Monday, June 27, 2022

Summer's Arrival - At Last!

 


Hello, Summer. 

It's almost 8 pm on a late June evening. The sun slants warm and golden along the Sooke Hills visible from our patio. Summer arrived this weekend with three gloriously beautiful days. In my garden the last peony buds opened and I quickly clipped them to enjoy in the cooler indoor temperature for a few days. 


Today, I picked the first small bowlful of raspberries, and more strawberries. With the heat the garden is taking off - I'm sure the tomato plants grew visibly after such a long cold spring. Weather is a funny thing, isn't it? We talk about it often, and it does make a difference to activities and emotions. Summers here are short in Canada, and Canadians tend to make the most of them. Weekends spent camping, afternoons at the beach, lots of barbecues and picnics fill the calendar. 


Summer food is so wonderful, too. This evening I made a watermelon and feta cheese salad to go along with our grilled steak, couscous, mushrooms, and roasted vegetables. The crisp, cold sweet watermelon is a perfect foil for salty feta. 

I cut several branches of John Cabot, our climbing rose that is extremely thorny. Don't they look elegant on the mantel? I'm feeling the need for more colour these days, hence the blue vase in place of a clear one. 

A cooling breeze fills the house and our three hot days are ending overnight. We are not returning to the chilly wet days, for which I'm extremely thankful. 

"It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside." (Maude Hart Lovelace of the Betsy-Tacy books)


29 comments:

  1. Your flowers are beautiful especially in the first picture!
    The roses and the blue vase perfectly match.
    We still have summer weather but not so hot and we cook with our barbecue and eat salads with melon. I love melon with mozzarella, salad and dry duck meat and eggs. I make lots of different salads. I bought a barbecue recipe book to grill different food.
    I hope you’ll enjoy the summer days!

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  2. Weather is of utmost importance ; it has an impact on everything. I'm afraid I couldn't have lived in a country with cold weather most of the year.
    The little vases with the flowers look cute, and add a lot of beauty to the room

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  3. The last peopnies bring so much joy. Mine are almost over now. The rose is lovley , and not one that i know. Enjoy your Summer, even if short.

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  4. The glorious blooms herald summer. The warm days here are spliced by rain days which the farmers love. Have a great summer!

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  5. Beautiful flowers. Your weather sounds perfect! We are hot and muggy here in SW Florida.

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  6. Beautiful roses
    Summer so far has been a mix of hot and cool rain days here in Vermont as well.

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  7. Elegant indeed! Your flowers are always lovely. We've had a mild spring for us, too. Usually by mid May we have hot weather though not always overly hot. This year we've had pockets of heat, until the solstice. Now summery weather!

    I love the last of your peonies! Mine have been gone since late May. One of the joys of blogging is seeing friends gardens and enjoy the beauty of plants that either aren't in bloom or are past their bloom where you live!

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  8. The John Cabot roses are especially lovely in the blue vase. Have a fabulous summer, Lorrie. Glad that picnic weather has arrived.

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  9. I am pleased to know that other countries too are obsessed by the weather - I thought that it was we Brits.
    As far as I can recall John Cabot roses do not have a strong scent, but I hope that they are casting some of their soft fragrance around your room.

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  10. Pretty flowers. Our extreme summer heat certainly brings me down as it limits my outdoor time. Was in the states for a month and my husband was tasked with keeping all the plants alive while I was gone. Only about a 20% loss. :/

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  11. I’ve just been writing my shopping list for tomorrow and your mention of feta salad had my mouth watering. Lots of salad ingredients added to my list. You paeonies have done so well. My yellow ones were over very quickly. Glad the summer has arrived for you. A little cooler here today. B x

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  12. Lovely flowers. I like the display on your mantel. You just reminded me of the watermelon in the fridge. Hope the last few days of June go well for you. We are very humid today.

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  13. How I love the smell of roses in June!
    Your mantle looks so pretty. It makes me want to go in and make my mantle pretty too. I did pick so flowers this evening and put there, but it still needs some prettying up. I also am thankful the hot didn't remain too long. Today was a delight.

