Why I Love My Garden, By Prairie Bride, Age 30

Despite our lack of rain and HOT weather, my flowers are surviving. Tough little buggers. I can't take any credit for them. I usually forget to go water them in the evenings,

and it's been weeks since it rained.

.

This is why I love my garden:
.

1.) All of the plants are perennials, except for the

climbing vine, God bless 'em.

Perennials rule.

They come up every year, with very little maintenance once they're established.

.

2.) The previous owner, who planted the garden, had the foresight to plant flowers that bloom at different times.
I almost always have something in bloom, all summer long.

.

..

.

These magenta and yellow ones are my favorites.

.

. .

.

I even tried to get an artsy shot with a bee hovering near one of the plants.
.

But then the bee started hovering around me and my brightly colored shirt,

which is when I spastically waved my hands in the air

and said to the bee (out loud, not realizing I was within earshot of the neighbors),

.

I am not a flower!!

.

I'm so cool.

Sissy's house

My big sis and her hubby are building a house outside of our hometown.

..
.

This is the back of the house, and the walkout basement.

.

.

Kuchen

I have discovered this dessert, kuchen (pronounced "koo-gen") since living here.

.

I first had it at our niece's baptism a few months ago. It was made by one of the relatives.

.

Oh, what is that? I asked. That's kuchen. Duh. they replied.

.

Okay, they didn't really say Duh. They're much nicer than that.

.

I tried it, and it was good. It's shaped like a pie, and has a cakey crust, and a custard middle. And it sometimes has fruit in it, like the apricot version above.

.

Apparently it's German.

.

As I was walking through the grocery store this week, there it was:

.

Grandma's Kuchen. In the freezer section.

.

This is one tradition I may have to adopt as my own.