Good morning! (Still is morning here)

I've been rushing around the house doing cleaning, dusting, laundry, decluttering (a never ending job it seems!) and just generally acting like I have energy!!! It is a novel feeling and one that I hope continues. I'm usually so darn wore out all the time (caused by a combination of being too sedentary along with my poor food choices and excess poundage). These past weeks of moving more, eating less and feeling 'useful' once again has given me a new burst of *something*. LOL Whatever the reason or source--I'm very thankful for it and hope I continue to be more active.

DH is doing some work down near the animals' shelter (shack). We'd like to build a small barn type structure for them. The spot we chose had a large rotting cedar stump and it is an area where we have burnt 'stuff' all the years we've lived here. He just dug the stump out with the excavator (the cedar stump smells so wonderful) and now has a HUGE hole to backfill. There is plenty of ashes built up where the firepit has been, so he's just going to scrape that into the hole and fill the rest with the rocks & dirt from the ditch he just made, alongside the driveway, recently. The man just keeps going like an energizer bunny! I tried taking a photo of what he was doing, from the front porch, but it showed too much of the 'ugly' here, ;o), so you can't see it.

I hear the buzzer on the dryer so I'd better get back to being a housewife.

Hope all are enjoying their Saturday!

Happy Birthday to David!!

T.

Doing my part to keep it going ....

V: You'll be fine, fine, fine. Half of "pitching" is loving what you're talking about. If it's plants, your enthusiasm will be contagious. Sounds like the job is the perfect combo of in and out of office. You'll start to like "out" a lot :-)

Monique: Too bad about the swap. I went in the Spring and had a blast. Years ago, long before cyberland allowed everyone to know everyone so well, we'd post notices at nurseries and organize swaps that way. Fun!

Saucy: Wahoo!!! Last winter was the first in five that I was able to seed start and it felt like the best thing ever when that first poke of green came up. I'm happy for you that you're cleaning out. "As is" isn't what it's cracked up to be, but worth it in the end.

The Pennisetum was an overwinter that worked. I'm 5'3" on a good day. LOL

Michelle: We have been designated quasi farmers by the seasonal work guys who have become good friends. Next year we'll have a real veggie garden that will be Rich's. I get 10' at the end for nursery plants (perennials that will be winter sown.) Our cul-de-sac is surrounded by tobacco, corn and evergreen farms. It's acreage was sold off by one of four brothers who inheirited the original farm and wanted to keep the tradition going but needed to buy out his brothers. We are on the former cornfield. I get all the good stuff of farming -- views, smells, sounds, anticipation -- but don't have to drive a tractor around at 8am on 90deg Sunday mornings :-)

Marian: The funny think about Fuchs and naming a plant for him is that he probably never saw one being from a non-tropical part of the world. (Son the history nut looked that up for you :-)

Deanne: Still marveling at your Coleus and Fuschia collections. Pics don't do it justice. Hope you made your bike ride!

More later.

Martie

EEk -- Almost forgot --

Happy Birthday David!! Bowling sounds perfect! Of course, being boys, they'll probably just want to go swimming anyway :-)

Eden - Good luck with the Bella and crayon combo! We'll want pics of her first piece of art :-)

Mart

Wow! I couldn't even get through all the posts. You are all certainly rising to Deanne's challenge.

Getting set for the party has been a challenge today. I didn't get in from picking up my son until 1:15 am, so I slept in a little. Then I had a minor work emergency this morning. It only took 20 minutes at the office, but add in 20 minutes drive on either side and there goes an hour!

Now I must go encourage some threatening clouds to move on - they're not supposed to be here!

V. (helping the cause)

Hi again

Deanne - you are quite right, cleaning will need to be done AFTER the sleepover. However, I hadn't done any since getting back from our trip and clutter and dust (not to mention a few spiders) were accumulating. It's passable now, 9 year old boys certainly won't know the difference. Plus I'll feel better when parents drop off - a great motivator when it comes to housework since a couple of his buddies come from spotless, immaculate homes.

Annie made David's birthday cake all by herself while I was swabbing the decks. It is Gluten-Free chocolate cake, with a very delicious cream cheese frosting. David was thrilled and I must say it looks good.

Martie - I know the boys would swim whatever the weather, but since one of us would need to be poolside to lifeguard, and its only 61F and bucketing down, I think we've vetoed that idea. We decided to take the boys to a movie theatre. DH was worried there might be crowds and beer drinking at the bowling alleys on Saturday night, so a movie seemed a safe bet. Its a toss up between "Barnyard" or "How to Eat Fried Worms". Fortunately DH offered to go as I couldn't stomach the gross-out factor of the second choice.

DH is enjoying being home, a little tired after being woken every 2 hours to have blood pressure checked. Hospitals are not fun places to be. He's started on the new meds and is taking things easy over the weekend. I think I might be the one to keep order in the wee hours tonight.

Time to go put burgers together.

Enjoy your party V! Have a good Saturday night everyone.

Mary

Mary and Annie: You guys worked really hard to give David a great birthday and I'm jealous I don't get to come and help! Think I'd opt out of those movies, too.

Chicken in the oven, quiet night planned, still "seeing" Deanne's gardens and not at all surprised that the orchids will be well cared for :-)

Later, pals!

Martie

Bella and I just finished dinner. It's been a very gray and gloomy day here with light drizzle. I didn't end up doing much of anything worth speaking of. Bella and I did color for a while. Michelle, thanks for the tip. I set her up just as you described and it worked great. Martie, Bella's art has quite has quite a modern flavor to it, lol. Mary, a movie sounds like a great way to kill a few hours with the boys. Happy Birthday to David! That was so sweet of Annie to bake her brother a cake. T, send some of that housecleaning energy my way. Deanne, what a beautiful container. Another one of yours I'd like to have permission to copy? I just hack off the older leaves on my begonias to get them to a more manageable size. I have to be drastic in order to fit them all under lights. I usually try to soak the pot's soil in a bucket of water for a while before I bring the plants in. What do you do? I have so many to do this year I don't know how I'm going to get it all done. I have many containers I'll have to dismantle and repot the individual plants. I'm going to have to start taking cuttings this weekend. I think I'll stick them in the little greenhouse for now though. I don't want to start up the lights any sooner than I have to. The plants seem to take so much more maintenance time when they're inside. Re license plate tabs. We're procrastinators. That was one of the things Brad did yesterday on his birthday. Babs, I've been feeding my clerodendon Miracle Grow every week to week and a half. I don't know why it won't flower. Thanks for the photography tips. I fear I'm hopeless though in that department. Wendy, I had to laugh at your description of the difference between the boys and the girls. So true. Years ago, my neighbor caught her son and a friend behind the garage practicing throwing steak knives (around the other kid's body as he stood against the garage wall)like they'd seen on a tv show. You just never know what they'll think of. Best to keep a close eye on them! Saucy, I'm committed to keeping that little patch of lawn, lol. I love s'mores!

Off to read Bella a few books before her bedtime and then a friend's coming over to share a few glasses of wine. It IS wine night you know! See you all tomorrow.

Eden

ROTFLMAO,,,, Guess my mind was in the gutter. Sue you were talking about your underwear and then said "Its off and on right now.... thats where I busted up. sorry.

V, my computer was doing that yesterday too and the scrolling wasn't working right. I restarted and it was ok. I'm not sure its not the site.

Deanne, cool looking fountain.

