Hello, Dear Friends, here we are, halfway through the year already!
I've long ago stopped fretting about the passage of time,
but it always catches me by surprise.
I am very happy that it is officially summer.
Although, some of you might not be so happy
with the high temperatures, recently!
We have had a few days of summer heat,
but for the most part it is relatively cool here in
the foothills near Mt. Rainier.
The Full Strawberry Moon was rising over the hills
as the sun set for a few days, and it was such a beautiful sight.
xx
To celebrate the Strawberry Moon, I made some delicious, rustic
Strawberry Hand Pies
They are soooo good and worth the effort!
Strawberry Hand Pies
Makes 6
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
Crust:
2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup cold milk
1 egg yolk
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar and salt;
add shortening and use pastry blender to cut it
into flour until mixture forms coarse crumbs.
In glass measuring cup, combine milk,
egg yolk and vinegar. Stir into flour mixture
and use hands to gently knead dough in bowl
until no loose flour remains.
Form into square, wrap in plastic wrap
and refrigerate for one hour.
Roll on floured surface to form a 10 x 15" rectangle.
With pizza cutter, cut into 6 squares.
With spatula, transfer to parchment lined baking sheet.
Filling:
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1+ 1/2 cups coarsely chopped strawberries
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1/2 cup strawberry preserves or jam
(to spread on pastry)
In bowl, whisk together sugar and cornstarch; add
strawberries and toss to coat.
Egg Wash:
1 large egg, beaten with 1 tsp water.
To assemble:
Spread about 1 Tbsp strawberry jam or preserves
in middle of 1 half of each pastry square.
Spoon a bit of the strawberry mixture on top,
leaving edges clear.
Brush egg wash around perimeter of each square
and fold dough over filling, pressing to seal.
Press fork around 3 edges to crimp.
Cut 3 slashes in top crust of each pie.
Brush tops with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake 25-30 minutes until golden on top.
Yum!
xx
The earth is definitely laughing in flowers this time of year, as the saying goes.
I just love working outside, listening to the birds and catching
the scent of roses or peonies, or the sharp scent of cedar and freshly mown grass.
Sweet little bees and butterflies busy themselves with
their own daily tasks, keepers of the
the next generation of flowers and plants that we so often
take for granted.
I was browsing through my favorite site, Pinterest,
the other night and came across a photo of two little
green drawers filled with flowers that looked
very familiar.
Turns out it was from my blog, back in 2015!
Here is the link: My Flowers Want to Meet You
These little drawers have survived a long time!
They no longer have bottoms, so I have to put pots
in them, but I still love them to display tiny flowers.
This year - sweet alyssum.
They smell like honey.
xx
Marigolds on the deck rail.
These pansies survived the winter and are blooming once more.
The resilience of nature is amazing, isn't it?
My herb bed.
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I've been very busy 'potting up', as they say.
Ramblin' Man cleared out some overgrown brush over the winter
and found a treasure-trove of terra-cotta pots that I had
completely forgotten about.
Some of my seedlings that I potted up. Dwarf sunflowers.
Coral impatiens and begonias on the tables.
The beautiful hanging basket of geraniums
was a Mother's Day gift from my son, Dustin and daughter-in-law, Jen.
xx
You can see the deck needed some work.
A yearly sport!
Ramblin' Man replaced weak boards, scraped
old paint and re-painted one section at a time.
This involves lots of moving things around, so I have
been getting some good weight-lifting exercise!
Any time we had a few days of sunshine, he was hard
at work. The weather was uncooperative at times.
Surprise hailstorm in the middle of things!
You know you live in the mountains when it hails in June.
You can see Kai through the glass door.
He's just as naughty as he looks.
xx
A few days later it was 86 degrees!
I gave the dogs a bath out on the deck and now they
are shedding like crazy.
I have tufts of hair blowing all around the house.
sigh...
I had to stake my peonies, as the hail bent them all over.
I brought the broken ones inside to enjoy.
This is the first year they have had so many blooms.
I have noticed that the deer won't eat them,
so, I will be planting more of these!
Yes, I'm talking about you!
Eating all the flowers...
Just help yourself, why don't you?
It's a good thing that you are beautiful...
And there's you, too. Cute as a bunny, huh?
It's why I can't have nice things. Lol!
I can't fight Mother Nature, so I have embraced the wildlife
and the native flora.
Besides working on the deck, Ramblin' Man and the wonderful guys
in our life worked together to replace the old shed roof.
Son, Dustin on the left, son-in-law, Steve and good buddy, Matt
did the shingling after Dustin and his Dad tore off the old cedar shingles.
Son-in-law, Eric hauled them all to the land-fill in his big trailer.
It was a collaborative effort that took four days of hard work.
Luckily, the weather held out - cool and cloudy - perfect for working.
I was the camp cook and kept them all fueled with coffeecake, sandwiches,
chili, corn bread, potato salad and refreshments.
