A tad sleep deprived.
Don has been having trouble sleeping. So I have trouble sleeping. Sometimes I have to leave the cushy comfort of our bed and sleep on the sofa in the den. Which is not so cushy.
So I’m dealing with the usual irritated eyes and slightly-on-edge feeling I get when I’m really, really tired.
This, too, shall pass.
The rudbeckia is still going strong throughout the garden. That splash of bright yellow goes a long way when you’re dealing with an end-of-August garden. So cheery!
I ordered a canvas of my favorite photo of Riley and Scout and it arrived yesterday:
I’m so pleased with the way it turned out. (It’s actually much more striking than this photo would indicate.) When Don came in the door and saw it, he got pretty emotional. As did I. We’re not sure yet where we’re going to hang it, but we’ll figure it out.
As Don said, they’re communicating in a way that only they can communicate. It’s private.
And Mr. Riley got framed.
We might wait to hang this until we get the watercolor of Winston. Then we’ll figure it all out.
I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to see these portraits on our living room wall (which is now becoming a sort of second gallery wall, in addition to the one by the stairs.) We feel like our kids are back home with us. It helps to ease the pain and sense of loss that we’ve been feeling. Shanna, you have blessed us. Thank you.
I’m such a goon! Those blue flowers in the Memorial Garden are Forget-me-nots, not Four o’clocks!
Happy Thursday.
Awwww. You’ve blessed us, too, in ways you’ll never know.
Love that shot of those two furry friends communicating thoughts we can only imagine.
I know. I find it so touching. It was a magical moment and I’m lucky I was right there with my camera.
It made me chuckle that you “forgot” that they are Forget-Me-Nots!!!! Too funny!! Isn’t it true that the gardens are fading. That bright yellow is surely what is needed now. My zinnias are still blooming, too, which helps. My MG is climbing like crazy…… I have seen one flower. One. sigh.
The pictures of the pups are wonderful and they will surely brighten your days during the upcoming months when the flowers are finished. All of those memories!
Oh, the irony of forgetting Forge-Me-Nots! My zinnias are just starting to bloom and my MG and Moonflowers are climbing-but no blooms yet!
Beautiful Rudbeckia, mine were a disaster this year. Every time I see your dog paintings or photos I tear up a bit. I am sure you have read “A dog’d last will and testament”. Search the web it will make you cry too. This year one of my daughters lost her three dogs. My other lost her two. Daughter one lasted a whole week before she rescued another dog a catahulla from Texas. he was flown to NH. The other daughter is back to fostering pit bulls, in the past they have been so lovable. Just dogs who want a home.
I have read it. I can’t read it again, because I’ll cry and I’ve been crying off and on all week! I’m so sorry to hear of your daughters’ loss. It’s never anything less than heartbreaking.
You have beautiful art with the perfect subjects, your babies. I love the idea of printing photos on canvas! There’s just a different softer quality to the photo than when it’s printed on paper. A few years ago, I printed photos of my family and my brothers’ families on specially treated cotton fabric, then quilted a wall hanging for my parents. It was a fun project. I should get my act together and do another one.
Yes, you’re right, Wendy. There is a softer quality to the canvas and it really warms the room as well.
I’ve been sleeping but having weird dreams and I wake up cranky. Not a good way to start the day. I have a lot on my mind so I guess it’s coming out in dreams. Sigh! Oh that photo of Riley and Scout!!!! When I saw it yesterday on Instagram it brought tears to my eyes. Such a sweet moment. Shanna is such an amazing artist I can’t wait to see more of her work!