T, I'm glad to hear you are feeling better. Sometimes we just need a change to give us a boost. You said the cedar stump smelled good to you. I was digging in the new bed and it smelled like sasafrass (rootbeer). Bob had brought dirt up from the woods to build that berm, that turned into a flowerbed.

Michelle, thats a great idea your DD had for the coloring.
Your recycled storage unit sounds neat.

V, you sound busy busy.

Mary, Davids cake sounds yummy. I'm sure they will have a blast.

Deanne maybe the Rex begonia would like the orchid window. Don't they like humidty too?

Well I did get a few of the plants in today. The ones that I knew exactly where I wanted them. With Bob home today there were to many interuptions though.
He was working on the riding lawn mower and burned up his hunk of junk compressor so we had to go shopping as he really needed it. I have been trying to get him to buy a new one for years. We took the Forrester instead of the truck since its easier on gas and plenty of room to haul a compressor, but LOL when we walk into Sears they had a$260 something gas grill on clearance for $85 and we needed one so we managed to squeeze both items in but it was tight.
Our mower is twenty years old and the mower deck has had lots of abuse. I'm hoping we can keep it going for a few more years. LOL a few times back when I was mowing the grill fell off the front of the lawn tractor. I walked everywhere I mowed three times but have never found the grill. I wonder if I will find it sometime this winter when the grass and weeds die back.

So thats it for today. Think I'll go make brownies. (thanks Mary for talking about chocalate cake).
We haven't seen the Wyatt and Jake for awhile so may go visit sometime before the weekend is over.

Norma

Norma, lol, I did get the underwear today and it was 25% off. Kohl's was giving stuff away. It seemed like everything in the store was on sale. I got two sterling silver rings for something like 65% off. Maybe I should go back tomorrow without Tom and peruse the jewelry area a bit more thoroughly.

After Kohl's we stopped for lunch at a Mexican place called On the Border. It may be a chain but I don't know how widespread. Anyway, don't go, the food was awful! Yuck! I should know better-I generally don't like chain restaurant food but was looking for something different. The margaritas weren't bad though. You could mix and match your tequila with either Grand Marnier or Cointreau. Next time I'll stop for a drink then go home and make myself a sandwich.

The package I was waiting for from Coldwater Creek finally arrived today. It was sent first class mail on Sept 2Oth. I buy alot of stuff online and by far the worst service is from the US Postal Service. They must send everything by horse and buggy. After all that waiting CC ended up sending me the wrong item and what I ordered is now out of stock. So much for that.

For my walk this afternoon I decided to park in a different part of town and walk around neighborhoods that are new to me. The problem was I was not familiar with the streets and many of them were unmarked deadends or circles. The walk ended up taking an hour and a half because I kept thinking a certain street would come out on another and get me back to my car. Oh well, what else did I have to do? At least the rain held off. It looks like we may not get much rain afterall as it seems to be passing more west of us. It was windy though. I had to move one of my potted cannas because it's top heavy and the wind kept knocking it over. This is not a good time of the year for wind with all the overgrown gardens. Tomorrow will be heavy twig pick up day. Whenever we get wind around here the Sycamores "shed".

All this talk of cake and brownies is making me hungry. Yogurt or a granola bar will have to suffice as a substitute though because I'm trying to be good. After my walk tonight I stretched and did Pilates. For dinner we grilled lamb rib chops and had fresh aparagus and a salad. It doesn't seem like Labor Day weekend. I'm looking forward to a fun time on Monday with Deanne, Doug, Monique and Les.

We're over the message quota again for the day. At this rate we'll need a new idyll by Monday, maybe sooner. Deanne should crack the whip more often.

Sleep well folks!

Sue

Evening all,

Sue I just received my order from Coldwater Creek fine. Funny you'd just ordered from there too. They are having some terrific sales now. I just got the absolute best bargain of my life. WE have an LLBean credit card and every so often you build up enough points and they send you coupons. Anyway, I had a ten dollar coupon and when we went to the outlet I found a great pair of corduroy jeans on sale for $9.95 so I didn't pay anything for them!!! Woohoo! ~~ Weve been to On The Border and I completely agree with you, the food stinks.

Norma, that is a very good idea to try the rex begonias in the orchid window. Ill bet theyll do well there. Thanks. ~~ Good for you with getting a few plants in. I was supposed to do that but the day got away from me. I wound up doing some work with the dahlias and then had to water everything because we never got the promised rain.

Eden, so happy you like the container enough to duplicate. Of course I dont mind. ~~ That is a great idea with soaking the pots in a bucket of water. Im going to try that. In the past Ive not done anything and brought in some insects I wish I hadnt. That is why I was asking. For the fuchsia I take them out of the pots, root prune them. Cut them back by 2/3rds then strip all the leaves off. Then I spray them with a house and garden insecticide before I bring them in the house. Ive been lucky and not brought in anything in with them. ~~ I cant believe that story about the boys throwing steak knives! Incredible! So lucky no one was hurt. Good grief!

Mary, thinking of you with the sleepover tonight! Hope all is going well. How neat that Annie made the cake. What a great sister. ~~ Glad to hear DH is home and doing well.

Martie, how did you over winter your pennisetum?

T how great to hear you are feeling so energetic! You go girl!

HI Wendy, great hearing from you. How neat you got that old rose out. Dont you just love getting a job done that has been bugging you for a while? Im getting better and better at shovel pruning things. ~~ LOL about the boys projects.

OK Im ready to turn in. Yawn!!! You are all doing a fabu job of filling up this thread! Keep up the great work.

Nite all,
Deanne

Good Sunday Morning! The flock of robins inhabiting our back yard woke me early and I'm Glad!! Had a chance to skim through "From Seed to Bloom" and learned that a lot of the perennials I'd like to start from seed are really fairly easy! Now, to fit in a few more light sets for the overwinters. LOL

I found the Pennisetum to be easy. I divided it into about 6"x6" root mass (a job in itself!!), completely washed off the garden soil, root pruned to all new growth, left the foliage on, potted it up, stuck it in a south-facing basement window on a sill, lightly watered it about once a week, cut back the foliage when it died down on its own, and replanted in late April. It could've been dumb luck but it was really nice not to have to buy it again, this year. No fertilizer all winter but did give it a good shovel of composted manure when I replanted it.

The matriarch of Logee's keeps her begonias in a west facing, cold window with a water bath. Exact quote from her: "Water them when they're on the brink of shriveling." I don't try to do the whole plants, but take leaf cuttings, instead. After seeing Deanne's, though, it would be close to shameful not to keep the whole plant :-)

Sue: On the Border was crossed off the client lunch list long ago. Sorry we couldn't warn you. Glad you found your way out of the neighborhoods!! Did you pick up any good garden tips along the way?

Babs: Rich's SinL works for the DMV. I was a few days late renewing my license and as a "joke", he put a "hold" on my license renewal. No so funny when I was told it would cost me another $100 to get it renewed. It was quickly fixed with a phone call, but I sure got the message in a hurry. LOL

Mary -- Did you get any sleep??

Eden: LOL about modern art. When Ky was little I made it a point to ask what he was drawing and wrote his answer on the back of the paper. To this day I still get good laughs out of the ones I saved. Jealous of you getting to read "Good Night Moon" out loud.

