Morning in the Garden

2014.08.04MorningGarden03
The wedding is over.  My short vacation to the mountains is past. I got to work all my shifts this past week ~ something I haven't done in ages.  Mother/Baby nursing fluctuates more than other types of nursing, so when few babies are being born, shifts get cancelled frequently.  Between wedding stuff, vacation and work, I was so tired when I got home after my last shift yesterday morning that I slept for close to 24 hours straight! 

This morning I woke to clear blue skies filled with lovely morning sunshine and the sound of birds in the trees.  So nice to get up and have a chance to stroll around the yard with no long list of "must-get-done" chores in mind.  Just a chance to see what's blooming, pull a weed or two, refresh the bird bath with fresh water and see what is in bloom!  

2014.08.04MorningGarden01

The petunias in the patio beds are glorious and the roses are blooming nicely!  Not too bad for a garden that's only a month or two old! 

2014.08.04EvelynRose01
The Evelyn rose by the birdbath has just a couple of sweetly scented blossoms on it.  But oh!  The perfume of them is heavenly! 

2014.08.04BoscobelRose02
Boscobel, another David Austin English Rose is blooming wonderfully!  It has lots of lovely pink blossoms ~ also lovely smelling, though not as powerful as Evelyn.  

2014.08.04MorningGarden04
The morning glories have reached the top of one of the tuteurs!  Hope to see blooms in the near future! The cosmos are starting bloom and the sunflowers have buds on them!   Next year these beds will be so tightly packed with flowers (if they all make it through the winter) that many will need to be moved to other spaces!  For now, it's glorious! 

2014.08.04HummingBirdMoth02
I was delighted to see this fellow in the garden!  Hummingbird Moths fascinate me!

2014.08.04HummingBirdMoth01
Look at that long tongue!  He flutters in one spot and moves the tongue from flower to flower with such precision! 

2014.08.04Cosmos
I had hoped the cosmos would be in bloom for the wedding, but they didn't quite make it. This week, they are just starting to bloom!  They are definitely one of my favorite summer flowers and I have so many memories of them from growing up that are associated with dear women in my life.  One of them is Mrs. Scheerer, who was an adopted grandmother for my sister and I.  She was a tiny woman, well under 5 feet tall - but she grew glorious cosmos that would tower over her!  Several times a summer, she would provide immense bouquets of flowers for church that were so beautiful!  My mother grew them as well and they were one of the first flowers I grew successfully when I started my own gardens.  

2014.08.04Calendula
These calendulas self seeded from plants I grew last year!  Such cheerful sunny blossoms!  

2014.08.04OldWeddingFlowers
Inside, I have a little flower work to do.  All the wedding flowers, which were glorious on the day of the wedding, are a little past their prime.  I need to discard all the wilted ones and remake a few bouquets of the lovely delpihineum and white phlox which seems to have amazing staying powers!  We made well over 20 bouquets for the wedding and sent many home with people, but my house is still full of bouquets!  

2014.08.04Projects
I also have my first opportunity to sit and stitch on round robin projects today!  Thankfully, all the round robin groups I'm in right now have been so patient with me.  Hoping to get at least two blocks completed today!  I'm going to try changing where I sit and stitch so I don't overwhelm the living room with stitching stuff so much.  We'll see how it works out.  I've missed my needles and threads so much the past few months! 

2014.07.31MountainBluebird
Before I go, I want to leave you with some bird photos from Rocky Mountain National Park that I took on my last day there!  I got up early and attended a birding trip led by one of the volunteer rangers in the park.  It was great to get tips and pointers as well as confirmation on what we were seeing.  This is a mountain bluebird - probably a female.  Such a lovely blue! 

2014.07.31HouseWren
I saw lots and lots of house wrens!

2014.07.31BroadTailedHummingbird01
I'm still learning how to use the new lens, but so far, I am really happy with it!  My usual lens wouldn't have allowed me to capture this broad tailed hummingbird's feather detail at such a distance with the speed at which it moves!  

2014.07.31BlackBilledMagpie
Magpies hold a special spot in my heart as when I was growing up, my Mom raised a rescued magpie that had fallen out of a nest.  For years it would answer her call when she went outside and called it.  She'd holler, "Hello Maggie!"  and Maggie would answer from her treetop down by the ditch an acre or more away in her magpie voice, "hello Maggie!" back!  She learned to say lots of things in her short time with us and was terrific at imitating my Mom yelling at my sister and I or calling the cat!  

2014.07.31BarnSwallow01
Rocky Mountain National Park is filled with swallows along all the meadow creeks!  They swoop and soar over the meadows in large numbers.  So graceful!  And their twittering song is so happy sounding!  I caught this photo of a barn swallow at one of the restroom cabins where they had a nest under the eaves.  Such sweet birds!  

2014.07.31BarnSwallow02
For all the elegant soaring and happy songs they make, they have faces that look a bit sorrowful though.  But still so lovely!  

Comments

Anonymous said…
I can't believe you do all you do!! You are truly amazing, you deserve to sleep 24 hours:) Everything has come along so nicely, actually amazing and beautiful!
Chyfey said…
What an amazing transformation of your garden and those beautiful rose blossoms .Gorgeous photos also from your holiday
allie aller said…
Amazing how mature your garden looks already, Lisa! What a fine touch you have. I've loved watching it all come to life.
Dear Lisa ~ What a wonderful post! I'm glad you got some much needed rest. You've had a whirlwind couple of months, now you can relax and get back to your normal way of living.

Your new gardens do NOT look new. They are oh so lovely and I just love you roses.

The bird photos are fantastic!

I hope you have a great week ~ FlowerLady
Gerry Krueger said…
Of course I love all the bird and garden pictures. I can't imagine my house NOT overwhelmed with stitchin' stuff... Let the needles hum!
Dolores said…
Thank you for the lovely photos. I enjoy learning about different birds and insects. I've never seen or heard of that moth before.
You do have an amazing garden, indeed flowers are a stress reliever.
Debbie S. said…
Love the photos of the garden and birds and moth. You have my interest to visit the Rocky Mountains now.

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