barefootlilylady

Daylily Royalty

Daylilies reign supreme in the garden during the sultry months of July and August. On this last day of August, the flowers of my summer garden are putting on their final show. Daylilies have moved out of the spotlight giving the hydrangeas and zinnias their chance to shine, but here’s a little sampling of their beautiful performance.

Somewhere in Fitchburg Wisconsin there is a barefoot gardener standing in her flowerbeds giving the 2025 daylily performance a standing ovation.

“Consider the lilies, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” ~ Luke 12:27 (ESV)

Waiting for Flowers to Bloom

Flowers blooming in our garden are one of my favorite things to photograph. To my eye, even the buds just waiting to open hold a special kind of beauty. The too numerous to count buds intrigue me with the anticipation of the beauty yet to come as they await their unfurling. If the buds whisper His name, the glorious unfurling of the blooms shouts and cries out, “See! See my design? Take a look at the intricacy of my petals! Take a deep breath and bask in my aroma! Praise be to God, the Master Designer and Creator!”

Throughout the summer I have been spending snippets of time reading a beautifully written devotional, The Well-Watered Woman–Rooted in Truth, Growing in Grace, Flourishing in Faith, by Gretchen Saffles. The pictures she paints with her words make me feel like Gretchen is walking me through a garden and pointing out spiritual truths to be gleaned, much as Jesus did as He walked with his disciples.

“Waiting for flowers to bloom brought anticipation to my heart after a season of loss. Each day I looked forward to checking for signs of change. Through that process of slow growth, God showed me that sorrow and darkness don’t last forever. Even in death, God can bring about life.”
Gretchen Saffles, The Well-Watered Woman

“The well-watered woman doesn’t put off living as she waits for “someday,” she knows her mission is now and she lives with Gospel purpose guiding her every step.”

~ Gretchen Saffles, The Well-Watered Woman

“As we behold the beauty of God in Scripture and in creation, our hearts are sparked to praise his name, both now and forever. Every sunrise, every sunset beckons us to set aside distractions to enjoy the best part—praising our faithful, righteous, steadfast, glorious God.”

~ Gretchen Saffles in The Word Before World

I love (and need) this reminder:

“In our quest for a fruitful life, it’s important to remember that blooms aren’t continuous. They come and go, but that doesn’t mean the moments in between are unnecessary or less important. Blooms result from the faithful labor done in the planting, the rooting, the growing, and the waiting. You can’t enjoy a flower without the long process that brought it to that point.”

~ Gretchen Saffles, The Well-Watered Woman

Locust Seed Pods Galore

Stumbled upon some photos I took back in February of 2024. In Wisconsin, February is generally not known for Spring-like weather, but that’s just what we got during the second week of the month. How wonderful it felt to have the sun shining on me as I puttered about in my flowerbeds. It seemed to me that the animal kingdom was sensing the return of spring, with a nearby pond filled with geese returning from their winter migration.

Our locust tree seemed to decide to shower us with more than the usual boatload of seed pods. Since the weather was warm and relatively dry, I spent a little time raking and filling big Rubbermaid bins with the unsightly mess. Four bins to be exact. The next day my hubby joined me in raking up seed pods, creating two very large piles. Apparently, there is a name for this overzealousness in producing seed pods–it’s called a “mast seeding event” and can be attributed to our wacky winter weather.

It’s a yearly battle. Now, two years later, we’re creeping up on the month of August, and my frequent weeding adventures still yield numerous seed pods and little locust seedlings.

I will admit to feeling a bit overwhelmed by this tree’s propensity for making a mess. Then, I survey the plants beneath it happily thriving in its dappled shade, and I’m a little less annoyed by the inconvenience.

It’s pretty warm and humid outside today, so I sit on my garden bench and take a little break from weeding. As if in apology for all the mess, the locust tree hugs me with its cooling shade as I sit beneath its branches enjoying the peace of my little backyard.

Booby-trap

boo′by trap` n. 1. a hidden bomb or mine that can be set off by an unsuspecting person who steps on it, touches a tripwire, or the like. 2. any hidden trap set for an unsuspecting person.
www.thefreedictionary.com

Playing the Game of Booby-trap

My grandkids know there is a closet shelf with a little stash of old-school vintage games at Grandma Cindie’s house. When they were younger, we’d play some of those games together when they came to visit. In those days, it didn’t seem to matter that my games weren’t played on a device or a big screen. It was the time spent together enjoying one another’s company that mattered. Of course, it didn’t hurt if grandma had freshly baked cookies or a favorite snack on hand.

Momma’s Prayers

Momma lived out her last years with Alzheimer’s. As her primary caregiver, I was honored to be an eyewitness to her faithful walk with the Lord, even as memories slipped away and her body failed her. I loved to hear her pray. May the Lord bless each of my readers with the grace to live life in the hard places like my momma.

More Clematis Love

Just a little splash of Clematis love coming from our July garden.

I would describe the color of Clematis ‘Prince Charles’ as lilac-blue. My husband dug this clematis up for me earlier this summer and then rehomed it in a spot about 2 feet away so that it wouldn’t have to reach so far toward this backyard arbor. I call this handsome guy “Charlie” as it is planted to remind me of my oldest grandson, Charlie.

