shelves next to the tin we put foam board up. When we first painted the foam board the ink kept bleeding through even with kilz! Finally hubby scrapped the ink part off of the others and it stopped. The foam board was put there since there was a gap between the sheetrock and tin roof which allowed air to escape to the outside or worse the hot air to come in! Hubby put in a ceiling fan for me, and then we have a little window air conditioning unit which he placed in the window. I did not want that yet after working in the house with as hot and humid as it has been it was a lifesaver! I'll take it out later when it cools down, but I was thankful for it with this hot summer!

I am not a big fan of windows like these. They look pretty yet are a pain to clean, and even worse a pain to paint! However, they were free along with the french doors (hubby is so good about finding freebies!). These did have a dark stain on them. It has taken one coat of kilz plus three coats of paint to get them to this stage! And they still need touch ups!!!!! What's worse is I still have to paint the outside! At least on the outside they came with a good coat of light paint on them already.

Hubby put all the vents in. Yesterday I trimmed all the white you see which is where hubby caulked.

I had put the base coat on the outside about a month ago. Then we had rain, and when it wasn't raining the humidity was so high which really isn't good painting weather. This is what I have been working on most of the summer. The garden did not do well at all so I focused my attention on the garden house. Of course this is along with all the usual stuff that needs to be done inside and out. Then we had a surprise waiting for us one Saturday morning. After a storm one Friday night hubby looked outside on the carport and saw this sleeping away!

He came and woke me up and told me there was something outside that I have been wanting. A rug I asked? I've been looking for one for my garden house. No. So I get up to see, and at first I thought it was a deer since all I noticed were the legs, of course I didn't have my contacts or glasses on!!!! Then I saw it was a dog, a big dog. Oh boy, and I was wanting a Benji dog. I've been calling around everywhere, and even had a very nice lady who runs a doggie boarding house plus a shelter for homeless dogs put ads out. So far nothing. We have had a big dog before, a husky, so big dogs are ok. Yet I would rather find its owners although we have the feeling that she was dumped off. It is happening more and more. So for now we are foster parents! which made the very nice lady very happy! Now, she needs her walk which is good as it is getting me active again!! so I better get busy!!!

22 August 2010

Middle Age


"One of the beautiful surprises of middle age is the discovery that mature love is not only richer and deeper, but every bit as breathtaking as it was in the beginning."

14 August 2010

Two Mules For 88

Last weekend we went with our neighbors up to the mountains of North Carolina to visit a friend of theirs whom we have had the pleasure of meeting quite a few times.

The day turned out to be really nice with beautiful blue skies

There is a creek on the property too

Along with some grape vines scattered around

The creek has little shards of rubies and garnets, nothing really big, but hubby got down to start looking for some

I used a pan, and although you really can't see the little rubies as they were just pin dots, it certainly was fun!

Nice thing about a creek you can put a lawn chair in it, plop yourself down, cool your feet, and drink a glass of wine when you are through panning!

Later on our friend told us we could pick as much as we wanted of the blueberries

the pears

and we had a ton of apples that had already fallen to the ground. I brought a huge box home with me

The next morning hubby and I went for a walk

The morning mist was across the mountains

The creek still held its jewels

The mist was slowly burning off, but left the dew on the ground

Poke berries and morning glories along the roadside

A bumble bee busy at work as hubby walked on

The morning light giving an old barn new beauty

It was a little cool that morning and I had to borrow a t-shirt as all I had was a tank top. Next time I'll remember a light jacket. This tree was huge, and is probably at least 100 years old or more.



A valley that seems to go on and on

An old wooden gate to invite you in

The blue of the morning glory as blue as the Carolina skies

A beautiful hydrangea of which I brought several cuttings home

I wish I could have brought this home! He had so many hummingbirds around, but there is a huge lake in the area that crosses two state lines. The hummingbirds always are more abundant around the water.

Such a beautiful area, a nice weekend. Yet I'm sure you are wondering where are the mules? Our friends family has been in this area probably for 80+ years if not more. His grandfather when he was very young bought this land for two mules from the Indians. Two mules for 88 acres. The stories this land could tell, and according to our friend they still have their "pow wows" not too far away from this old homestead. When they are there you can hear their songs and drums as they celebrate the days with the story telling of the past. The sounds carrying through into the evening molding into the valley of their ancestors until the misty morning light shows its face once again.

13 August 2010

Butterfly

Ooooh, someone is another year older today!!! Silke at http://silkepowers.blogspot.com/ !!!! Guess Anne at http://elmilagrostudio.blogspot.com/
got ya on this one!!!
Here's a wish that your day be filled with butterflies that inspire you with all of those wonderful paintings, and of course plenty of kuchen too!!!

Have a wonderful and happy day Silkie!!!!

05 August 2010

And They Call It Puppy Love

Now say it all together.....awwwwww isn't that just the cutest!!!

I took this photo along the river walk in Savannah. There he/she was with its very own little stuffed puppy dog! Now who could resist taking this photo! Too cute!!!!
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