hugs,
Linda
I know – Don got tears in his eyes, too. It’s my absolute favorite picture of them. xoxo
Well, my husband and I are BOTH having trouble sleeping and I often (more often than not!) wind up on the uncomfortable sofa. In fact, they’re putting him through a sleep study program after Labor Day, where he goes to a facility and stays overnight. He has terribly long work days and an hour commute, so I worry very much for him and just hate seeing him so drained. I insisted he lay off of some of the freelance work this fall; it’s just too much. Frankly, his work hours affect me, too; I frequently want to go on to bed but I’m still up waiting for him to get home. We can deal with less income; his health comes first. I keep hoping things will get better when he retires from his job(s) but that’s a bit far off yet. His sleep issues have persisted for years and he refuses to take prescription meds for it; he’s totally anti-meds, for everything. But we’ve just got to get to the bottom of what’s wrong. He doesn’t have an ounce of fat on him…is tall and thin…but he was in an accident just after college (too many broken bones) and I am convinced he has underlying pain of arthritis so many years later which needs to be analyzed. With me, it’s primarily complications from menopause. Gosh, when I think of being first married…we slept like babies! I could burn the candle at both ends, party all night (as a singleton), sleep four hours and then be at the office at 8am, sharp and ready to go. Distant memory now! I have to hope it all gets better with time. I can recall my mom sleeping like a rock in her 80s!!
Hopefully, things will get better, but right now it’s a big old problem here. We’re both dragging through the day today.
I like photos done on canvas too Claudia..they just have a better quality to me..Scout and Riley’s turned out great!..and Riley looks very nice in the frame..My black-eyed-Susans keep spreading every year and I love it..They are so bright and happy like a cheerful goodbye to Summer…Wishing you both some rest tonight…
Yes, mine have spread, too! They keep popping up in new areas of the big garden bed. I really love that!
Claudia, I am mystified. The blue flower in the photo has four petals, which means it is not forget-me-not (Myosotis). Nor is it Brunnera, often mistaken for forget-me-not. If you have time, please take a photograph of the entire plant, perhaps with a ruler for scale? Do you know if it is an annual, perennial or biennial? Meanwhile, I’ll keep trying to identify it. You have a very pretty plant, whatever it is!
It has five petals. That photo shows it just opening. There are five petals and it’s definitely a Forget-Me-Not. I’ll post pictures tomorrow.
OK, now I feel better. That was driving me crazy yesterday.
I bet it was! I don’t know why it was showing only four petals, unless one was hidden under another petal because it was just opening.
I don’t think I ever mentioned this before but IT IS AMAZING how much Winston looks like our family’s first dog Duchess. She was part of a litter owned by one of my grandfather’s best friends and he offered her to my Dad one afternoon when Dad was there with Grandpa, goofing with the puppies. Dad always said how Duch was the prettiest and sweetest one in the litter. I was born 5 months later in July & according to Mom, Duchess appointed herself Nanny, settling down firmly beneath my baby carriage when Mom “put me out” for some fresh air on warm August & September afternoons. Not budging an inch until Mom brought me back inside, and barking menacingly if the Fuller Brush man or some other “stranger” came to call. Wow, how’s that for a blast from the past? I haven’t thought about the Fuller Brush man for decades! We all still miss Duchess a lot – and always will. I was 16½ when we lost her and it was really my first experience with real grief. So sad. Major sniff…
Winston was definitely a barker! He protected our home and our corner lot. We had to make sure he didn’t bark too much!
I simply adore that pic of Riley and Scout….they are definitely having a private moment. You captured that moment perfectly! I haven’t been sleeping well either…either too much on my mind, or my age? Whatever….it’s nothing short of maddening! And, it’s making me quite grumpy! ;)
It makes me very grumpy, too, Donnamae! I don’t do well on too little sleep!
How lovely to have the new canvas and framed painting. They will look so perfect on a wall in your home; where they belong. These dogs were such an important part of your life. You gave them your all and loved them as a family member. It will do your heart good to see their faces every day and remember the good times. We have Kane laid to rest here on our property, and every day I walk by him to go to the garden. I stop and I thank him for being my dog. It gives me peace. Deb
Oh, that’s simply lovely, Deb. Bless you and your sweet Kane.