Good as new!
That old shed was the first thing built on this property when we
moved here 43 years ago. It's still in good shape and now it can go
another 40 years.
That's what I mean about time.
It slips through the fingers.
But creates lots of wonderful memories.
And some not-so-wonderful, but that's
what makes you resilient.
Just like Mother Nature.
xx
The finished results.
We've all worked hard.
Well, most of us...
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The canopy is installed.
We take it down in late fall.
This gives us a cool, protected area on a hot summer day.
Notice the metal gates...
Sometimes we need a break from the pup-dog's constant need for attention
when we have guests!
He also had to replace some trim on the octagonal window.
He hasn't painted it yet.
With a big family, it's nice to have room for a large gathering.
He did a nice job.
I potted up all the flowers.
This is my primary 'garden'.
The only place the deer can't reach!
I bought several flats of flowers.
Petunias, marigolds, impatiens, and lobelia
right before Mother's Day when they were on sale.
I love purple petunias - they have a lovely scent.
The hanging basket was a Mother's Day gift from my daughter, Jennie and husband, Steve.
The Mr. made me the ladder planter a few years ago.
My 'bucket brigade'.
I grew these nasturtiums from seed.
They haven't bloomed yet and I can't wait to see
what color they are!
I fell in love with these coral begonias at the plant nursery
and had to have them. They are nice under the umbrellas
because they like the shade.
There's a little green frog that lives in this planter.
A shady corner beside the canopy with lobelia,
primrose (done blooming and waiting to be re-potted)
and pansies that I am gathering seed from.
The Mr. repainted my bird cage.
The garden angel oversees nasturtium and 'canary-bird' vine
seedlings.
I planted a whole flat of the vines, but one morning I came
out to water them and noticed something had dug up most of
the seeds! Most likely a squirrel. I ended up with 6 of them.
The flowers look like flying canary birds!
I will show you when they bloom.
I bought these lemon cypress trees for Christmas
and kept them inside all winter. They will get tall
and look pretty at the end of the deck.
Wildflowers bloom below.
I crafted some candle jars from some of my pressed wildflowers.
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The jars are salsa jars.
Straight-sided jars work best.
I used decoupage glue and applied it with a tiny brush
and toothpick to the back of the flower, holding the stem
with a pair of tweezers.
I found the tray at the craft store.
They look so pretty illuminated with battery-powered candles.
Coincidentally, my daughter, Heather gifted me this beautiful glass tray
for Mother's Day.
You can tell we are on the same wave-length!
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So pretty illuminated by the afternoon sun.
Heather and husband, Eric also gifted me with this straw bag filled with sweet things.
Paper flowers, clay colanders, embroidered napkins and pretty throw.
My eldest son, Gabe and wife, Erica gifted me with a collectible
candle called a 'Glassy Baby'.
These are hand-blown right here in Washington State.
Here is the link: Glassy Baby
Mine is called 'Hope'.
The world needs hope right now.
I light it in honor of the enduring power of hope.
xx
The table runner, vase and pretty clay tray was
from son, Dustin and wife, Jen.
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My colanders.
The sweet paper flowers with my new pitcher and glasses
from daughter, Jennie.
Yes, I was spoiled.
All the years of hard work raising four children
have their rewards.
The real reward is seeing what wonderful people
they have become. We had a hand in that, but
they are the ones that worked hard
to achieve their dreams and become
the kind, compassionate, good people
that we are so proud of.
I did another little watercolor for a dear one
that moved here from the desert to
be close to family.
I've lived in the desert, and I know how magical it can be.
Three of my grandsons helped me create a fairy garden
tucked into the corner on my little potting bench.
We used pots of succulents that I had on hand.
They had so much fun, and I loved watching them put everything in place.
This will probably be the last year that they will want to do this,
as they are getting older.
xx
Maybe they will remember doing this when they grow up
and will recreate the magic with their own children someday.
xx
I've been busy these last few weeks.
We've had lots of family time in between projects.
Picnics in the park, gatherings for holidays,
dinner parties for family and friends, shopping trips,
cooking and cleaning (that never seems to end).
We've also been worrying and praying for dear family members and friends
who are going through serious health issues right now.
And there have been recent, tragic losses of people that
my children grew up with, one a close part of our family
for a time.
Living in a small town, you know everyone and feel
these losses acutely. They make up the fabric of our lives.
xx
As do you, my dear friends. I have missed you, and have
been anxious to catch up on all that is going on in your lives.
Please tell me how you have been and what you have been
doing in this wonderful, busy season we affectionately
call, 'Summertime'.
xx
"In a grateful heart there is eternal summer."
- Celia Thaxter -
U.S. Poetess
1835-1894
"Like a welcome summer rain, humor may suddenly
cleanse and cool the earth, the air and you."
- Langston Hughes -
"The summer night is like a perfection of thought."
- Wallace Stevens -
