Ducklings at the farm

HOLY CUTENESS!!  So soft and fluffy with shiny black bills.

Beach Day!

Wingaersheek Beach



We played hookey and went to the beach today.
It was hot!
Too hot to stay home and sweat.
Rob chose wingaersheek in Gloucester because it is shallow and we got there at high tide when the water was warm, so we could swim.  Fun.  But it was crowded.  Really crowded.

Georgia is finishing her melted mango slushy.
Lily is drawing the ocean with her b-day art kit.

See all the people?
So many teens.

We spent the day and then got an early bird dinner at the Gloucester House with a view of the harbor and a gluten free menu.  I even got a gluten free cupcake.  Nice.

Then, to miss traffic, we went to Stage Fort Park in Gloucester and looked at the crabs and the ocean some more.

Lily let me take her annual portrait for the wall in our stairway.  She's wearing her favorite shirt (That grandma bought for her after Lily emailed her the deets. I didn't even know about it.)

 

Georgia doing what she loves best.

Beautiful stones.  I want to bring them all home, but instead I'll take a pic.
The girls on the way home.  Snuggling in the car is very rare so I documented it.

We made it home at 9pm, ready for a quick shower and bed.

Blooming summer!

“One regret dear world, that I am determined not to have when I am lying on my deathbed is that I did not kiss you enough.” 

 

Hafiz

 

Grandma's B-day party

The vine of the passion flower looks like a hairy snake. 
My sister's garden is in full glorious bloom.
Cookie rests while the evening winds down and the sparklers burn.

Happy
Birthday!
Mom! Grandma!

Making flower essences

I've been making flower essences for years.  But I still have to pull out my Roots Of Healing by Deb Soule, a wonderful herbalist from Maine. 
She details the steps, which are quite particular.

The bowl must be clean and clear glass with no patterns filled with spring water.  You cannot touch the flowers with your fingers, instead use a sterilized pair of scissors.

Spring water from a glass container is used and the perfect, freshest flowers are chosen to rest on the water for whatever amount of time feels right.


Today I am making a rose combination and an Angelica flower essence to put in my aromatherapy blends and any oral drops I make for the rest of the year.

supermoon solstice

The moon was orange as it slowly rose over the farm at the end of this longest day of the year.

Happy supermoon Solstice!

Flickering fire with hot dogs and marshmallows and then a walk around the farm in the darkness.  The fireflies were abundant.
 Ahhhhhh.
 Happy summer. 

May it be abundant and happy!

The Gorgeous Belle Isis blooms again

This is a glorious rose, fragrant and covered in lush flowers.  It was bred and named in 1849 and has been in gardens for its fragrance and heartiness.  It smells wondrous and I have been putting blossoms in my water again this year to drink in the fragrance before they're gone!