Well, yesterday finished my Marie Antoinette biography and am now fascinated with Trianon and its gardens. She had 12 acres and I have 1, but there's no reason to not make a little "Marie" garden somewhere. Ky the historian suggested bright red as the base color. Gross LOL but better than sitting through a worm eating movie. LOL

In between showers today plan on moving three large shrubs. Got my muscles built up lugging around that daylily!! :-) Also need to stake out exactly where the veggie garden will go so that we can get it rotatilled and composted before frost. Rich and the Pinetree website have become good friends. Who'd a thunk it???

Need my second cuppa with an extra shot of Espresso to get kick started. See you all later!

Martie

I spent almost the whole day working on the shelving cabinet. Of course when I work with power tools, things generally need to be cut twice. LOL It looks pretty good. It was a on and off rain day so it was nice to have the shed to work in. Since it only lightly rained, I did some dividing and transplanting when it wasn't raining.

Marian, what a good idea to open the thread twice.

Deanne, your planter really does have a "fountain" effect. How clever. I may get some projects done, but my garden is not nearly as well tended as yours.

Wendy, LOL "tools or the microwave" I can just picture it.

I must run I promised a flower arrangement for church and then to the lake to see my sister and brother who are visiting my parents and Kenzie of course.

Michelle

Martie, no garden tips, I can count on one hand the number of actual gardens in my town. In fact I'm somewhat amazed by the lack of attention to detail in most neighborhoods here. Even in Old Wethersfield and all along the historic Main street there are loads of unkept yards and gardens. People plant stuff then let weeds take over. Yesterday I walked in what is considered one of the most desireable sections of town and didn't see one garden-just lots of bland, poorly designed, installed and maintained foundation plantings and no curb appeal whatsoever. Most of the homes were probably built in the 80s and I don't think much has been done to them since. Guess I'll stay put in my poor section of town old house.

Rain today. Tom had a golf outing planned with friends. He went so we'll see what happens. The rain is supposed to end by late morning. Between the wind and rain I have some serious staking to do. Both of my Castor Beans are falling over as well as a large purple Amaranthus I allowed to seed next to the patio. I'm leaving the containers alone in hopes of getting a pinching lesson from Deanne tomorrow. I've been pinching but I don't think I've been aggressive enough.

That's it for now. My large coffee from Dunkin Donuts is half gone-a sad sight when there appears to be so much lazy morning left.

Sue

Goooood Morning all,

Cool, I see that we are "up and at em" this morning. Well I cut an armload of my large dahlias knowing that this rain was on the way so I thought I'd post a pic of the resulting arrangement. That large dahlia in the arrangement is called 'Breakout' and I just love it! What a marvelous flower it has. I measured this one last night and it is ten inches in diameter! What a beauty.
{{gwi:177484}}

and just in case you couldn't see it in the previous photo I have a closeup. LOL
{{gwi:177486}}

Martie thanks for the info on overwintering begonias. when you said a cold window that sparked an idea for me. My front breezeway window stays fairly cool and probably will be the ideal place for them this winter. Im going to hopefully get them in today after the rain stops.

Sue, so Tom is golfing??? LOL I hope he brought rain gear. Things here are knocked over from the wind as well. I spent a couple hours yesterday staking things but I see there are still a few casualties out there.

Michelle, did you take a photo of the arrangement? I always love to see your creative flower arrangements. I'll bet you finish up those shelves this weekend. I need some of your energy. For some reason I'm content to sit in my chair in the dining room and look outside this weekend. I really need to get motivated here so to that end I'm going to get my gym clothes on and get some exercise.

Have a great day eveyrone and keep these posts coming.

Deanne

No golfing for Tom today. As I suspected he had breakfast with his friends and came home. If the weather clears they may try again for 9 holes later. Golf courses must really get nailed financially on days like this.

Sue

Good morning! It's a 10 on a scale of 10 this morning with lots of sunshine and 60 degree temps. Rain is forecast for this evening and tomorrow, though.

The party last night was wonderful. The fish boil was just incredible. I don't like fish, but I ate every bit of my fish last night. We had a nice crowd of friends and family show up, the weather was glorious and the firepi has earned it's keep. If I'm not too lazy, I'll get a pic of the firepit later today because that project went in after idyllunion. (I wouldn't let DH tear up the yard right before everyone was coming!)

My brother and his wife came to the party last night and he is doing well. I've heard very little from him since the beginning of summer when he found out he had cancer of the esophagus, but his treatments have gone well and the cancer is almost gone. His hair, though, has gone white, which is funny to see on your younger brother. But he looks good and is in good spirits. I was so pleased that they came because they've never come to our labor day weekend party in the past.

Mary, I'm glad that your DH is home and the worst stuff has been ruled out. I hope he gets some answers soon.

Sue, if you look carefully at your post you'll see that you got your package 18 days BEFORE they shipped it. So what are you complaining about? tee hee! I had one package that was shipped on July 20th that just showed up a week and a half ago. It had to be re-shipped as the original package was damaged. Luckily, it was laundry detergant and not clothes that go out of stock as the seasons change. Unluckily for whomever in the UPS chain damaged it, it was liquid laundry detergant.

Deanne, sniff sniff! You've hurt my feelings, sniff sniff! I thought I stood up to your coffee pretty well.

Martie, I'm glad you made it Deanne's. That daylily photo was a riot (as was Saucy's comment about it!)

There's more to say, but we have to have the tent back by 10:00 am this morning, so I'd better run. Hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday and I'll be back later.

V.

Good Morning, It's so cold here. Feels like October! I kept having dreams last night about getting all of the plants inside. I think I'm starting to stress about it, lol. I am going to start working on it as soon as this wet weather clears though. I've got to get those new things I bought a couple of days ago in the ground too. Suddenly it seems like I have lots of garden work to do again.

Norma, how were the brownies. I've been baking lately too. Not good, since I'm the only one who usually is around to eat the stuff.

Deanne, thanks for the info on overwintering the fuschias. Once you cut them back and defoliate them do you let them go dormant? If so where do you keep yours and at what temp? I have a problem with trying to keep dormant plants over the winter because I don't have a place that's not either to warm or too cold. The dahlia pics are beautiful. Good idea to cut them and bring them inside to enjoy before the rain ruined them.

Michelle, can't wait to see the finished cabinet. It's so nice that you have the garden shed now to putter around in on rainy days.

Sue, we have On The Border here too. We tried it once when it first opened and haven't been back since. I didn't even like the margaritas. I had to stake some ricinus yesterday too.

Martie, my begonias don't do well in a window. I don't think they get enough light since my house has an overhang all the way around. Keeping them under lights makes a big difference in my success with them. Have fun planting the shrubs. If it dries up I'll be keeping you company planting mine too.

It looks like the sun might be trying to break through. Now if it would just warm up a few degrees!

Eden

V, I'm so glad to hear that your brother is doing so well. Glad the party was a success. You have the perfect setting for sitting around a firepit in the evenings. Can't wait to see it.

Wonder how Mary did last night? Bet she's a little tired today. Good thing she has an extra day tomorrow to rest up!

OK I'm really going now.

Eden

Good morning! Foggy here this morning so unsure what the day holds. Yesterday hit 100 and was too stinkin' hot to do much outside. Jim did get the big cedar stump worked into the pasture (using the excavator) so now he can decide where he wants to push/drag/maneuver it for burning at a later time. He is now talking about taking out another huge old stump (probably 10' sticking out of the ground and maybe 7' in diameter). This one he'll chainsaw off instead of digging up as it is against a large fir tree. I don't really know why he's taking this one out (I like these monstrous old rotting stumps---they add character to our property). I could understand it if he were taking down the huge fir tree,too. But he isn't planning on taking down the tree.......so why mess with a good looking stump? Hmmmmmmm, inquiring minds will quiz the 'boss' later about it.

