Enjoying The Outdoors From Indoors! :)

 With this Summer heat, we enjoy being up early, opening the house to the cool morning air! :)

Once the sun's up it's soon time to close up the house again! :) For that short span of time when the house is open, Coal loves the feeling of enjoying the outdoors from indoors! :)
Summer-On! :)

Scenes Of Summer! :)

 There's a feast for the eyes at Summer time, everywhere you look! :)

 Our Sungold cherry tomatoes have been full of color for awhile now ...

 and we can't get enough of their flavorful sweetness! :)

 Even the Mason Bee houses are full of color! :)

 The pollen colors change with the season! :)

 The corn stalks now tower over our heads, making it fun to walk between the rows! :)

 Some beauty volunteers itself from years past, like this unexpected poppy, ...

 and this volunteer tomato plant that is now substantial enough to warrant staking! I think it's a red Sweet 100 cherry tomato that will go well with our gold ones! :)

 The onion tops are toppling now that we are well into Summer! :)

 The tomatoes are being productive, ...

As are the zucchini! :)
How I love these scenes of Summer! :)

Tom-Foolery! :)

 Some of these photos were taken last month, (before I harvested the potatoes), but they are typical of daily activities with the boys! :) They tend to be wherever I am, and are always a source of amusement to me! :)

 They will be peacefully interacting one moment ...

 and ready to playfully ...

 strike each other the next! :)

 They spend a lot of time watching each other, ...

 looking for the signs of any oncoming attack! Most of the time Apollo is the instigator! Just like when they were kittens, he Loves a good wrestling match! :)

 So they relax, but are always at the ready! :)

 One never knows when it's going to come so ...

 they need to be on the look out! :)

 That is when they're not doing other goofy things! :)

 Like using a flower pot to sit in while drinking from one of the bird baths, ...

 or rolling at my feet, ...

 or giving me a leg hug! Sylvester is known for this move! I sometimes have tiny claw marks on my legs as proof of all his leg hugging when he's determined to give and receive affection! :)

 They are a constant source of entertainment and I love them dearly, ...

in spite of, ... or maybe because of, ... all their Tom-foolery! :)
Happy 4th Birthday today to Apollo, Sylvester, Mick, and Gerdy-Girl! :) XO

Using Up The Beauty Bark! :)

 Years ago I paid for a truck load of beauty bark to be delivered at the end of our drive. I'm amazed at how long it's lasted! :)

 One of my goals this year is to get our flower beds back in order and distribute the last of the bark! :)

 It always looks so nice once I've done that final step of putting down the beauty bark! :)

 This shade bed, by the front deck, has become one of my favorite beds! :)

 The felines like it too because the water in the bird bath is always cool to the tongue! :)

 It looks refreshing on a hot Summer day! :)

 I enjoy the look of the dappled lighting! :)

 My clover plants are beginning to multiply as I hoped they would! :)

 I love the mix of green shapes and textures! :)

 I've just about finished all the beds in the front of the yard! :)

 Things are coming along, but there's still a lot to do! :)

 I feel good about today's accomplishments! :)

This is what's left of the bark pile! By this Fall I hope to have used up the last of it so my hubby doesn't have to mow around it any more! If I buy another truck load of it in the future, I will find a better location for it. It feels good to be tackling this goal of using up the beauty bark! :)