Today's Flowers - #112!

It's #112 for Today's Flowers! That's more than two years of fun for everyone so once again, I owe a big thank you to the team that makes this possible!
I was out yesterday afternoon avoiding work in the house and noticed my tansy was showing a second set of flowers. This plant is one that is considered a weed here in Colorado and can't be purchased at a garden center. The flowers can be dried and used in fall crafts.
The alysum smells so sweet and looks better now that it has cooled off a bit. My mom has some double petunias so I decided to try one this year. Her's always look so much better, but then I remembered that she plants three or four pots in one planter!
The Autumn Joy continues to turn darker.
Both pictures were taken Saturday afternoon, just at different ends of the "hedge" on the side of the garage.
Daytime temperatures will reach the mid 80's this week, so I'm thinking it may be another week or two until Indian Summer arrives.

Autumn Double Delight

There's a new party today so I'm joining Ewa from Ireland for the first Flowers on Saturday.
This pink double petunia is looking happy now that the days are cooling off to 80 degrees. Nothing was doing well when it was above 90. Fall is coming and a freeze will take the delicate flowers, but some petunias can hang on until November.

Thanks to Ewa for the new party! ♥♫

Super Harvest Moon

While chatting with Sarah last night, she wanted me to go outside and look at the Super Harvest Moon.
I took these pictures in the eastern sky around 9:00 p.m. The moon kept hiding behind the clouds so Sarah couldn't see it in Denver. I leaned on the car so I might have a steady arm and took a few pictures for her.
Then this morning I wanted to take a few more pix in the western sky, so I'm outside at 5:30 in my jammies before the trucks start hauling the ensilage to the dairy.
It was cloudy again so I clicked when the clouds moved out of the way.
The super harvest moon is a rare phenomenon when the full moon and the autumnal equinox coincide. "It's the first time the two events have occurred at the same time since 1991. Custom holds that a "Harvest Moon" provides farmers with extra light as crops come in." (CNN.com) You may read about it here.

Thanks to my baby for letting me know about this. It's something her daddy would have loved!

Morning Tea and Inspiration

I'm joining with Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage today. Please click the link or the picture of the two friends sharing tea to return to visit the other participants.

Each morning when I go to the sink to get water for my morning tea, I am looking at my small worship center right on the window sill.
I have hearts and words that encourage me each day.
Some things are only an inch or two across, about the size of a quarter, but the messages mean a lot to me. The angel says "JOY", from my own Sarah JOY and the snowflake was a gift from my other Sarah (Jo). Just try saying those two names quickly over and over.
The "Lamb of God" and my dog (Depend On God) don't have meaning to some people, but many of you will 'get it' right away!
As you begin your tea ritual each day perhaps these words from I Corinthians 16:14 will come to mind: Let all you do be done in love.

Even though there's not a drop of tea here today, it all begins with the water. Who is our living water? Thank you Sandi! ♥♫

Memories

It's time to join Today's Flowers. Click on either the link or picture to take you there. As always, there's a great team working together! Thanks!

Sadly, this hibiscus is no longer here. Next summer I will try to replace it in a special spot.
It was one of Wally's favorites that we enjoyed before he was so sick.
Wishing for so many things...

I've changed the comment setting to a pop-up window. Please let me know if it won't work by sending me an e-mail with something in the topic line, ie:blog comments. Otherwise, I won't open it unless I know you. Whenever I try new things there's always a good possibility that I've done something incorrectly! Blogging is one of my two sources of entertainment as I don't watch any television (reading is my other).

Today's Flowers-Plains to the Mountains

We were camping last week and missed Today's Flowers. Thanks to the team that hosts this weekly event. Visit by clicking on the link.

Here on the plains of Colorado the Autumn Joy is blooming ...
making the bees and other insects very happy.
This row of plants is on the northwest side of the garage and make a hedge of pink.
Deep into the mountains of western Colorado, my camping trip last weekend was in a gorgeous HIGH location. High meaning altitude, as in difficult to breathe!
The sunflowers were looking east, towards home. (Over the river, and through the woods...Tunnels through mountains, over passes from one side to the other, bumper to bumper traffic, first gear, thought I'd wear out the clutch, move 5-10 feet, stop, go, stop, etc. 8 hours later--HOME)
We stopped to pick up a rock for my garden and Sarah found these small yellow flowers.
These sweet white flowers area noxious weed in Morgan County, but bindweed will apparently grow anywhere. After all, a weed is only a plant in a unwanted place.

First Camping Trip

Last Friday after school my two Sarah's and I drove 7 hours to the western slope. Traffic was heavy, but we stopped for supper in Idaho Springs, had a bathroom break in Glenwood Springs, went over McClure Pass, past several coal mines with enough lights to land an alien space ship, and finally to Hotchkiss. We found our jammies in our bags, put our heads on our pillows, and tried to get some sleep.
The next day we had a tour of Sarah Josephine's home town and went up, up, UP the mountain to Steven's Gulch where "SHASTA" was waiting for me. It was the cutest camping trailer I've ever stayed in--oh, it's the ONLY trailer I've ever stayed in because this was my first camping trip EVER in 59 years.
Great food, great people, and a great location helped Sarah Joy and I make it through the weekend. Sarah Jo and her family knew it was going to be rough for the two of us as memories of a year ago were close to our hearts. But as we said last year to all our family and friends:

Joy, when shared, will always increase.
Grief, when divided, is hushed into peace.

Thanks to the entire Wilson Clan!! You made us feel so welcome and loved this past weekend.
The whole experience (except the traffic on the way home) was terrific!! ♥♫

♥♫ Give Away ♥♫

After school I read a text from Sarah asking if I'd drawn the winner! Answer~no. Yesterday was the last day, I thought it only fair to wait until 12:00 midnight, MST. I went to bed soon after I finished freezing my wonderful Colorado peaches--going to school and coming home to work in the kitchen made me TIRED because I am getting O. L. D. ! I wasn't planning on getting up at 12:01 a.m. to pick a name, the drawing had to wait until I got home from school.
First I folded the paper to have enough boxes for all the names. Then I wrote the names down, omitting Sarah's comment and inserting Joyce (she emailed me). Next I cut them up, folded them tightly so no names were peeking out at me, and put them in my favorite red bowl. Mixed them up again and again.
And pulled out Donna's name! Congratulations my friend! ☺
Thanks to everyone that played with me and left comments. Because I wish you all were the winner, I'd like to send you some blue flax seeds from my garden. So, if you were one of my playmates, and would like the seeds, please email me with your mailing address.
This plant with blue flowers is flax. Pretty sky blue blossoms! Thanks again for writing comments on the give away post! ♥♫