As for the increased energy? Must have been an earth/moon/stars polarity magic smoke type of once-in-a-lifetime-never-to-be-repeated thing. I think it is gone. Yep, gone. Never to be repeated (already said that, didn't I?). Oh well, at least when I'm old (older?) and gray (grayer?) I can say truthfully that "one day I had incredible energy and ambition!" . Not many will believe me when I say that......but I'll know it is real!

Magic smoke? Did you catch me mentioning that above? Well, for those of you that don't know about magic smoke, I'll let you in on a little secret. You know when your toaster or your coffeemaker or your television makes a funny noise and then you see a tendril of smoke curling out of it? Well, that tendril of smoke is the magic smoke! Yep, once it escapes.......that is the end of your appliance (or tool). Not many people know that it is the magic smoke escaping but I was told this by my DH who was an electrician years ago......yep, when the magic smoke escapes from something---it is the kiss of death for that item. No magic smoke--no workey any more.

Now, that you are educated on magic smoke......my good deed for the day is done. I can go on about lazing in my pajamas with my second cuppa coffee and feel good about what I've accomplished this morning.

Sure hope everyone has a good day! :o)

T.

Good morning! We've been busy around the Saucy household and the trailer is full! Deanne, I didn't have much left in the basement, but what was left wouldn't fit in the last dumpster that was here. Did you know that I have an early 20th century laundry room that had to be cleaned out too? Anyone want to buy a mangle? How 'bout the old wringer washer (they updated from the washboard :)....I added a vintage bow front fridge to that room this morning!

Anyway...someday that room will be a four season porch complete with a two man hot tub! Since hubby is in the HVAC business, he promises he can keep the room humid, but not damp! I'm going to buy a palm tree when it's complete....for now I have to put a tarp over the roof to keep it from leaking! The room is a little too tropical right now :)

So the fridge came from this little foyer-like room off of my kitchen that leads to the laundry room off the back of the house. Now that the little foyer room is clear, Nick is off buying the shelving I need to turn it into my very own pantry! I'm going to have a place to put all the lunch boxes, paper towels, laundry detergent, etc! Woo Hoo!

He has to finish it before I "allow" him to go to the Cape to see a friend who'd visiting from FL. I'm not really that controlling, but I've gotta have my pantry!!!!

I thought the same thing about Sue's panty comment...you're not the only one with your mind in the gutter. Glad you got them at such a bargain, Sue!

I make my own south of the border food - been disappointed too many times. I've got the Mexican version of the Joy of Cooking and it details the exact way to make authentic food. Favorite dish is tequila-lime flank steak in corn tortillas with mexican-style rice.

But I made a gimmicky dish last night that was delish! It was supposed to be healthy, but since I found it in one of Nick's "health" magazines, it had enought calories for two of my meals! 500 calories per square. OH, forgot to tell you the name - Mexican lasagna. Ground turkey, corn tortillas, enchilada sauce....you get the idea. It got a thumbs up from everyone but Sarah - she had pasta and a meatball (made from the ground turkey...shh, don't tell her).

I sure am chatty this morning. By the time I hit submit, 4 other posts will be waiting for me :)

Have a great day!

Saucy

Started to try and move stuff but it's just too wet and I couldn't get a good grip on the shovel ;-)

Okay, it got cold fast and running around in 60deg weather with steady drizzle isn't fun. Nor is fighting soggy amended clay soil which has to weigh double what normal soils weighs.

LOL about the magic smoke, T. Now I understand!! Smoke = broken. I'm with you on the stumps. Couldn't you use one for a climbing Hydrangea or something? Or set a container on top of it? If he's like my DH, once he has a project set in his mind there's no turning back so good luck.

Deanne - The cut arrangement looks just as good as it did in the garden. Your breezeway would probably work really well for the begonia. It's always worth a try!

V - Jealous of your 10/10 day. We need a few of those around here. AND The first thought Was to put the daylily on the seat but we wouldn't have been able to close the door. As it was we had to kind of knock off some of the dirt and tip it sideways. Ky's slave job d'jour is to dig its hole. We're up to a quart, rather than pint, of Ambrosia for the task. LOL

Eden: Sounds like you have a lot of cool stuff to add to the garden! I'm not a great baker, either (I have this problem with measuring things when it's just easier to toss'em in) but LOVE good pastries of all sorts. The gooier the better.

Sue: Isn't it odd that the nicer the neighborhood, the crappier the gardens? And how much do you want to bet that they have garden coffee table books in the house? I realized after working in the biz that they want the look but not the work. Even had someone ask me if I wanted to come weed their 4'x20' border on a weekly basis because she "just wouldn't have the time ..." They're the ones missing out, IMHO.

Rich just suggested a trip to a local park to check out the rapids given all the rain. Think we're both a little house-crazy???

Martie

I've always wanted a Mangle!!!!! Truly!!!!

Tom just went back over to the golf course. It's still drizzling so I don't get it but, whatever...

Three stores and no bamboo supports later. I'm done driving around. The Amaranthus is propped up with a wrought iron patio chair and the castor beans are just going to have to get used to life on the ground. Potted cannas have been falling over and crushing everything around them. A week and a half with precious little sun topped with rain and wind and you might as well start cutting the garden down for the season. Hey, now there's something I can do this afternoon.

Sue

My grandma had a mangle. Hey Saucy, you could use the old washer for a container garden. I had one that I did that with some years ago. It was before I was really into container gardening though and I could never figure out what to fill it with to make it look good. I think I'd be better at it now.

Sue, sounds like Tom's as crazed about golf as we all are about gardening, lol.

Martie, I have that clay soil too. Not good to work with when it's wet.

T, thanks for the explaination on the magic smoke. We used to have a car that would occasionally send up smoke from the steering column. We'd take it in and they wouldn't find anything wrong.

I've got to go to Babies R Us. Just happened to check my reciept and they charged me twice for some little jeans I bought Bella yesterday.

Eden

Afternoon all, well I went to the gym and did an hour on the stairs and now I'm tucked into my new free corduroy pants and a nice oversized cotton sweater lounging in my favorite overstuffed leather chair and I don't see a whole lot of movement coming out of me for the rest of this day. I'm watching the rain come down that was supposed to stop by now. It is currently coming down in buckets. We had to wear our rain hats when we went into the hot tub after working out. Oh well I don't believe there will be any work done outside today. But, I have done two loads of laundry and have another load of whites to go and have changed the sheets on the bed so I did do something productive today even if it wasn't in the gardens. Im hoping to be able to pry myself out of this chair and do some work with the orchids in a little bit but Ill see how it goes.

