Cottage garden flower.

What a gorgeous Saturday this has been here at the Lakehouse!

Not one cloud in sight.

I know I already showed you the Hollyhocks.

They are all abloom today, and look so beautiful! I just had to show them to you one more time.

The colors are magnificent!

Don't you just love these double yellow pair?

My favorites are the old fashion pale pinks, and whites.

There are so many lovely colors this year.

Oh how I love Hollyhocks.

They are the perfect flowers for a cottage garden, don't you think?

Loving summer!

Whew...it's been really hot the past few days.

I don't mind at all.

That's what summer is all about.

The cold weather will be here soon enough.

So, as far as the heat and humidity goes...I say...bring it on!!!

Mr. L pulled out some bushes so I can plant more roses.

I'd like to put in another climber, and maybe a couple of rose bushes.

I'm going to the greenhouse tomorrow to find some light pink roses.

The clematis just started to flower.

It's usually full of blooms by July 4th.

I recently bought a glass wind chime to hang over the kitchen sink. 

It sounds so pretty when the breeze blows in through the window.

I love how the shelf looks even from the outside.

I have the weekend off. I'm anxious to work on the new little rose garden tomorrow.
Oh, I just found some lovely rose dishes at a sweet little "cottage" shop. I put them on lay away. I brought home a few pieces, and will do a post when I bring them all home.
I've really been bitten by the rose bug.
Have a wonderful Friday everyone!
~~~~~*****~~~~~

Flowers and friends

While watering the flowers today, I found some friends enjoying the sunshine.

My favorite flower fairy was sitting on a mound of moss soaking up some sun.

Along came a bumble bee...he was checking out what flowers were ready to give him his dose of nectar for lunch.

This wee fairy has been around for years.

She's had her share of accidents on her journey...but she seems to return to these gardens year after year.

She seems to settle in different spots each year.

I think she is just as beautiful as the day she first arrived at the Lakehouse.

The sweet little cherub thinks these petunias need a few prayers.

Actually they look a little droopy, because they were just watered.

They will perk up in just a bit, and be just as pretty as ever.

The bluebird is enjoying these darling little petunias this year.

I must admit, I like them too.

I hope I'm not boring you with all the pictures of my flowers.

I LOVE this time of year, and all that it brings.

Thank you for visiting here at the Lakehouse.

I appreciate you stopping by, and always leaving your nice comments.

You bless me.

Gypsies and Fairies

Good Sunday morning.

Some of the flowers are blooming here at the Lakehouse.

It's a cloudy day, but the flowers always brighten things up around here.

I am NOT, and never will be a formal gardener. Especially when it comes to my Hollyhocks.

I let them grow where ever they want. I don't plant them. They just re-seed year after year. They travel all over the place! I call them the "gypsies" of the gardens.

             

One year they will all be inside the fence, and the next year they will be outside!  This year they all grew along the driveway.

                                 
                                  One year the stalks will be over ten feet tall, and then there are times when they are only five feet high???? This year it's a mixture of tall and short, and everything in between.



 Among the Gypsies there are other little pretties growing....like little fairies dancing in the shadows...wild and free.
                                 

                              I LOVE the pinks, and whites of the Hollyhocks. My Grandma grew them behind her shed every year. My mother said they were weeds. I thought they were the most beautiful weeds in the world, and knew I would grow them in my own gardens when I grew up.

                                  The Purple Veronica love dancing with the other little "fairies" in the gardens.


                         I'm sure, to some of you this may look like a mess...but for me, I LOVE the look of flowers growing together in a natural look.  Some of the beds are groups of like flowers. Then some are like this...a jumble of happy flowers, growing together...unbalanced...yet a sight that brings a smile to my face every time I walk by.
I wonder who the real Gypsy is?
                                    

There's no place like home.

I'm home.

I've been away for ten days.

My oldest daughter and her husband went to Mexico for their 10 year anniversary, so I took care of their three children.

It was a looooong ten days.

