Garden Tour and Other Stuff

The last of the lilies to bloom. They're so pretty! And poppies, sweetpeas, hydrangeas, nasturtiums, globe thistles, and more.

The Virginia Creeper has started to turn red ... a sure indicator that summer is nearing its end ... bah humbug.

The fungus growing on the birch tree stump in the middle of the yard has grown another layer. Fascinating, I think (scroll down to see the photo near the bottom of this post).

And don't you think the bit of stump that we use as a plant stand on the deck looks like one of the characters from The Nightmare Before Christmas?! I love it! The photo is at the bottom of this post.

To tell you the truth, our garden has been quite badly neglected this year, we've been so focused on house painting and other things.

This week I also got to see Wicked, by the way! I really enjoyed it. I had read the book several years ago, long before it was ever made into a Broadway musical. I still recommend the book.

I also just finished reading "The Help" and I look forward to seeing the movie. Good book. Probably pretty stereotypical characters for the most part but an interesting and stunningly awful part of history.

I'm satisfied that Luke and I got some quality time together before he has to leave. We ran a few errands one day to get him some back-to-school basics and enjoyed talking and laughing while we drove from place to place. I need that bit of depth with my kids from time to time. We didn't get to see Harry Potter together as planned. Oh, well.

And I lost about a day and a half being sick ... as in sick to my stomach for no apparent reason ... meaning not likely something I consumed nor a flu. It was just like that time about a month ago where I was so sick. This time, at least, I recognized it before I lost it and just stayed still. Eventually it passed without me losing it but it was a bit of a battle and it took me several more hours of sleep and some additional rest before I felt able to function again. And then there was a bit of exhaustion. It's been a busy time.