No George, it’s blogger, not boog….

My mom is taking my uncle’s sickness badly. He’s her only sibling and he is so good to her and has helped her financially over the years since she had no husband to contribute to her income. Plus, and Uncle Don has said this himself, my mom took care of their mom for 7 yrs (when she was mostly bedridden) before her death. He felt that was the least he could do. She got me upset last night about some of the bills she mentioned, one a huge utility bill. I am wondering why she let it build up so? As I mentioned before, I believe something is going to have to be done, big time there. Either my brother comes up from Florida and helps out, or she’s going to have to sell the house and go someplace where she doesn’t have to worry about all this. The problem is, those assisted living residences are so expensive. A lot of elderly people, Brian’s dad included, find it cheaper to live in their home even though they have to pay school taxes, etc. I wish she wouldn’t lay this on me before I hear about my bloodwork on Monday. I want to help, but I’m not quite sure how. None of us are rolling in money. The logical thing would be for our bachelor brother to move here and help out a while. That happened with my mom’s neighbor when he had a stroke. His son lived with him at least a year, hoping a man in his early 60s would get better. He didn’t and ended up in a nursing home.
Life can be hard. I try to take it one day at a time. I’ll have to sit down once again and try to help mom with a budget plan for the time being. She gets overwhelmed when she tries to do it herself. Wish us luck.
As for my Uncle, he was all set to have his bladder cauterized for the third time and he started to talk jibberish while waiting in his hospital room. He had a CAT scan and now is getting a heart catheterization to see if there is damage.

If you read my blog, you know that when Barbaro the horse who was injured at the Preakness race on May 20th, was brought to Kennett Square where he still trying to recouperate today. He’s had three additional operations and now even his back left leg is bad and the operated one has an infection. They are playing it hour to hour. The poor vet looked exhausted on tv today. They don’t want this grand horse to suffer. I hope he pulls through, but things aren’t looking good. Poor guy!

Yep. The ozone was nasty today in this area. The humidity was over 70% and the temp 90. I did walk around and water a bit this afternoon. I decided not to do too much out there. But as fate would have it, the daylilies arrived all bare rooted and I knew they had to be planted or say bye bye to $40. I asked Brian to run the rototiller in a crescent shape around the existing daylily garden. It took him a few minutes, I raked a bit (left some grass, but I wasn’t being particular) and in went 13 daylilies in about 15 minutes. Believe me, I had to wipe my brow a few times. I thought I was finished outside and spotted a Walmart 50% pink Asiatic lily looking dry and in need of some freshly dug dirt. So in it went. I watered all the new babies (they were very clean with great roots) and I sure hope I get a variety of what was pictured. They either liked me or miscounted as I got 13 instead of 10! Bri and I found some rocks and added them to the edge. I thought I found a petrified turtle, but it was a little stone one! The pond use to be in this area. They look a little closer than 2 feet each, but I think they can spread.

My uncle is a bit disgusted. He’s been this way for a long time. Being in pain all the time wears you down. He may have been given 10+ years because of the radiation, but many of them were not good ones.

A pretty salmon lily in the middle of a very thick ground cover (side of house).

Uncle Don would appreciate this almost albino robin. The poor thing looks like fellow birdies ‘splashed’ him with their droppings!

Purplish-pink astilbe-love the fuzzy flower heads!

This is the first year the Lace cap hydrangea bloomed for me. I love it!

These daisies are close to 5 feet tall. That’s the corner next to the mammoth butterfly bush. It’s also where the rain gutter tends to act like a waterfall during heavy rains.