As you can see, I have this pretty jelly jar lid which I received from Sandi at A Cottage Muse.

I thought it would be a nice design, and pretty colors for my bedroom.

On my way downstate, I stopped and bought Rachel Ashwell's Shabby Chic quilt and pillow shams from Target. I also picked up the round pillow, and a set of Shabby Chic sheets.

I have the ruffled sheet sets, and also a set of the pink roses. Love them all!

This time I purchased the embroidered set of sheets.

I usually decorate with all whites.

Lately, I'm using more pinks, and roses.

I love the romantic look of the roses, and ruffles.

Since growing roses this summer, I seem to want them inside more and more.

I love the reverse side of the quilt as much as the top!

I opened the curtains today, and let the breeze carry the wonderful fragrance of the roses, under the bedroom window, into the room...mmmmmm.

It's true when Dorothy said....."There's no place like home".

First time rose grower

This is a first for me.

I LOVE roses!

I've tried growing them so many times, but have never been successful at it.

Laurie, from Heaven's Walk, has gorgeous roses growing everywhere around her house.

Every time I visit her house, I am amazed at how beautiful, and healthy her roses are.

I visit other blogs and see all of their roses, and wonder why I cannot seem to grow them here at the Lakehouse.

Last year we put some climbing roses in. Mr. L worked with me, fertilizing, and working the soil.

I am pleased to report....we have roses!!!!

We added two more climbers this year, and are happy to see roses on those bushes too!

I was dead-heading today, and brought in four of the roses that were just too pretty to throw away.

They are on their last leg, but still lovely.

The light pink are so fragrant!!!

I don't even know the names of any of the roses yet.

I have to look at the tags I kept for each one.

I purchased mostly buff pink colors, but do have one white one.

I think we have seven roses now...but I am sure I hear more calling to me......what??? you need an arbor to grow on???  who said that???!!!

Lovin' some new old stuff.

I feel like Diana (Nana Diana Takes A Break) today.

Excited to find something "old" that makes your heart skip a beat.

Something other than my old husband.

To some, this may look like a ratty old wicker table found at a second hand store.

To me, it's a breath of fresh air.

We've been painting the trim on the house.

The shutters went from drab grey, to linen...as did the porch.

The railings, and window boxes all got a fresh coat of white paint.

I'm looking for pieces for this porch.

The opposite corner, with the nasty electric box thingies, has a sweet, old wicker chair I found at the same shop this table was found.

I can't cover the stupid electric box thingies,because the meter readers complain when I do that.

So I kept the area free this year.

It still looks kind of sparse out there.

Oh well, at least when I look out the door, I don't see the ugly chipped up porch floor, and gross dark grey rain gutter, and drab shutters anymore.

Now it's bright, and cheerful...and lookin' like new!

Dang, I still have to clip those metal hooks off the flower baskets.....
Gonna go love my new old porch some more.
Enjoy your weekend!
xxoo

A scarecrow and wood trim

Hello to everyone that has come to visit here at the lakehouse today.

It was a beautiful day.

Mr. L and I spent the entire day outside.

One of the things we did was make this handy, dandy scarecrow.

Living at the lake is nice....most of the time.

Watching the wildlife walk through your yard in the middle of winter is kind of cool.

Having them visit your yard in the summer months to raid your flower, and vegetable gardens is NOT so cool.

Bear raiding the bird feeders...not cool.

Eagles swooping down to scoop up little pets...not cool.

Coyotes sneaking in at night to nab cats, and dogs, not cool.

Deer, and rabbits eating out of gardens(vegetable and flower) NOT cool!!!!!

They keep eating the Hollyhock leaves..grrrrrrrrr!

That is why we put together the scarecrow today.

Hopefully she will deter the critters from feeding on my flowers.

Something else we did was use some trim my daughter gave us from her house that she bought two years ago.

Melissa didn't care for all the Victorian trim on the house, so she had it all removed. 

I gladly brought it home, to use here at the Lakehouse...somewhere.

I finally decided it would look sweet on the window boxes.

It reminds me of lace on a shelf.

I also pulled lots of weeds in the scarecrow garden today.

I'm ready to give Bella a bath, then hit the shower myself.

I hope you had an enjoyable day.
It's back to work at the pharmacy tomorrow.
Have a nice evening everybody!
Toodles.
xxoo