September 6: Last of Delphiniums

The summer flowers are fading, but one violet-blue delphinium remains, seed pods developing....

September 3: Labor Day Weekend

My dad always told us that Labor Day was for labor...namely, yardwork. I didn't know differently until high school.

But this weekend, Labor Day meant yardwork for our family as well as T mows the weeds that we pretend make up a lawn....

J and B pull weed along the concrete slab....

Keith, J and B take a quick breather....

At least the yard looks acceptable now. ;)

August 31: The Promise of Fall

The Pippins are looking promising this fall. We'll give them another month and pray the squirrels don't beat us to them this year as they did last autumn, the little thieves....

July 17: Summer Garden

We haven't had any money this spring, so I haven't been able to plant any flowers. But many of my plants from the last few years reseeded beautifully, filling my container garden with snapdragons, delphiniums, alyssum, blue salvia, and other flowers. This photo is framed by our Pippin apple tree.

July 12: Growing Things

Because of late frosts through mid-June, I had to plant my tomato plant late. But here it is, struggling along, growing, and I hope later, producing some delectable tomatoes! :)

July 9: A Gardening Angel

This gardening angel looks over my front garden. A Mother's Day gift from Keith and the kids years ago, somehow she has escaped being shot by the boybarians in their frequent Airsoft battles or by my squirrel hunters who manfully defend the nearby Pippin tree from the little marauders who stripped every single apple last summer. She has survived hail storms, snow drifts, and football games as she guards my new tomato seedlings, just planted a couple of weeks ago after the last frost on June 14.
In a place in which I've lost most of my garden statues in various unsavoury ways, someone must be looking out for my Angel of the Garden.

July 8: Pincushions and Primroses

Two of my favorite garden flowers have grown around each other in my front flower beds: scabiosa (which is a horrid name for such a lovely flower!), also known as pincushion flowers (named so because when the petals fall away, the flower head looks just like a pincushion, with little pins sticking up all over it) and Mexican primroses--which I love for their lovely pink cups and bright yellow centers.

June 29: From Our Community Garden

Timothy and Benjamin have been working for over a year in our small town's community garden, Pine Valley Community Gardens. After working all morning there today, they brought home this bounty--several kinds of lettuce, two kinds of radish, beets, carrots, and a giant leek. Jonathan and I washed the veggies since the other two boys grew and harvested them, and then we spread them across a towel to dry.

These beautiful organic veggies made the most delicious salad tonight!

June 9: Sunflowers

A simple pot of sunflowers in a friend's garden can make me happy....

Day 70: Pincushion Flowers

One of my favorite flowers is scabiosa, known as the pincushion flower. When all the petals fall, the seed pod looks like a pincushion with little pins stuck into it in all directions. I can grow them a little up here in the mountains, but they thrive in the warmer coastal climates.

With my current schedule, I can't always be taking photos every day. I knew this fact when I started the 365 blog and told myself I would POST a photo a day, not necessarily TAKE a photo a day. :)

Day 69: Retreat, Continued

Our Ash Wednesday Retreat at the Mission San Luis Rey de Francia included a set time for meditative prayer, and I settled in this corner of the courtyard, basically the same place I took the photo for the previous day. I sat on a blanket under this tree and near these flowers.

Such a lovely place to pray and be silent with God....

Day 68: Ash Wednesday Retreat

This was my view from a bench in the retreat courtyard of the Mission San Luis Rey de Francia in Oceanside, the largest of the California missions. My dear friend Carmen and I attended an Ash Wednesday Retreat at the mission that focused on silence--God's silence and our silence. We were given time to wander the grounds, find a place, and spend time in silence with God. We finished the day with Mass which included the Imposition of Ashes.

Such a lovely day, and such a wonderful way to spend Ash Wednesday.

Day 55: Signs o' Spring

As I walked home from having tea with a friend, I stopped by my lilac bushes to check, and--lo and behold! Buds!!!

So despite the coldest storm in the last thirty years bearing down upon Southern California this weekend (snow down to 1000 feet, and possible snow flurries in the eastern valleys for the first time since my childhood), my garden is showing signs of the coming spring.

Day 34: Frosted II

I captured this weed in our lawn, beautified by frost.

Day 65: More Daffodils

My daffodils are in bloom for such a short time that I get rather photo-crazy with them. Get used to it. ;)

Day 64: Portents of Spring

My daffodils are starting to bloom ... a definite sign that spring is around the corner....

Day 35: The Japanese Bridge

The weather here in Southern California has been so delightful that outdoor photos are a must. This will be (perhaps) my last photo from my trip last Friday to Summers Past Farms, but the pictures came out so nice that it's hard to resist posting them. Even though hardly any flowers are blooming in late January, the gardens are still lovely and relaxing, fueling both reflection and creativity.