So I went ahead and called the doctor’s office this morning since they never contacted me about my blood tests. My triglycerides were 299! They should be below 150. I believe they were 200 something last year. This has been a stressful year with the remodel and my mom and her brother not being well. And stress surely effects your blood’s ability to clear out fat. But, so does your hormone levels (I’ve been reading up on this), which I think are wacky with me. If I had to complain about anything, it would be that aspect. So, when I discuss this next Monday, along with my elevated liver enyzmes (rats), I will discuss the stress factor. I’m not going to stress out about it! : ) In the meantime, I better skip the fries and doughnuts (I don’t eat them everyday, but a few times a month) and start eating garlic and fish which are said to help lower your triglycerides. And I better start a better exercise routine. I do a lot of outdoor work, but I guess I better get my heart pumping more. Any suggestions are welcome.

Remember I told you about the few weddings we got invited to and put our foot down about attending because the people never bothered with us? My sister-in-law is also Brian’s first cousin, and of course she attended and told my mom all about it. Their cousin got married on the 1st and his bride had 16 bridesmaids!!! Have you ever? I mean, I had 4 and that wasn’t any easy selection. I don’t know if the groom had to match up 16 groomsmen to even every thing out. This guy has such a case on himself, I don’t know how he did it. And they aren’t royalty by any means. They even had flowers on the stalls in the bathroom! The guy was calling relatives (like Bri’s dad, his uncle) begging them to attend (his dad wouldn’t go-he went to Atlantic City that day-figures). Well maybe he should have thought about getting to know people over the years. We really don’t know him at all. He’s like 44 and his new wife is in her 20s. His mom is in a nursing home about 10 minutes from here. I am sure he and his brother go by our house all the time (his nephew and nieces attend the same high school as Sean went to). I was totally disgusted, believe me.

1-2-3 Go Garden! I look at Karen’s lilies with big eyes! I love the picotee edges, the different colors, etc. So I did a Google search and found a daylily farm. Lucky for me, they are moving out their lilies. I am getting $100 worth for $40-that’s 10 plants. They sell around here for $10-12 each. They want to move their butterfly bushes, so $1.99 each (I got a couple) was down right cheap. I did buy some lilies from eBay last year. Not all of them made it. I am hoping the short trip from southwest PA from a real daylily farm was the better choice this year. I did buy my irises from a farm and just loved them all. I only had a couple that didn’t bloom, but they maybe fall bloomers?
Veychek Daylily farm (I sure hope they all turn out to look like these!)

I took some yard shots today. The grass is a little long and things aren’t perfectly groomed, but here’s where I tramp around everyday.

This was taken in the front yard. It’s hard to see the brick side walk Brian put in about 10 yrs ago (so bright). I have my perennial ‘woodland’ garden to the right there under the towering evergreen. That huge hollyhock was opposite the front door. My hedges are a bit chopped up looking from getting the new window a few months ago. I have a hosta, mum, wild begonias, impatiens and salvia planted under them. I like them trimmed up from the bottom too. Along the other side of the house are also hedges.
This is the backyard-you can’t see Sean’s old swingset as I am standing next to it! The butterfly bush is huge this year! That’s next to the bench and pond area. That’s my new garden window. Not much is going on along the back. Next to the butterfly bush I have some white daisies that are 5 feet tall. I’d love to have a deck here, Down the steps is a huge container with two waterlilies. They haven’t bloomed yet this year.
The other corner of the house. I have a few adirondack chairs there. Behind the chairs is a Japanese maple, taken from my mom’s yard as a sapling. I have roses, impatiens, lilies and Sweet William. This is the bed I wish I had mulched. On the other side of the house, behind the chairs, is my fairy garden. I also call this my secret garden as I have quite a few bushes-virburnum, spirea, hydrangea that surround this space.
This is the house end of our very long side yard. That’s one of the Chestnut trees (that I hate). I have a lounge chair between them and a table and chairs too. We have hardly used either this year. Beyond that is the iris and glad garden. We have a couple of pear trees out there and an overgrown grape arbor. Beyond that is the other circle garden of cosmos and zinnias. Finally we have a veggie patch with tomatoes, peppers, and green beans-which I need to weed! Brian planted a maple tree from his parent’s yard and that is just sitting in the middle of this long stretch of yard. We are very close to a busy back road.