Snippets of Summer

Lovely summer days... fleeting sweet moments in time... passing through our lives... moments enjoyed to the fullest, savored in joy.... busy days, full days... and now days that I am wondering where did the summer go to?

Our local ski resort had a festival offering free rides on the ski lift.  It was an incredibly beautifully clear day which was such a bonus!

As I looked back through my pictures, I realized I had missed sharing several events with you, and so this post is going to be a hodgepodge of sorts... little tidbits of the good days of summer we've had here this year :)

My daughter and I rode the ski lift to the top, and such a beautiful view was seen! 

There was a lovely stream cascading down the mountain following the path of the ski lift. 

The view was spectacular!  Everyone was amazed at how clear it was up there... as usually the clouds hide part of the horizon. 

At the top, my daughter and I decided we were going to hike back down the mountain. The line to go back down the mountain on the ski lift was 30-45 minutes long!    

There were many trails leading down, and we just picked one and went with it.  It was an awesome workout, with an incredible view! 

I just had to stop and not just catch my breath from the downward trek, but from the view spread out before us.

At the top of the mountain these lupins were growing... don't they look like Texas bluebonnets?

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One evening we went to this nearby lake.  Friends of ours brought their canoe, and we took our little fishing boat.

The evening rays of sun washed the world with beauty.

We had a hilarious time on the lake.  Our little fishing boat does not not have a trolling motor, and no big motors are allowed.  So we had to paddle our fishing boat around.  Our boat was not made to row.... and trying to get it to go in a straight line was ..... well.... rather silly to watch!



So our friends tied our boat to their canoe, and pulled us along... and we managed to maneuver around the lake a little easier after that. LOL!

Lots of algae and lilies growing along the edges of the lake. 

Beautiful wildflowers along the banks.

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Speaking of flowers... this beautiful verbena is blooming in my garden...

Kale is growing abundantly this year.

My husband and father found this little wagon for me at the dump, and I've filled it with some flowers that I started from seed... in vintage containers.. aka coffee cans, lol!

This is an Indigo Rose tomato plant that I purchased from a local gardener.  The tomatoes look like little plums, and have the most delicious flavor, so that you could eat them like a plum! I have never eaten a purple tomato before, but they are soooo good! Try one if you ever get a chance :)

The hummingbirds are keeping me busy refilling their feeders almost on a daily basis!

A tom turkey brave enough to enter the hen's domain... and it wasn't but a few seconds after I snapped the picture that the hens chased him away, lol!

The summer full moon was bright and beautiful with the gathered clouds below adding an air of mystery to the view.

We went to the local Timber Days parade... it is always an impressive sight to see all the log trucks lined up loaded with their timber driving down Main Street.

This fancy truck caught my eye... it wasn't in the parade, but it sure was purty!

Bright colorful floats are always fun to see.

And lots of candy for the children...

My husband and I took a drive and stopped at the lake... it was a beautiful day with cotton candy clouds in the sky.

We went to a little state park and hiked along its rocky beach.

It was late afternoon, and the sun was sitting low in the sky... a perfect time to enjoy the beauty of the river.

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Friends of ours are buying their very first home.  Some renovating  had to be done before they could move in.  This is how the house looked before... 

Another before view looking into the kitchen. 

And an after view of the newly installed floors, painting, and trim.  It was not finished when I took this picture, but you get the idea... a great new look.

It is amazing what paint and new flooring can do for a home!  They plan on moving in this weekend, as the purchase of the house was just finalized.  Only life can throw a curveball like this - the house closed on the same day that our friend's sister flew in from England with her family to attend the wedding this Saturday of their sister, and on the same week that they need to move into the new house, with company in tow!  The Lord is giving them grace to accomplish all that needs to be done, and we have helped them as much as we can.

Indeed, there has been so much happening around here, and summer seems to be sliding into third base, and headed for the home base!   We have had some cooler weather lately with highs in the 60s, and lots of rain.  We are not complaining about the rain!  So happy and thankful that this year we don't have the terrible concern for forest fires, as we have been blessed with rain all summer long.  My garden is coming along slowly, truthfully - all the cool weather has slowed it down, but I am anticipating a nice crop of vegetables still, and holding out hope that we don't get an early frost!

Our calendars tell us that all seasons have about equal days in them... but summer just really seems to fly by, while winter drags its feet... and so we are enjoying the most of every moment that summer has to offer us... and when the weather cools down, the days get shorter, and the fall colors are bright... I hope to have more time to visit all of my dear friends in "blogland".  :)

I hope to be back sometime next week to share pictures of the wedding this weekend.  :)