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  14. So glad to hear that the summer temperatures have found you. Your flowers all look beautiful, especially in those colored vases.
    I agree with your thoughts on summer food. Meal planning just seems so much more relaxed at this time of year. Happy Summer.

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  15. This post is a beautiful celebration of summer. Love your photos and your descriptions.

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  16. Wow this was such a lovely post, I was smiling reading it and it has given me joy in my heart, thank you.

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  17. "the world smelled of roses..." I don't want to miss the summer rose scent! I need to visit my neighborhood rose gardens or a dedicated public rose garden -- soon!

    Thank you for a summer-dreamy post.

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  18. Love the summertime quote! We are all so ready for summer this year...sunshine and roses and picnics and ice-cream! Lovely post.

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  19. I love your current vases on both mantels, Lorrie. Those dark rose colored roses are stunning in the blue vase but I also love the colored ones on the other. We haven't bought a watermelon yet and now you reminded me to get one for our July 4th dinner.

    I've been following British Columbia's weather via my granddaughter-in-law's parent visiting there this past week and posting so many gorgeous pictures on FB. They've shown many outdoor adventures while at Pendour Harbour and I think mentioned earlier that they'd be on Victoria Island next week. Oh to be along with them and see your beautiful part of the world but at least I enjoy it so much through my British Columbia blog friends!

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  20. Your mantel bouquet is stunning! I love the bright blue played against the vivid pink! Ahhh . . . listening to your words about summer almost make me forget that it is my least favorite season. :)

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  21. Lorrie - I can relate to your comments about a short summer. Here we are on July 1 and my garden is just now ready to explode with blooms. I revel in every single day! We are in Idaho Falls, visiting our son for the Fourth of July - it's going to be a wonderful weekend in every way!

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  22. I love peonies and the roses in my garden are now at their most beautiful.
    Yes, you say it... it's a wonderful time... now.
    Greetings to you.
    Thank you for your beautiful photos. Viola

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  23. Your flowers make for such a beautiful display, Lorrie! I’ve made the watermelon and feta salad, and it is cool and refreshing. Happy weekend to you!

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  24. Your summer flowers are beautiful. The seeds I planted during our March cabin visit didn't sprout, most likely from all the rain and cool weather. I panted more when we got back on June 1 but it will be a long time before the plants mature enough to flower. Hoping for a colourful August if it doesn't get too hot. Thanks for commenting on my composting post. Sounds like you get city rats, I have their country cousins, bushy-tailed woodrats. They can mow down my plants in an evening if unchecked. - Margy

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  25. Love your pretty mantle, Lorrie.

    Your flowers are gorgeous.

    Hugs and blessings, my friend.

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  26. I love the photo with the small different colored vases in front of the mirror. What you describe sounds like those carefree summer days - how I long for those. I remember beautiful summer days we spent on Vancouver Island and along the Sunshine Coast. The summer days there are so much longer than here in California.

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  27. Hi Lorrie,

    I'm so glad that summer has arrived in your part of the world! It's been here for a while now, and much hotter than we would like, unfortunately. Your roses and peonies are really lovely, and so are the colored vases. I like your last photo of the flowers reflected in the mirror; I love to put flowers in front of a mirror -- flowers and candlelight make the prettiest reflections, don't they?

    Thanks for your visits and comments, Lorrie; I do appreciate them. Have a good week!

    Hugs,

    Denise

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  28. Your mantle decor looks like something from a beautiful magazine!

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  29. Hello, Lorrie. I am just doing a bit of catch-up since the end of June and most of July were a blur to me with my hospital adventure.

    This is a lovely post and your roses are gorgeous, they look so happy and their foliage is such a lush green. August is about over and you probably have thoughts of returning to school. I know I did for many years after I retired.

    Enjoy these remaining summer days.

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Thank you for your comment. I read and value each one, cherishing the connections we can make although far apart. Usually, I visit your blog in return, although if you ask a question I try to contact you directly.

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