Yikes...

it's been over two weeks since I've posted here - where did the time go, and what the heck have I been up to?

In that time, I've said goodbye to daughter Rochelle as she moved back to Vermilion for year two of her Animal Health Technologist training.  The house seems very quiet without her and her two vociferous pooches.

We've dismantled the library show,

 and filled the home gallery again.

The produce from the garden, always lush and plentiful, has been appearing magically in the kitchen.

Fortunately, John is as adept as I at taking care of what the garden elves bring in, and so far we're managing to keep up with it.

In the studio, I'm in assembly mode, as I push myself to get a second book ready for the show at Sunny Raven in Canmore, happening on September 20 and 21 - just a couple of weeks away - yikes again.  

I've been stringing, 

glueing,

and playing assembly-line Nellie until the cows come home, and we don't even have any!

I hope your summer has been just as chock full - I know I'm grateful for the bountiful life I lead here in Creston.

Tomato Time...

...has hit the back garden, and they're b. e. a. u. t. i. f. u. l.

John's heritage tomatoes range through every possible combination of colours from yellow

to orange

to red

 and from stripes

 in every combination

 to subtle blends from one colour to another.

They're not only candy for my colour pig eye, they're beautiful mandalas when cut open for eating, and the taste is beyond incredible.

This week the first deliveries will go out to Skimmerhorn Winery for their bistro, and soon more will follow to the Real Food Cafe.   Make sure you get to both places for a taste test!

How are you getting your colour fix for the summer?  Hope it's an amazing one.

I turned my back for a moment...

...and summer HIT!

With the honeysuckle flowering finished,

the day lilies in profusion,

 and these little cuties ( maximum 1" across) in flower,

 the sunflowers decided it was time!

The strawberries are near done,

and the raspberries

 and currents are just starting (sorbet on the way, Alice!).

Heaven help us - are those tomatoes ripe already?  You know what we'll be doing for the next while!

All this glorious colour brought to you courtesy of John W. Dinn, gardener extraordinaire, who is now deck-building with my brother Neal,  master reno-man!  Bless their hearts.  ♥♥♥

How's your summer going?  How are you getting your colour fix?

Well, it's gardening time again,

...I'm gonna leave you.  It's no secret to my friends that I'm intensely allergic to all forms of gardening, unless it happens to be from the viewpoint of the deck while the husband-in-residence (aka John) does it all.

Against my personal wants/wishes/desires, I knew that the time had come to get out into the iris patch.   It presently appears as though there is only one lonely iris anywhere in the area due to the horrendous infestation of quack grass which has appeared in increasing numbers every year.

We have a lovely back yard, which John has turned into a cornucopia of heritage tomatoes,

blackberries,

garlic,

and other soft fruits and vegetables too numerous to mention.

And while John's interest definitely lies in the direction of food (is that a guy-gardening thing?), I've a fondness for flowers, so he kindly indulges me.

The deck is awash in florals (with some handy-to-the-kitchen tomatoes thrown in for good measure) where even the barbeque is now ready for summer.

Of course you're wondering how the iris patch is looking after all my intensive weeding, so I thought I'd take a second photo...

I like it much better this way.

It's a mystery...

...to me how a scant few seeds can go from this,

One of John's heritage tomato patches

to this,

Running from the imminent frost

 to this,

Snuck out from the pantry

in just a few months.  This planet is an amazing place, and I'm sure we live in one of the best spots here in the Creston Valley, if only for the colour!

Looking for more colour in your life?  Check out the upcoming Colour Boot Camp at College of the Rockies in Cranbrook - registration closes Tuesday, October 9, so now is the time to do it.