Lovely Summer

Wow, it's been quite a month, I apologize for my absence here on the blog but things have been busy!
There is so much going on in the garden these days, planting, weeding, watering, as well as keeping the more invasive plants in check to allow room for others to grow. As always, keeping up with things out there is a challenge, but my garden loving husband and I do enjoy these summer days in the garden.


I took these pictures two or three weeks ago because June is my absolute favorite time in the flower garden. The perennials are beginning to bloom but are still young and fresh. If only I could figure out how to prolong this stage a little longer!

The luna moth above was discovered on our back porch one morning a couple of weeks ago, I'm always in total awe when I encounter one of these beautiful moths.

The pink flowers you see here are polygonum bistorta superbum. (knotweed)  I love this plant for it's cheerful beauty, versatility and hardiness. It is a June bloomer here in Maine, though there are a few still blooming now in July. It seems to thrive in this spot at the edge of the woods, receiving both sun and shade and in moist soil. In fact, it seems to thrive in any situation it finds itself in here at our place, a real survivor!

Here you see the flowers in early stages to full size.

June was also graduation month for a very special girl in my life, youngest daughter, Lydia.  Such a happy day for all. You can see it on her face, I wonder if you can pick her out of the crowd? (lower right!) 
A small gathering of family and friends followed with games, late dinner, ice cream sundaes, a campfire and fireworks!

Loving life on the deck this summer, morning tea, a cold beer at the end of the day, can't beat it. Talk soon!

Thrifting...

Living in the countryside is a joy, but as anyone who is familiar with country life knows, you have to make your trips to town count when you venture out. These days I try to conserve fuel and time by running as many errands as I can while there. I shop at the food coop and grocery store, drop off the books at the library, fuel up at the gas station and do whatever else is pending that day ... sometimes I  still have a little time left for something fun, like thrifting! 
Let's be honest here, sometimes I even do the thrifting first, depending on my mood and the urgency of things.
 We have a few good thrift shops in our area and they are well maintained and well attended as a result. On the day I was in Camden, I visited a shop called Heavenly Threads. It is located in a large, white, clapboarded house that was  built during the 1800's and that once housed the minister from the church nearby. 
As long as I have been visiting this shop it has been on the first floor of the house. You'd pass a marvelous, old staircase when you entered the front hall, but it was closed off and the upper level was off limits to customers.  I was so excited when I entered the shop the other day and noticed that the second floor was now open to the public! I had always longed to climb those stairs, you see I'm truly in love with older houses and their beautiful and sometimes quirky features. I climbed the stairs and was not disappointed!

A lovely, old room ... though a little hard to see behind the many treasures you see here. I did manage to find something special to take home with me.

I instantly had visions of Chocolate Pots de Creme when I saw these!  This recipe from a lovely food blog made my vision come true, and though I didn't add the coffee or espresso, it was rich and delicious.  Yes, you MUST take advantage of those trips into town!

checking in...

 

It seems that only yesterday I was looking at this summery view from my kitchen window, but in reality, it's been weeks since this picture was taken. 
Autumn is here now and although we've been enjoying warm, summer-like weather for the most part, the signs of the changing season are unmistakable and beautiful as always.
For any of you who check in on my blog from time to time, please forgive my recent absence here.  I've been thinking a lot about what it is I have to offer on the
blogosphere and needed to take a little time out to look around, learn, and enjoy the blogs of others for a bit. 

I've been doing a lot of walking recently, well, as much as time will allow, and have become quite familiar with a forty-five minute walk up and around the loop in Camden . 
Starting out early is best, the ocean air is cool and fresh and sharing the road with other early walkers and runners makes for a happy feeling. 
The other day when I arrived for my walk I found the harbor to be quite 'socked in' by fog...like 'pea soup', as they say, though not of the old London smog variety.  I'm glad I had my camera with me.

Clouds

The sky was so beautiful and unusual that day, thank you Cecile for taking these beautiful pictures and to Carol for the lovely stone arrangement. Love the little hearts in the lower part of the picture.

Lettuce and Roses

I know I'm a bit of a dork when it comes to certain things, well, probably most things, but it seems that I'm in a state of constant amazement when it comes to the beauty I see outdoors in the garden. Today it's the beauty of a simple head of lettuce and a perfect rose, can you see what I mean?

Independence Day

Summer is on the move, I really wish I could slow it down a little...vegetables need weeding, strawberries need picking, lawn needs mowing, ect. ect.  Sometimes we all need a little time off though and one of the great things about living in the heart of 'Vacation Land' is that you can take a short day trip whenever you have a free afternoon. You can have  a mini vacation and be a tourist for a few hours!

This week was really the official start of the tourist season here in Maine. David and I watched the fireworks in the park over Camden Harbor on the 5th where he filmed this little video.

We had our first strawberry shortcake of the season, our first summer cookout, and we got to take a day trip to Boothbay Harbor to visit the galleries and shops and have lunch at our favorite Vietnamese restaurant called Baker's Way. The place is a bakery in the front and at the back, a small restaurant where the food is always good, great even. Sitting outdoors in their little courtyard garden, we ate under the big maple tree and enjoyed the summer breezes off the ocean. 
Of course no summer outing would be complete without ice cream, yes, we had that too...guess I'll be skipping supper tonight.

The cosplay costume I made and promised to show you in my last entry, modeled by my daughter.

Fireworks over Camden Harbor

Camden Harbor

A pretty B+B in Boothbay Harbor, the garden here is always impeccable.

More from Boothbay

Spring Rolls under the old maple tree.

A lovely place to have lunch and linger awhile.

 

Ice cream for dessert, the line was long but totally worth the wait!

 July in Maine