Sweet Autumn Clematis

It's pretty...and one of my favorites. I posted a picture of this a while ago, just when it was starting to come out in bloom. Upagainst the rocks in the back of this picture. I let it ramble all over everything...just like the looks of it that way. You can see Lily of the Valley; hostas, creeping phlox, ferns, astilbies, and a sunburst locus tree.

I have two of these...on opposite sides of the perennial garden. This and the next picture are of the other plant. It gets more sunshine so it's thicker and has more blooms.

A Formal Band Picture of Billy

Photo Take By Gretchen Rokosky

A fellow band mom and professional photographer took this picture last week at the football game. You can see the fog rolling in from the creek. Kinda gives the photo a more serious look. As usual Gretchen, this is a great photo...Billy loves it!

Another Loss for the Elkers

...at the expense of our rivals! 6 to 36 was the final score. As usual the band had a blast...here's a couple pictures proving that...

Billy...being a smartass, as usual! :)

Billy ingoring his mother...and Nicole, his girlfriend.

An unexpected afternoon down pour made the field a muddy mess...hence the jeans and polo shirts instead of their formal uniforms from last week. The color guards had their new uniforms on and they were literally covered in mud. Everyone's shoes are completely mud covered...but no one lost a shoe on the field! :)

Football Season -- Game #2

2nd football game of the season...mid-60's with a full moon and the fog rolling in off the creek...kinda pretty but not great for pictures. This is just a quick snapshot of the drummers, Billy on the left and Mary on the right...doing their thing. Someday, I promise, I'll get my kid to actaully LOOK AT ME when I take his pic! :) Oh, and we lost...12 to nothing. The band had a blast....they had great food....I did the announcing (aparently I am the *voice* for the band)....we had a great time being Drum Drivers. The drums didn't fit in the busses...so two SUVS and the usual chaperones became "Drum Drivers" for the away games! I don't think I've ever laughed so much!

The Hops Vine

I told you I'd post pictures when the baby hops got a little bigger. This is standing in front of the back porch...these brances are right above the porch railing. Sorta above where Oreo was sitting for her devilish pose in yesterday's post. Don't you just love how the vine looks? It's one of my favorite vines.

More Oreo Pics

A Sweet Puppy Pose

And a Classic Lab Pose

Sometime Oreo looks like such a puppy...and other times she's a grown up doggy! Let's see, she was born on April 26th...so she's 4 months and a week or so old. Boy is she ever growing! She's long and lean...despite all the Jerky Treats and Beggin Strips! ;)

Puppy Fun in the Coneflower Garden

Puppies are so full of energy...especailly when confined while you are at work! I came home, took a shower and took Oreo outside in the back yard. Sooo, here she is...in all her puppy-glory!

This started as "find the kitty". Here she is diving in under the comfrey to see if AC is in there (she's not) . Yes, that's my lime green faux Croc foot and nightgown covered leg in the picture. She just about knocked me over getting under that comfrey! AND, that's when she discovered the Coneflowers!

This is where I was standing when I took the first picture...in this one, I'm standing IN the apsargas bed! Hey, the way she was growling and yipping at that Coneflower, I got the heck out of her way! :)

...and it cntinued out in the yard. She grabed a flower in her mouth and ran across the stones into the grass. Sorry this is blurry...but that's how fast she was moving!

GOTCHA! You silly flower!

All right...now I've got it made...

Laying down to destroy her prize!

And...here she is in all her glory...AFTER the game of "find the kitty" turned to "destroy mommy's Coneflowers"! Notice the mud on her nose...I have no idea where that came from! I told her that she's a Lab not a Terrier...but she wasn't too impressed!

Kicking off Elker Football with the Bonfire

Here's part of the drumline from the high school marching band. Billy is in the center; playing a snare drum (don't ask, I have no idea where his quads are). Brandi is on the left and Mary is on his right. Now that I'm really studing the picture; it looks as though Brandi has the quads...so apparently he and her switched drums! The Elkers won the first football game (which was last Friday) 22 to 0. During the half-time show, Billy broke a drum head, turning his quads into tris. Poor kid has to buy his own heads this year (new school rule)...so that cost him $12 and a trip to St. Marys. I'm taking my camera this week, so hopefully I'll get some good pics. Another band mom took the pic above; thanks Gretchen! :)

Just some more Flowers

Some day soon, I promise, I'll take some interesting photos! BUT, for now, you're stuck with the remaining flowers in my garden!


This is my lone Celome... A volunteer in the aspargas patch. I have absoultely no idea how this plant/seed got there...but it did! I love these, and have grown them for years. I first seen them at the zoo in Erie, PA. I asked the landscapers about them and they gave me an envelope full of seeds to take home! This one is a tiny one...my mom's are as tall as me and have many brances and flowers on them.


And...my Rose of Sharon. This was a tiny little stick, about 12 inches long when it first came to live here. It's now a 10 foot high tree that is filled with these double ruffled blooms in late August and early September.

Knitting --- Yup, I'm still Knitting

Well, whenever I find the time! It's slow going, but I'm determined to get all my pre-job planned Christmas presents knitted! :)

BUT, first is this baby blanket. I started it a few weeks before I started working...currently, it's a 1/4 of the way done. I think I posted this picture before...but here's the begining of it...

The blanket part itself is more than 1/3 finished...not quite half...but then there is the four inch mitered border that going to take awhile! :) This blanket is for our new neighbor; she is due in October. And, I also want to make her 4 year-old son a rainbow colored scarf. Here's a close up of the basket weave pattern. It's pretty and a lot easier than I thought it would be. Just knit and purl! ;)

Flowers after the Rain

This pic has a lot going on in it...how many different plants do you see???

The third growth on my comfrey plant.

What Working MOT Does to My Feet

How'da like my blister? Actually it doesn't feel as bad as it looks...The more tender spot is the darker blister down around the side of my toe. That white part peeled off yesterday...and I had a kushy sit-down job yesterday sorting lightbulbs by wattage. Yup, 10 hours of sorting lightbulbs...but the fun part was crushing the "bad" ones! Did you know that a lot of lightbulbs explode when dropped or are purposely broken? A great way to take out your frustrations! Anyway, I'm off until Tuesday morning...and that then it's back to our regular hours...no more MOT (mandatory over time)...at least not on Tuesday! :)