Ryan and Izzy on Paper Dolls.

I feel like I lost the entire month of July to sickness!  

For a couple of weeks all I did was water outside, 

watch Chinese TV on YouTube,

and attempt to feed myself and Quinn.

I continue to improve, coughing only a little now.  

Energy level is slowing improving.

A little housework is being done, 

Oh my goodness that so needs to be done.

I've even made it down to the studio a couple of evenings!

Didn't do much more than press some fabric for the next new project.

The weather cooled off a little, we had several inches of rain over several days.

I haven't needed to water but it looks like mowing is going to have to happen again!

Plus, the weeds undaunted by hot dry conditions have run off with my gardens!

I'm trying to weed a bit each day.

The experiment with Corn, Beans and Squash seems to be a bust.

The Squash, gourds and cucumbers are all being attacked by squash beetles , and the beans are being eaten alive by bugs and bunnies alike.

The three sisters tradition is hard to understand-here in Missouri the Osage Indians planted Corn, beans and pumpkins in the spring and then everyone went off to the plains on a big hunt.  How did they ever get anything from those plants they just left alone all summer?

It's a mystery.

 

Stargazing

Not at the night sky but at the lovely blooms of Stargazer lilies.

Most of the flowers have stopped blooming as it has been horrid hot lately.  

The Gardens are looking rather pathetic!

The corn is tasseled and a few cobs are forming but they still aren't tall enough  or strong enough to allow the beans to use them as stakes.  I have put some wooden stakes in that bed to hold the beans up and they are flopping over the top.  They do at least have beans forming.  The French beans I planted in the raspberry bed have been eaten to the stem by rabbits, sigh.  They might recover but if they do the rabbits will likely get them again!

The grape and cherry tomatoes have given me several "Tastes"

The weather this year has gone from unusual Cool (60'sF), wet weather to hot (90'sF), dry  weather practically overnight-no one likes it.  The only good thing about that heat is that blue grass doesn't grow above 90F so I don't have to mow until the weeds get tall.

The hot and dry means I have to water most every day, I do wonder why it doesn't bother the weeds!

Such an exciting topic but seriously nothing much is going on here.  I haven't been sewing much (or keeping house for that matter) with the heat I have trouble sleeping which leaves me tired most of the time.  This too shall pass.

 

Help!

I need opinions!

 

Add a second blue border or not?

Blueberries!

Have arrived!

This is the second picking.-I ate the first.

Took the picture before I could eat the second!

Only one of the 4 plants is ripening but all have  berries.

(There are early, middle and late season plants so this one must be the early.)

This is the third year for them so the harvest will be small yet.

It always makes be happy to have something in the garden produce!

I have also picked some radishes, they are still too small but very tasty.

Today there were two ripe cherry tomatoes!

I ate them!

 

Awakened at 1:30am

. . . by my phone screaming a tornado warning!  Really gets the adrenaline flowing!

Mind you when I went to bed there was absolutely no mention of any kind of extreme weather, just that there might be thunderstorms going through about 1:30-2:00

Fortunately, this spin-up tornado was pretty far North of me and did relatively little damage-just to trees and power lines-then lifted back up into the clouds.  There were a couple of other radar indicated twisters and straight line winds of 75MPH but again not near me.  Actually, I don't know about the wind as I was in the studio, watching the weather radar.  As soon as the leading edge of the storm passed I went back to bed.

One of the last Zoom chats with the Chookshed stitchers there were some questions about tornados.  I've talked about them before and you see the wreckage caused by tornados on the news.  They can certainly be destructive IF (and it's  big one) you are directly in it's path.  The largest tornados I've heard of are about a mile wide and are the extremely devastating EF5's.   (Joplin, Missouri and Greensburg, Kansas)  So the destruction might be 2 miles wide if you count the damage created by spinning debris.  That said, EF 5's are fairly rare and outside of their direct path there will be wind damage etc but houses, buildings etc are not usually destroyed. 

Most tornados are no where near that big, they drop out of  the clouds travel a ways-sometimes a mile, sometimes a few miles, rarely several hundred miles then they lift back into the clouds.  These smaller ones can do considerable damage but again you have to be in their path or very close.  Much has been learned about the weather conditions that are likely to create tornados and the identification of tornados on radar has improved so much that debris spinning in a tornado is visible on it. Because of that there is generally ample warning to take cover-cue cell phone screaming at you, city wide sirens, etc.

Think about them in comparison to a Hurricane/cyclone.  Those are several hundreds miles wide with very high winds.  They spawn tornados and water spouts on the outer edges but the damage they create is widespread and then there's the storm surge damage.  While I can't evacuate in advance of a tornado, I can read those hook echos on radar pretty well myself  or watch the TV broadcasts about the storm.  All in the safety of my studio-if it's coming near I head for the laundry room (about 10 steps) which, excepting the door is cement on all 6 sides. 

Even though I understand more about them and the odds are against my ever being directly hit by one, I remain terrified of them.  I was a child in tornado alley when there was little understanding of tornados and no emergency warning systems except for police sirens running up and down the roads.  

This morning there was nothing to worry about.  

So, all I lost was 45 minutes of sleep.

  

Sunday in the Garden

 I thought you might like to see my gardens!

The rail boxes are about finished-I think I need two more pots of flowers.

Also there is lettuce planted in one, Morning Glories in one and Scarlet Runner beans in another. 

The new (and tiny) herb garden is in front of this one!

(Quinn decided she was going to be in this one!)

On the other side of the patio is the Hosta garden!

The leaves on the ones in the back are as big as platters!

All have survived the transplanting of last year-some will need another year, maybe two to reach their mature size but it looks nice.

Now for the Veggie garden!

Bed one is planted with the Three Sisters.

Squash to shade the ground, beans to bring nitrogen to the soil and corn to give the beans something to vine on.  This is an experiment in First Nations traditional gardening.  There are two kinds of both beans and corn and four varieties of squash. 

The corn really needs to get a move on the beans are already vining!

I planted a third row of corn and beans against the fence but only one corn plant has come up.

This row wasn't in a raised bed and with all the rain-water standing on the paths-I think they will be a wash.

Bed two.

Tomatoes, carrots and radishes.  

There are hardly any beets, I just haven't had great luck with beets.

This is the whole garden area, 

Blueberries and Raspberries in the back, covered until the fruit ripens.

Between Beds one and two and the Blueberries are some gourds

and at the end of the blueberry bed are some cucumbers.

It has been very rainy here, with flood warnings.  Tonight, or rather early tomorrow we are to have heavy rain again.  I think every day but one has rain in the forecast!  I have paved roads so Chooky has it worse!  

I am tired of it though, mowing through standing water or mud is not fun!

 

Paper Dolls for Izzy. . .

 is finally FINISHED!

After washing none of the "Dolls" are bubbling up from the backing~

Thank goodness.

You can see my beginnings here!

It's seemed like a very long road and I am thrilled that I have reached the end.

I bought WAY too much binding fabric so I'm going to make a pillowcase to match.

I hope I can get a photo of Izzy with it in a couple of weeks.

This is the quilt all laid out on the floor!

Next up~ Tumbler Confetti.