End of July

What does the end of July bring? Well, lots of flowers are blooming all over my yard. 

The hummingbirds and humming bird moths are crazy busy sucking up that nectar.

I put morning glories in several places this year. I put one right outside the porch door and let it climb up a shepherd's hook. 

Most of the flowers in front of the west porch area were variations of blue this summer. Of course, the Morning Glories take the cake!

 

July usually gives us a rest from mowing with a dry spell. Not this year. Mowing has to be done every 5 to 6 days. Maybe that is why I feel so behind on things. Days of wet, days and days of rain. No dry spells for the farmers to make hay.

The sunflowers are blooming too along with my Brown Eyed Susans. This is the first time I've grown them and they are doing so well.

In fact, they have been home to some elusive Crab Spiders. 

They hide under the petals of the flowers and wait for a meal to drop by. They are ambush spiders that don't create webs to catch their prey. 

August will bring the Orb Spiders out in force in the Meadow just east of us. That will be incredible to see again this year [hopefully]. Thousands of Orb Spider webs sparkling in the morning dew.

Air Quality was a huge factor on and off for July. Well, for this summer. Wildfires in the States and Canada are obviously contributing to the horrid atmosphere. However, the mules are pleased to be wandering a clipped pasture. The blueish haze is smoke.

We got a trip in to Cabela's yesterday and drove through driving rain. Hubby looked at the fish in their giant fish tank and was not impressed since he couldn't have any to eat.

On the way home, Steve as always took the scenic way home which includes as many back roads as possible.

This was a shot I took of the ridges above Prairie du Chien as we headed home. Shooting out the back window of a moving car is pretty challenging.

That's smoke too.

Today is much worse as the sun looks brownish and the haze is thick and smells bad.

Humming birds/moths/Infrared tour

The Clearwing Hummingbird Moths have finally showed up to feast on the Bee Balm. Of course they generally show up on the hottest days of July, but if you wish to see them, you have to sit patiently and watch for them.

I was fairly far from the flowers... on the back step to the house which was in the shade. 

 Remember the crooked and ancient looking outhouse in March? It looked SO pitiful! 

Well, it looks like an aged old beauty right now. Maybe that is why I've kept from demolishing it.

I enjoy trying to 'catch' the hummingbirds doing their thing with the Bee Balm also.

This is 3 shots combined into one. 

Thankfully, the camera has an exceptional image stabilizer and ON1 allows for layers to be aligned when loaded!

I like to do these kinds of shots, they just seem so fun to look at. I think I'm going to do a bird calendar next year for all of my favorite birds shots from this year.

I can't wait to capture some action with some butterflies. I would hope to see some Swallowtails and Monarchs just because they are so incredibly beautiful.

Sunday morning I had to run an errand in town to pick up some milk and other 'stuff' you know, the stuff you forget the last time you shopped.

Since I went very early [hubby's early morning nap time], I took a little more time driving to town and back. I took my Infrared Camera with me. The fog here was dense and it had been such a l-o-n-g time since I'd been able to get out and admire the morning light and take some shots.

Along a ridge road --> a not shortcut road to town. The fog was so dense there was no sky but I thought the telephone/power poles made a neat shot with the road curving off into the distance.

The fog started to lift as I came through this ridge towards the county road that leads to the highway....that leads to town!

I just love the undulation of the different strips of crops and lines that the eyes wouldn't see in regular color.

Here the morning sun comes out on another cut across gravel road I took. 

A bit further down the road the sun came out peeked between clouds. I was following buggy tracks. The buildings on the left side of the road belong to a few Amish families. 

More photos taken on the way home from town on another gravel road between the highway and the county road. One of my favorite ways to go home.

This shot was taken on our road as I headed home with a cooler of ice cream and all sorts of good veggies to make cold meals of fruits and veggies. 

I had hoped to get some nice steaks. I looked at some steaks that I've purchased a month ago for $25 to $30 bucks. That would feed us 2 suppers and one lunch.

The sticker shock of $45.00 stopped me in my tracks. I won't be able to afford to eat beef! I picked up pork chops and chicken. 
Hubby is going to have to forgo eating steaks [which is what he is so into right now].

It makes me sad to think I let my little beefers go a few years ago. I am also thankful that our friend Steve has supplied us with some amazing fish and venison.

The sky and ridge as I turned onto one of our gravel roads.

And then....

down this lane and into the woods to our place....

All these shots were done with a camera that was modified to take Infrared photos with different 
filters of different wave lengths. I use the 665nm filter for all shots. 
I normally take this camera out a lot when driving to and from places when

there is an interesting sky. 

Today is supposed to be blistering hot so I did all the chores before 7am and even did my last bit of mowing with my little mower. Boy that mower hated the wet tall grass, but I got it done, cleaned the mower, and put it away.

Luck, Flowers, Trees

 Did you know that spotting a Hummingbird Moth is supposed to bring you good luck and prosperity?

Did you also know that they like Bee Balm, Verbena, and Phlox as their favorite flowers and food?

I didn't. However, by sheer luck I have all three types of flowers around my house. 

