It’s crazy hot in the sun, but wonderful in the shade right now. I am finishing up the last of the cleanup, with whispers in my ear about a greener yard next year. Lack of water has been a nightmare this summer as we try to keep things alive and healthy. I know we are headed toward a more high-desert climate, but I’ve always wanted a little green haven in my world. So, I use the precious water in the best way I know how and let the grass go in some spots. I dig up swatches of lawn, hoping to create the look I want. I used up a lot of my neighbor’s Redstone rocks, which he gave me. They once bordered his pond and were piled up in the back of his yard. They make a nice border for the middle garden. I dug up the grass and some of the embedded rock mulch, and now I am filling it with better dirt and leaf mulch. Who knows what beauty will inspire me next year? I am thinking butterfly bushes, monarda, hellebores, and red hot pokers! The butterflies will love it They were a welcome return to the yard this year.

I’ve prepared the sunroom area garden beds for bulb planting (still too hot right now—80+ degrees today!), as well as re-creating the scalloped-edge garden where a huge willow once lived and where the new patio and gazebo currently sit. I hope for beautiful blooms in the spring.

I am also preparing to pay an arm and a leg to purchase a few more trees in the springtime for those incredibly hot areas in my yard. I am currently in love with the look of the Chestnut Oak that I’ve seen in front of the pool building at our local recreation center. I hope I can find it. I’ve been looking in my old haunts! And even if it takes the rest of my life to grow tall and majestic, I can appreciate the shade when this amazing tree finally gets bigger.

So, as we head towards the holidays and winter, I am loving life, walking in the cool fall mornings, swimming when I can, baking yummy treats for the kiddo and friends, and writing in between. The stories are there to be told; they just needed a little fall nudge for everything to come together. Enjoy each moment you have in this world. Do one good deed a day and don’t be too hard on yourself. You are who you are. Recognize that it’s your everyday actions that define your spirit, so love yourself as I love you. Happy Fall!