Things bloom here too…

I have loved portulaca since my childhood in NJ where they bloomed with abandon.  They did not do so well on the coast, but here once again I have portulaca blooms to enjoy.

French Marigolds are up for the job most anywhere…

And Nasturtium have answered the call bravely in this hot dry space. 

The ‘Pot Marigold’ (officially Calendula) blooms here too, with that classic ‘bloom where you’re planted’  look.  I hope that I shall do as well.

There have been no travels this week, so I’ve taken time to finish up a picnic quilt for Rachel’s (just past) 20th birthday...

… made from old jumpers, jeans and skirts from our family’s  past life.

And I’ve commenced my second-ever illustrated journal.  The first page is a joint celebration of the harvesting of the Black Currants and the purchase of some Crayola markers just for fun!

and the next is my official just-learning-to-Doodle page….

And such have been the ‘blooms’ of my week.

--LS

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Eph.2:10

Road Trip and Tandem Rally

We traveled back to the coast last week for what has become an annual event for us

—The Northwest Tandem Rally! 

Having moved away since we had registered meant we had a longer drive to get there than anticipated.  Bellingham, Washington used to be relatively close to home—not any more. 

But the 9+ hour drive to and fro was scenic…

…even spectacular!

[This is Diablo Lake. The surreal color is the result of glacial silt suspended in the water and reflecting its surroundings.]

And the Rally itself was a grand one with 400 other tandem teams joining us for 4 days of  rides in and around Bellingham, Washington! 

That’s my captain in the front as 400 bikes gather to kick off the Rally with a 4th of July ride, a 61-miler for those who chose the  long route! 

How do you capture 400 tandem bikes in a picture?  I couldn’t.  But Jim put together a little video of snippets from the rally which will give you the flavor of the thing without the sore muscles!

Join us for the ride!

 

Though there’s nothing quite like riding a tandem bike in the company of other tandem bikes (think FAST and FAR), the very best part is the few special couples you get to know a bit and look forward to seeing for years to come.  It’s a pretty special bunch of couples that have figured out how to ride together and enjoy it! 

And it was good to get back to the coast again

After the Rally we took our time heading home to do some favorite rides…

And visit some favorite people--two of our daughters!

Whew! It was quite a week.

--LS

The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth,
and even for evermore. Ps.121:8

 

Flutter-bies and Friends…

 I got to go ‘birding’ again last week.  We hiked along a little string of lakes and wetlands and listened for birds… My most interesting find was the American Three-toed Woodpecker, apparently not a common find for most people—yay! I spotted something (though I had to be told what it was!)

I must confess I was soon distracted by things more easily seen and photographed--

like this “White Bog Orchid”…

And these sweet fairy bells—”Twinflowers”

And trying to name the trees.

And by the last stop I found myself stalking unidentified butterflies and dragonflies through a meadow-like marsh quite oblivious to birdsong…

 

 

And all this before ten in the morning.

Wonderful way to start the day!

--LS

Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered. Ps.40:5 KJV

Close to home…

How silly was I to think I’d miss the blooms of lupine once we’d moved? 

I chuckle still to see it in such profusion on my walk just down the road from the house…

!

The ever-spectacular tiger lily is here too…

And grand vistas are just a short walk away…

And to power the valley there are dams…

I love the trees with white britches…

And always the flowers draw my lens…

Just out the  window grows my own pot of moss rose (and scabiosa--such an unpleasant sounding name)  which were never very happy on the cool coast but flourish here ( :

Lovely.

--LS