that's a wrap!

 Still hot and dry.

The heat, though, means that the garden is still producing.  I'm getting a ton of tomatoes...and the flowers look great!

ageratum

celosia

cosmos

zinnias

Where there are flowers, there are insects.  

leaf-footed bug

katydid

milkweed bugs, adult

milkweed bug, juvenile

planthopper

Still spiders about...

orb weaver

...and butterflies!

silver checkspot butterfly

A lacewing larva, nearly hidden beneath a camouflaging pile of fluff.

A mantis, drawn by our many moths, has been hanging around by our front door.  I am not a fan.

Check out those formidable weapons!

Other creatures are still creeping, too.

fowler's toad

I'd been seeing caterpillars everywhere, but they vanished in the last week.  Just a few tussock caterpillars still hanging around.  

I've been trying to get into the fall spirit despite the high temps.  I'm baking more...

apple fritter bread

...and knitting again.

not quite half of a wrap

I haven't had too much free time, but I try to take 15 minutes at least a few times a week to work on a puzzle.  Here is my setup:

real drafting table covered in felt, so I don't have to hunch over a table that's parallel to the floor!

I've usually got a puzzle going at any given time.  I've got a lot to choose from!  I pick them up at thrift stores pretty regularly, and occasionally buy them new, if I see one that I really like.  

There are two rows of stacks on the floor, and the three stacks in the center are puzzles that I haven't gotten to yet.  These are next in line to be completed.  I finally got this mess organized and pulled out a ton to donate last week!  More will be on the chopping block...I really need to thin this down.

Pepita is doing well!  She's got a new cat-filled territory...

...the kitchen and the living room!  It's gone a lot smoother than expected.  No territory beefs.  If all goes well, she'll get a hallway and another room next week.  I think we'll be more excited, because we've been hassling with baby gates all over and we can finally get rid of them!  

She has just graduated to thirty minute daily walks...

Waiting to be released!

Puppies have developing joints, so you have to slo-o-o-owly extend their walking times, 5 minutes per month of age.  She'll be able to walk for a full hour by April, just in time for our long spring hikes!  We just have to work up to it.

In other news, I was reading about a really beautiful sea slug last week...and this week, I spotted a shirt at the thrift store that looked almost exactly like it!  Of course I had to buy it.

The sea slug (called a nudibranch) is a little more turquoise.  I am 100% knitting a sweater in these colors sometime.  

Cooler temps should be coming soon!  I can't wait.  Have a great week!  

 

peeler healer

I changed clothes three times today.  This morning, the temperature was 65 but it was humid, so I wore a sweatshirt and jean capris.  By noon, I was starting to get warm, so I put on a long sleeve t-shirt.  By 3 p.m., the sun came out, and the temperature rose to 75 degrees...that's t-shirt weather.  This is pretty common for early fall around here!  I'll be glad to finally put away my summer clothes.

More early fall stuff...it's apple picking time!

Where you have apples, you have critters...

deer scat

...and bugs.

unknown beetle larvae

Todd got the ladder out again and picked as many as he could reach.  I decided to start working through the pile so put on a podcast and peeled for two hours.  The next day, I could barely move.  The lamest middle-age injury ever...I'd pinched a nerve in my upper back (Todd helpfully reminded me that I've actually incurred much more ridiculous injuries than an apple peeling one)!  Thankfully, my mother-in-law ordered this astounding and life-changing gadget for us:

We also bought a deep freeze to accommodate the apples and tomatoes this year (and, in leaner years, individual muffin-tin ice cream cakes).  My back is almost back to normal, so I can start tackling this job:

I'm also experimenting with apple recipes.  So far, I've determined that I just don't like apple crisp...the filling is always too dry and the topping seems a bit sparse.  Apple cobbler is a little too decadent (so much butter!).  I've had better luck with plain apple cake, substituting pumpkin for the oil and reducing the sugar.  I'm still experimenting, but will post a recipe when I settle on one.

The weather had continued to be warm, and I'm still seeing lots of creatures.  

Rabbits...

Lots of katydids (they're drawn to our porch lights):

So many turkey vultures:

Even an intrepid eastern box turtle.

He was being bothered by one of the many yellow jackets that were swarming the apples:  

Look at that gorgeous shell!

Leaves are changing, slowly...

Like clockwork, boneset has burst to life along the sides of our daily hiking trail.

Boneset has been used for centuries for its amazing anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties.  It was the go-to herb for dengue fever (colloquially, "breakbone fever"), an illness that caused incredible pain in the bones.  Boneset alleviated the pain, giving it its unique name.  I look forward to it every fall.  It's nice to see delicate white flowers against the bright colors of the changing leaves!

Otherwise, loving all the berries...

shrub honeysuckle

...and lazy cats, lolling in the early fall sun!

Frances

"The Barnacle"

Have a great week!

hobble wobble

Recently, I've experienced a perfect storm for photography-quashing.  Our mild summer temperatures shot up, so we've got the normal excruciating heat + high humidity that keeps me inside the house as much as possible.  Additionally, I developed a soul-crushing case of plantar fasciitis that had me barely able to walk (thankfully, I'm hobbling around a bit better now after a week of ice and stretches).  If those combined things weren't enough, I was gamely out taking photos last week and suddenly...the black bar of death.

My camera shutter shattered.  It can be repaired, but it's probably best to just buy a new camera.  So, as I wade through recommendations and technical details, no new pictures.  I have to rely on the backlog from the past few weeks.  Thankfully, there's a lot.  

A common theme over the past month...so many butterflies!

Five!

So many rabbits.

Goldfinches everywhere.

The cutting garden is blazing with color!  I haven't gotten many photos of it, but...

Insects abound.

katydid

spiny-backed orb weaver (technically not an insect, but...)

bees are busy!

walnut sphinx moth

twice-stabbed stink bug

green stink bug nymph

Inside, cats are being cats. 

Still not allowed on the dining room table...

new toy

Todd is still working in the yard.

setting up tomato enclosure earlier this summer

burning weeds after a quick downpour

The summer is passing quickly!  We just celebrated our 16th anniversary...

2008!

...and our anniversary means that summer is on its way out.  I purposefully chose August for our wedding because August is my least favorite month and I wanted to have something to celebrate!  August in Indiana is always hot, humid, and dry.  But it's only three weeks until September! Now September...I love September.

I am impatiently waiting.

Have a great week!