It feels like Summer when the weather is just right to kayak! We are so fortunate to be minutes from Lake Pomme de Terre and have the right stuff to Just Do It!
I started kayaking in 2014.
The water is clear and mirror-like.
Mostly I like to paddle around the many coves checking in with my husband once in awhile to see if the fish are biting. I can fish but I'm in it mostly for the wonderful upper-body exercise outdoors.
Dragonflies are in abundence!
Summer is also the time for baseball! My daughter got a special surprise for her June birthday when her husband treated her to a Kansas City weekend to see a Royals game, enjoy a spa morning, a movie, a nice dinner, and a night in a motel.
Our granddaughter stayed with us that weekend and we celebrated her June birthday early.
She was asked at her pre-school graduation what she wanted to be when she grew up and she said, " A Ballerina!" Of course, she got the outfit and a ballerina jewery music box as her birthday presents!
She loves The Wizard of Oz movie so she was all set up to enjoy it with Toto on her lap and singing along with Dorthy "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."
She discovered my"Treasures" and was allowed to handle them as I told the stories about them. She was at our house for a whole week because her mother had to go out of state for work training. It was a memorable time!
When it was time for Kayleen to go home, it was time to celebrate her actual birthday with friends and family near her home. Her mom had set up a special "Chuck E. Cheese Birthday Party." I spent the day with them and enjoyed all the festivities!
Kayleen & her step-sister Lilly
Time to get back to our home gardens and landscape. My helper was gone back to her home and I had time to catch up on whatever needs more attending as I continue to enjoy all the beauty of our previous labors.
The yuccas, hollyhocks, and daylillies were at their peak performance along the street at the back edge of our yard.
This is aslo the location for all my excess lillies from other beds around the yard so there is a variety and it's fun to see what's coming up in this sunny location.
The daylillies and yuccas glow in this mass planting!
There's our only large oak tree on the left that has lirope's purple spike blooms edging the back yard lawn.
Missouri native wild hydrangea is located on the north side of the house under the redbud tree row. Thre's a couple new sprouts that will be transplanted at the end of summer. I already have taken one sapling a couple years ago and it is doing very well. They love the shade and are very hardy so I will continue another group near the hammock area under the redbuds. I just love how they catch the morning sun for a short time!
The oak-leaf hydrangea "Alice" is doing very well with it's large blooms. The peonies in front are done blooming and trimmed to enjoy the show.
The Missouri native prickly pear cactus is outstanding this year! I thnk it must be at least 20 years old!
Look but don't touch!
Ballon flower
First cutting of calla lillies at the same time as the gooseberries are ready to pick.
Ring of Fire for the bull ridders to begin at Lucas Oil Speedway a few miles from our home in Wheatland.
My best shot of the bull off the ground and the cowboy hanging on...for a few seconds!
Just across the street from Lucas Oil Speedway on the Wheatland town square is the Settlers Village, our volunteer service project for Hickory County Master Gardeners. We check out our gardens regularly to make plans for maintenence. This is my Heritage Garden area where I try to keep Missouri native plants mostly.
The tall phlox are outstanding this year and the swallowtail butterflies are in abundence! The garden's priority is to have blooming plants at their best around the first week of September when the annual Harvest Festival takes place here at Settlers Village. After the annual fund raising plant sale for the Master Gardeners, we take many of the leftovers and find a nice home for them here to add color and enjoyment. We try to promote plants that are good for the bees, birds, and butterflies. With mostly natives, we don't need any fertilizers or pesticides. Idealy, I would like to remove all non-native plants but it's not just my decision.
Sparklers came home after an extensive walk-about and decided to stay inside more and be socialble. Our granddaughter had gotten a rescue kitty a few months ago and it could come and go through its garage door. Kayleen hadn't seen her for quite a while and we thought maybe she didn't make it home one time. She thought it was hiding in the garage; maybe it was? Got a message that Sparkers is home now and loves to stay inside more and more. Kayleen is very happy to have her kitty close. Sparklers loves Kayleen!
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