Hello everyone!
A few days ago, I opened my backdoor and saw these two chocolate brown eyes peering over the rose bushes at me, just happily munching away without a clue that my heart was breaking with every bite--oh the drama! I knew then it was time to mix up the magic concoction.
Now that the flowers have been sprayed and the deer are finding the weeds much more enticing, a fantastic side benefit, I can once again breath a sigh of relief.
And so can the roses. They never looked more scrumptious.
I had been on my way to photograph the garden in all its current glory. I thought you'd like to see the progress we've made. These rock paths that we started laying down in early spring are finally finished. Hurrah! In the end, my son stepped in and got the job done. Moving so many tons of river rock with a wheel barrow is a bit of a chore let me tell you. Even for him. We are so grateful for his help and are paying him back with good eats and treats from the garden.
More bundles of lemon thyme ready for the drying rack.
The leaves are quite prickly when dry though, so I use my rolling pin to loosen them. I usually make a huge mess. But it gets the job done.
Then into tiny jam jars they go!
And speaking of jam . . . it's that time again. Berry season. Just another of the many reasons I have been MIA from the blog. In case you wondered.
Yes, we are busy as bees around here.
The girls and I went strawberry picking and then made big pots of jammy goodness. The pantry shelves are filling up again. YUM.
Oh and Blackberry Junction came to town. It's kind of a traveling flea market bringing old and new, handmade and repurposed, and all beautifully displayed. Very fun. I missed the last few events, so had to stop, drop everything, and roll on over before they packed it up.
While there, these adorable summer sun hats caught my eye. They are made from vintage embroidered dresser cloths and linens. Love that.
And that reminds me . . . the PatternBee website is celebrating its tenth year this month! Time it had an upgrade I should think. So, my talented "tech team" has been hard at work on it for many months now. It will basically look the same, with a few new features and tweaks, but the best part (for me) is it will have a data base that will make managing the site much easier as it grows to include more vintage patterns. When I started this venture (long before the website) in 1998, I had no idea there were so many! :o)
UPDATE STATE FLOWER QUILT NEWS: I've just added a new link in the side bar for a FREE PDF download of all 50 State Flower Quilt blocks. Along with the original directions. So if you are still wanting those it will be much easier to access and print them out now.
For reference, the finished blocks can still be viewed here in my flickr album AND all in alphabetical order.
OK. I think that's all for now--take good care until next time!