So Sue, did you see they are now predicting rain showers for tomorrow??? Originally it was supposed to be sunny all day. For a week now they have been saying it is going to be sunny tomorrow. I don't know how you have gotten the power to make it rain but it is an amazing thing. I'm telling you the next time we are in a drought situation I'm going to persuade you to have a party in your garden. ROTFLOL! ~~ So how tall are the stakes you are looking for? I've got a shed full of stakes of various sizes and can bring some down if you'd like. I can also bring my pruners if you'd like. LOL~~ Anyway, Doug is currently getting some lovely salmon filets ready to go into the smoker. Yummy! I get to have a preview tonight. ~~ Oh yes re the golf thing, I know Tom probably thinks we are totally cracked when we go and work outside in the gardens in the rain it is just a different passion. You can remind him of this the next time he raises his eyebrows at you over some garden thing you are doing that he doesnt get. LOL

Eden I just hate it when I get overcharged for something and I have to go back to the store and have them fix it. ~~ RE: wintering over the fuchsias, yes, I do let them go dormant. After I strip the foliage and do the whole pruning thing and get them into fresh potting soil I water them in well then let them drain through then put them into the garage until the temps in there threaten to go below freezing. After that I bring them down to the basement in Dougs shop. He lets me have the northeast corner of his shop to winter over plants and tubers. It is the coolest area in the house. I keep a thermometer in there and it usually stays around 55 degrees in that corner. It would be better if it was below 50 but Ive had success with the 55 degree temps. The fuchsias do begin breaking dormancy earlier than Id like in the spring which is the only major drawback that I can see. Im thinking Ill do a photo essay of the whole pruning thing with the fuchsias in the fall. Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. ~~ Im totally with you about having anxiety attacks about getting all this plant material in. Yikes!

Saucy, I dont envy your piles of stuff to excavate out of your house but I do envy your pantry. My last apartment had an enormous pantry and Ive missed it since. Sorry Ive no use for a mangle or a ringer washer. LOL

T I sure hope you get another day of high energy. I could use one myself right about now. ~~ I dont get some of the things that Doug gets into his head to do around here either. I just shrug and clean up the mess later, although I dont see you cleaning up those stumps. LOL It is too bad he wants to get rid of them because theyd make a great stand for some containers.

V OMG How could I have forgotten that you liked my coffee too!!!!!! IM SO SORRY! Yes, you are indeed another person after my own heart when it comes to coffee preferences. LOL ~~ So very happy to hear that your brother is doing well and that you had a great time at your party. Im looking forward to seeing pics of the new firepit.

OK we are slowing down here. Id sure like to see another ten posts or so. Where is Norma today? And how about Honey, Marian and Eileen.?

TTYL
Deanne

Deanne, the weather here for tomorrow still says sunny and a high of 78 F. Since the last time I posted the rain stopped and the sun came out. Now it's part in and out. I just spent the last hour and a half cleaning the back gardens of leaves, twigs and bark from that damn Sycamore. What a freakin' mess! It looks like fall with all the dead leaves piling up under all the plants. I need a couple of heavy duty bamboo stakes about 6-8' tall to support the castor beans. One of these days I'll get more proactive when it comes to staking things. In the next week or so I'm going to start redoing that patio beds. They have become too crowded and haphazard.

What is a mangle?

Sue

Okay, pantry shelves are done! I can now buy paper towels in bulk :)

Don't be jealous, Deanne, it's really not that fabulous and I'm not the food storing type, so it'll only be used for extra platters/pots and lunch boxes and paper products.

Sue, a mangle is a big square metal box that you open up and put your large peices of laundry through to press them - correct me if I'm wrong, T.

I don't even know if the thing works. Just haven't figured out how to dispose of it, yet. I'm considering placing an ad in the Want Advertiser...it's free until the item sells.

V., (and other coffee drinkers) I just bought my husband the Senseo because he's the only one who drinks coffee here....he loves it! He's drinking too much coffee, now! It makes one cup at a time with the little pods if you've never seen one.

Gotta run and see the hubby off...

Saucy

Excellent idea, Deanne, to do the fuchsia photojournal. I, for one, would subscribe to something like that.

Sun is out and things are starting to dry up a bit. I'm staying put and out of the gardens until tomorrow morning. Too wet and the soil has held up really well this year. Don't want to jinx anything.

V -- As a fellow "kick-b%**" coffee drinker, I must warn you that if you ever come to CT I'll need to take you a place in Vernon that makes my hair curl.

You, too, Deanne. When D. ordered the coffee with double espresso after lunch, I knew I was in with a good crowd:-)

Sue -- Only outside thing that will get done today is stick pick up. One of the corn stalks tipped over and despite my best attempts it won't stand up again. First winter casualty. We could make a pact next year about staking because I don't realize I should've until it's too late.

The rapids were gorging. Came home and watched Andre Agassi (breath in, breath out, girls!!!!) at the US Open. Though definitely not a tennis fan, I can get excited about someone's last outing after 24 years of playing a sport.

Need to keep an eye on Rich's veggie list. I don't know why Okra would appeal to him??? Also trying to decide if I want to chance a "dwarf" Kiwi Vine for the deck. Is there such a thing as a "drawf" Kiwi?

Best to all - where's everyone else?

Martie

My grandmother had a mangle as well. Sue, it was used for ironing things and is almost the size of a small upright piano with these large rollers that you feed things through. I seem to recall that it was good for ironing sheets back when that was a necessity. I was frightened of it, largely because of the name; I figured if I got too close it would "mangle" me!

We took down the tent and returned it this morning, then made a stop at Menard's for some lumber to finish another small project. DS had asked me about houseplants when we were driving home Friday night, and Menard's had these cute little houseplants for $1.94 each. So I got a sansevaria and a diffenbachia for him and a sansevaria for myself, and three small pots as well. As soon as I finish this post I will go pot them up.

I've got laundry going now. The dishwasher needs to be emptied, but that's about it for party clean up. Tonight, I think Dh and I will have a fire in the pit, roast some sausages, snack on some leftover chips and finish the last of the keg of Beck's (notvery much left).

Off to pot!

V.

Deanne, I can see your second dahlia photo as a painting (minus the salt shaker!)

Saucy, my grandma's mangle had a wooden cabinet and almost looked like a piece of furniture.

Martie, there is no such thing as a "drawf" Kiwi!

V.

Hi gals....I am just setting/laying around scratching those cured itches! Man, my feet and ankles are covered with them, and more scattered all over my body. What a drag! I'm not feeling too perky either, and think it is due to the bites.
We went to AM worship, and our monthly pot-luck ( they call it " Dinner on the grounds", (smile). I dragged through it all. Tonight is the monthly singing. I may 'sit this one out'. :-(

The weather is gorgeous. Not too hot and not too humid. A possibility of showers tonight, but no sign of it yet.

Well, I couldn't have the baked potatoes with our fish yesterday. When I went to pick up the sack of potatoes ,( that I hadn't checked all summer), the bottom fell out, along with the most disgusting sight. I'll not even attempt to discribe the condition of the remains....too revolting! So we had steak fries instead with the fish, and brussels sprouts.( We love brussels sprouts.)

V, congrats on your new position. Years ago I was asked to speak about house plants at the EHC meeting. My word, that was so long ago I almost forgot about it. Sure glad your brother is doing well with his treatments.

Hi Wendy! Good to hear from you...long time, no see.

Did I tell you all that this new computer is 'much'faster than the old one?I was blaming it's slowness on the dial-up, but apparently that was not the entire cause.

Deanne, Tiger seems to be on the mend, thank goodness. Nolon says the neighbor 'does' put Decon out.I don't know if cats would eat the affected rodents. They now have a mama cat that has moved in on them, and his wife is feeding it. Thanks for the offer of the fuchsias, but I will decline. I have way too much to bring in already.
Great deal on the corduroy jeans! Your dahlias are GORGEOUS!

