As Our Life Goes On

We could be called hoarders in a way. We certainly are not so bad that the TV program will beat down our door to see the piles of stuff that we have accumulated though. We keep stuff that could be useful or items that we may use at some time. This pile of bricks has been here since we tore off the front porch of the house and replaced it with a larger structure. That was quite a few years ago. We have been slowly giving away or using the things that are piled up behind the barn.   Soon we will use a combination of these bricks and some small cement stones to construct a path that will run through the garden and through the gate of the old fence that was erected this year. If you look at the upper right hand corner of the brick picture you can see a brick that will forever be a part of the tree that has grown around it.  We have ordered an iron base plate for our old street lamp.  Rain is needed however to soften the ground so that the base can be secured in a safe manner b

Everything has to eat I can't make choices for them Nor do I care to -Caroline

The pine woods looks cool and inviting but it is hot today and there is no breeze.  Even though we have received some rain the leaves on this large maple feel dry and papery. We are continuing to carry water to this tree.  A downy feather lays in the moss. Could it be a hawk feather? Berry leaves display fall like colors. An odd fungal growth grew up after the last rain. Kind of toxic looking.  It was a bit warm to take a long walk around the yard but there always seems to be some interesting sights to see in each part of the yard. I traveled along the East side of the property today and took these pictures. Hopefully the coming of Fall will give us some cooler more comfortable weather so that the walks can be extended. 

The partly overcast skies kept the temperatures at bay today. A light breeze helped to cool your body if you were outside. Mister fixit found this a good time to strip paint from the old tractor that he is restoring. The grass does not need mowing. See picture below. There are many little jobs that take so much time. Will we ever get done?

The dry hot days have seemed to be very quiet. Yesterday we received about 2" of long overdue rainfall. The birds seem to be singing extra happy songs today. The robins are very evident in the chorus of  melodies being sung. It must have been difficult for the robins to find worms when the ground was so hard and dry. The bird bath seems to be a popular place today for all the birds. The flower garden looks refreshed. We are still down in rainfall amounts for our area but this refreshing rainfall was gladly accepted by man and animals alike.  I am starting to carve a path through the garden. It will lead from the gate and through to the side toward the house. The streetlight will be placed somewhere along that path. It sure is easier to dig out the existing plants now that it has rained. These plants will be placed in new areas around the yard. 

There are some baby wrens in this wren house which is near our driveway. The babies chatter loudly when the parents bring them a juicy moth or other treat.  Whenever we approach that area the parents flit from branch to branch scolding us until we retreat. They are very protective.  We sure enjoy the songs the wrens usually sing when they are happy. Their scolding is a very harsh sound. The wrens have raised babies in this house at least 2 times this year. It has to be very hot in that house on a 90 degree day such as today.  We have read that birds have adaptations to deal with heat and cold. Lucky birds!  We do hope that some of these wrens return next year. 

The heat and dryness have prevailed. Though there is some talk of storms tomorrow we expect them to miss us. If they are as violent as predicted that would be OK. We just need a couple of days of steady soft rain. The bloom above has faded and I think a deer has eaten most of what was left of the flowers that were on this plant. Perhaps it was one of the many rabbits that live here. They like flowers and garden plants too. I don't get uptight about things like that. There are many more important things in the world to worry about.

Just resting today Thinking about tomorrow Looking for a change The rains will certainly come And freshen the grass again ~Caroline

It is really just too hot to walk around the yard during the heat of the day. Early morning and late evening are the only enjoyable times to travel around the trails that are cut through the meadows and around the trees. The grass crunches under our feet as we go. We had some rain last week but since then the ground has dried out drastically and we are watering trees and flowers again. The grass will grow back eventually and it does not have to be mowed at all. 

The rabbits seem to be attracted to this dirt that has just had some water applied. Maybe it is a bit cooler in this somewhat shady spot. There are at least a half dozen of these animals running around our property. They seem unafraid unless chased. Well, as you might guess I just don't have the energy or inclination to go around chasing animals or anything else in this extreme heat so they just sit and watch as I pass by. I have started to make a path through my little garden in the back yard but again the heat and lack of rain to wet the soil has slowed the progress. This may be something that will have to wait for much cooler Fall weather. 

A new area of the yard has been designated as a wood storage spot. The edge of the East end of the property under the pine trees has been cleared of the small brush and pallets now hold some large logs that will be split later for firewood. The large plank on the top of the pile is for rolling the heavy pieces into place. The previous woodpile is in a place that interferes with the leaf blowing process so this will clear the path for the leaves to be blown over the hill without having to blow them around the old woodpile. We saw an ad in the paper today for a leaf blower and we were lucky enough to be the buyers. The new blower should improve the cleanup process also. 

