Happy Birthday Tumnus

Mister Tumnus turned 2 today... He's having a good time ripping into his presents :-)

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Final Rides

What's a carnival without a ride on a Carousel :-) Had a lot of fun with the kids - this was our first time at the McLean County Fair... And I have a feeling that it won't be our last. And by the looks of the number of teens, our kids will be coming yearly for quite awhile.

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Fair Night

Petting the rabbits

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Birthday Party

Andrew playing one of MANY games at Chuck E Cheese for his 9th birthday party.

Island Beds

These turned out OK this year... Didn't use sweet potato vine like usual, and upright elephant ears haven't grown as large as usual due to the lack of heat. They'll look better in a couple weeks if the temps stay in the 80's. Dragon wing begonias are doing excellent as always :-)

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Container Caretaker

Look closely... Can you see what I see?

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Staircase Overhaul

Working with stone is not one of my favorite things... But, you do whatcha gotta do.

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Lesson Learned

Yes, the picture attached to this blog entry is a little odd, but not NEAR as odd as the predicament I got myself into this evening while working.

I was beginning part two in the process of, what I like to call, "renovating a perennial bed" ... i.e. PART 1: Roundup (completed 10 days ago); PART 2: Removal of everything, tilling, raking, amending (with peat and compost), raking, tilling, raking; PART 3: Planting; Part 4: Mulching.

I had just completed the first round of tilling and was backing the tiller out of the bed (a large tiller... Larger than I usually use ). What I didn't realize was I was backing the tiller towards my truck. Now, what I don't understand is... Why does a tiller go 10 x's faster in reverse than forward? Granted, I could turn down the throttle, but... That would be too easy.

Ok, so I'm backing up the tiller... By the time I realize I'm going to hit the truck, it's too late. But, then I immediately realize not only am I going to hit my truck... I AM BETWEEN THE TILLER AND THE TRUCK.

Now, this leads to another question... Why, when we're in the midst of an emergency involving mechanical devices, we forget how to operate them? i.e. How to turn them off, the "emergency stop," or maybe the simplest of them all... GET OUT OF THE WAY FAST!!!

Well, I did none of the above. And the result? Me pinned against my truck at the ankles... A metal "safety plate" (HA! So much for it being "safe" ... It should have been made of rubber!) was pressing against my ankles, which were now backed up against my truck tire. And not just pressing... There isn't a word for it. Oh, yes there is... PAIN!!!

Funny (not really then, but it is now) how excruciating pain will bring you back to reality... I let go of the handle, which stopped the motor. But, even though I was able to put the tiller into neutral, it wouldn't move... It had moved upwards in the back causing the front to lodge into the ground.

For the first time in my life (and there have been a few instances I could have done this before) I honestly thought I was going to scream for "HELP!" But, I didn't - I was able to slip my left ankle free, which gave me some confidence I could somehow free my right ankle.

But instead... I began having my usual reaction to pain - I started to get light headed. Oh great - I'm going to pass out pinned between the tiller and my truck tire... I'm working in a large acred country subdivision, no neighbors out, Laurie has no idea where I'm working, my cell phone is in my truck, home owners are in Mexico. Oh, and it's dusk... NOT GOOD!

I guess this is when my "inner strength" came to life... I was able to lift up the tiller (yes, the metal plate pushed even tighter into my ankle) and pull myself out. But, that's when I REALLY thought I was going to pass out! Luckily there was a stone wall nearby that I was able to lean against and put my head down.

Soooooo... Lesson learned... Hmmmmmmm... I entitled the entry before I really thought thru WHAT my lesson learned actually WAS.

Do share... What was my lesson learned? I know... I'm opening myself up for some interesting comments... But, I'm ready. Believe it or not this isn't the stupidest thing I've ever done.

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Happy mommy!!!

Mommy (and daddy) is VERY happy that BOTH kids are riding their bikes without training wheels finally... ON THE SAME DAY!!!

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And Now HE'S GOT IT!!!

Andrew is riding HIS bike without training wheels now, too!!! WOW!!! Both kids the same day!!! AWESOME!!!!!!!
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She's Got It!!!

Savannah started riding her bike without training wheels today!!!

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Home-Made Birthday Invites

Savannah is sitting on the front porch with me making her birthday party invitations for her friends... Andrew made/mailed his a week ago before we left on vacation. I love it that they both wanted to MAKE their invitations for their respective parties. :-)

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Teach A Child

Go-Karting F-U-N

After the horseback riding we went go-karting on two different tracks - what a blast!!! The COOL thing was Andrew got to drive his own go-kart this year! He was SO excited... And nervous. But, he did an awesome job.

Heading back to the cabin for supper then to Cathy's for ice cream.