Clematis ‘Comtesse de Bouchaud’ is most definitely a gorgeous showstopper gracing the south-facing front of our house. We gave her a bigger trellis a year or two ago, but it looks like we may need to upsize again in the near future. “Comtesse” is the French word for countess, a female member of nobility. This lovely lady is definitely regal.

A closer look at lovely Clematis ‘Comtesse de Bouchard’

Another view of ‘Comtesse de Bouchaud’ earlier this summer–just loaded with buds waiting to burst into glorious bloom. I just love her six-petaled rosy-pink (almost lavender) blossoms with creamy yellow stamens.

The petals of profusely flowering Clematis ‘Sunset’ are a stunning, velvety purple with streaks of sunset red radiating from her beautiful creamy white anthers. She’s a reliable repeat bloomer, but I’m going in with my pruning shears this week to snip out spent flowers to encourage a stronger repeat bloom.

Pretty in pink Clematis ‘Princess Diana’ is charming and super-happy this summer. I have her planted in full sun on both the southwest and southeast sides of our home. Though not technically a climber, I’ve trained her to the arbor at the entrance to our backyard.

Before life with Alzheimer’s necessitated moving my sweet momma out of her home, I took a digging of clematis from her lovely garden. I never found a tag for it, but think it just might be Clematis ‘Multi-Blue.’ This beauty has scrambled up one side of the arbor at the entrance to the backyard for almost 10 years now. I call her ‘Lady Charlotte’ in remembrance of momma, and hope that she will one day meet up with ‘Princess Diana’ regally scrambling up the other side.

That’s a wrap for my Six on Saturday from hot and humid Southern Wisconsin this Saturday. To enjoy the world garden tour visit our Six on Saturday host Jim at http://gardenruminations.co.uk

Anniversary Morning Coffee

Every morning, as I sit bleary-eyed in front of the bathroom mirror getting ready for my day, my kind-hearted husband brings me my first cup of coffee. That little gesture is a sweet reminder that Wayne loves, honors, and cherishes me as his wife—49 years today, in fact. How grateful I am for this man’s faithful love and care for me.

Another sip of coffee as I glance in the mirror, then I pick up my hairbrush and begin smoothing the tangles away. I smile as I think about how I was 15 years old when I met Wayne. He was a sailor stationed at a naval air station in Hawaii. We had been writing to one another for a few months but met for the first time in person at church when he was home on leave.

As I got to know him better in those few weeks, I found myself wanting to do things that pleased him—like growing my pageboy hairstyle longer because Wayne said he liked long hair.

He still likes my long hair, so not much has changed about my hairstyle since the 70’s, except that the gray hairs now outnumber the brunette hairs. I have tried to cover those gray hairs in years past but now consider them a badge of honor. As I look at my reflection in the mirror today, those gray hairs framing my time-worn face remind me that God has blessed me.

The years of marriage that lie ahead are surely fewer than the ones behind, but we have every confidence they will continue to be blessed. Even if our golden years together are sprinkled with hardship and painful loss, we have assurance of His faithfulness. The Lord promises, “Even to your old age and gray hairs, I am he, I am he who will sustain you” (Isaiah 46:4).

Linking up with Kate and friends at Five Minute Friday. This week’s FMF writing prompt is: FACE. For instructions on how to join the link-up, click here.

Peony Love ‘Gold Standard’

The peony love continues in my Wisconsin garden with Peony ‘Gold Standard’ taking center stage today. The frilly central bomb of golden yellow staminodes is a perfect jewel to accent the sweet creamy white guard petals of the Japanese-form blossoms.

Peony (Paeonia x lactiflora ‘gold standard’)

Two of these beauties grace my mailbox garden. Their arresting beauty and light fragrance stop passersby in their tracks. Like most peonies, she enjoys basking in full sun, but would be just fine in part shade.

Her annual show begins in late May or early June with each beautiful blossom lasting a week or two.

It’s always a bit sad when her floral show ends, so I usually cut a few of the unopened buds to save in my fridge. I choose buds that have a little marshmallow-like squish to them, then wrap a few of them up in a dampened paper towel, slip them into a Ziplock bag, then store them in a refrigerator drawer.

A few weeks later, I remove a stem or two from the bag, give the stem end a fresh cut, then display it in a bud vase and wait for the petals to open. It’s definitely worth the effort to extend the ‘peony love’ out for a few more weeks.

Itoh Peony Love

There is great joy in my heart and a smile on my face when I first spy the Itoh peonies opening. Itohs are a hybrid cross between tree peonies and herbaceous peonies. I love their sturdy stems that can stand up to heavy rains. This deep pink peony opened on Sunday.

This sunshine yellow peony unfurled the petals of her first flower today.

They both hold the promise of many more blooms yet to make their debut. Which color is your favorite?

Clematis Love

We got into a friendly lunch table debate on the proper pronunciation of a plant that’s taking center stage in my garden right now. The lovely lady known as Clematis.

Any way you pronounce it, Clematis ‘Samaritan Jo’ has proven herself to be a stunningly beautiful addition to the southeast corner of our home.