Just Peonies

Thankful for Distractions

Sadly the peonies are already past their prime. They are so gorgeous, I just wish they lasted longer. (I think I say that every year. )



I bought this chippy blue picnic table at a garage sale last weekend for $5.00. It is a large oval table and quite heavy. It will replace a small wrought iron table that fell over whenever the wind blew hard. One of these days I will probably repaint it, but for now I like it just the way it is.





I love this poppy! I wish it had more than this single bloom. It looks so pretty next to the lavender. I will definitely save the seeds and try to grow more of them.



I've never had much success with roses before, but the pink double Knockout roses are easy to grow and they are so pretty. I like them so much better than the single Rainbow colored one I have.



I need to get outside tomorrow with my spray bottle of soapy water and get the aphids off of them.



I noticed this robin at the birdbath yesterday. It kept its mouth open. I was curious about this behavior and read that when the weather is hot they open their mouths and pant to keep cool.



We went from cold and rainy to hot and humid. I was looking forward to warmth, but not quite this warm yet.



I am definitely seeing more butterfly activity this year!



The hummingbirds are back too!



My mother has been in the hospital for over two weeks. She had a serious case of Diverticulitis. It ruptured and set up infection and sadly she had to have part of her colon removed and now has a colostomy. I haven't been able to go home to Alabama to be with her. My heart is so heavy and I am very concerned about her. At times like this, it is very difficult being so far away from home.

My dad is still in so much pain after his lung cancer surgery last year. It is really painful for him to stay at the hospital so much with my mother, but he does it anyway. He had a spot on his rib during his last scan. He will have another scan in a few weeks. I'm concerned that his cancer may be back. If it is, I don't know how they will take care of each other. I try not to think about that.

I am so thankful for the beautiful flowers, bees, butterflies and birds that provide a little distraction from the worry and concern.

Mosaic Monday

Mary, from the Little Red House, has a meme called Mosaic Monday. Since I've become quite fond of collages this is a very easy one for me to participate in.

I'm glad I had my coffee on the patio early this morning, because just a short time later we had a much needed rain shower. As you can see, I'm still enjoying my peonies!

I hope everyone has a great Memorial Day!

Fun with Peonies

Peonies are incredibly beautiful, but they last such a short time. This year, I decided that I would take full advantage of them and enjoy them the best way I know how and that is by photographing them. For the last several evenings I've been playing with peonies. I set up my camera "studio" on the patio, created arrangements and took hundreds of pictures. It is a great way to lose myself and soak in the beauty of these delightful flowers.



The last two days have been spent with my friend and neighbor going to garage sales. I really needed some fun time and we not only had fun, but we found some really great deals. This sweet F B Rogers silver bowl was one of my finds. After a good polish it made a perfect vase for this flower arrangement.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!

Peonies

Life is kind of difficult and busy right now, with frequent trips to the nursing home to attempt to get my mother-in-law, Nell, to eat. She isn't doing well after her fall and now weighs about 90 pounds. We are trying to prepare ourselves for the worse because it really doesn't look like she is going to pull through this time. After thirteen years with Alzheimer's we believe this is the end for her. It is heartbreaking and depressing to watch her waste away.

I'm trying to find and even create beauty in the midst of the sadness. It's difficult to feel sad when your looking at the incredible beauty of a peony. Yesterday I went outside and clipped off all of the ones in bloom and played with the camera. I brought them inside so I could enjoy looking at them. The only thing was there were a lot of ants hidden in all of those petals!

Just Peonies