Summer, Summer, Summer

 

It's hard to choose a favourite season, but summer is right up there in the top four! Maybe the top two - with summer and autumn teetering for the most favoured. I love the flowers, the fresh produce, the warmer temperatures (rarely too warm here), and all the lovely light. 

Last evening the light poured through the kitchen window onto the vase of double peony poppies, lady's mantle, and wine red poppies on the counter. How rich it looked. 

On Midsummer's Eve we took a later-than-usual drive down to the breakwater and watched the light slowly fade in the west. A cruise ship passed by, festive with lights, and I imagined the passengers lingering over their after-dinner tea, or leaning on the railing watching the glowing city on their starboard side. 

From my kitchen window on a rainy day I watched a Rufous Hummingbird (I think) preening in the shelter of the lilac tree. She sat for the longest time, combing her tail with her long beak, fluffing herself, then smoothing everything down. 

The raspberries are ripening and the bushes are loaded. I've frozen several containers for winter eating, and we're enjoying the fresh berries in smoothies, with granola and yogurt, and with a bit of cream. Last night we had family over and dessert was bowls of vanilla ice cream with a few late strawberries, lots of raspberries, and a few early blueberries, topped with a caramel sauce and chocolate sprinkles for those who wanted. 

Nothing easier!

I pick a fresh posy of sweet peas every few days. Happily I can smell them faintly now. This particular posy is for Connie Lou in Florida, a reader who emailed me to say that they are her favourite flower. I wish there was a scratch and sniff option in blogger. 

School ended on Friday and I finished report cards. Three weeks of teaching was plenty and I'll happily enjoy retirement once more. My daughter is doing very well in her recovery from surgery, and I thank you for your prayers and kind thoughts. 

Summer days, how I love them!

Poppies among the Potatoes

 

Fluffy double poppies self-seed freely in my garden. I move them around or let them be, as I choose. There are a number in my small potato patch of 10 plants and they all chose to bloom at the same time. How pretty those pops of pink are among the greenery. 

Sweet peas just began blooming, along with Bachelor Buttons grown from seed. A little posy of them grace my new kitchen windowsill. 

The roses continue to delight me. Above is Lichfield Angel, my newest rose. I love how it lights the dark foliage of phlox behind it. 

It's been a busy week with dinner guests on Tuesday followed by house guests Wednesday through Friday morning. I made a Rhubarb Cream Cheese Pie, something I enjoy making every year when rhubarb stalks shoot up and out. This year I had quite a few strawberries ripe at the same time, so I added a cupful of them to the rhubarb mixture. Delicious! I'm a bit weary with all the company and getting students to finish up their work for the end of the year. Tonight (Friday) there are plenty of leftovers in the fridge, so we'll be having Refrigerator Review for dinner. 

The kitchen is finished. Tim did the ceramic tile backsplash this week, and the hanging light fixtures arrived. They were backordered since February. I'm so pleased with it. The footprint is the same as before, a U-shape in front of the window, but we extended the peninsula three feet into the adjacent open space where we have our breakfast table and a small sofa. I want to put a piece of art on the blank wall above the peninsula and I'm on the hunt for just the right piece. 

The oak flooring will continue throughout the main floor, along with other renovations, but we're taking a break from tearing up the house for awhile, and just enjoying what's been done. 

There are so many decisions to make when renovating or building, and one never really knows what it will look like until everything is installed. I'm pleased as punch that I like all of the elements we've chosen. What a relief!

This weekend will be fairly quiet although all the children and grandchildren will be over for a barbecue on Sunday afternoon. What plans do you have for the weekend? Or the week?

Basking in June

 

When company comes from landlocked Alberta, we enjoy taking our guests to walk on the beach. The evening air is soft and still. Long clouds streak across the sky. Seals surface and sink, cormorants dry their wings on driftwood or rocks, and the sound of songbirds putting themselves to sleep drifts in from the vegetation alongside the sand. 

I love the twisted sculptures of driftwood lying on the beach, and I shiver at the thought of the power of the waves that tossed them there. 

We are enjoying such beautiful, sun-filled days. I'm trying to walk to school several days each week and it's simply delightful. I get to see what's blooming in the neighbourhood gardens, now awash with colour. 

Strawberries fresh from the garden are such tasty morsels, soft and sweet and juicy. I've frozen some and we're enjoying them sliced with yogurt or ice cream. 