Blooms waiting for rain In glorious profusion Finally open -Caroline

We dared to hope that the radar pictures that we saw on TV this morning were not deceptive. This time the showers did not go around our area. There was thunder, lightning and rain. The rain seemed to come down in buckets at times and the gutters on the house were overflowing. This was a wonderful and welcome sight. It has been months since we have had a beneficial rainfall. Our area is down by over 7 inches from the normal rainfall for the year so a lot more rain will have to fall before we catch up.  The wild blueberries dried on the bush. The birds don't even seem to find these berries attractive enough to eat in this condition. 

A few drops of rain fell on our yard last night but it was a disappointment to see how little rain it was. Certainly any rain does some good but my little garden was dry as could be by noon today. the 92 degree heat and bright sun beat down on the vegetation and the leaves started to droop again until I watered the moisture hungry flowers. The heavier showers missed us last night and again today. As we watched the radar the showers split up and went North and South of our town. It is so humid and hot that it is uncomfortable to be outside. No wonder the flowers are drooping. My mood is also affected when it is too hot. 

It is really too hot and humid to spend more time than necessary outside today. There have been many black bear sightings nearby and the reports of where the bears have been seen are getting closer to home. These animals like to travel back roads and other easy to travel trails so I suspect that the bike trail that runs behind our property is an ideal pathway for them. Some bears have recently been seen within 4 miles of our house so we are being extra vigilant when we are outside. It would not surprise me to see them travel into our area to take advantage of easy food pickings from backyard bird feeders, birdhouses and garbage cans. 

Will our prayers bring rain? It can't hurt to ask for it. Let's end this drought. -Caroline

I found a bright almost neon yellow fungus growing on an old rotted stump yesterday. It was not there at all today. In its place was this weird looking orange spongy fungus.  The round finials on the old iron fence have been sealed with caulk so that water will not enter the hollow posts.  Any day that we see a honeybee is a bright day.  May your day be bright Full of sunshine and flowers Sunny thoughts and love -Caroline

The area down over the hill in which these pretty wild flowers grow was full of water early in the Spring. There must be residual moisture as the weeds and flowers in that spot appear green and healthy. In contrast our yard is dried and cracked. The flowers have to be watered on a daily basis to keep them alive. We are still waiting for some rain. 

This little rabbit seemed to be camouflaged wherever it sat.  The bright sun and dry grass made a great hiding place. The grass in the second picture gets some shade so there are some green weeds and a little bit of grass in that area. The dark ground on which the bunny sat camouflaged it quite well. Rabbits seem to be abundant this year. We do think that a family of the little ones was raised under one of the sheds. They just hang around the yard and do not seem too afraid of us. Last night at dusk two little spotted fawns were in the front yard near the bird bath. I suspect they were getting some fresh water. Today the water was dumped on the tree next to the bird bath and fresh water added. Two honeybees worked on the purple cone flowers in my little flower garden. They were once a common sight in our yard but they now seem to be a rare sight.  The drought continues. We have had only a few sprinkles in our yard in the last couple of months. The isolated showers have missed

Some plants and flowers around the yard seem to be flourishing in this incredibly arid and very hot weather. The volunteer Queen Anne's Lace plant in my little flower  garden has dozens of large white blooms. I find them to be quite beautiful. The wetland area at the bottom of the hill has dried out quite a bit. I can now walk out into the area where there was water this Spring. Fast growing shrubs and other plants have grown quickly on the areas that have dried out. The flowering plants along that previously wet area are varied and pretty. The wild plants are only weeds to those who consider them weeds. I think they are very pretty flowers. 

Beautiful flowers I looked into the center The secret was there -Caroline

The clogged basement drain was our early morning $urprise but the man from the drain $ervice arrived just before noon to $nake out our drain so we are back to running our water again. The floor around the drain back-up in the basement has been cleaned and sanitized. Don't you just love little morning $urprises like this!  I love cool mornings and days that do not get terribly hot. This is one of those days. I have lots of little jobs to catch up on and then I may sit on the breezeway and read a bit as t here is a nice cooling breeze flowing through that area of the house today.  My AARP bulletin arrived in the mail today and it is chock full of relevant articles about government, politics, health, finances, home safety, food and entertainment for the over 50 crowd. There are a couple of back issues of the AARP magazine, which is larger but has the same type of articles, that I need to read also as they got put in the rack without being read.  

We were happy to attend the annual garden party that our friend K. in Louisville had on Sunday. After suffering through the blistering heat of a 100 degree day on Saturday it was certainly a relief to have temperatures in the 80s. A gentle breeze was blowing and the shade from a gigantic old maple tree kept the sun from the West side of the house. I planted myself on her new open porch which can be seen on the left. It offered some shade in the afternoon.  Others enjoyed the covered porch on the right. Russ stayed under the old maple tree as did many others. The 1820s home has good cross ventilation and it seemed comfortable inside but most of the guests stayed outside. The lack of rain on her grass can be seen in the pictures.  An inviting patio on the other side of the house was shaded by the big maple tree.  The chickens kept the flower beds and soil around the other plants and shrubs  well cultivated as they searched for things to eat.  The miniature donkey pa