As alluded to in previous posts… I’ve been on the hunt for a new vehicle. Last month, I took Dory in for some possible brake work, and the mechanic called me a short time later. He told me not to put another dime into her and start looking for another vehicle. The sub-frame was rotted. It was time to say goodbye.

Now I really can’t complain. Dad gave her to me back in 2018 (he’d had her from new). She had a mysterious coolant leak, but as long as I kept any eye on it, and kept it topped up she’d be just fine. Though he warned me not to hope to get much more than a year or two out of her. The car I was driving (Dave’s old Buick) was barely roadworthy, so even a vehicle that lasted a year or two was a step up.

In the end… Dave and I accidentally found the coolant leak while boosting the Bonneville. That, along with other repairs normal for her age (she was born in 2008), saw her last me almost six years. She had 210,000 km on the speedometre when I got her, and more than 320,000 km by the time I had to say goodbye) Not bad at all.

But it was time to put her out to pasture. So, the weekend before last, Dave and I went out, and set things in motion for a new vehicle. This weekend, everything was finalized and we went to pick it up. For convenience, we traded Dory in for her scrap value. And I’m not going to lie… leaving without her made me feel a little sad. Kind of like we abandoned her there.

But… we did come home with Wilma.

She’s a 2014 Jeep Cherokee. Ten years old, but with fairly low mileage and in good condition for her age. And still the newest vehicle I’ve ever had. She’s a little smaller than Dory, with a touch less cargo space – but still enough room to haul plants and dirt. She doesn’t have a trailer hitch, so we’ll be installing one so I can still pull my box trailer when needed.

I’ve only had her since Saturday, so I’m still getting used to all her new fangled things… (like a 9-speed transmission that shifts when I’m not expecting it) but I think she and I are going to get along just fine. (And I have already ordered her a Hello Kitty sticker for the back window – just like Dory’s)

It’s been a while since I’ve shared any pictures of my backyard friends – but I’ve got some new ones for you this week

Last weekend, I gave the pussywillows a trim, and as I was bagging up the cuttings, I (luckily) noticed this little guy.

Google tells me he’s the caterpillar of some sort of Underwing moth (there are several and they have similar caterpillars).

I’m thinking it might be a Lesser Yellow Underwing moth…

Because a little later that day, when I was cleaning up some weeds in Edible Alley – I came across one! What are the chances?

A few weeks ago, Dave put up a rustic little bird house I’d bought last year. And it looks like it might have a new tenant…

When I was mowing the lawn earlier this week, I noticed this little one going in and out of it constantly.

It’s a House Wren. It has the prettiest little call. I don’t know if there’s a nest or eggs in the house (Dave put it up too high for me to peek in easily) but I’ve since seen two of them hanging around it, so I’m hoping.

Back behind the yard, our rear neighbour has a very large mulberry right at the property line. It’s branches over hang our yard giving us some nice shade in the evening. And right now it is full of ripe mulberries. The birds are in and out of it all day (the robins really seem to love the mulberries). And I’ve spotted a few of these guys.

Cedar Waxwings. They were particularly hard to photograph, even with my long lens. They were definitely wary, and hid behind the leaves more often than not.

Eventually, they got a little more comfortable with me, and I was able to get some good pics.

A very pretty bird.

And of course, a backyard friend post wouldn’t be complete without one of these guys.

They have been enjoying the mulberries just as much as the birds have.

This picture popped up in my facebook memories the other day

That was how the front lawn looked in June of 2021 after we took possession of the house.

This is what it looks like now. It’s amazing what you can accomplish in just a couple years if you’re not shy about wielding a shovel.

The roses on the arbour are just blowing me away.

That’s Eden on the left, and Quicksilver on the right. And they are both just STUNNING this year.

If nothing else goes right in the garden this year, these roses would carry me through the rest of the season. They just make my smile every time I see them.

I recently bought a small piece of fine art for the bedroom…

I don’t think poor Burton approves…

Oh dear…

On Saturday, Dave and spent most of the day out looking at potential new vehicles for me (more on that soon). But we got home with just enough time to do a little sewing before it was time for dinner.

So Burton and I banged out one more block for our Blockhead Bee quilt. (You can see he thoroughly enjoyed himself.)

We are only doing blocks that lend themselves to fussy cutting the centres, so there are quite a few blocks we haven’t done.

We have 12 blocks total. And I think it’s shaping up to a very nice quilt. There’s only a few weeks left to the sew along, so it’s hard to say if we’ll add more to the quilt or not. 12 is a pretty good number for a quilt, and I think I’d need to add at least four more if I were going to go bigger.

So… we’ll wait and see what these last weeks bring us – then make a decision.

Burton says “that sounds like a plan!!!”

With Emotional Support Chicken off the needles, I needed something new on.