The sun and warmth are so very lovely, but the dark side of the pleasure is revealed by all the forest fires currently burning in Canada. How dreadful that acres and acres (or hectares and hectares) of beautiful forest are being destroyed by fire. And how dreadful for those living with the drifting smoke in the air. I saw photos yesterday of New York City covered in smoke from the fires in Quebec. 

Here on Vancouver Island one fire burns out of control. We've not seen the smoke from it yet. 

And I think of the flooding and further devastation in Ukraine and my heart aches for the Ukrainian people at the mercy of a despot.

There is little I can do besides pray and give funds. I was in the passport office a month or two ago and noticed two young boys with little English filling out papers. They carried Ukrainian passports. I smiled at them and was glad to see that everyone behind a desk was very kind to them, and welcomed them to Canada. 

I like having things prepared ahead when we have guests. So before Tim's brother and his wife arrived last weekend, I made a Frozen Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake and tucked it away. Easy and delicious!

It was June, and the world smelled of roses.

The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.

Maud Hart Lovelace

The roses are glorious just now. I wish you all could see them. Falstaff is the dark red, Lichfield Angel is the creamy rose, and the pinks are Gertrude Jekyll and Boscobel. Regrettably, my nose has not recovered from Covid and my sense of smell is greatly diminished. I mourn not being able to smell these roses, as others tell me they are very fragrant. 

What is June like in your corner? 

Visiting the Roses

 

As the light fades a band of pale yellow streaked with dark wispy clouds stretches across the horizon. The trees in my neighbour's garden are black silhouettes. It's 9:45 and the longest day of the year is soon approaching. Earlier in the evening, I go out to visit my roses and compliment them on their beauty. My neighbours would think me daft to be talking to them, but oh, how beautiful they are just now. Gertrude Jekyll above bloomed early this year. 

In early spring I prune my roses, taking down their height to 1/2 or 1/3. This year, my Secret rose, above, has shot up to about seven feet, and is full of blooms. I can't think why she decided to grow so very tall. She is very fragrant.

Last summer we transplanted Boscobel to another site where she, along with Falstaff, are much happier. Tim was in the front garden when one of our new neighbours walked by and told him she stops there while walking her dog because she can smell the fragrance from the street. 

In the evening, indoors, slanting light creates strong shadows in the southwest facing rooms. I am a summer person, loving the long days filled with light and the warmth that coaxes plants to grow. 

Our daughter's major surgery went very well and she is already recovering at home. I took some meals over this afternoon and was surprised to see her sitting on the couch (feet up), with good colour and energy. Her recovery will be about six weeks, during which time she is not to lift anything "heavier than a dinner plate." I didn't think to ask if the dinner plate was full or empty. 

Tim's brother and his wife will be staying with us for a few days. I've planned the meals and will do a quick grocery shop tomorrow and some final tidying up. 

What does your weekend hold?

There's a Lot Going On!

 

My head is spinning these days, juggling so many things. Meanwhile, the garden continues its regular parade of blooms. I cut a bouquet of peony buds that opened within a day or two and have lasted for a week. 

Our warm spring (so unlike last year's) has made the fig trees pop with fruit. Raspberry bushes are loaded and I look forward to an abundant harvest in a few weeks. I planted potatoes this year and they have begun to flower. It seems that there is always something new to see when I visit my garden. 

John Cabot (David Austin) is a climbing rosebush that produces hundreds of flowers throughout the summer. It's in a bed just beneath our patio and long branches often creep through the railing. They have vicious thorns and I am constantly training them to grow elsewhere, with little success. When we have guests coming (including the little grands), I simply cut them off to avoid scratches. 

Behind the roses you can see a portion of the outside painting I did on the house. The colour here is not accurate because the evening sun is shining strongly. As well as renovating the kitchen we've been upgrading the windows and adding seismic upgrades to the outside of the house. Everything has to happen in sequence and I'm glad that I'm not the one figuring that out. I'm thankful that Tim can do that. The vertical portions of the outside of the house are painted dark grey/blue and the horizontal siding is cream-coloured. It's a job that will happen over a couple of seasons. 

Here's a single John Cabot rose with more accurate colour in the background. 

