July 21 Friday.

 A thrilling sight in the morning as the sun shines on these beauties.  It's worth getting up to see, never disappointing.  In the cool quiet of the morning with just a chirp of a bird, I say thank you for being here.

Oh, what a beautiful morning...Oh, what a beautiful day.  I had a wonderful feeling when in the garden all day.  The temperature was PERFECT for a long morning of snipping, clipping, digging, and harvesting.  We have tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers now on the patio table.  Yum, yum.  Eric stopped over after receiving a good report visiting with the hand doctor.  There are peppers and tomatoes at his house.  The ground got an excellent fluffing in many places.  The weeds will need to go elsewhere.  

Two male flowers on the squash.  The bees are happy to find these beauties.  Female flowers bloom a little later and the bees will be carrying pollen back and forth creating SQUASH!  What kind.  Not sure.  The plants were gifted by our neighbor who said he's not sure.  Another surprise coming our way. 

There was more outside work in the afternoon.  Two of the groups of iris got their "hair cut" today.  They look so much better.  Who can turn down a no-sweat day in July by staying in the house?  NOT me. I cut down a whole bunch of raggedy hollyhocks, trimmed up some perennials to get ready for a second bloom, and clipped off flowers to fill vases.  My kind of day.  One can always do something to make the garden just a little better.  Some folks are malingering about no Monarch.  Well, they are just the cherry on top.  Sometimes there are no cherries (butterflies) but the ice cream (flower)is still wonderful.  

 

                                              More peppers are hanging on the plants. 

I have a bucket of vegetables ready for Rita and Bob.  Tomorrow they are moving into the carriage house in daughter Mary's backyard.  It's less than two miles south of us in the Nora area.  This move has been in the schedule for some time and with the completion of a recent remodel the time to move is here.

                       The edge of the garden with flowers adds more color almost everywhere.                                              Soon there will be a contribution from everyone.  More color, more color.  

After writing about no Monarchs, Doug reported seeing two in the garden late this afternoon.  He also spotted a Tigar Swallowtail flitting about.  One never should say never.  I am still looking for an egg on any common milkweed.  It would seem that our butterflies are stopping in for lunch.  That's an OK thing.  

                                        A picture from a few weeks ago never gets old.                                                                                 I'm sure this butterfly has found another garden making that gardener happy.

Supper on the patio.  Another game of 3/13.  Doug won this one sinking me into oblivion on the 13th round. I dealt and he went out on the first round.  Lucky cards for sure.