June Birthday

There are certain days of the year when you can predict the topic of my posts. This is one of them.

Yes, it is another birthday. Today our Bloomingtonaut will be celebrating in Hillsville, following a long tradition of going somewhere else for her birthday. Here she is, coyly posing for her picture in Louisville....

Hope your day in 2011 is as filled with sunshine and love as the one in 1977!

Saturday evening post

Saturday evening - Our first summer picnic!
Granddad was ready and waiting long before company arrived and food was produced.





It was fine weather for sitting outside - not too hot, a little breeze, a few clouds to moderate the sun.






We had fine company for conversation and celebration.

Plate on head? Now it is officially a party.

We had plenty of picnic fare from nuts to watermelon, salad from our CSA share and an English cheddar from a farm near the town of Cheddar.

Some bubbly to toast our two honorees - the one with a new job and the one with a birthday.





There was a marvelous birthday torte provided by HoosierKitty.

And Mimi loved the torte, the champagne and the funny plates..

featuring picnic ants.

Does this remind you of something?
It should. Remember how Mimi used to sprinkle little plastic ants across the picnic table at the farm?

Another happy Summer memory!

Tee shirt tells all

Happy Birthday to Mimi... and thanks for all the years of good advice!

First of Summer

Just a note that this series will make more sense if you scroll down to "early morning" to start reading.

First of Summer, early evening

The smell of fresh cut grass is the quintessential smell of summer.
It floats above the lawn in the humid air.






I take deep, appreciative sniffs as I walk down to see if there is mail.






There is. Granddad has a card! High point of his day!

Thank you, Indy Phoenix!

The sky appears to be clearing with wind chasing clouds across the sky. But even though I've been watching the sky all day, now it doesn't matter what the weather is - it is time to get cooking.

The smell of fresh baked brownies is right up there with the fresh mown lawn, but I suppose it isn't particularly a summer scent.

Definitely summer is the pungent odor of the garlic scapes I harvest from the yard to cook in the sauce for tonight's pasta.

The weather changes again after dinner when Granddad goes off to bed and I go out to check on the horse. Scotty's leg is sore and I can't yet ride him, but both he and I enjoy a grooming session while the rain spatters on the tin roof of the barn.

It is still light and the rain is lifting as I drive home.

Still light later when T picks up the guitar to practice.



Still light now, as I write this, and it will still be light when I take Granddad his pills at 9:00.

There you have it - the longest day of the year - the first day of Summer.

You notice that Indiana weather has managed to pack in all summer in a day.

First of Summer, afternoon

The temperature begins to climb as the afternoon begins.



Storm clouds roll in.
There is thunder in the distance.





Rain plops onto the sidewalk.

It is a good time to be inside. Granddad works on a treasure-map jigsaw puzzle. He's not drinking, even though this is a fiendishly difficult puzzle that could drive a man to drink. The puzzle came in the bottle you see in front of him.

Late afternoon is a good time for naps for everyone.

First of Summer, mid-day

Mid way through our first day of Summer Socks announces someone coming up the drive way.

The bees hurry to gather as much pollen as they can before the machine turns our clover field into a lawn.

The buzzard floats overhead in the warm sunny sky.

Granddad and Socks sit outside enjoying the breeze

while I do some cleaning and maintenance on the still-unused-this-year pool.


"Soon," I say to myself, "I'll get in that water soon. After all, it IS Summer now."

First of Summer, late morning

Wait a minute - why is it dark outside? This is the first day of summer. It should be sunny, right? It was sunny just a little while ago.
Why is the wind blowing and the clouds gathering?
What happened to the sun?

First of Summer, early morning

After the thunderstorms of the last day of Spring, the sun is shining on the first morning of Summer. All over the yard buds are blooming.

The sun is far to the north this morning.

Just at the right angle to strike the prism in the dining room window -

and to fill the room with rainbows.

Thinking of Dad on Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all you Dads out there.

May your children remember you as fondly as I remember my Dad.

Daylight savings time

Granddad woke up from a refreshing night's sleep. His TV was still on - must have left it on all night. It was light out already. He saw that it was almost 8:30 and he felt so good he decided to give me a surprise. He would get up, get all dressed, and be waiting for me in the kitchen when I came in to wake him up for his 9:00 pills. So he got up, shaved, gave himself a sponge bath, washed his teeth and put them in, got out clean clothes, got his assistive devices and got dressed. Shoes and all. Put in his hearing aids and put on his glasses. He figured he would creep himself into the kitchen in his wheel chair while pushing his walker in front of him.

I had heard him stirring around and when I heard the walker/chair progression clanking into the kitchen I came in to see what he was up to.

Yes, he DID surprise me.

No it wasn't because he had gotten himself all ready for the day.

It wasn't just that he was up early.

It was that he was up EARLY.

It was 8:45 PM.

He had just gone to bed at 6:30.

The nights are really getting shorter...

Sorry you Bloomingtonauts had already left and missed this.

One June B'Day arrives

Happy Day, Dear Dr. Hausfrau!

Wish we were there or you were here to celebrate together!

Summerish

Let Summer begin! The days of visitors and friends
days (and evenings) of being outdoors...

enjoying Summerish things.