Martie, compared to me, you are rather tall..:-) I am only about 5 foot in my stocking feet. Good for your son ...looking up Fuchs. I haven't done that. The info is in my Self-pronouncing Dictionary. You and your DH will have a great time with your veggie garden next year. The idea 'almost' makes me wish I were doing it again...almost!

Yargh...Eden, I had quite a time reading your 'ran-together' post from yesterday...:-)

Speaking of new under garments...I sure need to get some. I don't know when I last got new bras, and some of mine are disintegrating!

Norma, we had to laugh at the "hunk of junk compressor". Nolon has one of those. Wow, I sure hope my rider lasts 20 years. I sure don't expect it to, with the treatment it gets in my rough yard. We are trying to imagine how the grill could be lost. They aren't that small!

Thanks, Michelle. The opening of the thread twice is really revolutionary for posting. Also, I review my post occasionally before I am done, and I think that helps save it incase my PC goes off.

Yesterday I got a nice long phone call from my sister. She mentioned how our brother is apparently depressed since his triple bypass. That prompted me to call him. He said the foot and ankle that they took the transplant vein from is what is causing him problems. It hurts all the time. I wonder if anyone is familiar with that, and if it will ever get better? Maybe when Marie gets back she would know about that.
DB said they have a brand new refrigerator and range in their garage at their new home. He said he could have sent them to me if he'd known I needed them....sure! :-)

I remember seeing a mangle in use many years ago. I think it was at the laundromat. Someone I knew may have had one, too. I was always rather leery of them too.

Okay, I've jumped here, there, and everywhere, to ans questions and make comments. I think I'll go heat up some water and make an instant cappuccino!

Marian

Sorry about too much rain in the NE. It is either 'feast or famine' isn't it? Sure wish we would hear from Cindy.

LOL, Teresa..."magic smoke" . Funnny!

Saucy, way to go...with the basement job! We had an unfinished basement many years ago. I would never want another, finished or un, unless it had a ground level entrance.

Oops. That should have been cursed" itches, not "cured" !

Hi everyone

A very quick peek in from me. Sleepover was a great success - the boys had fun and even a little sleep! They are all such nice kids it was a pleasure having them.

Today was cold and drizzly - a perfect day to spend pottering at home. It turned into cucumber day. Annie made 12 pints of her Spicy Dill Pickles, I'm cooking a batch of Relish, and we have cucumber and dill salad for supper. Can you guess I bought a big basket of cukes at the farmers market yesterday.

I have to dash as DH and I are goign out tonight to see Little Miss Sunshine.

Happy Labor Day for tomorrow

Mary

Sorry Marian, I had to go back and look to see what you were talking about. That post was quite a ramble wasn't it. I don't think I checked it before I posted. I was in a hurry since it was time to get Bella ready for bed. I'll pay more attention from now on. Hope your itches go away and you feel better!

Eden

Eden, I hope I wasn't coming across as rude. It just really is hard for me to read a compact post like that. Probably due to a malfunction in either my eyes, or my mind?

We went to the monthly singing after all. I was pretty well rested up from an afternoon nap. I'm glad we went. The gathering was extra small due to so many being gone for the holiday weekend.

Mary, nice news about the sleepover, and about Annie's pickles. Good for her! I never made many dill pickles. Nolon doesn't like dill. But I made about every other kind of pickle, relish, conserve, and preserve in my recipe book. I quit doing that years ago.We seldom eat those things anymore.

I feel like bedtime...but it is too early. Guess I'll finish my jigsaw puzzle.

Marian

We had our fire this evening; the rain held off until we were just about done. Even then, it was just a sprinkle and not the threatened thunder storms. Although there were several flashes on the horizon, but we decided that it was fireworks, not lightening.

DS had been complaining of a bad sore throat all weekend, so Dr. Mom looked at his throat, spotted some white patches on the tonsils and packed him off to the doctor. He has a nice supply of horse-sized antibiotics to take back to school with him. He left late in the afternoon and drove DD's car down, which he will deliver to her next weekend. She has decided she really needs her car as she has to do observations at the local schools.

The rain is now coming down quite hard - glad I'm inside! The yellow dog is thinking about getting nervous.

I'm going to knock out another few chapters in my book and go to bed. Who will put this idyll to bed?

V.

Eden, the brownies didn't happen. I decided it was to late to be baking and had two oreos with a glass of milk instead.

Marian. I couldn't understand how I could not see that grill either.
I was wondering about the "cured itches".
I think the depression after the bypass surgery must be a normal thing. We have a friend going through that too. And I've heard of it in other cases.
You don't have to describe those potatoes. I think that is the most disgusting smell and can tell immediately if there is a bad one in the bag.

Saucy, I imagine you are thrilled to get that stuff out of your way. And don't you just love new storage space. We finally put cabinets over the washer and dryer in the laundry room last spring and it is nice to have them.

I could tell first thing this morning I wasn't going to be any good in the garden, so I went to the fields with the brush hog and mowed for five hours. Didn't require much thinking or effort. Bob came looking for me at 3:00. He had finished putting the lawn mower back together. It is much quiter now with new bearings. He started to put the new grill together and decided it had to many parts. He doesn't have patience sp? with something like that so decided to leave it for me. Anyway we were both starved and decided to go up to the neighborhood church picnic and get some food. Spent a couple of hours there talking to friends and neighbors. Came home and crashed. I did talk to both sons on the phone. Son number one is going to deliver the new shed in the morning. I'm not at all sure where we are going to put it. I don't want it to far from the house or it won't be handy. But I don't want it blocking any views either. Hard to visualize till it gets here. I think it will be tricky getting it down our tree lined driveway too. Picture a woods road with grass growing between the tire tracks. I love it. Our grandson Jake commented on how unusal it was not to long ago. Probably not to many kids of his age see a driveway like that.
It was really kind of funny that Bob was going out the road as I was coming in yesterday and he had to pull to the side to let me through. We have lived here 13 years and never had that happen before.

OK I've rambled enough and everyone is probably already in bed anyway. So have a good day tommorow everyone. Ei and Cindy too. And anyone else who is missing. Norma

Hi again

thought I'd better slip in another post to keep the quota up. I think we should reach our goal by Monday - what do you think?

The movie "Little Miss Sunshine" was rather quirky and extremely funny. Its been a while since I saw something that entertaining.

I've never been to South of the Border, but since returning from CA have been making corn tortillas at home. I bought back a tortilla press, and the home made ones are quite easy to make and delicious. It took me a couple of goes to get the proportion of water right - all you do is mix water with masa harina, knead and form balls. These are squished into rounds in the press and fried - you don't even need oil. They make an excellent base for heuvos rancheros, especilly using fresh salsa.

Martie - DH and I love okra though I've never grown it. While I enjoy it in gumbo etc, my favorite is cooked in spicy Indian dishes.

T - did you mention the aroma of the "Magic Smoke"? The last time we saw some was when Annie put the toaster on and someone placed a tupperwear container on top which melted and ran into the heating elements.

Marina - hope your rash/bites are less itchy. (Oops, I mean Marian). Its very hard when feeling down/ill prevents you from enjoying you usual activites. Hopefully you'll feel better very soon.

Saucy - enjoy your pantry. Like you, I don't tend to buy a lot of food in bulk but having paper products on hand is great. I bet your pantry will be especially useful around the holidays.

Deanne - those are fabulous Dahlias! DH loves coffee so strong you can stand your spoon in it, but his Dr has told him to eliminate caffeine. Its been very hard...

