has arrived in Northern Wisconsin! Yep, the proverbial phrase about something so far-fetched that it could only happen on a cold day in July has finally found its mark. The last couple of days have had temps holding in the 50’s with dark overcast skies. We have gold leaves falling from our river birch trees…though probably more stressed because we need rain. But, I honestly spied a maple tree on our road with a couple of red leaves appearing…in total denial about that sight! My tomatoes and peppers have not even set fruit yet. Our nights are down into the 40’s and a little farther north, Eagle River, Wisconsin had a record 38 degrees the other night. This afternoon seems warmer though – maybe there is still a little summer left after all.
Our son, who lives in Alaska, tells us they have highs in the 80’s – there is something really askew here, don’t you think? I never dreamed I would be considering hauling out an extra quilt for sleeping under at night in the middle of summer. These are a couple to choose from…
Sprucing up the front perennial garden area Saturday morning, this gardener was bundled up in layers. As I walked around towards the back raised beds, the old fashioned fragrance from the Theresa Bugnet roses was so evident. My friend, Dee, calls them Theresa Bug Net.The clematis is in full bloom – can’t remember the name of this particular one, but it sure is a reliable bloomer.
Then it was time to get back to work – one thing about the cooler weather – the peas sure love it! We are picking at least every other day amongst the 3 varieties we are growing. These are the Chinese Snow Peas. My old yellow work stool is about 26″ tall, so that gives you an idea how tall the pea vines are.
Our shelties love fresh pea pods and Sasha was patiently waiting – our other two girls were around front and missed out…Sasha wasn’t telling!
This nice little harvest made it into the house – stir fry for dinner and will process the rest for later…the ziploc bags are stacking up in the freezer.
And we won’t be running out of Sugar Snap Peas anytime soon…one of the nice things about gardens – you can always share…
The Shasta daisies – variety “Alaska” have started to fill out nicely…maybe they like having those rocks around their base…just a few that were collected on our last Alaska/Canada journey. It seemed appropriate to pair them together.
Making progress on the “Wall of Fame” quilt. Out of this unorganized looking pile of strips – so far 22 blocks are done, so had better get back to piecing some more…only 14 left to do. How do you organize your WIP strips? I used to have them laid over a folding laundry rack, but right now, the sewing room is so crammed with “stuff,” I don’t know where it would go. It is so interesting to see how other quilters organize their sewing space – lots of ideas – just need the time!
Have a great week and thanks so much for dropping by to visit…I love reading your comments and appreciate the time you take to leave them.
This week’s featured pincushion was made by one of my small stitching group friends, Kathy…she had been to Hawaii and naturally, being a quilter, brought some fabric back…a bright spot of summer on this chilly July weekend! I can smell the plumeria now!
Always take time to stitch….
Pat
Your garden is beautiful! If you send us some of your cool temps, I will send back some of our triple digit ones. If only that was possible, we could sure use a little relief. Love the colors and pattern in the quilt you are working on. Very pretty.
Pretty soon your dog is going to learn to harvest peas herself! I had a dog who did that. He was big enough to jump a garden fence and would bring out veggies to share with all the other dogs.
Hey Pat, If your quilt isn’t “controlled scrappy”, how about that old tried and true method of dumping dark strips in one of those stylish brown paper bags and light strips in another? What you pull out is what you use….simple and entertaining at the same time. 😮
Good suggestion, Dee – I have used that method in other projects – this time decided to be “organized” – big mistake – spending way too much time fretting over the pinks especially…tomorrow they all go into that brown paper bag (paper or plastic as they say at the grocery store!) & that should speed up the last 9 blocks. That time clock is ticking louder every day…