MidSummer!

I forgot I even had this day lily - perhaps it didn't flower last year.

Another favorite day lily I just transplanted into the back yard to save it from the marauding deer.

Mushroom and asparagus quiche.

I had such a lovely time hosting lunch with Dale and Janice Wednesday. I made quiche and a salad and Janice made a loaf of bread. Dale made a key lime pie and put a candle in it and sang happy birthday to me even though my birthday has passed. So sweet. We talked and laughed for hours...

Flowers and birds - my people know me!

The next morning, I was wandering the garden wondering what to do with my day, when Janice texted wanting to bike ride before it got hot. With no planning at all, we set off at 8:30 am and rode some hills and through farmland and got a great workout. Then I dropped my bike off at the shop as it has been making weird clicking noises and the brakes were wonky. 

I then drove up to SPAC to see the ballet, A Midsummer Nights Dream, with a group of friends. It was a great show, but so very hot. Luckily I had an ice pack in my picnic bag that I used to cool myself until the sun went down. 

SPAC is celebrating their 60th birthday so they gave out hats and posters and read a letter sent by David Hyde Pierce (Niles from Frasier fame) who grew up in Saratoga and went to SPAC often.
Me, Jill, Esther, Geri, Peggy, Suzanne

The wedding scene.

 I have acquired  hives on my stomach, chest and back from who knows what allergen. I spent a good part of the day Friday in the garden, and felt a couple of tiny stings, but saw no perpetrator. I moved a huge day lily into the back yard, and cut down many tree branches, so I was hauling lots of plant material and digging in the dirt which could have exposed me to any number of irritants. I really am very tired of my body betraying me at this stage. I made it well past 60 years with very few problems so I have little tolerance for this nonsense. I'll be taking it easy on the gardening until they clear up. 

Wildfires in Canada have added an eerie element to the skies.

This was a clear and cloudless day, but it looks like twilight at about 3 pm.
If you embiggen the photo you can see the pink sun through the smoke.

My daughter just arrived for a 2 week visit so I get to enjoy her company, less 4 days she’s spending with her Dad. She is working most weekdays, so other than chatting and meals, we are not doing anything special. Perhaps some house and garden tours on the weekend. We are going to watch Project Hail Mary tonight.

A nest fell out of a tree in my yard and left several broken eggs and this one. Yes, I thought about it, but I won't be raising a baby robin. 😔

Meanwhile, I accidentally pulled a milkweed without looking and saw that it had a monarch butterfly egg on it. I hadn't planned to raise any this year, but I felt obligated.

A tiny butterfly egg.

My tiny egg hatched and is happily eating milkweed that I pick fresh every morning. 
Its name is Calendula.

We have another heat dome over the northeast, so I've been enjoying the air conditioning and popping out for a few minutes at a time for garden tasks. Only one more day of very hot weather and then it'll return to the 70's and low 80's. I'm loving summer and it seems to be flying by.