I think we must be on about Phase 34 of the renovation. Now it's all about the flooring. Tim is installing a floating engineered oak hardwood floor in the kitchen, dining room, living room, and entrance hall. You know what that means! Lots of moving parts - especially the furniture. Currently, the dining room table is in front of the fireplace in the living room holding stacks of plates, serving dishes, teacups, and assorted dishes from the china cabinet which sits in another corner. 

But there is definite progress! Here is one section of the kitchen. To the left is the space for the fridge which had to be moved out for the flooring installation. We chose a dusty blue for the cabinets with brass hardware, and white marbled quartz for the countertops. I'm very happy with the decisions we made. It's difficult to actually envision what things will look like when done, so it's a great relief to feel that we made the correct choices. After the flooring we'll think about the tile backsplash. It will be mostly white, I think.

To add a little more to my day I'm going to be teaching Spanish for the next three weeks, until the end of school. Our eldest daughter is the regular teacher and she is going to be off for surgery. And we're having house guests this weekend. As I said, lots of balls to juggle these days, but taking things moment by moment is the way to manage. 

Evening garden visits help, too. 

Friday Favourites: Garden Flowers here and there

 

Hello there! Life snowballed for a bit and blogging was left behind. I've been painting the house (inside and out), gardening, and went to Butchart Gardens twice. The tulips are likely finished by now, but I hope you will enjoy these photos. 

The two little girls who accompanied me on one of the visits (along with their other grandmother) love the flowers. I noticed two-year-old Cora touching the flowers and then her lips. When I asked what she was doing, she told me, "I'm eating the morning dew." 

Tim and I also went boating one weekend. It was lovely to be on the water, and the weather was perfect, sunny and warm. 

Himalayan Blue Poppies bloom in Butchart Gardens. I bought seeds once, but they are notoriously difficult to start, and I had no success. 

Have you heard of the musical Come From Away? Tim and I attended a live performance and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's the story of the 38 airplanes and their passengers who landed in Gander, Newfoundland during 9/11. The townspeople took them in, fed them, and treated them like family for five days until US air space opened. The musical brought back a lot of memories. 

We also went to Spokane for five days, meeting up with friends we worked with in the past. What a lot of fun we had together, reminiscing and laughing. 

In my own garden, the forget-me-nots and violets are fading, but the peonies and roses are taking center stage. I hope to get out and take some photos of them. May is such a wonderful month, lush and green with a parade of blooms. 

I hope to visit your blogs soon and find out what you've all be up to. 

Telling Time by Flowers

 

If the lilacs are in bloom, it must be early May. A couple of days of warmer temperatures followed by a day of softly drenching rain has caused the garden to explode. 

Everything seems to be in a great hurry now, strawberry flowers will soon turn to berries and the forget-me-nots under the rosebushes surround the pot in a blue cloud of charm. Such uplifting sights in the garden. I look out of my kitchen window and the profusion of pinks, blues, and greens sets my heart to dancing. 

Violets appeared in one small garden bed a couple of years ago, and although I know they can be quite aggressive, I've managed to control them enough to appreciate their tiny faces. They also grow under a couple of rosebushes. One year I candied the flowers and used them on a cake. Pretty and delicious. 

Birds come to splash in the weathered birdbath and are not bothered at all by this still fellow. Behind him is a profusion of pink rhododendron blooms. Rhodos are showy and very suited to our area, but they are not among my favourites. I read a mystery novel years ago, before I really knew what a rhodo was, and the murderer hid among the rhodos. Funny what puts one off. 

Wisteria drapes carelessly from the roof of the garden shed. My sense of smell continues to be diminished, but if I stick my nose right into the flowers I get a faint sweet scent. 

 

When I was in elementary school our new home was built on former agricultural land. Farms and fields surrounded the subdivision and along the road where I walked to school, a row of apple trees remained. I loved climbing trees and in May I would climb into the fragrance of a blossoming tree to cut branches for vases. They never lasted long, but the scent was intoxicating. 

The beauty of this month fills me with an ache. Beauty awakens deep longings within the human soul. I want to look and look and fill my eyes and heart and brain with the wonders I see. Do you feel the same ache?

A Sunny Start to May

 

This evening, I am thinking of very little. I'm staying at our youngest daughter's home, caring for our two youngest granddaughters while their parents are away for a few days. How busy life with little ones is, with little time for thought. How joyful it is to be with an almost-four-year-old, and a two-and-a-quarter-year-old (she informed me of her age herself). 

