Happy Summertime my friends!  It doesn’t quite feel like summer yet, but our calendar says it is.  We still continue to have lots of sunless and rainy days.  Now that summer has begun I hope the weather improves.  Today looks promising, finger crossed…

Tuesday was a perfect day to be outside–no wind, no rain, some sun (not too bright), and warm temps.  Since posting pictures of color inspiration for my yellow Little Darling sweater dress I have been struggling to find genuine desire to actually do the work.  The weather on Tuesday was exactly what I needed; it was a pleasure to work outside.  I didn’t finish the dress, but it’s almost there.

An organic farm near us sets up their stand on Friday afternoons.  Last Friday they had put together these peony bouquets mixed with lupines and a white allium.  The peonies smelled wonderful!  The entire bouquet lasted a week, and is still giving us a bit of magic–the smaller peony buds have started to open.

Yesterday my husband and I visited the Chicago Botanic Gardens… yes, again.  I wanted to see the roses in their first bloom… and they were blooming like crazy.  There were roses, roses everywhere–all varieties and all colors.

The English Walled Garden was as peaceful and beautiful as always.

The fountains, which had not been going the last time we visited, were now serenading us and adding to the sights and sounds here.

This hydrangea was growing around the tree you can see in the photo above.  I thought it was interesting.

After walking through a few of the gardens we had lunch in the cafe.  I ordered an Ancient Grains Bowl; garbanzo beans, quinoa, cranberries, broccoli,  farro (I think), fresh spinach, and poppyseed dressing made up this yummy bowl.

Well, the day still looks promising here in northern Illinois.  That’ll mean two days in a row of relatively sunny weather–must be a new record for 2019!

I hope the sun is shining where you are.  Enjoy your day!  Thank you for stopping by.

❤