Late Summer Walk - and a Tour of the Grounds.

Come along with me and we will take our morning walk.

We step outside to a warm and sunny morning - the last of the above 80 degrees days. 

Already I see that I need to sweep the stepping stones

after Whitey buried his morning treat. 

Who me? That's not dirt on my nose.....Hey, you're blocking my limelight! 

Moving along we see the hydrangeas have put on quite a show this year. 

I have filled many vases with their giant blooms and also used them for bridal shower and rehearsal dinner arrangements. Later this fall I will cut them for drying.

This is where Ling Ling the cat likes to sit in hopes of having a birdie lunch. 

Don't be fooled by that angelic looking face! 

(This is why she wears a pretty bell)

Bird houses recommended by Ling Ling
^^
oo

x

"I was only trying to be kind....."

"Besides, it was all Maggie's idea...."

"Oh, I'm so tired of her lies! 

Everyone knows I only like mice! 

That's why I don't have to wear a stupid bell!"

Champ is bored with all this cat chat and wants to play fetch!
So let's go....

The Tansy is blooming along the front of the tool-shed. 

Clumps of Sedum are turning rosy on the lawn. 

No matter how hard I try to tie it up, 

it wants to flop. 

Its bright button blooms bring sunshine down to earth. 

I'll harvest the leaves for moth sachets before the first frost. 

I have a bountiful apple harvest from my dwarf apple trees. 

They are not quite ready - still a bit sour. 

But the blackberries are ripe and I really need to pick some

 before the bears discover them! 

As we walk along we see the leaves are starting to fall from the cottonwoods. 

We have had a very dry summer. 

Soon I will be raking these monsters from the ground - 

the leaves of Big-Leaf Maple. 

You can see how large they are by comparison to my Mr.'s hand. 

We have several large specimens of these magnificent trees

and I use the fallen leaves as compost. 

The wild plums are also ripe and falling on the ground. 

They are the size of large cherries and very tasty. 

We rarely get any for ourselves, as the birds and woodland creatures 

gobble them all up. 

They have proliferated in the woodlands around our home, 

putting on a lovely show in the spring when they flower. 

We spy a snail making its way up a cottonwood tree. 

Escargot anyone? (Bleck!)

We come to the gate at the end of the driveway and see the neighbor has cut his field. 

Last fall we saw a couple of bull elk here, 

and a cougar was spotted by my son as he left one evening after a visit. 

Yes, I always keep my faithful dogs with me everywhere I go. 

Peeking through the fences, we see the next door neighbor's horses. 

A Douglas Squirrel chatters from above as we head for home. 

Another view of the hydrangeas against the picket fence. 

You can see a little break in the pickets 

where a bear knocked down the fence once.

(Whitey and my old dog Little Bear, chased it away)

My Mr. repaired it with a wire fence behind. 

I need to remind him to replace the picket one of these days. 

I just painted the picnic table and moved it in front of the tool-shed. 

My Mr. loves having this place to hang out when he is puttering around up there.

An old rusty woodstove, coal cart wheel and birdhouses (suggested by Ling Ling :) keep him company.  

My children's former playhouse - now a dog house in a fenced in kennel. 

We only use this for the dogs when we have 'company'. 

The rest of the time the dogs have free reign and sleep inside the house. 

The old picket fence runs alongside. 

A pretty feather from a Dark-Eyed Junco. 

Peeking at the side of the house...

The potted Cyprus trees started out as tiny 6" 'Christmas' trees, and now stand guard in front of the dog pen leading down from the deck. 

At night the dogs have access to this pen from a pet door in the kitchen leading out to the deck. 

A wider view from the woods. 

My new Japanese Maple waits to be potted along the walkway. 

Time to go inside...

I hope you enjoyed our little walk-about. 

Thank you for coming along with me! 

xoxo

Linking with Good Fences