Sunday in the Park...

Como Park that is… that's right, we were off for another concert in the Como Park Pavilion…

This is the Barbary Coast Dixieland Band, they've been around as a band since 1967… and it shows… now there's only 2 original members left, and 1 other thats been with them since 1969, but these guys were amazing!!  All the members of the band play multiple instruments, and at least 5 had very nice singing voices as well...

Pardon the crummy video, it was taken with my iPhone, this is part of their rendition of Stars & Stripes Forever… very fun!!  We really enjoyed this group & would recommend them to anyone who's in the Twin Cities area…  After the concert we went for a walk in the Park, here's a smattering of pictures (using my camera this time) from our walk…

One of the cute houses in this older neighborhood...

There's Jeff!!

Como Park is a beautiful city park in a cute residential neighborhood… we actually looked at a home in this area the last time we moved…  There were lots of birds singing, families of ducks swimming on the lake (no luck getting any good shots of the ducks), some Cormorants…  We saw many beautiful trees & flowers, some butterflies… the path along the lake is a mile & a half long, we took our time walking around…

We stopped by the grocery store after our walk, Jeff was in the mood to grill… Check out our meal on my food blog…  Jeff grilled a Pork Tenderloin using his favorite marinade, I created two brand new experimental side dishes… here's a picture to give you an idea (stop licking your screen!)… Yum!!

We started the day with church, sang for the 1st service & ushered for the 2nd, and ended the day sharing a nice meal together...  All in all a very nice day!!  I always feel spoiled when I get to spend a whole day with my Sweetheart!! Feeling very Blessed!!

A Welcome Change in the Weather!!

I guess I can't complain… here in the North we had only an abbreviated version of the heat wave that's been hitting most of the country… but after a week of sweltering heat its sure nice to have things back to normal!

View from the porch during the rain...

The weather finally broke last night, about 7pm, when a bit of rain came through… not a violent storm by any stretch of imagination, but it ushered in cool breezes & temps in the low 80s (it had been about 100 before the rain)…

The sun is out & the rain has stopped...

Kitty got brave & came out once the rain stopped...

I sat outside on the porch… it was just so nice I couldn't resist!!  The birds were singing & flying about in the rain… lovely!  After the rain stopped my hubby & my kitty joined me on the porch… it was just such a lovely evening…  

When I woke this morning I checked the temperature outside, it was in the 60s… just where it should be in July in Minnesota… Not one to waste a nice day (hubby had to work today) I went outside & checked on the gardens… yep, lots of work to do after being kept out of the flower beds for a week (sigh).  Some of the flowers seem to have enjoyed the hot weather (like my Liatris above).

Next I headed out to the St Paul Farmer's Market… I had in mind to get some good vegetables (check) as well as some flowers for an empty spot in the yard (check)… The picture above is just a glimpse of the market… lots of wonderful stuff!!  Pictured below is this week's "loot"…

Red & White Radishes

Napa Cabbage

Red Onions

Green Onions

Patty-Pan Squash

Green Beans

Cucumbers

Little Red Potatoes

Six new types of plant for my yard (3 of each type)

Finally I put on my gardening shoes & got busy planting… 

What?  You don't have a pair of these designer shoes?

New plants from the Farmer's Market tucked into their bed...

My planting is done & the day is a bit more than half over, I've done a good deal of work, and I'm ready to put my feet up for a while… hopefully hubby will be getting home soon…

Happy Independence Day!!

Happy 4th of July… I decided to start my celebration early today…

God Bless America!!  Wishing all a safe & festive holiday!!


(for Waffle recipe click here)

Good Friends, Good Food, Good Fellowship, Good Fun!

We had a small get together with friends Friday night, it was absolutely picture perfect weather for an evening out on the patio…

Our new umbrellas being put to good use!

This is a group of dear friends, our Small Group from Church that we meet with regularly during the school-year, and we try to make sure to get together a couple times in Summer. 

We enjoy having friends over, but don't get around to it often… like most people these days our lives are quite busy.

Jeff the Grill-master!

Jeff got to use both his smoker (for Ribs) and his grill (for Chicken)… he loves being the Grill-master at home, and I'm happy to leave this part of the cooking to him.

The shade from our new umbrellas made our deck just that much nicer for those (like me) who are a bit more fair skinned & sensitive to the sun… we were able to hang out there for a few hours…

And for those who wanted sun there was plenty of that as well, and it was a comfortable temp (unlike our weather the last day or so) for the sun-lovers.

Jim & Jeff hanging out while Jeff is busy grilling...

It was Pot Luck, so everyone brought something to contribute to the meal… and it was all Yummy!!

We brought out an extra table & chairs for dinner (too many to fit on just one table) & moved the second umbrella by the tables, so everyone (except Susan our mega-sun-loving friend) was able to eat dinner in the shade.


We had such a good time… I love this very special group of Christian friends… We are So Blessed!!

Garden Visitors...

Other than the bunnies, who continue to be voracious rodents, I've had some other visitors to the garden lately… most are regulars, and I enjoy their company…

Bumble Bee at the Honeysuckle….

I don't mind Bees… I actually enjoy their company… I was fortunate to have a family whose members included some Beekeepers, and I learned very young how to act/react around Bees… and luckily I'm not allergic to their sting (amazing since I'm allergic to just about everything else)… I especially enjoy the Bumble Bees, they are a bit slower in their movements so as not to startle me, and they have a beautiful buzz…  They are happy to come very near to me, frequently I'll be ready to dead-head a flower & I'll hold the flower & wait for the bee to finish before I do my job...

Chickadee at the Feeder.

I love Chickadees, they're just so darned cute!!  I really impressed myself with this shot, its hard to get a good picture of these little cuties (I only have a little Cannon PowerShot) because they move so fast…

Nuthatch on the Oak Tree.

The Nuthatches are another favorite local bird… I love the way they like to cling face down to the bark of my Oak trees… 

Tiny little grasshopper on the leaves of a Day Lily.

Another tiny grasshopper on a Salvia bloom cluster.

Ok, I know grasshoppers can be destructive, but I've not noticed any damage from these little guys, and I don't often see them… so I enjoyed these tiny little guys - they were kinda cute!!


Hope you enjoyed meeting some of my friends!!