Spiders

 It's a beautiful morning. Fortunately the forecast is for a slightly cooler day than yesterday when we reached 30C.  I was wandering around the back garden looking at what (if anything) was blooming that was new. Just a few Morning Glories was all I found.  I noticed again the webs that were built since yesterday.

 I did not see the Orb-weaver. We do have them around here though.

Orb-weaver spiders are called that because they build round, circular, or wheel-shaped webs, which are called "orbs". 

 Orb weavers can bite, but they are non-aggressive and will only bite if they feel threatened and cannot escape, such as if you walk into their web or grab them.

 

 Common house spiders are smaller and have a round abdomen. They hang out in dark corners where they make their rather messy webs. 
 

 The black widow spider is considered the most venomous spider in Canada, though it is rare and primarily found in southern border regions of provinces like BC, Manitoba, and Ontario. Its bite can cause severe pain, muscle cramps, and other neurological symptoms due to the neurotoxins in its venom.

Now that I've bored you with information about spiders  I'll wish you a great day.  Thanks for coming by.

 

Dog Park and Spider Webs

 

 

 14C this morning ( about 57F) so quite pleasant for walking.  We chose a different park to walk in. This one has a large off-leash dog area which is completely fenced in. One still does meet dog walkers along the path but we've never encountered any ill-mannered dog.  There is a stream that flows through the park and to one side of the path the ground rises up to a street of very large and fancy houses. Maybe one day we'll go take a look at the front of them. If the back is any indication they should be very nice.  Maybe even decorated for the season although we notice that fewer and fewer people bother.

It is the season for spiders and we've seen many webs including this unusual one which is almost always hung on the top of the grass ( as opposed to the ones up higher, the ones we don't like running into!). I found this picture and information which I thought was interesting.

The spider in the image appears to be a Funnel Weaver Spider, also commonly known as a Grass Spider.

These spiders are characterized by:

Appearance: They are typically brown or gray with stripes near their head and a pattern on their back. Their legs often have bands of different colors.

Webs: They construct a flat, horizontal web across grass or near buildings, which includes a funnel on one side where the spider hides.

Behavior: They are known for their speed and will retreat into their funnel when they sense a nearby presence.

Being Monday I'm doing the usual laundry. Seeing as it's cool I'll make an oven supper, maybe a quiche. I like making individual ones so I can make mine meatless.  I'll probably make some sort of sweet too. The pumpkin pie is all gone.

A note here to say that the bear was later encountered by a walker who had  quite a surprise when she came upon it. Luckily it was afraid of her and took off in the opposite direction. 

I hope your week is off to a great start.  Thanks for visiting.

 

 

Another Day, Another Walk

 It was foggy when we drove to our favourite Saturday walking spot.  At 14C I wore a sweater but by the time we finished our walk I was warm.

Mostly pictures I took on our walk.

 

Fresh bear poop on the path. It looks like it had eaten Blackberries. 

 

We often see pigeons but usually they are shades of gray. This one is obviously black and quite unafraid of us. 

 Common Tansy (tanecetum vulgare)  which is very invasive This is what the internet has to say about it.

... introduced to North America for its historical medicinal and horticultural uses but now considered a noxious, invasive weed in many areas. It is identified by its fern-like leaves and clusters of yellow, button-like flowers. Due to its toxicity, especially for livestock and humans, and its ability to spread rapidly by seed and rhizomes, it should be controlled through repeated mowing, hand-pulling, or the use of systemic herbicides to prevent its establishment and spread.  

 The grass beside the path was as tall as I am.

 

Once we were back at home we had a cup of coffee then DH peeled some apples that needed dealing with ( it became applesauce) while I got a Pumpkin pie in the oven. Just the easy Impossible recipe.
Now I have only the vacuuming to do and then it will be lunch time.

Thanks for coming by today

 

 

 

Baking and Mugs

 

At just 15C this morning it really felt like Fall.  Thursdays usually mean grocery shopping and we did that first thing.  Can you tell what I'm planning to bake next? 

 Yesterday I took out all 26 of my mugs ( I have quite a collection).  I recently acquired 2 more so I forced myself to put 3 in the thrift store box that is my ongoing donation box.

 The one below was given to me on Sunday by GD Kate.

 Look what's written in the bottom inside the mug?  Isn't that the sweetest?

I picked this one up at the thrift store when I took the last box in.  It has white polka dots on the blue  interior and the mug itself is super large. Was it C S Lewis who said that in his opinion there couldn't be a cup too big  him?   He would have liked this one.

 

Thanks for visiting today 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

A Peaceful Autumn Day

 I think doing more baking  is a sure sign of Fall and cooler days. I had bananas that were very ripe and needed using so when we came home from our walk I mixed up a batch of Chocolate Chip Banana muffins adding cocoa to make them even better!!

 

 While on our walk I noticed a tree which is blooming now. I'm not good at identifying trees and would like to know what this one is. DH broke off a twig and we brought it home but I didn't manage to find out anything from my book on B.C. trees and flowers.  The tree is quite large. If I remember I'll take a picture of it tomorrow.

 

When Shannon  was over on Thursday we took a stroll around the back garden and she noticed a grasshopper. She sent me the picture of it ( we don't see many grasshoppers here in town.)

