OK, I believe it's summer.

I was thinking just yesterday that we didn't have spring. A few weeks ago we were still battling snow. In fact, we were dog-sitting for my sister in law and her husband and it snowed overnight. We know this very well because despite the fact that he was born in Wyoming, this chocolate lab seemed to thing lumps of snow falling from the pine trees in our front yard were violent and potentially deadly enemies he needed to protect us from. From his vast arsenal of doggy weaponry he used Super Loud Barking ability. All night.
Now we are fighting the heat. I meant it literally, we are sitting in the shade and turning on the AC and still panting a little by 3pm. Mick was in the sun on Sunday for about 30 minutes at a garage sale and busted out in the most adorable farm boyish freckles across hi cheeks and nose. Mack got a sunburn. Mike melted. Big ole Mike puddle right there on the blacktop.
I had lofty planting goals this year, but kept putting it off til we moved to the new place so I wouldn't damage the delicate things when we moved. Delay after delay with the underwriters led to no new plants. I finally got a rose bush, a Red Blaze, because the last two I got died. This one did to. Croaked right over, shriveled and turned black and brown. Funny thing though... it sprouted when I neglected it, but as soon as I gave it attention it died. So I did what anyone would do... I left it in the pot and watered it faithfully in the deluded hopes that submerging myself in complete denial would bring it back to life. I think of plants as plants, but feeling in my heart that they are living things and therefore crying when they die.... can't change that. Goodness knows I would if I could.
In the end, Mike bought me a replacement to cheer me up. It's the same species as the one Nanny and Dandad have in the front yard, a Peace rose.

Their bush is well over 7 feet tall and the roses are the size of soup bowls and smell heavenly. I miss them so VERY much and he knew this would make me feel the littlest bit closer to them when I can't be there. Strangely enough, the Peace rose seems to be thriving after I potted it. (I'm still tending the dead one, though. I said complete denial didn't I?)Feeling like I was on a good streak, I planted strawberries and salvaged some moss from the back yard where the dog tore it up in pursuit of a mole/vole/rock chuck... who knows what it is. My houseplants are finally thriving, but I haven't planted more seeds after the mass suicide of my indoor herb garden. I have the seeds... I just haven't had the heart. OH, I planted my peony root, too! I adored my mom's pretty red peony in the back yard. Every year I would wait for it to bud and bloom and I was always too tempted and could never keep myself from petting the blossoms. I was hoping for the same vibrant red, but my Mack helped me pick it and he wanted the pink one.


So that's what we got. If I can make this one live, I might try for the red one next!
We still haven't heard back about the house. We are told 'no news is good news' as far as the underwriting is concerned, but it's been so long and there have been so many delays. I'm not really holding any hope. That's too sad, so I am smiling and saying positive, hopeful things in the attempt to make myself feel that way again. Here's one.... I managed to get he house ready for a few showings and someone put a deposit down on the house. Our lease is paid through the 30th and we are supposed to close escrow on the 25th-27th. That gives us almost three days to move.

Hmm. May need to work on my hope-and positivity approach. Kinda gloomy.

In the meantime I am enjoying the overflow of life in our yard. We have birds in all of the bird houses as well as the family of finches that nested in our eaves last summer. They returned after the big wind storm a couple weeks ago and threw out the old nest, built a new one. I'm so excited to hear cheep-cheep-cheeping babies again soon. The tulips are blooming red and purple and yellow, right next to the candy tuft and johnny-jump-ups. So far, only one dandelion in the whole acre, woohoo!!
We have weeded the beds, started up the sprinkler system, and bought sunscreen to protect our super paleness from sunlight (hiss) Oh, sorry about the vampiric reaction, it's kind of automatic.
Let's see, anything else?

Yeah, I forgot! last night I was dying for Almond Joy but the store was closed and it was not really high on the list of things we needed to spend money on, so no chocolate for me. Instead, I found a recipe and tried it out. Let me say YUM. There were two kinds of basic recipes for the candy and I chose the less intensive one. Someone mentioned in the reviews of the recipe that hers were soupy... I made sure to let the Karo boil for a minute, just til it was thicker, not til it got color. I also packed the coconut a touch.
I was out of almonds, the almond extract made up for it fairly well. I had walnuts, but I figured there must be a reason it was Almond Joy and not Walnut Joy so I didn't try them. I did however, get a big laugh out of Walnut Joy. What can I say, it was late. This made about 8 bars in a size similar to the store bought ones.
This morning I made an imitation of the bottled Starbucks Mocha Frapp that Mike loves so much. I just added some condensed milk, regular milk, vanilla, and chocolate syrup to a pot of coffee. He liked it well enough that he took a bottle of it to work, as well as the last of the Almondless Joy.