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My Horse - "Two-Faced"

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Trail Ride #2

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On the Trail

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Mommy & Savannah on Horseback

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Andrew on Horseback

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Sittin' 'round the campfire

It's going to be a cool night in the Northwoods... Sitting around the campfire.

Tomorrow is only suppose to be a high of 67 :-( Probably won't be hitting the beach. Planning on going horseback riding and go-carting with the kids in the afternoon. I'm hoping to get out in the boat in the morning to get some shooting in.
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Ahhhhhhh... Vacation

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Iris Shopping

How could I NOT bring back something from a garden center in the Northwoods... Bringing home two different iris - Siberian Iris called "Flight of the Butterfly" and a "Great Spirea" Iris (pictured). Also, ordered two peonea plants to be mailed to me in the fall.
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Expensive McD's Iced Tea

Iced tea is expensive in Wisconsin McD's - It's only $1 in Illinois!

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Welcome to Wisconsin - Dispose Syringes here

Stopped just over the Wisconsin border at a rest stop to take a bathroom break... First time I've ever seen a syringe disposal in a restroom. Interesting...

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Daylily

Pink Geranium & Blue Lobelia by Waterfall

The "King" On His Porch Throne

Yes, Mister Tumnus has now made claim to the porch rockers as his royal seat of choice as he rules our home from the exterior. Inside it is "my" easy chair (when I'm not using it).

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Rainy Start

It's a rainy start to my day, which I don't mind too much, considering I have the start of a "summer cold" - lots of sinus junk going on. Looks like it should be clearing in about an hour or so, so I'm sure I'll still be working today.

Things are pretty much back to "normal" in our house after all the travels for Laurie and the kids. One week of normality then it's off to northern Wisconsin for a few days of relaxation.

I'm burning a CD of a photo shoot I did a couple weeks ago... It was an instructional shoot with a local photographer who is giving some of her time to share her knowledge with me... I LOVE IT!!! I'm trying to soak in as much information that I can... This 43 year old brain doesn't pull it in as fast as it use to :-)

The photos from the shoot turned out beautiful... I'm hoping to share a sampling of them on my blog in the next couple of days (have to get the ok first).

Work is... work right now. It saddens me that my "hobby" business has, after seven years, turned into "work." Gardening, plants, flowers, etc. is still a passion of mine, but... The "job" part of it has definitely become work. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy it, but... Over the last couple of years my view of my business has changed a lot... It's now much less a "hobby I make a living from" and much more of... Well, more of just a "job."

Speaking of work... I need to get ready and head out the door. Time is money, and since I'm gone all next week I need to get a lot done this week.


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Blue Hydrangea

Close to Mommy

Scaredy "Cat"

Tumnus started watching us through the kitchen windows shooting off fireworks in the backyard and then we turned and he was sitting up on the window ledge (at most 3 inches) like a cat...

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Our July 5th Night

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Dog Daze of Summer

Tumnus is enjoying a rainy summer day on the front porch with me... He has begun to enjoy occupying the second rocker beside me while I sit and read.

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4th Laziness

Slept in until 9 this morning... That was sweet :-) Then watched the Wimbledon women's final between Serena and Venus. Laurie and I were both for Serena this time... Just because she's won less at Wimbledon.

Now I'm in one of my favorite spots... Sitting on our front porch with my iPod on shuffle blasting thru my iHome and drinking coffee that Laurie brought back from Morocco in a coffee cup from a Madrid Starbucks :-) Gotta love world travel!

It's been raining for at least a couple hours... Just a nice steady rain that won't bother me on the porch. SO glad I watered last night using my new above ground irrigation :-) Remember... ONLY water in the morning (Do as I say, NOT as I do)

We have a 4th of July party to attend this afternoon at 2 o'clock - knowing this group that's gathering, rain won't stop us... Sounds like it's suppose to clear anyway (crossing my fingers).

I couldn't believe it yesterday when I looked at the forecast for today... 68!!! That was on weather.com... On accuweather.com it predicted 76. But, whichever it ends up... That's chilly for the 4th!!! I don't want to have to wear jeans and a sweatshirt on the 4th! We don't live in Canada!

Ok, time to do some reading... My parents supplied me with some recent National Geographics... Yeah, I'm a geek :-) I read them cover to cover... LOVE IT!!! Yes, now you know the "private Mark."
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Family Photo

Here's a photo taken of our family right before Laurie left on her mission trip to Morocco. Everyone is home again... Laurie is settling back into American culture (and laundry and cleaning and picking up around the house) and the kids are coming back down from cloud nine after visiting each set of grandparents and seeing a lot of I-74 from eastern to western Illinois.

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