2020 HAS BEEN A DIFFERENT YEAR, IN MANY WAYS FOR EVERYONE, INCLUDING ME

First, with Covid-19 that is still creating havoc with people's lives and the economy, education, nursing homes, vacations, policing, the closing of businesses and churches, etc, etc...  Some say it's divine chastisement for the sinfulness of mankind all over the world who have put God aside and are relying more and more on their own inner strength and on worldly things and have forgotten the Word of God and are serving another master, Satan.

 The family unit is disintegrating because of the absence of fathers in the home and generation after generations, it will get worst unless we get divine intervention. It's like in the time of Noah when the world had become so evil. Abortion is the greater evil as respect for life is at an all-time low, especially in China, And making more money is more important.

There has been a dramatic increase in protests,  toppling of historical statues, an increase in burning Catholic churches and crosses, decapitation, and defacing of religious statues, especially of the Blessed Virgin Mary, desecrations of the Holy Eucharist, and persecution of Christians all over the world, especially in China. There are many other things that have happened like the extensive deluge of flooding in China and many other countries, locus infestation in Africa that destroyed crops, etc.  It continues and the world is being shaken to its core.

While I'm observing all this, I'm trying to live my life as normal as possible and the stupid Bambi has been raiding our garden this year, night after night, even eating tomato plants, can you believe?  They have eaten my Hostas, Phlox, Hydrangeas, Asiatic lilies, beans, carrots, peas, and ate all my son in law's beets. They only left me a handful of peas.😭

These were my Hostas last year in full bloom by the gazebo.

And this is what they look like this summer after Bambi and his family came for a garden party.

At first, a fence kept them out but they ventured inside the fence and got bolder and bolder. I've been putting shredded Irish Spring soap at night and it seems to deter them but the damage has been done.  I still managed to pick almost 8 pounds of beans but they have really eaten all the blossoms on the beans.

They chewed all the tips of my phlox in several gardens.

They chewed the tips of two of my Hydrangeas and left only two tips on this one.

Luckily I have lots of daylilies and the deers don't seem to like those.

There is still a lot of beauty amongst the ugly and every day is a gift and we should always be thankful for what we got and count our blessings.

Remember these poinsettias that were given to me in April from the church before Lent? They were losing their red bracts but with good watering,  the bracts lasted for a long time.

They are as high as that card table in the corner.  I put a chair for a comparison of the size. They are huge and they are taken over the room.

August is poking around the corner. It's been hot and very humid and I stayed mostly inside just venturing outside briefly. I just don't do well in hot humid weather.

Thanks for visiting and listening to my rambling. I enjoy reading your lovely comments but lately, I'm getting a lot stupid of x-rated spam which is very annoying. I know they are not from my regular followers.

Stay safe and well.
Hugs, Julia

IT'S BEEN A VERY GOOD SUMMER

Despite a very busy summer, it has been a very good summer. The gardens have been very productive with the frequent rain, the haying season has been going well despite breakdowns in machinery, the hay barns are getting filled and farmers are picking large bales of hay from the fields by the transport loads.

I apologize for not being a good blogger but by the time I come in, I'm usually too tired to post. I sit at the computer, check my emails, watch a few podcasts and play a few games of Freecell and go to bed. I have had several people contacted me, worrying about me because I haven't blogged lately. Thank you for caring. Sometimes, I need to be reminded that people read my blog. That's a good enough reason to keep on blogging.

I took some photos of my flowers. I hope they don't bore you. Growing flowers is one of my passions.

These giant lilies are called Satisfaction, this is their second year. I wasn't sure they would survive the long period of being underwater during the flood.

My old Jackmanni clematis never fails to put on a show in August. The trellis was lift off the track up top during the flood and floated away by the shed. I just propped it up against the building and the Clematis gingerly started to grow to the top, keeping the trellis in place, even in the big wind we had.

A view from the shed where there used to be tones of soil this spring.

I can't remember the name of these giant lilies but the name is on a label in the garden. It's dark outside so it will have to wait.

My patch of hosta hiding a large decaying tree stump. I have some Marigold growing in the center but from this angle, you can't see.

A washed-out photo of my daylilies.  Taking photos in full sun is always disappointing.

A serendipity petunia that popped up between the patio blocks. I have several others growing between the patio blocks and they blooming without special care. They grew from seeds that fell in the cracks last year. I had two large pots of Cherry Ice petunias.

More serendipity Lobellias growing in the rocks.  This is just a small one. I have several that came up from last year. It has more blossoms now.

Some more lilies, Lavatera and Geraniums.

More Daylilies, red Salvias, and Allissums.

English cucumbers making use of a bare spot in the Daylily bed.  They are so delicious and tender.

Another view from near the gazebo.
It's getting late so I'll continue showing you what I've been up to in another post. I'm so behind... Remember, if you are a follower and you leave a comment, I will surely leave a comment on your blog. I don't spend a lot of time on the computer these days.

Stay safe and enjoy the rest of the summer.
Hugs, Julia