In the Garden

 Junking and gardening are my two mental relaxations.  After I do either, I can't remember anything I thought about while I was doing them.  This week I have been coming home each night and "puttering" outdoors and I'm slowly making progress on getting the garden shaped up.
We haven't fed the birds in several years because we were taken over by a pair of Blue Jays and the bird feeders became a target for them to attack the little birds.  We haven't seen the Jays this year so The Husband brought the feeders back out last night and filled them with fresh seeds today.  I have high hopes!

 As long as I was out I also took photos of the roses that are in full bloom now.

 It is, after all, The Rose City!

Nothing like outdoor time to relax the brain after too much screen time!

Smelling The Roses

 We took a play-day today with a trip to Staples to stimulate the economy with a new printer, a stroll through the Stars and Splendid Antique Malls and then a late lunch and micro-brews at Hopworks Urban Brewery.

 When we got home I indulged myself with a 45 minute cat nap then I decided to take the camera to the garden and smell the roses.

 We have had such a hot and dry Summer that the garden is pretty crispy by now but I did find a few click-worthy roses to share.

 Next year we are moving the side fence forward and will be "remodeling" the rose garden.  We are going to try moving some of them but others are so old and raggedy I think they will be replaced.

 You notice most of these pictures are pinks.  Reds are one of the colors to be replaced and oh, there is an orange that is my favorite and I really hope we will be able to save that one.  We have a very mature garden and some of the roses are so crowded out that they hardly have a chance.

When my eyes see the "big picture" of my garden it just looks so dry and done.  I am glad I took a close-up look because there is still beauty when I just look at the details.  Look closely, good to remember.
I hope there is some beauty in your weekend!

A Little Pink for the First Day of Summer

Today is the first day of Summer and it is lovely and warm outside.  I can actually go out on my patio without a coat.  Not so much last Saturday.  We had a soaking rain that lasted all day long. 

 Needless to say, the just-opened Peony blossoms filled with water and went head first, straight to the ground.  That is a pretty common scenario here in Portland so I rushed right out to salvage what I could for a bouquet.  At least I don't have to feel guilty about cutting them since I'm really "saving" them!  I don't bring Peonies indoors because they always have ants in them so we just enjoy them on the patio.  They are just as beautiful no matter where we enjoy them!

I also snapped a photo of one of our first roses while I was out.  Blogger decided to turn it sideways but it's just as pretty either way.  The Portland Rose Festival ended about a week and a half ago and there were few roses in bloom for it this year because everything is so far behind this year.  I'll take them when I can get them!