Guilty Pleaseures of Summer Time!

There is a sun...a light that for want of a better word

I can only call yellow, pale sulphur yellow, pale golden citron.

How lovely yellow is!

~Vincent Van Gogh

This is just one of the sunflowers that are the fruits of my labor! I am so excited to get up and see them every morning and every afternoon when I return home from work. They just make me smile!



How are you spending your Summer Time, Summer Time...Sum, Summ, Summertime?

I just love to read and usually have 2 or 3 books going at once. But, when I found this one, everything thing else was left on the nightstand. It was so good. I took it to the ranch with me. I don't read a lot of fiction, so it was a real treat. The second book in the series was on a display in the bookstore. But, when it mentioned that there was a first, I had to track it down! Sometimes you just gotta start at the beginning! Marisa De Los Santos is the author, these are her first novels. I'm hooked.

And another guilty pleasure....knitting! I am knitting a scarf. Pink, because I love it! I am learning that we don't have much of a selection of yarn in my area. I took a knitting class right after I graduated from high school. It was taught in a fantastic yarn shop. But, I haven't knitted much these past couple of years. Until I came across this gorgeous pattern, I hadn't looked for much that my local craft store couldn't offer! Now, I am going to have to start ordering online, I guess. If you have any suggestions. Please let me know.

For the Birds.......

The Great End of Life is Not Knowledge But Action.

~Thomas Henry Huxley

I decided to make petite bird feeders to put in my yard. I found the recipe in one of Sandra Lee's cookbooks. They were very easy to make. I used my vintage jell-o molds for the forms.

You will need:

non-stick cooking spray aluminum foil

1 cup wild birdseed

2 egg whites lightly beaten

Line your mold with the aluminum foil, spray heavily with non-stick cooking spray. Mix one cup of wild birdseed with the egg whites. Pour into your mold. Makes one 4" shape of your choice. Put your mold on a cooking sheet and bake for 10 - 15 minutes in a 325 degree oven. Place on a rack to cool.

While the birdfeeder is still warm, use a dowel rod or a skewer to poke a hole about an inch from the top. When your birdfeeder cools you can put a wire or a piece of raffia thru the hole to hang your feeder.

I'm looking forward to the feathered friends in the garden this summer! I started several varieties of flower seeds. The sunflowers are growing like crazy! I'll show you, soon.