Mom and Dad's 40th Anniversary Celebration, part 2

And now we come to the party itself.

 Brian pinning on Mom's corsage.

 Then and now.

 Br. D!! (and Gary and Nancy Sims in the background)

 This picture sums up the whole party, pretty much. 

 Two of my favorite guys, hangin' out.

 Family photo.

 Favor boxes.

 Because it's not a party until someone tries on a funny hat.

 Sarah triumphant.

Mom and Dad's 40th Anniversary Celebration, part 1

My big project of the summer was organizing a party in honor of Kim and David Kluge's 40th wedding anniversary, and their actual 40th anniversary is today, Sept. 7.  So, Happy 40th Anniversary, Mom and Dad!  I'm glad you stuck with it!

And now here are more pictures than is right and proper, but it was kind of a big deal for us, so I'm making a big deal of it here. First, the setup pictures:

 A bunch of centerpiece arrangements on Mom's kitchen counter.

 Mom and Dad's wedding photo collage. 

 The cake!

 

Set up and ready to go.

 Eve with the kids' favors.

 Isaiah!

Max (thanks again for helping us set up!), Brian and Solomon.

Sweet summertime

Here's a sampling of what we get up to around here in the summertime.

 I think this golden beet was called Boldor, but I called it the Tequila Sunrise beet.

 Salsa verde, here we come!

 Front porch flower baskets.

 Picnic on the back deck.

 Picking blueberries in the back yard.

Mary garden, phase 2.

In praise of tomatoes

I love working with my tomato plants.  I could sit out there with them for hours, poking, pinching, trimming, weeding, and just breathing in that unique tomato-plant smell.

 I love the little stem hairs, and how they catch the light.

I love the crazy, shooting-star-like blossoms.

 

And then oh, the wait....

Summertime: pools and plantlife

Here it is, the time of year we gardeners live for and dream of.  All times of year are beautiful in their own ways, and my favorite season will probably always be Fall, but there's a grandness to the beauty of summer that cannot be denied.

 Exhibit A: Roses.

 Exhibit B: Buddleia and Crocosmia

 Mary keeping watch.

 Fun with shadows.

 Exhibit C: tree lilies.

 Exhibit D: orange beets.

 The buddleia, aka "Butterfly Bush", lives up to its name.

This is one of the views from my kitchen sink.

Solomon's first birthday

On June 1, Solomon celebrated the first anniversary of his birth.  Drumroll, please.

Happy birthday to my sweet baby boy!  

 ...and yes, it appears I have pulled off another blue eyed child.

The Oregon Garden

In late June, Brian had a big Knights of Columbus meeting to attend, and many of the Knights' wives met up for a group visit to the nearby Oregon Garden.  (My thanks to my parents, who watched the older three kids while I took along the baby, er, I mean, toddler.)  I had just acquired a new camera, to boot.  I'm not sure these photos represent my highest artistic endeavors, due in part to inclement weather and a grabby baby, but I hope the beauty of the gardens comes through anyway.

 Bring out the big guns, or rather, the big gunnera.

 Artichokes or sunchokes, not sure which.

 I think this was a false sea holly...?  I loved it.  I want some.

 Koi, water lilies.

 They did nice work with their reflecting pools.

 Nothing exotic here, I just liked the image.

 They trained a weeping evergreen across a big metal pole, like a kind of living curtain.

A 400 year old oak tree.  When 400 years old you reach, look this good you will not.