We're braving the heat

The heat that has gripped the area is slightly less brutal up here, but it is still hot enough to force us to do the outside work in the mornings and evenings.  The middle of the day finds us inside with the air conditioning on.  Yesterday I spent the day doing errands off the mountain and saw just how hot it was!  Because it is a 40 minute drive to Target and Lowes, we tend to make our errand days quite full and do them less often, so we don't usually experience the full southern summer weather.  Sometimes, though, Ace Hardware and the Dollar Store just won't do.

Becky, Scott, and kids visited for the long Memorial Day weekend.  I had been in Ohio for a few weeks before then and drove down from Ohio with them.  Gary had the house and yard all in order, including the fairy house nestled against a tree in our back.  These are some pictures we took during that visit.

I am still volunteering at the library.  The money to purchase books comes from donations and  twice yearly iris sales.  Our 91 year old librarian has a large bed of iris which he tends.  Twice a year he divides the plants and sells the bulbs/rhyzomes.  He has been working in his garden for weeks and last Saturday he set up tables outside the library.  Each type of iris was placed in a separate box with a picture of the flower attached.  There was quite a crowd as this has become a well-known event and every single bulb sold, making over $700 for book purchases.  Bill was grinning ear to ear as we closed up the library.

Our garden seems to be thriving.  We weren't sure if that area got enough sunlight, but today I counted 16 tomatoes so I think next year we can go bigger.  Now if only nature would take care of watering it for us instead of us having to reel out the hose!