Luv Fall

Now tell me----who could create and color nature better than God? This picture will help you better understand why Fall is my favorite season of the year. 

Visited w/friends yesterday AM, had lunch w/my "bud" Clarisse, came home and putzed inside the rest of the day. Enjoyed the evening w/more time reading and snuggling w/the boys in front of the fireplace. Have an exciting novel I am into (thanks, Linda) and limit myself to just a few pages/chapters so it will last longer. That is real self control--that is why I read it in the evenings---If I started in the AM, would sit, read all day and get nothing else done.

Plan Mass this AM, housecleaning, watching college football (TV) this afternoon and  the fireplace read thing this evening.  Have a great weekend---stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch. 

Love, Mom

More Fall projects

Thirty-eight degrees here this AM. Haven't turned the furnace on yet but have had the gas fire logs on a couple of times. Real nice--not to have to prep, e.g., clean out fireplace, carry sweeper upstairs to empty, carry firewood down the stairs, and constantly replenish the log rack on back patio area to assure dry firewood always available...Think I might just like the gas fire logs. Really took the chill out of the air.

Planning on visiting w/out of town friend this AM---we are going to attend a funeral for one of my old bosses. Please keep Dr. Ben Matassarin and his family in your thoughts and prayers.

Rest of day will be spent emptying and cleaning out flower pots/flower beds to get ready for winter storage. Then just may have another evening in front of the fireplace, reading, TV, and snuggling w/the pup posse.

Finish your day, stay healthy, be safe, keep in touch and for gosh sakes get out and enjoy this wonderful Fall weather.

Love, Mom

Biking

You've come a long way baby! From Mopeds to Bike w/kid carriage. Looking through pics this AM and remember saving this Moped Army pic. Couldn't resist putting these in the family blog today.

Mass this AM, volunteered at rectory and then home to have the last of the winterizing completed around the house today (Fall weed application to weeds and Fall insect extermination).

Cool, sunny day, slight breeze, and guess what??? The moon is still visible in the sky. Fall just may be my one of my favorite times of the year. Just want to be out of doors. Stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Ma's Fall Flowers

Some more arbor Coleus, Silver lace vine--check out the Ajuga nestled in between the Gerbera Daisy foliage. Really a different kind of Ajuga; sorry I only bought 2 plants.

Bridge class last night and SLC class/Mass this AM. Call me "classy." One more week of bridge class, 4 more at SLC. This should do me fine until after Advent.

Windy, sunny, and cool here today. Planning on getting the sewing machine out to do some mending and probably sweep, tidy up the house, eating out this PM, and may settle in front of the fireplace for some TV and reading this evening.

Stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Flowers and Ma

Still more Fall pics. The Coleus, lace vine is growing in the arbor pot and the Marigold(s) are volunteers. Each Fall I deadhead the spent blooms and scatter them over the ground. Actually have to thin them out in the Spring. They like it here.

Got a mulched leave(s) special delivery from Taylor yesterday. The bags are in place and ready to spread. Also, got all the morning glory vines pulled/cut/cleaned off the fence and out of the ground.

Finally got the t-bar fence post painted and will stake up the Hydrangea plant today. Plan to go to Mass, volunteer at the rectory, and come home to catch up on Fall tasks.

The boys are moping this AM. There has to be a skunk in the back field (bad smell) and they are confined to the house this AM. The dog door is locked to keep the dogs in and the skunk out. Stay healthy, safe, and in touch.
Love, Mom

Ma's Day

Throw in some more Coleus, a bit of Lantana, some ornamental pepper , and you have more of pics of Ma's Fall plants.

Had supper last night at Keith/Becky's (chicken enchilada's and Coldstone ice cream) and have been promised the arrival of more mulched leaves. That is making my day exciting.

Weekend was quiet and nice. Hope yours was also. Have a great week---staying healthy, safe, and keeping in touch. Love, Mom

OTD and DTR

Sample of ornamental grass w/Coleus in the background. The Coleus is growing out of one of the arbor pots. Adding the ornamental grass has been fun--they move so well in the breeze, are heat/drought tolerant and the plumes are so different on each plant. Have them scattered all over the flower garden path area.

Thinking Thanksgiving is not too far off though the weather is not aware of it. Thinking recently about last Thanksgiving and remember the family members who traveled to be here but cannot remember anything about the meal----Guess I was on automatic most of last year--in fact I know I was---Loved having family here. Will someone please let me know what we ate and was it good?

Taking a blog break for the weekend. Hope your weekend is great, safe, stay healthy, and keep in touch and for gosh sakes remember what you eat---I am not a good resource on that one.

Love, Mom

Off and Running

Another busy day today. All the mulched leaves have been spread out. Hoping more leaves will drop so my man Taylor will deliver more of those great mulched leaves to bed down more flower beds and cover the walking path.

So, this gas log fireplace plan is working great---had one demo and have not actually used it yet. Still too warm. Not asking for cold weather---just enough to sit in front of the fireplace.

Finding out/learning more new things: Bought some (3) 6' T-posts to use to retrain/support the Oak Leaf Hydrangea to stand upright. Had posts leaning up against the back fence, began painting them w/black spray paint and the can exploded. Black paint was spraying/spewing out of a puncture site on the side of the can, threw it on the ground (doing quite a lot of quick steps), found where the puncture was--picked up the can and did a version of the mole toss (sans shovel) into the back field. Thank God for long jeans (now w/one faint area of a black leg), socks/Crocs (now w/faint black spray design), flannel shirt, gloves... Ma and "boys" w/no sign of paint anywhere on our skin or fur.