Norma - nice score on the gas grill. This can be a great time of year for picking up end of summer bargains. Hope you enjoyed the brownies.

Sue - my yard is in desparate need of staking too after the downpours. I do have some 6 ft bamboo so that will be high on my list for tomorrow.

Hi Wendy - we start back at school Tuesday too. Are your guys looking forward to it?

V - a fish boil sounds wonderful and the fire pit a great addition. What fantastic news about your brother. I wonder if going through the experience will bring him closer to family.

Eden - isn't it fun buying clothes for Bella? Little girl clothes are just so cute. I'm mising that even more now that Annie has such definite tastes about she wants she to wear.

Waving Hi to Babs, Michelle, Chelone and Monique, hoping Cindy has survived all the rain, that GB is having a wonderful time at the wedding and missing Ei, Taryn and Honey. Oh dear, did I miss anyone?

Nite all,

Mary

V, We had a firepit at the other house and still want one here. I just love to sit out around an open fire. Bummer your DS has a sore throat. Did DD not make it home this weekend? N

Norma, if I met someone in our driveway someone would have to back up. There is no place to pull over. One side is the ditch and the other is trees! It isn't a straight drive either, so it could happen.

V, glad your DS got an antibiotic for his sore throat. My sister ends up with strep throat about everytime she gets a sore throat. I had those white lumps in my tonsils this past week, but no sore throat. How far away is the school(s) that your DS and DD go to?

Okie Doakie...I will say "Goodnight all".

Marian

Goodness but this Idyll is going by quickly! It is lovely to check emails and find so much to read here, also.

8:10 PM and it is dark outside.....autumn really is coming soon.

Yesterday was 100....today only got up to 79. Sure felt horribly hot for a few hours though. We spent the entire day doing fencing. Putting in new wooden posts (using the auger on the tractor to do the holes--thankfully), tearing out old fencing and metal t-posts, then putting in new t-posts and putting back up the fencing. A long, hard, hot, dirty and tiring job! All of this was to change the pasture access for the construction of the animal's new shelter. I hesitate to call it a barn as the word 'barn' conjures up really cool imagines.......and this probably won't be a really cool building. LOL It will probably only turn out to be 24' x 24' with a covered loafing shed built onto the east side of the building. The 'critters' will think it is a wonderous mansion most likely, ;o) and that is all that matters.

I wonder what fun times DH has planned for us tomorrow? Ditch digging? Picking up rocks? Doing firewood? Gee, just a bunch of fun options.

Saucy, I'd advertise the mangle on eBay if you ever sell there. Many quilters like to use them to iron their large pieces of fabric. If you lived a couple thousand miles closer I'd be interested in looking at yours. ;o)

V, your firepit sounds wonderful. We keep talking about putting one in....s'mores around the fire, roasting marshmellows, hotdogs.......Jamie would love it and so would his grandmother! ;o)

Well, I'm tired. I'm going to go sit in my chair, with a couple magazines and a blanket.

'night,
T.

Per Deanne's request:
{{gwi:177488}}

Today at the lake:

{{gwi:177490}}

V, why wouldnt you let DH make a firepit before we came? That would have been fun. A fish boil is great fun too. We went to one when we were in Door County. Did you do yours over the fire? We have done them at our annual family camping trip. Im glad to hear that your DB is doing well.

Cindy, wondering if you are OK there?

Deanne, those dahlias are absolutely yummy! A photo thread on the fuchsia dormancy process would be great.

T, LOL you crack me up magic smoke.

I always seem to learn things here a mangle huh?

Marian, great that you new computer is faster.

Mary, that is just so cool that Annie is already making pickles at her age. I have yet to do that.

Night all

Michelle

Good morning all,

Well the great news is that the sun is shining and it looks like the weather is going to cooperate and give us a nice day here. There is a chance of sprinkles later on in northern New England but we should be fine in CT. Im hopeful that I can get the rest of the orchids in the house before we leave for Hartford.

Michelle, as I expected, your flower arrangement is gorgeous! I always enjoy seeing what you do with cut flowers. ~~ I cant believe how fast your little cutie is growing! What a sweet little girl. Pretty soon well be seeing pics like this of Ts new little grandbabies.

T, wow, you are getting a lot accomplished this weekend. Are you planning on having the new critter shelter done before the snow comes this year? And the thought of fencing makes me cringe! Of course you cant put in a single hole in the ground here without excavating a couple boulders. ~~ Glad to hear your temperatures have moderated. Weve had comfortable weather here for a month now. ~~ You are so right about the day length. The real tell for me is that I dont get any sun in the east facing windows of my dining room any more. We get direct sunshine in here for two months in the summer and its now gone for the year. Bumer.

Mary, Oh no about your DH having to give up caffeine! That is such a bummer. Please give him my condolences! I seriously feel for him. I remember discussing coffee with him when we visited this spring. ~~ Love to hear about your making your own tortillas. You are such a creative cook. ~~ How neat Annie is making pickles.

Norma, it sounds like you had a productive day yesterday. How much pasture land do you have if it takes you five hours to mow? Holy cow!

V, sorry your DS has a sore throat but it is good thing you got him to the doctor before it got worse. ~~ Sounds like you are going to really enjoy that firepit. Ill bet you get a lot of use in the fall? Wish I had room for one. Were still thinking of getting one of those propane fueled patio heaters so we can extend the season outside a bit. ~~ So tell me, whats wrong with the salt shaker in that painting? LOL

Marian, thanks! Glad you like the dahlias. Also glad to hear that Tiger is feeling better. What a worry for you. ~~ RE fuchsias, I might just have to send you a Beacon Rosa in the SPRING so you dont have to winter it over. LOL Have you heard from Eileen lately? Im a bit worried that she hasnt popped in here for a while.

Martie, sorry about the corn getting knocked over. RE Okra, they do have pretty flowers as I recall. I actually love okra, especially in soups. ~~ Im looking forward to trying out that coffee in Vernon when I get to come down to visit.

Saucy, how great youve got your pantry all ready to use. Thats terrific. Any storage is fabulous in my book.

Sue, Ill bring a couple stakes down for you. I hope you guys have honed your appetites. It sounds like we are going to have a feast today.

Okie dokie, Ive got to get out of this chair and do something productive with this morning.

Have a great Labor Day everyone,
Deanne

Good sunny morning! Doing my part to move the thread along, we are getting there!

It looks like a decent day on tap here, finally! Sue, I think your weather curse may have lifted...

DS and his little friend managed to stay out of trouble, the worst they did was overcook the microwave popcorn. The last time this friend was over, they took my big loppers and started trimming branches that were "in the way" - I put a stop to that quickly; I was afraid one of them would lose a finger! I was smart enough to lock the tool shed this time. DH has called DS a tool magnet since he was a toddler - he is fascinated with tools. He was never happy with the plastic ones, they weren't realistic enough. One time DS was in the woods with a rope, he had rigged up a pulley over a branch as was raising and lowering a bucket of rocks. When DH went onto the deck later to call him inside, he said that he was stuck. Somehow he had the rope around his waist and had tied himself to the tree!

My, my Norma and T - brush hogs, tractors - you have been busy girls!

Mary, my kids are sort of looking forward to the start of school, but they are sad that summer is about over. The last few times we planned a trip to the beach the weather didn't cooperate, and I think we are helping my parents cover their pool today. We still may get some warm days, but with the cool nites the pool water is freezing and the kids won't use it as much now that they are in school. DD is starting middle school, I think she is feeling like a little fish in a big pond. Her best friend is in her class though, so that is a plus. She is a little stressed out about changing clothes for gym class; I told her she is lucky that she can bring her own sweats - we used to have these one-piece striped suits we had to wear.

