A Rumbling Day

A rumbling day...rumbling, as in thunder and lightening and dark skies.  Not rambling, though that's how my posts have been lately, but rumbling.  A few really warm days, followed by cool days, followed by rumbling days.  This is how the sky looked in my backyard this morning. 

I'm no expert, but it sure looks like a front is moving in!  It did, and it rained and rained.  Then it stopped for a while...until it started again.  Lawns watered, games canceled, a rare night off.  It's a nice feeling.

Here's a little recap of the last week or so.  I planted a little portable herb garden.

It took the rabbits about a day to find it and help themselves to my parsley.  Stupid rabbits.

Billy had his last day of school last week, he's now officially a senior.  How in the world did that happen?  Next year at this time I'll be having a graduation party.  Last year it rained and rained for Brian's party, it's raining now, I wonder what next year will bring?  Best not to think about that.

My daisies are at full bloom....this was a day that got away from me and I didn't remember to take my daily photo until it was almost dark, my good camera was upstairs in the house and my cell phone battery was too low for the flash to work.  Photographic failure...but you still get the idea.  Lots of daisies.

Last weekend we had a rare weekend at home, it was time to get a few things done!  We tidied up the garage a bit...and we put lattice work up around the arbor in our backyard.  My roses are finally doing well enough that they needed to support to climb on.

Here's my thorn among the roses.  Not really.  Eric is always a happy worker.  It was so nice to get this project done.  There was lattice hanging in the garage when we moved in here 6 years ago, I'm guessing that it was meant for the arbor.  We only had to buy one sheet of lattice and a few boards to cover the edges.

Other than that the only expense was our labor.  We both had slivers and thorns in our fingers to remind us of job that we had done.

Almost done...

...front view of the finished job.  I like the little bit of privacy that it adds.  I think the roses will like the structure to climb on.  It's low enough to keep my hanging baskets, high enough to mow under.  Now we just have to paint it, but that can wait for another time.

Summer means roses.

Summer means daisies.

Summer means baseball...look out Billy!  As a mom, I am not a fan of high and inside pitches, especially when it's my boys head in the way!  Staying behind my camera keeps me from rushing the mound to defend my little boy.  Not really, but it does keep me from giving the umpire my opinion when he surely isn't asking for it!  :-)

Did I mention that summer means daisies?  And blue skies.

And bugs.  Bugs on daisies.

And roses.

And rainy days to keep those roses and daisies watered for free.  I really do love summer.

I hope that things are shiny and green in your part of the world.  Thanks for stopping by.

June 14, 2011: No Blog post & Photo of the Day

June 13, 2010: The final Fence Post & Photo of the Day

June 14, 2009: Sometimes it Rains & Photo of the Day

Summer Days

Summertime in Minnesota, it's what helps us make it through those long, cold, snowy winters.  After a few chilly weeks, this one is shaping up to be about ideal.  Highs just touching 80 degrees, light breezes, summertime.

I'm golfing in a women's golf league with a couple of friends.  This is the view of hole number one taken with my cell phone last week.  It was cloudy and cool that day, last night the weather was perfect!

Even though I just mentioned our cold and snowy winters, our last one wasn't.  Not much snow, not very cold, and my rose bushes loved it!  They are full of blossoms.  The bees and butterflies are loving it too.

Billy still have a few days of school left, but summer baseball has begun.  His games are mostly late ones, starting at 8:00 pm.  It's fun to see him playing under the lights again.

My daisies are blooming...it must be summer!

The boys set up the trampoline last weekend.  It's Billy's trampoline but somehow Brian was coerced into helping.  My little boy with a beard.  How did that happen?  He has a toothpick in his mouth fairly often...so much like my dad.  It sure is nice having him home for the summer.

We took a quick trip to the farm on Sunday to help out with a couple of things.  My mom's bird feeders are so busy...and the birds are camera shy.  Or afraid of me....or the ruckus the dogs make when ever the front door opens.  I managed to peek around the side of the porch to capture this woodpecker enjoying the nectar that was put out for the Orioles.

Another night game for Billy.  He played third that night.  I didn't get many pictures of him, the other team had a very large man coaching third base and he kept stepping in front of me.  All I can say is that at some point men should really stop trying to wear a baseball uniform while coaching.  Ahem.  I'll spare you from the photos.

Onto a more pleasant thought.  I am love, love, loving my rose bushes right now.  So soft and pink and they smell so sweet.

I wish that they would be this glorious every summer...but we just never know when things will be that good again (from a Greg Brown song)...so I am just going to enjoy them everyday while I have them!

 
On that note I think I'll close.  I have some roses to stop and smell.  I hope the world is full of beauty where you are.  Thanks for stopping by.

June 6, 2011:  Fixing & Photo of the Day
June 6, 2010:  No Blog Post & Photo of the Day
June 6, 2009:  Showers and Showers & Photo of the Day

Flashback Friday

A few blogs that I've read do Flashback Fridays.  I thought that it might be fun to do one on the first Friday of each month....until I forget about it or get too busy or something.  But for now, here we go.  The following  photos are from June of 2004...8 short years ago...the first year that I had a digital camera.

8 years ago Billy was playing travel soccer.

He was also playing in house baseball.  It was the first year of kid pitch I think.  It's hard to remember, they all blur together.

Proudly posing with his bat and giant helmet.  I always think that the little ones look like cute little bobble head dolls in those big helmets.

