Daybook: Monday, August 14/17

Outside my window.....it is a lovely sunny day. I was out this morning in one of my front flower beds pulling weeds. I spent a couple of hours out there until it felt too warm to continue. I took 3 laundry baskets full of weeds back to the compost pile...just from that one flower bed. It isn't finished. I have yet to pull up my sprawling "Snow in Summer" and pot some of it up for my SIL in Smith Falls. Tomorrow I want to prune back my rose bush to almost nothing and trim out the front lawn. I mowed it just a few days ago, but it is looking really messy.

I am thinking.....I want to get down some mulch this fall after I get these beds cleared out. But first I need to thin out quite a few areas. So much to do and so little time left this season. I am hoping the weather co-operates.

I am thankful for.....a lovely visit with family members these past two weeks, and more opportunities to connect in the next few months.

From the kitchen.....I made more dog treats on the weekend. I have been true to my new diet and I am fortunate to still have a couple of frozen meals left for myself. Before my company's arrival I was able to make shepherd's pie and chili con carne for my son, and vegetarian versions of the same thing for my grand daughter. She finished off her Shepherd's Pie, but I had to give my dog the rest of the hamburger pie so as not to throw it away. The uneaten chilies went back into the freezer. I can't eat them, but I can warm them both when my son and his fiancee come to visit. She is eating more and more vegetarian meals. No waste.

I am wearing..... blue capris and a printed T-shirt (working clothes). The knees are dirty from when I was kneeling in the dirt this morning.

I am creating.....some cards this week. I need to send out a couple of "Thank you" cards and also a couple of  "Thinking of You" cards. I will be using a couple of new stamps I bought.

I am going.....probably nowhere today. I am feeling fatigued right now, especially in my legs. I do need to buy more eggs however, so maybe tomorrow morning I will head into Giant Tiger in Napanee. Their packs of ground hamburger are on sale (4 lbs. for only $8 for lean ground beef)

I am hoping.....to be able to replenish my savings account in short order. I had some extra expenses during this month. The van needed a new muffler. I bought two twin beds (I researched many, many beds before deciding to purchase) I don't regret buying them. Even if I decide to move from this house in the next year, I would rather have the twin beds in a spare room. Not that I plan on moving, but who knows where my future might lie? I also bought two more electric tabletop fans for less than $25 each. I will definitely be using those in the really hot summers.

I am hearing.....nothing from the dog. He is fast asleep at my feet. I have the window fan on beside me while I work on the computer. I am listening to the chimes blowing in the breeze just under my verandah.

Around the house.....I could be vacuuming, stripping the beds and doing up the laundry; but I am not expecting company again any time soon, so it can wait for a rainy day.

One of my favourite things.....is knowing I have a frozen meal to heat up when I don't feel much like cooking.

A few plans for the rest of the week.....include making some cards to get into the mail. I need to go to the Labs for blood work for my Doctor's appointment next Tuesday. Fingers crossed that the diet is working. Dinner later in the week at my son's apartment. He is celebrating his birthday.

Here's the picture I am sharing.....

These are called Globe Thistle. They are very striking in the garden, but they spread very quickly by self-seeding. My front flower bed is very full and I need to pull these out after they have bloomed, so I can prepare the soil and put down mulch before winter. In the Spring, I will be better able to keep them under control.