In my own garden, blueberry bushes are in bloom with promises of sweet blueberries in a couple of months. The blooms foretell the shape of the round berries that we will soon enjoy.

After I put the little girls to bed this evening I wandered outside. The yard is large with all sorts of plants, trees, and bushes. I'm not certain what the above is - this is the first season our children have lived here and it's been fun to observe the changing garden. 

Bluebells (the Spanish variety) are in bloom, and although they lack the fragrance of English bluebells, I love seeing the blue swaths of flowers among the long grass on this mostly wild property.

My days with the two little girls are very different from my usual routine. There are lots of stories read and supervising play and other activities. Their other grandmother is sharing the care and took them to Butterfly Gardens today while I ran errands. How quickly one forgets the full-time aspect of caring for young children. 

The girls love being outside. Young Cora would love to catch one of the half-dozen or so bunnies that come out in the evening to nibble on grass and other plants, but so far the bunnies have eluded her. Iris bounces on the trampoline for long stretches of time, her ponytail or braid flying with each jump. 

May is full of beauty, and reminds me of the words of photographer Ansel Adams, "I believe the world is incomprehensibly beautiful; an endless prospect of magic and wonder." 

And now it's time for this Nana to get to bed so she can be fully present and energetic for the little ones tomorrow morning. 

A Quick Post on a Glorious Morning

 

After several weeks of chilly, wet weather, a new system will bring warmth and sunshine to our island. This morning, after a wonderful sleep, I awoke to streaky blue skies. Filled with energy I went out for a short walk before breakfast. Beautiful blooms everywhere - prunus trees, daffodils, a few early tulips, and rhododendrons. They filled my soul to overflowing. 

In the woods fawn lilies line the paths, shy faces looking downwards, resembling earthly stars seen from above. 

Last autumn I planted starters of purple sprouting broccoli. Yesterday I picked some. How sweet and tender it is. I also gathered aromatic mint and slender green onions. What joy to harvest in April!

My dad is 89 years young today. He had dinner at my sister's place yesterday and she took this photo. I think he looks great, especially in that blue shirt that matches his eyes. I'm so thankful for my father (and mother), and call them frequently. 

Enjoy this day, whatever the weather where you are. 

Friday Favourites: Exploring nearby

 

Bright young green willow tree leaves glow in the sunlight at Beacon Hill Park in downtown Victoria. This week has been a mixed bag of all sorts of weather - cold to the bones rain, piercing wind, and a bit of blue sky and sunshine to remind us that yes, it really is April.

In late January or February Great Blue Herons arrive in the park to build their messy twig nests, lay eggs, and raise their young. They stay until August and then disperse into smaller groups along the coastline. 

In 2004 over 90 heron nests were established in the Beacon Hill Colony. Marauding bald eagles decimated the population in 2007 and the herons abandoned the rookery, not returning until three years later. Slowly, the amount of nests grows once again. 

A sign by the rookery says, "Shhh - herons are nesting". Most of the trees surrounding a lake in the park have herons perching on tall gangly legs, surveying the scene of visitors from near and far observing the spectacle. All at once a great number of herons effortlessly lift off, long legs dangling, to soar with slowly flapping wings round and round. I saw at least 20 of them in the air at once. 

Peacocks live in the park and are easy to spot when their raucous cries pierce the air. This bird looked very regal perched in the tree, long colourful tail feathers trailing down.

My young companion ran around the flower beds, following the paths and grassy edges. 

We made another stop downtown, at the Teacup Tree. I learned of this tree from another Canadian blogger from across the country, Margie of Tea in the Valley The teacups are hung in an ornamental plum tree in honour of the homeowner's mother, a dedicated teacher and tea-drinker. 

Little Cora spotted this "teacuppot" as she called it, and wanted to touch it, so I lifted her up. A pretty collection of teacups hang from many branches. As well, tiny fairy gardens huddle under the shrubs along the sidewalk, and Cora was thrilled to look at them. 

What a pleasant outing we had. One doesn't have to go far from home to discover interesting things. 

I am happy to report that the cabinet installation is complete. Measurements for the countertops were taken today and it will be another month before they are ready. Patience is definitely needed when renovating. This weekend I hope to move everything back into the kitchen, although I won't have much of a work area or running water. Little by little!

Wishing you all a lovely weekend whether at home or away.