Yep – another sock. I generally knit in the evenings after work, and just don’t have the mental capacity most nights for anything big or complicated. I don’t mind, because working on some fairly mindless socks means I’m slowly completing my Christmas list. I’ve got three pairs in there already – this will be a fourth.

Nothing fancy here – just a two-two rib for the leg, and I’ll do a plain foot. There’s not much point in doing a pattern with those stripes anyway.

I can’t tell you what the yarn is – it was a thrift store find with no label. I’m assuming it’s Regia, or Opal or a yarn like it.

Its looking like it’s going to be a nice, cheerful knit!

FINALLY…

Depsite another busy weekend, I finished up those last leaves around the bottom flower (I did modify them from the pattern), added a few last stitches, and that is that! This beautiful butterfly is finished. It’s been a very enjoyable project, with a beautiful result. Naturally, there are a few small mistakes, but nothing that really matters.

I look forward to doing more in the series. But I think I need a break from the black aida. I’m not 100% sure what I’m going to start next – but it will be on some lighter cloth!

When Mom was here, I sent her home with the Wedding quilt (my SAHRR creation). Plans for a new vehicle were still up in the air, and with the wedding in September, I didn’t want to take the chance of running out of time to quilt it.

She kindly offered to quilt it for me and last week she finished it up.

She did an all over flower/leaf pattern with the quilting…

And put a pretty scalloped edge and binding on the whole thing.

It finished up at about 64″ square – perfect for cuddling under in front to the TV.

Now it’s all tucked away until the wedding in September. And it feels good to have that to-do off my list!

If the hot and sometimes wet weather has been good for the flowers, you can bet it’s been great for the edibles.

Strawberry season is in full swing and I’m getting a good handful to munch on every day.

I should have some raspberries to enjoy in short order too!

Of the Cucurbits, the Zucchini is probably growing the fastest.

Though the squash isn’t very far behind.

I’ve got to get the strings up so the peas have something to cling to.

My potatoes are getting flowers (though I didn’t realize this is something they did!)

As are the cherry tomatoes.

The carrots are just starting to sprout.

And it looks like the tips of my garlic are starting to brown – so I might just be reaping the rewards of that harvest soon! I can’t wait!

While the early summer has been a touch too warm for my liking lately, we’ve had a good amount of rain to go along with it so the gardens are thriving (so are the weeds – so that’s my big job for this weekend). As a result, there are several new bloomers to show off.

Catchfly, Asiatic Lily and False Sunflower. The Catchfly and the Lily will only bloom for a short while, but the False Sunflower will go almost to the first frost. It’s also a HUGE plant – almost taller than me.

And remember how I was lamenting how almost all my foxgloves were the bright, brash pink. But then one whitish one did come up in the catio (even though it’s really a pale pinky purple)….

Well – I discovered ONE pure white one out front, as well as this paler pink. The paler pink is a bit of a puzzle. It’s a version called Artic Fox Rose…. but I only ever had it out back – not out front. How its seeds got all the way out there is beyond me – I won’t complain! I’ll be spreading the seeds of both of these around to get more!

New Dawn – the Climbing Rose on the catio fence is in full bloom. It’s flowers are small, but they are everywhere!

It will be interesting to see if this one blooms all summer – it didn’t last year, but I believe it’s supposed to.

Out front, the arbour climbers are really showing off too.

Eden on one side.

Quicksilver on the other. I’m amazed how quickly they’ve grown to cover it. I only planted them last year.

The Sundrops have absolutely exploded too! I was surprised. Mom has a sundrop plant and it hasn’t spread like this. Of course, hers isn’t in full sun – and this one is! I am going to have to split this one up much sooner than I thought!

The White Ballooflower is blooming too. I was worried about it because it didn’t do well last year – thanks to Relic and Burton using it as a nap spot. But they’ve left it alone this year and it’s thriving – it’s even coming up in another spot ACROSS the catio yard. Don’t ask me how THAT happened.

Both of the Honeysuckle vines are blooming nicely. I’ve seen a few hummingbirds but no pictures yet, They are elusive little creatures.

This little plant is another of my “curiosities”. It’s a type of Campanula. It’s very small – only a few inches high. You can see it has these bright chartreuse leaves. And then it gets covered in tiny blurple flowers. It’s such a pretty little thing. I had to move it a few times because it just kept getting lost under other plants. I have it at the front of the sidewalk garden and it seems to be thriving there.

And speaking of small…. These little guys popped up in the front garden in front of my bee balm. It’s Annual Fleabane (though I always knew it as Wild Aster). It’s a native plant, and most consider it a weed. But it won’t take over, and it’s good for the pollinators, so it can stay. It’s a pretty tall plant, but the flowers are no bigger than a dime.

And last – I took the advice of many internet gardeners and planted some Borage near the veg beds. Apparently it’s a pollinator magnet, and brings them in so they pollinate it, and your veg. It’s got pretty little blue flowers so it’s a welcome addition.

Now – I better go pay some attention to those weeds….