Drawing The Limit: TinCup And The Technology

Drawing The Limit: TinCup And The Technology: One of the first things I point out to people who are interested in TinCup and the Tornado is the fact that it was illustrated entirely on a...

This book was illustrated completely on an iPad. No paper, no  pencils. Amazing!!

Yellow Iris

Knockout Rose

Sedum Blooms

Sedum Blooms

Knockout rosebud

Iris

Evening Primrose

Hemlock cone

Goldenrod

 

Cleome

All from my gardens this summer. Hate to see winter coming. But I can look at these and know Spring will be just around the corner.

Bumble bee on sedum blooms

He was ready for a fight.

                                                    

I love to sit and watch these tiny wings of wonder. I hate to see them leave as the weather gets colder.
I can hardly wait until they return next spring.

     Beautiful weather today. Sunshine, temps in the low 80's and a breeze blowing.
It is near perfect. I could lay in the grass and enjoy cloud watching if it wasn't for the fleas and ticks!!!
    Well, anyway, the Hummers are playing and eating. I love to watch them. They will sit so still on a branch....until I bring the camera out. Then they can't seem to sit still. They perch on a branch long enough for me to get them in focus and then they are gone. It is a game with them. Makes you wonder if they know what you are doing. Funny little wonders.

    The butterflies are all over the place too. I guess they are trying to do whatever it is they need to do before the weather turns cold.

    If I sit very still and listen there are so many sounds that I don't hear just coming and going. So many things that are hard to explain, but just are. I can't imagine not being able to see or hear the wonders of this world. I am so blessed to be able to do so.

    Have a wonderful day. I will.

My daughter, Leah Marrs Scott and my son, Waylon Marrs have a new book out.
It is about tornadoes, written so a child can understand what they are about.
With all of the tornadoes the country has had in the last 2 years, this is very timely and informative. A great gift for the child in your life.

They will also be holding a book signing, Sept. 15, at the Waverly Cafe, downtown Waverly, Tn. from 11-2pm. A great place to eat lunch and pick up your copy and get it signed by the Author and Illustrator.

You can also order here, http://www.outskirtspress.com/TincupandtheTornado/

Rain, GLORIOUS rain for the last four days.
Everything looks like it is so thankful. The flowers and grass are making an effort to look green and colorful.
Some of the trees are even starting to put on tiny, new leaves. Some of them will not make it. So sad. We lost a lot of huge trees this spring during strong winds because they were so shallow rooted from 4 years of drought. Those poor roots were reaching for any water they could find.

Hopefully, the rain we have gotten so far will save the farmers crops. They are struggling to just break even this year. We didn't get any horse hay this spring and now we might not get any at all. Our horses, Chessie and Red Man  will not be very happy this winter if we don't get hay.  Keeping a positive thought that the hay fields will come back out.

Our garden is lost. Besides the lack of rain, the deer and turkeys eaten what they could. Next year, electric fence will be the first thing that goes in the garden. A lot of work for nothing. Never again.
Now the humidity is almost unbearable. But you take the good with the bad, smile and keep your mouth shut. Enough said.

The high today, 102. Thunder and hopefully rain. Thunder storms early this morning and a bed full of dogs.

Thunder, lightning, dogs in the bed and that all equals NO SLEEP!!!

I never had a dog that was scared of storms. And the ones we have didn't start out scared. It just kinda started slowly. It is funny but also pitiful. Nothing helps except to put them in the bed. Then we have free vibrations for most of the duration of the storm. I'm not one who likes to be crowded. I don't even like cover on me. So with two dogs laying on me and shaking,  makes for a miserable night.
We desperately need the rain. So I guess I will just have to get over myself and endure, for the dogs sake.

Wild Turkeys

They love to peck my tomatoes and move on.

Sunflower patch  near the Tennessee River.

Same patch

I would love to see this from the air!!

IT RAINED!!!! Not very much but it RAINED!!
Nor a drop for almost 3 weeks. Everything is brown and crunchy.
A lot of trees will probably not make it. Three years in a row of low rainfall and everything is dying.
I keep waiting for our well to go dry. It can't keep pumping much longer.

We lost about 50 HUGE Oaks this spring from high winds because the roots were so shallow from no rain. It breaks my heart to loose them. They have been around a long time.

Hay is scarce and corn crops are stunted. Food will be going way up again. This is happening all over the country. Everybody will be paying more for what does make it to our shelves.

With our little shower the temperature went down over 20 degrees in 10 minutes. WOW! High today 102.

I will never complain about winter again!!!!

Sugar Sweet Cherry Tomato

 The garden is still growing but gets drier every day. Watering is not the same as "mother nature" or as time efficient. It is very discouraging to put the time and work into getting a garden out and then the weather takes over.
But that is what you endure to grow your own food.
I shudder to think what our grandparents had to put with.

Right now, we are fighting a ghost pest. It is targeting our green tomatoes. We find 3 or 4 laying on the ground every day with little bite marks or holes in them. We thought it might be deer because you can see in the dirt around the garden where they had their square dance the night before. But we also have lots of wild turkeys that stroll by the garden every day.

Then there are turtles, rabbits, ground hogs and squirrels. But I never thought anything would eat a "green" tomato. They haven't touched the ripe ones yet. Now that I've said that, they will probably start in on the red ones!!

Crab Apples

Yellow Squash

Grape Tomato

Green Tomatoes

Black Raspberries

The raspberry plant are new this year. I am trying to grow food of any kind. Raspberries are high in vitamins and fiber so we will give them a try.

Tomato patch

Muscadines

Hemlock

March 13

 Before and after of back yard

April 13

March 13

April 16

Before and after of front yard

Spring Favorites

Tennessee Iris

Fresh Strawberries

OK
It went from fall to summer. Everything is blooming and the sneezing has begun.
BUT, I love it.
Onions are planted, lettuce and mustard is in the ground and everything wild is doing its "thang"!

Bleeding Hearts

Bluebells

Blueberry blooming

Crab Apple

Lemon Balm

Pansy

Strawberries

February 26, 2012.
Who would think it would be 60 degrees at this time of year?
Not me! I just keep waiting for "winter' to fall all over us. This is not the typical winter
in Tennessee.

I'm not complaining, mind you. I love to get outside anytime possible. I just keep waiting........

The trees are blooming, Forsythia is smiling, of course Buttercups are yelling "hello", Hyacinths peeking and  the birds are singing so beautifully. Who wouldn't love this?

It makes me feel hopeful for the world. New beginnings for all. Life renewed.

Now, if I could just get into the garden............

OK. It has been like late Spring and then it goes "frigid" for 2 days. The animals and plants have NO idea what is going on. I am confused myself. This just ain't right. 

Snowing right now. Then it warms back up to the 50's the rest of the week. This ain't right. 

What is going on?

O.K it is cold as a "mother-in-laws" heart. 19  degrees is COLD!!!
Spring, where are you?!