As you can tell there was little to blog about this morning. Life is delightfully slow.

 

Thanks for visiting  

 

 

 

Two Recipes, a Walk, and a Full Moon

 

 It's cooler today; hopefully we've seen the last of the 30C degree weather.  We had a lovely walk at Willband this morning. I wore a cardigan when we set out but soon took it off. So beautifully cool.

 

photo by another walker

Once we got back home we decided what we were going to bake. Since we had both fresh peaches and pears that we would make an Impossible Peach Pie  and a Pear Custard pie. The recipe for the peach pie is actually called Rhubarb Impossible Pie ( of course it works with any fruit) and this particular site is Noshing with the Nolands. For the pear pie I chose the recipe from Dinner at the Zoo.  (Someday I may actually learn how to insert a link).

 

 The moon is not totally full until tomorrow night but it looked amazing last night. I didn't get a picture but if you were able to see it I'm sure you were also impressed. Often it happens that we have cloudy skies and I don't get to enjoy the full moon  but last night no clouds obscured the view.

 

I hope you are having a great weekend. Thanks for taking the time to visit. 

 

 

 

Mostly about Flowers

 

 Daylight is falling earlier and earlier.  The Autumn evenings are no longer a busy time of watering after the heat of the day. I think we reached 25C by mid afternoon but it didn't seem overly warm.
The moon tonight is that dark orange that it gets when the air is full of smoke.  Still 3 days until full moon. That should be quite a sight.

The Sedum 'Autumn Joy' is slowly changing colour.

...

 This bee was so intent on its task at hand that I was able to get so close to it and it didn't fly away.

 Sedum 'Postman's Pride' has completely coloured up. I like the raspberry colour of it.
Not only are its flowers a different colour its leaves are also slightly different from those of 
Autumn Joy.

Japanese Anemone "September Charm" is still looking good in spite of losing flowers as they age.
 

 Under a rugosa rose in a most inconvenient corner there is a Japanese anemone  which I think is 'Party Doll'. There used to be a clump of them but they are not as hardy nor do they hold themselves up the way Sept Charm do. 

That's it for today. Thanks for coming by.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Morning Glory

 

What a lovely surprise to find another Morning Glory that is very different. As you can see it is not only bigger than the other flowers but a totally different colour. 

 This is the one I found a week or so ago. I'm beginning to believe the packet of seeds I chose had a few odd seeds. Not that I mind in the least 🌸🌸🌸

I found this cute picture and decided to include it but really it makes very little difference to those of us who are retired whether it's Wednesday or Friday.  It is going to be hot again so I'm off to do a bit of tidying in the garden then I'll sit on the porch with a fan keeping me cool until it gets too warm.

 

Thanks for visiting 

 

 

Labour Day

It's Labour Day and most people are having a lovely long weekend.  Labour Day or not I did laundry.
Thankfully it's cooler today and since Youngest Son has the day off  he's coming over to do some much needed tidying in the garden.  The Phlox are mostly finished blooming. That's one of the jobs I'm hoping he'll do ( cut them all down to the ground).  I cut some stems that still had good blooms and put them in an old pitcher which I put outside. Phlox are lovely but they drop petals like crazy.

 

 I don't make Beef Stew very often any more. It was always a big hit when I used to make it for the family, with dumplings on top!!  It's one of those recipes that you make when there's just two of you and you eat it for days. But I'm making some today since it's cool enough for an oven supper. I  bought beets yesterday and I'll roast them in the oven at the same time as the stew simmers away.

 

I haven't mentioned Gleaners for a while. They got a load of different vegetables and posted a photo which I've grabbed to show you how the excess vegetables arrive. Aren't they colourful?  I'm so glad they are no longer destined for some compost bin.  Instead the result will be dried soup mix for countries that need them badly.
 

 

That's it for today.  Thanks for visiting. 

 

 

End of August

 

 

 It's a very pleasant 24C   75F  which is quite comfortable. A heat wave is forecast for this week so it is obvious that summer has not given way to Fall just yet.
We had a lively game of Dominoes ( Mexican Train) in which Kate seemed to have very good luck and ended up the winner. Now they've gone home and I must go make some supper for us two oldies.
I just wanted to post a Good-Bye to August.  See you in September.

 

Thanks for coming by.   🍂🍂🍂

 

 

Trip to a Plant Shop

 

 

 The water problem has been fixed and we're back to normal around here.  After the 'trauma' of the whole scary episode DH offered to drive me and eldest daughter to the plant shop. He knows how we love going there. I found lovely autumn arrangements in shallow planters. This is what our cart looked like.

 

I've put almost all my plants on the porch where I hope they'll thrive and bloom for months. Maybe some will even make it through the winter. I'm especially fond of Purple Fountain Grass and that's  rated zone 9 and warmer while we're zone 7 so we'll see how it fares on the enclosed porch.

The place is out in the country and has goats and chickens that children ( and adults) enjoy watching.

This is how I arranged my new plants on the porch. On the window sill I put three mixed planters  The wagon is from my birthday last year. The milk can is one Shannon painted.

 It's another beautiful sunny day, it will be too hot to do much outside so I'll find things to do indoors. I hope your day is a good one.

 

Thanks for visiting