Find Sun In Unexpected Places

Mid August and I saw the first colorful leaf from the Venus dogwood in my front yard:



In spite of the cool summer I am starting to get Sun Gold cherry tomatoes and my salad size tomatoes just might give me a decent crop. I have my doubts about the beans, though. The blossoms are not even open. Pumpkins and squash will be small but quite perfect for a family of two. Peppers are so so. They are not as plentiful as last year. The basil in pots will give me some batches of pesto but the plants in the garden; probably not.


I adore the double petaled lily that is in a pot on my deck. But then, any and every lily is adorable and intoxicating.





The container plants on my front porch are very healthy. The purple Wandering Jew is beginning to sport pink flowers. I will take cuttings inside to start all over again next year.



I have purchased white astilbe at a 2 for 1 sale at the Nursery at Mt. Si. They are already planted along the 'shady path' as I had planned in my last post.



The rumor is that contractors will be building a 3000+ square ft. home on the lot to the east of our lower yard. That of course will mean lots of gardening adjustments as they will cut down all the trees. The less ambient, more persistent shade of a house will be new for me. Good thing I know my shade plants. But then again, I may find sun in unexpected places. I think that is a good motto when facing change: "Find sun in unexpected places."


On a personal front there are changes too. Our daughter is coming home from Bangkok in 4 short days and she will be working MUCH closer to home. Four hours of car travel as opposed to 18+ on airplanes. Another plus; she will be living in Washington's wine country.

On the work horizon I have some minor changes too. We start later; at 9:35, eat lunch later, have an afternoon recess, dismiss later, and my prep time is in the afternoon. Of course as with every year there are new students and families. I have written names on name tags, supply baskets, homework folders, and on the birthday chart. You could give me a spelling test on their first names and I bet I would pass. Isabel, in three different spellings, is the 'name of the year'. There are 3 incoming kindergarten girls with this name. I hope one of them likes "Belle".