The Bee Balm below is next to my outhouse.

The Phlox is on the west side of the house, but next year I will be moving another group of them to the east side also.

I have verbena in pots on the porch in a couple of colors. I had no idea they were attractive to Hummingbird Moths until a year or so ago when I planted a bunch of them and saw my first Hummingbird moth! 

4 O'clocks are also a Hummingbird favorite along with Zinnias. The seeds I gathered last year for the Zinnias haven't done well this year. 

5 years ago I got two little patches of Creeping Thyme from one of the neighbors. She had a garden from the previous owner that she was just going to cover with plastic and river rock. I 'rescued' some plants and now I have large swaths of creeping thyme. Right now they are in bloom.

There is almost no maintenance to these delightful plants. They grow low. They spread, they smell wonderful and the flowers attract so many tiny bees and larger bees!

Okay. Enough about that. Remember that Dunnum fellow I talked to? He said he'd be out over the weekend. No show, no contact. 

I contacted him again and gave him some more time. After 7 days of waiting for an estimate, I have contacted two other companies. 

Now I'll wait and see who may come out and do the work.

I understand being busy, but if you have a potential customer wouldn't you at least message that customer to set up a definite date and time ... AND deal with it or message that customer with a reason for the no show? I assume that this person doesn't want my money. Cha-ching.

I'm determined to get this project done this summer. Last year was the driveway. This year, the trees that are dead and dying that will impact my sheds and house need to go.

However!!!!

Here is a guy that I can always depend on to show up for work daily. 

Little Richard:

And...I leave you with one last flower photo...

My wagon wheel of Morning Glories with Bee Balm and Milkweeds...

Wish me luck! 

The Hummingbird Clearwing Moth is supposed to bring me some!!!!

Uffdah

I was hoping to keep it simple this week... Hmmm.

Monday was hubby's annual wellness checkup and nothing has really changed from last year. His legs are swelling up so she had some hints for him to help him with that. Time was of the essence for the appointment as the highway department was getting ready to close a bridge because the Kickapoo River was rising rapidly.

Monday afternoon we got a visit from the Oxygen folks.

We received a portable oxygen concentrator which should give Rich more mobility. It is easier to carry a satchel type item than to drag around a tank. The VA Home Oxygen lady was a great educator. Much better than the person they had previously.

This afternoon, I'm getting a visit from a fellow named Dunnum. He runs a company that does tree trimming, brush hogging, landscaping, cleaning up old junk piles,...delivering hay...

well.... 
you name it, and his folks will do it apparently.

I'm looking to have some trees taken down and two pastures brush hogged along with some other clean up if the prices are right. IF I like his work, I'm gong to have him come twice a summer to brush hog down the weeds in my main pastures. It would save me so much time, frustration, and sweat!

The weather hasn't been conducive for activities outside for even healthy folks. I can get chores done easily, but I am wringing wet by the time I get inside. If I have to do anything for a length of time, I have to wear a gnat net over my hat.

By Wednesday the heat and humidity will come down enough for hubby to enjoy getting on his zero turn and do some mowing.

In other news, our gym now offers a class called Legends. It is for those over 50. The workouts are more personalized and less intense. I love the folks I am working out with. We have a range of ages and abilities. Plus, it is great to meet new people. [most of the folks are wayyy over the 50+ mark!]

One of the ladies just finished up her chemo and radiation, and is gently easing back into fitness and mobility. I have to hand it to her. She makes me feel as if anything is possible. 
We do the same workouts as the regular classes, but with more adjustments. I switched to this class because the scheduling works out much better for me.

I can monitor Rich's morning routine and go to class while he naps.

I still do a regular class once a week so I get 3 days in. It is a win win for me right now. Come winter, I may just stick with the smaller class for us older folks. I think none of us would come when we are sick? Fingers crossed.

Below:
Hummingbird Moth 

on Bee Balm.

Below:

Little Richard

doing yard work on

the hillside.

 If this Dunnum fella is easy to work with. I'll take some shots of what needs to get done so I can have some before and after shots for comparison. 

So many things have been let go since my husband's cancer and stroke that I feel I need to make an effort to get things back on track.

Wish me luck!

Rain, Slugs, and Bugs

So the rain brought out Slugs and bugs...

And very cool fungi. Some sort of slime mold??? 

Found Black Nightshade. Nasty stuff.

Slug heads in Fungi.

Witch's butter perhaps? Being guarded by my tiny soldiers.

Bright yellow slime mold. Some of it creeping over the Witch's Butter.

Chicken of the Woods? Old?

Grasshopper.

A sluggo stand off...

A very cheerful dog enjoying the cooler weather...

Ready???

Hummingbird Moth!

This is the fastest moving moth I have ever encountered and this is only the second time in 30 years that I've seen one. The first time I could only watch and wonder.

It probably took at least 30 or more tries before I finally got half way decent shot of this moth.

It's wings are translucent and it is sort of beautiful and ugly at the same time. 

That was my rainy day. Not that interesting unless you are a bug or slug or some sort of slime mold.

However.

I had some very cool stuff happen today. Thursday. I'm still mulling it over.