Off to Mass this AM, PT, meet w/a friend, volunteer a couple of hours for banquet table setting this afternoon at Spiritual Life Center, try another attempt at painting, read, rest, and snuggle w/the pup posse.

Stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Blah, Blah, Blah

Busy, busy week...glad to be approaching the weekend. (Meetings, volunteering, errands, visiting w/grandkids, took lots of fall plant pics...). This Ajuga is so rich in color and has been an all season favorite. It is really worth a double click.

Stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

OTD and DTR

Busy day, busy week...Had to include this pic--Nandina on one side, Sweet Virginia Spire on the other with lots of sprouts of foliage implanted around the "gazing" ball. The source of the sprouts came from the plants growing in hanging planters above on the porch---the wind knocked them loose, they dropped, they grew----Amazing surprises.

Stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Pics

More fall pics--ornamental grass and Nandina. Fall changes every day. Speaking of fall--Ready for more leaves to bed down the plants/shrubs.

Have a great weekend, stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.
Love, Mom

Weeding, Digging, and Trimming

Title pretty much says it all. Sunny, cool, and lots to do.

More pics from yesterday: Lavender and backyard arbor area. Really thinning out to get ready for more leaves and bedding down for winter months.

Stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Classes, Mass and Grass...

Today's class was great, 18 people attended then we went to Mass at Spiritual Life Center Chapel. Stopped by Ascension on the way home, took some flower garden pics and enjoying the cool weather, sunny days w/my pup posse. Bridge class is a real challenge but hanging in there.

Today's pics feature a rejuvenated pruned Nine Bark and the beginning of the East rock garden, ornamental grass walkway.

Stay safe, healthy, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Cool sunny walking weather

So nice to have sunny cool days. Trying to do daily walking again. The leaves are changing and find something different to look at each day. Think we will have a beautiful Fall. (Not taking the 4-legged poop/barking machines w/me which makes the walks more pleasurable).

Plan to take 6 weeks of rosary/Biblical classes at the Spiritual Life Center. Classes are once a week using the Lectio Divina method of prayer. The instructor sounds great. Really looking forward to the class.

Sharing some more pics of ornamental grasses. The plumes are so soft and feathery. They look like they are dancing in the breeeze.

Stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Day: Mass, Chiro, and Gas Fireplace Logs

Mass: To pray my back would not hurt again from cleaning/emptying out the fireplace ashes.

Chiro: To get help for some sore back muscles from cleaning/emptying out the fireplace ashes.

Fireplace logs: To solve the cleaning/emptying out the fireplace ashes dilemma.

All of the above was made possible because the guy that used to clean/empty the fireplace ashes left last year and I am plagued by the constant reminder of his absence. Oh, those echoing refrains of "get on with it."

Love, Mom

Walking Tour and Grass

Loved the walking tour yesterday afternoon of some of the historical houses in midtown. Couple of the owners/restorers were there and gave us wonderful history on the homes. Cannot believe some of the homes were moved from other locations. Several of the homes were owned by MD's who practiced at St Francis Hospital. Went to early Mass (4:30pm), came home--fed the "boys", ate some smoked (canned) ocean salmon (gift from favorite brother-in-law in Alaska), picked up some groceries, made some eats for next week, read, played w/the boys and was in bed by 10:00am w/3 snuggling "boys" because they missed their Mom.

Treating you to pic of one of my favorite ornamental grasses. It has a copper color, contained in a mound, spraying pattern, fits nicely and stands out in the ground cover plant area.

Have a great day, stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Flower pics

Little bit of Coleus, little bit of ornamental grass, some sweet pea, throw in some silver lace on the arbor and you got yourself a sprinkler fed flower garden. Left the blooms on the Coleus plants for the humming birds and moths.

Planning a busy weekend. Sat: To Mass, play w/the "boys", then going on a walking downtown historical home tour in the afternoon. Sunday: To Mass, play w/the "boys", go for a walk, play dominoes in the afternoon, read, and catch some football if time allows.

Have a great weekend, stay healthy, safe, and keep in touch.

Love, Mom

Suppose

Just suppose a kid called just to say "I love you." Happened 2 days in a row. WOW!!! Loved it!!!
M.

More Pics

Blooming Variegated Lirope is at its best. Really like the seasonal plant transitions---always a surprise. Patience and nurturing is the key. Has been a wonderful time to take pics. Great temperature(s), clear skies...

Mass this AM, stopped by hospital to visit w/grand daughter and hold beautiful new great grand daughter, ran errands, and now home to clean ashes out fireplace and get ready for annual chimney sweep/inspection.
Love, Mom

Back n' Bloggin

Quiet weekend. Mass this AM, dentist this PM and Fall Altar Society get together this evening. Expect a cool fall and early winter. Woke up to 44 degrees and 3 close snuggling "boys" this AM. Think I will add a blanket for the "boys." Buster has been lying out on the sunny deck all afternoon. Rowdy is stretched out on the couch and Spencer is watching my every move. The "boy" needs a badge----treats me like he is a sheriff. I know, I am his food source.

Took pictures today and caught a great shot of a yellow Gerbera Daisy (w/water droplet(s)). Glad I have the sprinkler system---the flowers also thank me--look at the brilliance of that yellow beauty.

Stay safe, healthy, and keep in touch. Now, we have a total of three, 10/04 BD's---(Lauren, Allie) and thanks Monica and Tracy for a new great grand daughter.

Love, Mom

Weekend break

Sharing a plant (last kale of the year--here--thanks, Kat), taking a weekend break, and plan to return to Blogville on Monday.

Stay healthy, safe, and and keep in touch.

Love, Mom