I have a rex begonia I'd like to save too, but I'm not sure I have a spot for it. Eden was it you that posted the pic of the leaf cuttings? Could you show us again soon? I feel like I'd have better luck with that than with trying to save the whole plant.

Deanne, a fuchsia (see Marian, I remembered that Fuchs guy - that was a helpful tip) tutorial would be helpful. You keep them in the dark, right? And the coleus, do you root them in water then pot them up? I rooted them in soil last year, and I lost quite a few in the early stages. BTW, I would like some of that grass in your driveway garden, the one that always dips its fingers into the birdbath, is that the one you are dividing? I'll come help you hack it up if you like.

Re: magic smoke, I had some come from a nitelite once, it even blackened the wall.

Well, the rest of the house is still sleeping - I think I'll go have a quiet breakfast.

Enjoy the day everyone!

-Wendy

A few more posts and we'll meet out goal! It's sunny but only 60F here. I'm going to try to get the sumac in today but first I have to wrestle out a huge hosta. Wish I had Deanne and Martie here, lol. Then I'm going to start taking coleus cuttings. I've collected so many really cool tropical things this summer that I want to save but I'm going to just have to take cutting of a lot of them and let the mother plant go. I just don't have room to overwinter all of these large plants. Oh how I wish I had a nice big heated greenhouse!

I'm glad to hear that the weather in NE is going to cooperate for the get together there this afternoon. Have fun!

Mary, I'm not a big coffee drinker but I have a cup in the morning. It would be hard to give that up.

Norma, wow, 5 hours of mowing! It only takes us about 5 minutes to mow our little patch. I think I'm going to bake some raspberry bars later today that I found a recipe for on the cooking forum.

Michelle, what a cutie that Kenzie is. Can you believe how big these little girls of ours are getting? Your flower arrangement is beautiful.

Marian, glad you were able to make it to the singing. Sometimes I think we feel better if we just get up and do something. That doesn't always work though...

T, that dh of yours is certainly keeping you busy. Yesterday I stopped at the dairy bar for a milkshake and there was a young couple sitting at the counter with twin baby boys in a double carriage next to them. They were about 4 weeks old and all dressed in little blue outfits with blue blankets. They were both lying on their backs sleeping peacefully the whole time. They were so cute and sweet and made me think of Jake and Josiah.

Wendy, I'll link a post from the begonia forum about starting plants from leaf cuttings. It is easy but you have to be patient. It takes a few weeks for them to get going.

Brad's off today. He and David are going disc golfing later but I'm going to go sit with him over a cup of coffee now. If I bundle up we can sit outside and enjoy the garden.

Eden

Goooood morning Idyll family! Can you tell I was watching Home Makeover last night? The sun is out but the air is cool and dry. We've donned our fleece jackets for coffee on the screen porch. The porch faces east and it's mornings like this that allow you to take full advanatage. Sometimes in the heat of summer you can't use the porch in the AM. Fall isn't far off though. You can feel it in the air. The hummingbirds have been fairly active. They must be bulking up for the flight south. Last year I had one hanging around til October 1st.

Wendy, are you still planning to come down next Sunday for the open days gardens? I think Monique and Les may join us for the garden in East Windsor and brunch at the Pond House. Then you and I and whoever else can head over to Steve Silk's and Jan Nickels. After that open garden season in CT is over :(. As usual, I didn't get to as many as I'd hoped.

Michelle, nice flower arrangement. Deanne has the knack for that too. Last weekend I attempted to do one for my party but it only came out OK.

Eden, I forgot to answer your question about moving Musa basjoo. No, I wouldn't move it now since it's marginally hardy here and that is one plant I don't want to lose. I would only move it after it breaks dormancy in the spring. Have you been over on the banana forum for advice on how and when to divide pups?

So it looks like we more than made the message quota for the long weekend. Short posts are OK.

Later,

Sue

Good morning all!

Nick is already home, so with such a beautiful day unfolding before us, I think we'll pack up the boat and have another picnic! I want to squeeze in as much boating as possible so that when I'm making that boat payment in February it won't sting as bad :)

Norma and Marian, you make me homesick for TN when you talk about your views. I know just the driveways you're talking about, and have had to back the car up more than a few times to let a neighbor out or in :) When a tree goes down, you're cut off from the world until it can be moved.

I did some much needed housekeeping last night, and was pleasantly surprised when I came down the stairs this morning! Did I tell you we added a bay window in the dining room? The sun comes in first thing in the morning and makes everything along the back of the house glow. Someday I'll have a garden out there to look at - Deanne, maybe Wendy and I could visit together and help you out. We could help ourselves, too, and I'd get to meet Wendy, that is if you both don't think I'm being to forward :)

Mary, caffeine would be hard for my husband to kick, too. Can he cut it off slowly, or does he have to go cold turkey? I hear you get terrible headaches.

I had the opposite problem - always get the shakes when I drink coffee or tea, end up talking too much and swear the stuff off :)

Gotta go hop in the shower and slip a suit on! The weather looks nice right through next weekend - unless of course they change it again.

Saucy

Good morning Idylls! Its a sunny 64 degrees here in Iowa and we have no plans for the day. I guess I should plan on mowing today as I have an extremely busy week.

Im wondering how things are going with Taryn?

Sue, you are quite the socialite. LOL With the party today and plans for next Sunday. I hope you guys stay dry today.

Eden, thats just it, they are now "little girls" what happened to the babies?

Have a great Labor Day!

Michelle

We did it, we did it!!!! Wasn't planning to be #100 but here I am. Will keep this short and sweet:

That flower arrangement is stunning!

Agree with Michelle that the "little girls" are certainly coming into their own.

So many are getting new storage of one sort or another! Lucky you guys. Rich's entire battery of construction equipment takes up ever square inch of space other than my designated seed starting area.

Signing off for now. Here's to the Idylls!!

Martie

OK,so Sue has her underwear 'on and then it's off again'? and V is off to pot...what is going on with you people?? LOLOL.; )

Norma I do know that anytime a person has major surgery and especially if an organ or something is removed,depression is a very common thing-sometimes if a person was previously depressed the impact of surgery really brings out the depresssion. I've got that concept on my mind quite a bit these days as my MIL will be having surgery for a bone spur on one of her leg stumps. It sounds routine but that whole depression thing is going to be a problem since she's depressed right now and won't accept help.

Count me in as a coffee achiever-the stronger the better!I challenge any of you to a coffee tasting the next time we meet!lol

Michelle-Kensie is such a doll: )Both yours and Deanne's flowers arrangements are beautiful.

It's been nice to hear from the whole gang for a change-hope Ei and Honey appear...and remember Taryn?lol I wonder how things are going for her.

What I hate about the whole bringing in the container plants thing is that my container plants look gorgeous right now-the last thing I want to do is dismantle them-boo hoo.

Eden sorry that your Clero isn't blooming. Have you ever smelled the leaves? If you rub one and smell your fingers it is really a pungent(Ryan says 'icky') scent...now I know why the deer don't test it.

well I certainly haven't answered or commented to all that I should...but I have some garden tending to do-bumping out a new area of my hill garden...lasagne anyone?: )

Enjoy your day off!

~Babs off to labor on Labor day....