Summer Showers

We’ve had quite a few rainy days lately.  It does make it hard to get lots of outside work done.  Luckily, my mom and I spent quite a bit of time yesterday weeding the garden because it finally dried out enough from the last rounds of rain.

I was hoping we would be on the miss side of the hit-and-miss rain overnight.  That way I could cultivate today.

But now it’s way too muddy to get in the garden, and we have more rain chances for this evening.

At least the rain is making everything grow well.

I don’t really mind the break from outside work.  It gives me a chance to slow down and just enjoy things.

grape vine growing by my house–I have plans for this vine

lily

raspberries are turning

grape leaf

yucca

morning glory

I think I’m getting too old for a lot of the hard work on the farm.  The goats are not fans of rain and mud either.  Purl seemed a bit surprised by the mud when she came out of the barn.

Hilda with Stitch and Purl checking out the puddles and mud in the barnyard

Don’t worry.  Her mom took her back in and found a nice safe place for both Stitch and Purl to sleep where nobody was going to accidentally step on them.

Purl and Stitch tucked behind a gate to sleep.

Some goats were lounging on the picnic table to stay dry.

Astra (front) and Joy

Penelope

Others were just napping and lounging in the buildings.

Pretties

It’s quite pretty on the farm right now.  The waterways got baled right before the last rounds of rain began.  Having the waterways mowed also lets you see how the beans are growing.

I have several varieites of lilies blooming right now.

There have been lots and lots of butterflies this summer.  I think they like all of the rain.

swallowtail

I found a few wild raspberries up around my house.  This one by the deck has actually given me a few berries.  I was also fortunate enough to have someone gift me with a buck of raspberries.  Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.  They are my favorites!

I am always surprised when I find mallow blooming.  I planted it years ago, and the beds where I planted it have all been overgrown, but these little flowers keep finding places to grow.

I was also pleased to note that my white gooseneck flowers seem to be making a come back.  I really need to clean up the flower beds. They were neglected for years with my Great Pyrenees and the goats in the yard.

The barn swallows are busy raising babies.

A little fritillary.

I am also seeing a few strawberries on the plants I put in pots.  Of course, the shepherd’s hook couldn’t support them in the saturated ground, so I had to move them, but they are doing well.

I also have impatiens blooming. They were a Mother’s Day gift.

Impatiens I received for Mother’s Day.

I think all the little meadowlarks have fledges based on the number of them I’m seeing in pasture.  I can’t take more than a step or two before one flies up in front of me.

meadowlark

The yucca plant is also blooming right now.

Yucca blooms

Nothing beats Iowa’s beauty this time of year.

Bugs and Blooms

It seems like you can’t photograph a flower without a bug on them, so I quit trying.  Here’s what’s blooming at Eden Hills right now.

day lily

bee balm

sunflower

bumblebee on bee balm

admiral butterfly on alfalfa

nearly blooming hosta

day lily

admiral butterfly on alfalfa

sunflower and bugs

some weird little spider that I don’t know what kind it is on a lily

Yucca

What’s blooming in your neck of the woods?

Sharing with Macro Monday, I Heart Macro, and Monday Mellow Yellows.