where did July go?

It's gone...

and soon will be only a distant memory.

It was the driest and sunniest July on record here in the Fraser Valley...

really quite lovely.

But we do need the rain!

Things are no longer quite as green as they were early in July...

when this photo was taken.

As the third cut of hay was mowed down...

the eagles swooped in behind the swather to see what they could find.

They rarely came up empty!

 

By summer the eagles of the valley have normally moved on...

but this year they seemed reluctant to leave.

The month flew by...

and it seemed there was little time to spend with friends.

 

But we do have good memories of a few special 'friend events'...
including one fun night around a backyard fire pit where we stayed until the stars came out.

How did my garden grow?

The raspberry crop was great...

and our little row is pruned and tied for next year.

As for the blueberries, the birds cleaned them off as fast as they ripened...

and left us none.

Thankfully, we have connections...

and got a good supply from Silver Valley Farms.

Thank-you!

And the hydrangeas...

they aren't putting on quite the show they did last year.

I think I pruned a little too zealously last winter!

July is gone.

Things are caught up in the office...

the farm is in good hands...

the motor home is packed.

Tomorrow morning we are hitting the road.

We are heading east.

Far east.

I will likely send a postcard or two along the way!

But just so you know...

I'm not at home on 'my front porch'.

Thank-you to all of you who visit me here regularly!

I appreciate you all...

and especially enjoy the comments and words of encouragement you share with me.

everything is coming up raspberries...

We live in the raspberry capital of Canada.

Well...

almost!

We live right next door to Abbotsford...

which lays claim to that name.

They even have a raspberry sculpture...

created by artist Manjit Sandhu...

at the roundabout on a main entrance to their city.

It towers high in the air...

and features five giant raspberries attached to an S-shaped tower. 

I like it!

But raspberries grow just fine in Chilliwack as well...

...and I have plenty coming from the short row in my garden.

What to do with them all...

is the question.

 

For the most part...

I have been freezing them on cookie sheets...

and then bagging them.

I'll figure out what to do with them next winter...

when I have nothing else to do. LOL

But yesterday I decided to try making raspberry perogies.

I'm not a perogy maker.

But I thought maybe I could be....

with the help of a little gadget I found in the Steinbach, MB giftshop when I was there.

I noticed Kathy's perogy (Wareniki) recipe in the MGCC cookbook

featured several varieties besides cottage-cheese filled ones.

Her favorites are those with a raspberry filling.

I decided to give it a try.

And now I am a perogy-maker!

Her dough was easy to work with.

They were great!

My mother-in-law used to keep us supplied with perogies...

and we always had fruit-filled ones in the freezer for a quick dessert.

They were my daughter's favorite.

She stopped by yesterday afternoon to eat raspberries...

and had a perogy afternoon snack while she was here.

 My favorite refreshing and cool summertime drink...

is a tall glass of Fresca (grapefruit flavoured) with frozen raspberries instead of ice.

It's that time of year.

Give 'em the old raspberry for dessert!

summer's last hurrah...

We are back...

safe at home...

once again.  

We had a great time...

sailing to Alaska and back.

I'll share some of the adventure with you soon.  

 Of course!  

But it may be awhile until I sort through all the photos. 

Today I'll leave you with a few images of the 'end of summer' blooms  around My Front Porch.

For the most part, my baskets and planters were filled with foliage this year...rather than flowers.  They were easy to maintain and looked amazing all summer.  Coleus and potato vine...my garden picks for 2012.

And now...I must go see what you have all been up to while I was away!

The Shuswap....

Last week as the temperatures sizzled in our area...

we parked ourselves at Scotch Creek...

on the north shore of Shuswap Lake for a few days.

Over the past two decades we have been to that particular location on many occasion...

in spring, summer or fall.

We have great memories of time spent at the 'family cabin'...

which now belongs to two of my sisters.

This time we took our RV and parked on the lot...

while Bev and her boys (out from Texas) joined Dot in the cabin.

Shuswap Lake...

located in south-central British Columbia...

is fed by many rivers and creeks.

It drains into Little Shuswap Lake...

then into the Thompson River and eventually into the Fraser River.

The area is named after the Shuswap First Nations people...

the most northern of the Interior Salish peoples.

There is a beautiful provincial park in Scotch Creek...

and though we have never stayed there...

it's where we spend our beach time.

We went for early morning bike rides through the park...

before the crowds arrived.

Before anyone arrived...

actually!

For the most part...

the boats bobbed about in the water just off the shore.

The tables and benches were empty.

We inhaled the scent of cedar and morning campfires as we rode through the park.

Later in the day we returned to claim our spot on the beach...

toting chairs, books and snacks.

We had some company on the beach...

though I could not understand how it could be so quiet in the middle of a scorching hot week in August.

From my vantage point...

I watched others enjoying the water.

Most rode on top...

or played on the beach...

though some didn't mind a refreshing cool dip!

While I watched people...

the birds watched me.

It seemed they were hoping for hand-outs!

Not far from Scotch Creek is Copper Island...

accessible only by boat.

We watched a houseboat making its way around the island...

...and recalled our own houseboat adventure on Shuswap Lake more than twenty years ago.

We went with friends...

and though the weather was less than ideal...

the kids had a great time!
Shuswap Lake is known as the 'houseboat capital' of Canada.

For the most part I read books.

Or stared out to sea.

All that from the comfort of my beach chair!

