There are two coats of yellow paint now on the walls – yesterday’s painting adventure took a while but the latex went on much more smoothly than the primer and once I got my rhythm going, I was on a ‘roll.’ I even went outside and raked some leaves while waiting for the first coat to dry. No more ladder climbing required today, thank goodness.
One thing leads to another, of course. I scrubbed the outside of the refrigerator. I cleaned all the pottery that lives on top of the cupboards.
Astonishingly, I saw buds on one of the rose bushes in the memorial garden. It’s been so unseasonably warm around here that they’re budding again.
Here’s the rub: we may have frost tomorrow night. Why is it that every October there is one cold night that screws everything up? The temps after that one night will be warm. I’m unsure what to do – do I try to save the morning glories and roses or do I just let nature take it’s course? I’m of two minds. I’m going away for 8 days on Thursday – then I’ll be home for about a week and half before I head off to Chicago. I won’t be here all that much.
The zinnias and the morning glories keep blooming and I’d sure like them to hang around a bit longer.
What to do?
My friends Rick and Doug are leaving today to drive across the country to their new home here. They’ll arrive when I’m gone, but you can be sure I’ll be heading to their house as soon as I get back! They’ll soon be our neighbors.
Today: paint the trim around the windows and the baseboards. Then I’m done! (At least for now – there’s still one wall to be painted.)
I also have to mow the lawn.
Happy Sunday.
Claudia, Good for you getting all the chores finished. It’s not easy to paint …I have done plenty of it. I thought I would hang my paint brush up after painting the whole inside of my daughter’s new house. But I keep dragging it back out. LOL. I know that Don must be so proud of all the work you have done. Please take some time to relax before you head out. So exciting to know your friends will be close by. Blessings to you, xoxo, Susie
So much to do before I go – raking, mowing, errand running.
Must feel great to have the painting almost done. You are set to have a wonderful reward in that trip to NO.
I hope so!
Glad to hear about the painting progress. Quite the project you took on before leaving. We are getting frost tonight. I decided to only cover up my fern…my cat likes to sit under it on the deck. Hubby put up a higher soft netting along the railing, so Bowser wouldn’t jump on the railing and accidentally fall off…which he did last fall. It works remarkably well! Now, I don’t worry when he’s out there. Don’t forget to rest up a bit…you are wearing me out with your ambition! ;)
Right now it says spotty frost – in other words, it’s a guessing game. I’m so tired right now I can’t make a decision as to what to do.
Oh- the old “shall I or shan’t I” dance!!! I am of the same mind when it comes to saving the rest of my summer flowers. I usually overwinter my geraniums in their window boxes but may have missed the opportunity to do that already this year.
Good luck on getting everything wrapped up before you head out, Claudia.
What fun to have your friends for new neighbors. xo Diana
I overwinter my geranium, Diana, and I usually overwinter some impatiens….but I may not this year, simply because I’ll be gone so much this fall.
You are a busy bee! The kitchen must be looking so good with it’s new paint. I need to finish some downsizing and get these boxes out of my living room. I hope I’m feeling better and can get it done this coming week.
Feel better my friend. Take it easy.
It’s hard to let the flowers go when they are still looking so pretty….I’m glad to hear that Rick and Doug will soon be there permanently!
I hate to lost flowers because of one night of frost. Makes me crazy. That’s what happened last year.
I do too Claudia! I think I’m the only one in the neighborhood that still has lots of annuals in the front yard.
What to do? I’m still wrestling with the decision
wow! you are definitely on a roll! am sure it looks great … and that you are tired. i say take a break and let nature take its course with the flowers … especially with two big trips coming up!
how nice for your friends to soon be your neighbors, too!
kathy in iowa
Still might try to cover them tomorrow night. I’ll keep an eye on the forecast.
Been watching your painting on IG, what a project but it’s looking fantastic. Can’t wait to see the finished product :)
I have one wall yet to go, but I won’t even start with that until November. But 3 out of 4 walls are done!
I’m kinda of the mind to just let nature take its course on the garden now. You’ve had a whole lot of enjoyment with the morning glories but things to come to an end with the seasons, don’t they. Maybe enjoy that one lone bloom of the rose, but…maybe that’s also just ‘it’ for the roses now. Mine are getting tired. I, too, am enjoying some last, lingering buds…and this is SoCalif so I’ll probably get a few more in November but then they need to rest for four months or so here, and I’ve had to learn to get cool with that although I always feel the yard looks so plain afterward (except for poinsettias which will bloom red in Dec/Jan or more. At the moment, a lot is getting fried out there for us. With the snap of a finger, we’re back…again…to the high wind of a Santa Ana and drastically-low humidity; it was 90 degrees at 11am and, 12 hrs earlier last night at 11pm, we were 80 degrees outside so it was a warm, restless night with the heat & gusts. My husband tore out the tomato plant we were getting a second yield on because the fruit is not tasty and it’s inferior growth, so that was a disappointment. But I had a good summer crop from it; so, am grateful. I’m not happy about the wind OR the heat today; I had a huge to-do list, mostly outside but, at the moment, you’d risk a tree branch falling on your head or heatstroke. So, it’s noon already and gotta regroup. Sigh.
Congrats on your painting; you must have a very good feeling of accomplishment and, for as much as you have to stay indoors in winter to come, it will be so cheery and clean and fresh, warm and sunshine-y when it’s cold and blustery out your windows.
Do you have any handle yet on what your weather will be in NOLA?
But there are four buds on the rose bush! And lots of morning glory buds. I’m still undecided.
Weather in NOLA: hot and humid. Yuck.
That IS frustrating, isn’t it? It wouldn’t be so bad if we were facing 3-4 days of cold temps, but a single night of frost followed by more warm weather? Killing a lot of beautiful plants that would otherwise still have “time” seems needlessly cruel, Mother Nature. Maybe you’ll give us a break this year, what with the California fires and all the hurricanes? Maybe – huh? Can’t wait to see your sunny kitchen, even if it will be a little incomplete for awhile. That yellow, especially next to Stella, is just beautiful. Quite warm here right now, and the sun is coming in & out a lot. Ominous clouds out west too – very thunderstormy-looking. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday! Peace. 🍂
#Resist
Yes, we’re getting rain tonight and winds and my fingers are crossed for tomorrow night. I might go buy some garden poles and drape a sheet over them – it’s very, very hard for me to give up my flowers for just one night of cold.
Hi Claudia, My husband and I started watching Mr. Robot. Is that Don playing the
part of that blonde girl’s, I forgot her name at the moment, Father? I was so surprised.
Let me know. Bobbie
Yes, he had a recurring role as the father.
You be given me hope that I can paint my kitchen! There is so much to move though. Im do ready for a coat of warm white so all my other colors will pop and not compete with each other.
It’s an enormous undertaking because so many things need to moved. I’ll have to take everything out of the china cabinet when I tackle the final wall. Where to put it? It’s almost easier without Don here, simply because there aren’t two of us trying to maneuver around an upended kitchen.