Brian's last day of 5th grade...11 years old.

Billy's last day of 3rd grade...9 years old.

Eric had to help him with his catchers gear back in the day.

Brian was very bored with Billy's sports back in the day...umm...still is now that I think about it!

Brian at the cabin, enjoying the first days of summer vacation...

...until his mean parents had him mow the yard!  He actually was feeling very grown up since he was finally able to mow.

The boys both took tennis lessons that summer.  Brian enjoyed it more than Billy!

 Having fun at the farm...the only place I allowed them to play with guns....ha!

Playing with the horses...oh how this picture makes me miss my dad.  He would be amazed at how much these boys have grown since he's been gone!  Somehow, I think he knows.

Looking back to remember just how fast time goes by....and remembering to enjoy each day.  Thanks for stopping by!

June 1st, 2011:  Oh Happy Day! & Photo of the Day

June 1st, 2010:  No Blog Post & Photo of the Day

June 1st, 2009:  Sunday Baseball & Photo of the Day

A Busy Spring

It's been a busy spring, full of family time, baseball, rain and flowers!  Since I've been so remiss in blogging and there are almost a months work of photos in this one, I'll keep the captions short.

Grocery store bouquet on my kitchen table.  Fresh flowers make everything so much better!

Billy at bat for the Eden Prairie JV baseball team.

I spent a few hours at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.  The tulips were especially beautiful.  My favorites were the double tulips that look like peonies.

Billy about to bat...looks like something serious was going down.

Tulips in the rain.  We've had the 2nd rainiest May on record in Minnesota.  Some records aren't very exciting to break.

A few flowers in an antique ball jar.

Billy rounding third and heading for home.

Storm clouds at the golf course....taken from my cell phone.  The rain missed us and it was a beautiful evening.

This is the same hole looking towards the green.  430 yard hole, 290 yard drive on this day!  One of those sweet shots that keeps me coming back.  It's all those other ones in between that make me wonder why I try.  I hate this game, I hate this game, I hate this game..."nice shot!"...I love this game!

Brian is home from college...it's so nice to have him home...and it's wonderful to have live music in the house again!

Back to baseball.  So many games, so little time.

Billy taking one for the team...right in the rump. Ouch.

Brian and I went to the farm for the day to help my mom with a few things.  The airsoft rifle went to the farm too.  Brian has really gotten into airsoft...he named this gun Loretta.

The sunset was beautiful on our way home.  We stopped along the side of the rode to take a few pictures over this little lake. Amazing.

One of the reasons I haven't been blogging is that I've been putting together a memory book for the baseball team.  Two pages for each of the boys, pages for the coaches, manager, announcer, roster, team record.  50 pages.  It took some time!  I took a few pictures to use as backgrounds for pages...I ended up not using this one, but it was the one that I picked for my photo of the day.

We've been trying to get to the farm when we can to help my mom with some spring chores.  We always bring bones for the dogs there.  The first thing Murphy does is checks the back of our van for bones.  Happy dog.

Baseball...post game workout.

Another pretty night on the golf course.  Seems like I've been too busy on Tuesdays to remember to take a photo...so golf course cell phone photos it is.  Tuesday night women's league.

A little blossom in my back yard.

Billy at bat.  I seem to have picked a lot of this view for my photos of the day...it just happens that way sometimes.

I went out and bought my annuals.  I do 4 window boxes, two hanging baskets in the front, 7 hanging baskets in the back and a bunch of various pots around the house.  Some go in the ground.  It was a challenge to get them planted with our crazy schedule and the rainy days....but I'm done for now!  Until I buy some more to fill in the garden in the back yard.  Are we ever really done with any project?

Another trip to the farm...this one for Mother's Day.  This is a hanging plant that my niece gave to my mom.  So pretty...and I liked the light coming through.

Back home and thinking about how many plants that I need to get in the dirt.

Billy's last at bat at his last JV baseball game...and his first strike out of the season.  It's ok...summer baseball  starts this week!  Sigh.

Cell phone photo on the golf course.  We were the last group out, it was getting sort of dark but we finished in time without losing a ball! Whew.

The roses in my back yard are blooming like crazy this year...I think that they liked our mild winter and early spring...and maybe they like the rain.

Penny on the other hand hasn't been crazy about the rain.  She didn't like the idea of going out to "do her business" in the rain.  Sorry dog, I'm not going to hold an umbrella for you for that!  My hanging baskets were sitting on the patio behind her waiting to be hung.

Here's one of my few delphiniums that the darned rabbits haven't mowed down.  Why don't rabbits eat my weeds instead?  Errr.

My first daisy has finally opened...in the rain.

My mom and I stopped at a beautiful Iris garden this weekend.  I took a lot of pictures of Irises....but am posting one of the two that I took of the poppies there.  I never claimed that my blog would make sense.

My buddy Skylar.  I think he was actually happy to see me come along with the bottle of fly spray...lots of rain has meant lots of nasty biting flies....and wood ticks.  I guess we have to take the bad along with the good...and the good is so beautiful right now!

 I hope that everyone enjoyed their Memorial Day weekend.  Thanks for stopping by!

May 29, 2011:  Second Week In May & Photo of the Day

May 29, 2010:  20 Questions & Photo of the Day

May 29, 2009:  Crazy Horse x 2 & Photo of the Day