HAPPY FALL 'YALL!......

Happy first full day of Fall! I love this time of year. I was just out watering the gardens since it doesn't look like we are going to get the
rain that they called for (big surprise!). It feels more like summer today but I know the cold weather is coming and I try each day to
drink in the beauty and color of the gardens while they are still blooming. My sister Kathy and good neighbor Linda gave me a couple
more mums to add to my collection. I hope they will winter over as well as they did last year. "The word" so far is that we are in for
a colder winter so I will gather up the pots and put them in a sunny spot and mulch them with shredded leaves to protect them.

PEPPERS R US!.......

As you can see, Boots was impressed with my latest crop of peppers! The plants grew so big that nearly half of each plant
broke off from the weight of the peppers even though I had them in small tomato cages. Next year I will have to make some
larger and stronger cages for them. The tomatoes are winding down to a precious few getting ripe at once. THANK GOODNESS!
You go from when the heck are they going to get ripe?........ to what the heck am I going to do with all these 'maters?!

ELUSIVE GOLDFINCH!.....

I got these shots from my kitchen window. We have really enjoyed all the visits from the goldfinches. They really love the zinnias
and sunflowers. All summer I tried to snap their picture but they would take off before I could get close enough. I think they will be
heading south soon for the winter months. I will miss them playing "she loves me, she loves me not" with the petals of the zinnias!

PRAYING MANTIS ARE HERE!......

I have been looking for matured praying mantis. They seem to be late in arriving this year, and are already turning brown as you can see by this beautiful one I saw while watering the gardens this morning. The green one was on a mum plant and was not to happy that
I got him all wet! They are so animated and really fun to watch!

BLACK BEAUTY......

The hard work pays off with all the beautiful butterflies that stop by! I just took these pics around noon when I can hardly see what is in
the viewfinder of my camera. Can't believe I got a shot of this guy in "preparing for take off mode" in the center pic!

TWO BEE....OR NOT!

I have really been enjoying my sunflowers! I am so glad they had time to mature even thought I planted them so late in the season. As you can see the bees love them too!

MUMS THE WORD!.....

Here is a pic of two of the mums that survived the winter. This has NEVER happened for me before! Three more are in the pots they grew in last Fall and are just as full and ready to open. Two of the mums have been blooming since Spring! As you can see, the black
eyed susans are quickly fading, but can't complain. They were really spectacular this year! I guess it's like the guy on Ed Sullivan who
spun the plates on a stick. All the plates only look perfect for a brief moment! I will try to keep the plants looking "happy" for as long as
possible. I have a feeling we will have an early frost this year, but we will just have to wait and see.