Oh how I love Peonies and especially the pink ones. It’s been a bouquet a day here at our country bungalow.
I’m very thankful they grow so well here.
Master shower work continues. Tuesday was a dump run to get rid of the larger debris. Any projects at your house?
Hope all is well in your corner of the world.
Three young bucks came to visit our back acres last week. One of them had an odd black growth on it’s neck. They are free to eat of the garden except for the Clematis. When they head for the Clematis we banish them!
Said the wildflower to the sparrow:
“I should really like to know
Why these anxious human beings
Rush about and worry so.”
Said the sparrow to the wildflower:
“Friend, I think that it must be
That they have no heavenly Father,
Such as cares for you and me.”
“So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 10:26-32
Things were so full and busy for the end of May and beginning of June that I wasn’t able to keep up with posting about all the good times happening. I’m re-capping here.
My sister and hubby arrived on Memorial Day and left for Montana on Wednesday morning. We enjoyed meals together with them and our Colville kids. Brother-in-law Steve was curious about a riding lawn mower and ended up mowing the front and back lawns while my sister and I worked on this puzzle.
These two went boating with their mom and dad and Addy caught her first fish on June 1st.
I’m guessing this was the icky baiting the hook part.
It’s always fun to be on the water.
Addy’s Mommy created this collage to document that first fish experience.
Our tree was felled on Saturday the 3rd of June. In the late afternoon our friends Bob and Jan arrived for an overnight. We met up at one of the Mexican restaurants in town and then came back to our home and enjoyed conversation until our eyes wouldn’t stay open anymore. After coffee on Sunday morning Bob and Jan left for Idaho and we took off to church. We forgot to take a selfie!!
On Monday and Tuesday the 5th and 6th the clean-up and cutting of the rounds began.
Our son came over on Tuesday morning with our Grands and while Baba kept the Grands entertained Dan cut the rounds with his chainsaw and then he and Gramps loaded the first of many trailer loads (it took 4 loads) to go back to Dan and Jamie’s. They have a wood burning fireplace and once this wood is seasoned they will have enough wood for a few years. The tree was 92 feet and the cuts are 16 inches. I think they had at least 65 rounds!
These two ran me ragged while we stayed far from the saw and noise. I didn’t get soaked like they did.
A fun day playing with the water guns and the sprinklers. Good thing their mom packed a spare set of clothes for them. She’s smart that way!
On this Thursday we had more tree branch clean up and moved the larger branches to the burn pile. I mowed the front and back and when we were done we got cleaned up and enjoyed another Mexican meal out.
The mosquitoes are so abundant this year. We had to spray ourselves with repellent. Ugh! This is the worst we’ve experienced since we’ve moved here.
I’ll share photos of friendlier flying things tomorrow or Monday! 🙂
As I type this we are having a thunder and lightning storm with some high wind gusts. Glad we got the lawns done early this morning. I think I’ll schedule this now just in case the power goes out!
During the last day of our group garage sale the tree guy stopped by to see about our dead tree. Instead of making a second trip out he was ready to drop it right then and we were happy to get it done.
The tree came down in under 10 minutes free and clear except for a couple branches on the other trees in it’s path. I wasn’t home to yell ‘timber’ since I was at the garage sale.
We think the dead tree was beetle infested. Yuck!
Now the work of trimming the branches and cutting the rounds will begin.
Besides that project our master shower project is beginning, too. Demolition starts today.
The garage sale was a huge success. We had 8 or 9 families participating. The first day was the busiest with $3000 worth of sales. We made a good amount in the 3 days and it was worth the extra work we put in. We are happy to clear out things we aren’t using anymore.
Hopefully I’ll be able to get around to see what I’ve missed the last week. Hope all is well.
We’ve had a busy few days with company. We enjoyed a meal together on Memorial Day. The rest of the week I will be involved with a group garage sale. I didn’t have time to complete the answers to the Hodgepodge questions this week. My usual Thursday, Truth for Today, will not be happening this week. Hope you all have a good end to May and beginning of June. It was fun setting a Memorial day table. I’ll be back next week!
On Friday May 26th we made a dump run and then enjoyed some breakfast out.
The views above are from the roads we take to the dump.
After dropping the truck off and switching to our car we enjoyed another drive in the opposite direction. It was fun to spot these ducklings with their parents on the road to Rocky Lake.
Home again enjoying the lush green of Spring.
Happy Tuesday everyone! We are busy with company today. We might even be chopping down our huge dead tree. Have a good week.
We are in the greening time of the year which also means it is mowing season.
Our red peonies are bursting forth and we’ll have many bouquets to enjoy.
I was sad to see one of our 90 foot trees is dying. You can see the one that looks brown. That tree will be coming down soon.
The buds on our White Peony. I really need to divide this plant up.
Our deep red peonies. We have 5 bushes of these.
Irises grow well here and grow wild and multiply!
We are ready for Memorial Day, Flag Day, The Fourth of July and more!
On Sunday we had some severe thunderstorms with gusts of wind, downpours of rain and hail, too. The noise of thunder and the flashes of lightning kept me awake from 2am on. We had some minor damage but nothing serious. We have never had storms this intense. Exciting to watch. They predict more excitement into Monday. The bonus is that I do not have to water for a few days. I had to mow twice last week things are growing so quickly. All of these photos were taken last Thursday and Saturday.
Happy Victoria Day to our neighbors North of us, O Canada!
The hawk was too high in the sky for me to get better photos. I zoomed as close as I could.
The male turkeys have been strutting about these Spring days.
Besides hawks and turkeys we have visits from quail and robins and swallows. Hummingbirds are returning, too. Everything has grown quickly and I’ll need to get out to take some photos of the greening of the yard and the peonies about to open. With the heat we’ve been having I’ll need to water instead of counting on the Spring rains to do that for me. We are getting some of the haze from the fires in Alberta. Fires this early does not bode well for our fire season. A peculiar thing that we’ve noticed this year, too, is an abundance of moths flitting about.
Hope all is well in your corner of the world.
We’ve been enjoying some summer weather here the last few days. Things are growing fast.
It was fun to spot our state bird in the bushes of one of our planters and it stayed long enough for me to zoom in for some photos.
The American Goldfinch was designated as the Washington State Bird in 1951. This beautiful golden bird is found throughout our state and is commonly seen in flocks in fields, bushes and trees.
The state bird proved a point of contentious debate in the state of Washington. After more than two decades of voting and arguing, the state chose the American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) officially in 1951.
We had a good weekend with lots of outdoor work that takes it’s toll on my wrists and back but still gives a measure of satisfaction to get the work done.
We had a nice Mother’s day starting off at church and having dinner at our Colville Kids’ home. Thanks for stopping by.
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 