One of the many reasons my girls love to visit my parents' house is bc they have the most beautiful yard, full of happy gardens, well-fed birds, and one joyous Golden Retriever.
I had the pleasure of house-sitting for my parents recently, and one of my duties included keeping my mother's flowers watered. (Usually she also writes "deadhead all 4 million petunias DAILY!" on my list of chores, but she forgot to write it this time, which made me feel like I'd won the lottery.)
On one early evening last week, I decided to take a stroll through the yard, and I brought my camera along. The sun was getting ready to go down, and there was a slight breeze that caused the windchime that hangs just outside the door to sway...
I walked down the steps of the deck into the most beautiful, sunny yard...
I have no idea what variety of yellow flowers these are, but they were everywhere! No wonder the kids love to frolic when they're here!
Oh, wait a second. I was pulling pictures from my back yard. Oopsies! hehehe?
Here are some from her yard, starting with a windowbox just behind the windchime...
It's fun to look around and spot something unusual...
Some of you have probably met Major, Friday's brother; he's such a sweet boy, full of sunshine and oh-so-high on life...
I love these, even though they're spent. Something about their delicate look is just so charming to me...
An urn, way out back...
This little caterpillar has hung here so long, the bark of the tree grew around its hanger...
Like I said, one never knows what unusual things one will spot...
Was that your doing?
This is another spent flower that looks beautiful to me... They were once daisies, but now they look like little pincushions on a stem...
My favorite flowers...
The only bad thing about getting down on the ground to take these pictures is it gets the attention of Major. If I'm not on my guard, I'll get this boy coming at me like a freight train and I'll end up in a full body cast...
So far, I've made it up off the ground before he reaches me.
Here's a garden pick that is stuck in some rocks that surround a little fountain...
Oh great. There is literally no hiding from this boy.
Getupgetupgetupgetupget UP!!
I breathe a sigh of relief that he was just overjoyed about getting a drink...
The sun was getting lower, and I decided it was time to go back to my yellow gardens at home. It truly was enjoyable walking through my parents' yard - especially since there was no deadheading to do. ;)
But the next time I have to house-sit, I should probably wear a suit of armor... just in case.
*Edited to add: After Joann's comment, I must tell you that I truly don't have dandelions in my yard - I was just kidding bc I knew Mom would insist they were mine! But they're not either of ours. (Hi, Joann!) :) The first dandelion photo came from here, and the second one came from here.




















Commentations
I'd like to thank all of you for your warm compliments regarding my latest release.. I love it so much when a design is well-received, and your comments mean so much to me! And speaking of comments, I'm going to do my best to start answering people's questions - if and when they are asked - in the bottom of my posts. I always worry that people will think I'm rude for not answering their questions when they leave them in the comments field, but I never know how to go about answering them except by leaving a comment myself!
Yesterday I was walking around the house looking at all of the over-heated, sun-scorched flowers, and noticed that the marigolds still greeted me with their sunny dispositions. The bees enjoy them too, so I took out my camera (since when do I not have a camera nearby?) and got as close as Mr. Buzzypants would allow.
He didn't seem to mind too much that a lens was in his personal space, although he did want to do his pollinating in private, so he eventually turned his back to me.
Indoors I have a beautiful little bouquet of flowers my mother and Sophie gave to me. Sophie loves visiting my parents, as she gets to fill bird feeders with Pops and pick flowers with Meemee..
Don't worry, Mom, I'll give your Mason jar back to you. :)
Summer is almost gone, but I'm okay with that. I look most forward to autumn, bc I look better in sweaters than teeshirts bc who doesn't love all the beautiful color changes?
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In response to...
Kim Lewis: I will definitely check out that book! Thank you for the recommendation! Yes, those crown jewels are AMAZING.
LaDonna: I've read many of Philippa Gregory's books (love them!), and I'm looking forward to The White Queen. (Hi Siobhan!)
Tanya: Yes, I've seen The Duchess, and I really enjoyed it.. although it left me so very sad. :(
Missy Ann: I loved this book! I thought it was very well-written, and am now reading her King Henry VIII book.
Cari: Yes, I do plan on a sampler along these lines.... but you didn't hear that from me. ;)
JoAnn TX: Thank you!! I got a couple of the crowns from my mother, who is threatening to expose a rather unflattering photo of me wearing one of them. And the others I got from Hobby Lobby! I'm always on the lookout though.
Posted at 11:52 AM in Comments, Gardening | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBack (0)