The Texans seemed not to be all that interested in sitting in the sun!

I smiled to see Bev, Len and Ricky at a table in the shade.

It seems Len likes to read standing up.

As for Ricky...

he only sits down to eat and sleep.

He stood on the beach for hours...

never saying a word.

All good things must come to an end.

Once again...

it was a good time at Scotch Creek.

Thanks Dot...

for the invite!

the volunteers of summer...

We never planted or watered...

...and yet we can 'reap'! 

I love the bright and cheery sunflowers ....

that are perking up the backyard these days.

We feed the birds.

They drop the seeds.

We say...

thank-you!

I don't recall the last time I sowed dill.

And yet it grows...year after year.

I like that!

The wisteria blooms early in the season.

And then in the middle of summer...

it blooms again.

I like that too!

 

The blueberries are ripe for the picking.

They are the perfect addition to a lunchtime salad.

One that we enjoyed on the front porch the other day.

If you are interested in the recipe...

head over to MGCC today.

Time For Ice-Cream

Summertime is upon us.

It's time to eat ice-cream with reckless abandon!

An ice-cream cone can solve any problem...

even if only for a few minutes.

My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither, 
but just enjoy the ice-cream while it's on your plate. 
~Thornton Wilder 

A balanced diet is an ice-cream cone in each hand!

Ice-cream is happiness condensed.
~Jesse Lane Adams

And if you don't get your full fix of ice-cream in the summertime...

I know from a reliable source that an ice-cream cone at Christmastime is a good thing as well!

they are at it again...

 I drove by the farmyard on my way to town yesterday...

and saw the country candy store was back in business once again.

 (Emme, Spencer...and their next-door-friend)

It started when they were four years old.

Emme and Spencer set up a candy store on the farmyard and sold surplus Easter goodies...

to unsuspecting customers.

Customers like Grandpa.

 Since then they have recruited local help...

and expanded their business.

They have moved it to the road...

and lure in the sweet teeth passing by.

They are open on sunny summer afternoons.

If there is nothing better to do!

So...if you are in my neighbourhood...

be forewarned.

As for me...

I won't be stopping by the sweet shoppe today.

I'm off to 'the summit 2012'.

What fun we will have!

remembering yesterday...enjoying today...and looking forward to tomorrow!

We had many reasons to reminisce this past weekend.

Some were pleasant memories...

others not so much.

But it also happens to be my hubby's birthday on September 11th...

 and he thought a fine birthday gift would be to go watch a B.C. Lion's football game in the old Empire Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

And it was!

Having good friends to enjoy the game with...

and the warmest temperatures of the summer...

all the better.

For two years the home of the B.C. Lions has been under renovation...

and so they returned to their original playing field during that time...

Empire Field.

Empire Stadium was built in 1954 for the British Commonwealth Games.

It seated 32,000...and was home to the B.C. Lions until 1983.

It also played host to the Beatles and Elvis Presley...

and the Billy Graham Crusade back in the day.

Saturday afternoon was the final game at Empire Field...

and a fabulous game it was!

The stadium is now being dismantled...

and will be replaced by 'green space'.

Before the game began there was a moment's silence in memory of 9/11..

and then the American anthem preceded the singing of  'Oh Canada'. 

We share our neighbour's pain!

 

I'm a little clueless when it comes to football...

but it was a good time all around.

And the right team won...big time!

B.C. Lions 28 ~ Toronto Argos 6

The half time show included a 'drive' down memory lane.

Players who played in Empire Stadium in the fifties, sixties and seventies...

rode through the stadium in appropriate vintage style.

The game ended with a lot of hoopla...

and a wee bit of smoke.

The air cleared...

as did the bleachers...

...and everyone left in a good mood.

It was the perfect way to put the Empire Stadium to rest!

The renovations to B.C. Place Stadium are about done...

and we caught a sneak peek before we left the city yesterday. 

It comes complete with the largest cable-supported retractable roof of its kind in the world.

And that is where the B.C. Lion's will be playing all future home games.

I'm sure we'll find some excuse to visit the venue soon. 

In other news...

the MGCC team signed books at the Ten Thousand Villages booth at our local  MCC relief sale this past weekend.

We met so many wonderful and encouraging folks...

and heard stories that I wish we could share.

Unfortunately...

TTV's ran out of books long before the day was done...

and so we closed shop a little early!

photo by Beatriz Photography

One year ago...

we met together for the very first time...

the ten of us from Mennonite Girls Can Cook.

A lot has happened since that time...

and we can only give God the glory.

We look forward to whatever tomorrow has in store.

delights of the season...

I turned the page yesterday...to September.

  

With great reluctance...I might add! 

Summer came late here this year...

and I am sad to see it drawing to an end soon.

For now I will continue to enjoy the blooms of the season...

and coffee on the front porch.

We've made the most of our blue skies these past weeks....

and others have too.

We watched with interest as they harvested grain the old-fashioned way at our friend's farm...

compliments of our local Thresherman's Association.

My dad was quite impressed...

it felt rather like a home-coming to him.

A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing...

the birds are singing...

and the lawn mower is broken. 

~ James Dent

In summer, the song sings itself. 

~ William Carlos Williams

The blooms...

the fruits of the season...

sunshine on the patio...

and time spent outdoors with those near and dear. 

 

 Those are the delights of the season!  

I'm hoping to hang on to them yet...just for a wee bit longer.

Have a wonderful 'end of summer' long weekend!