This Perfectly Imperfect Life

It's a (not so) Wordless Wednesday here at The Portable Homestead and that is because Ms. Jekyll, a David Austin rose, has begun her second bloom! I'm pleased since I only just bought her as a birthday present to myself the third week of May and she finished that bloom before mid June. She's already more than doubled her height! I was afraid the slight touch of black spot & powdery mildew she's come down with would hold her back. Perhaps she's competing with Queen Elizabeth (grandiflora) who is now seven and a half feet tall! From the lovely, delicate pink color, to the ruffled petals once a bud opens fully, to the utterly enchanting scent (heavily traditional yet not overwhelming), I adore this rose! For more photos of Gertrude, click here . Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

I love taking photos of these two steeples. I never tire of the sight of them. And I couldn't tell you why! The top is in our Northwestern NJ town and the bottom one is in PA. Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Coneflowers! Echinacea purpurea, purple coneflower to be exact. Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

We're heading into what's likely to be our first heat wave of Summer here at The Portable Homestead. At 8am this morning, it was 75* with 89% humidity, which is nothing new in our neck of the Jersey coast, but we're headed to the 90s today and y'all know I'm not much of a fan of the heat. (I am the equivalent of those who hate/complain about Winter!) So I headed out into the soupy air for a quick garden walk and found 'Mardi Gras' floribunda starting its' first round of blooms! I'm even more excited than usual to see Mardi blooming right now. Not only did I lose more than half of this rose due to Hurricane Sandy, but I accidentally pruned a large section of what was left back in May! (What I now refer to as the 'pruning oops or incident'). Add that I've been dealing with black spot to varying degrees in all of my roses this year before they had buds or blooms (a gardening first here at The Portable Homestead), I cried when I saw ...

'French Lace' floribunda. 'Pope John Paul II' hybrid tea. 'French Lace' florbunda. 'Mardi Gras' floribunda. Summer has arrived here at The Portable Homestead and with it, the second round of rose blooms. These are my favorite photos from today. Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

I went back for more today! More gardens on the Keyport Garden Walk that is. Above are a few of my favorite photos taken with my BlackBerry. (Going through the ones on my Polaroid begins tomorrow!) Yesterday was humid and very cloudy, not to mention full of drizzles. Today it was sunny. And hot. Very hot! I forgot sunblock. And wore a tanktop. Thankfully, I'm not as sunburned as I thought I'd end up being. For the most part. (My shoulders wouldn't likely agree at this moment). The heat did get to me fairly quick. And, of course, the ole feets swelled up again. (And, of course, I forgot my flip-flops to change into). But, I met a lot of nice people & gardeners, from all backgrounds and got to take a peak at properties and homes I've only ever dreamed of which was so much fun! I was a little surprised (and honestly, disappointed) there weren't more roses in the gardens I visited, (can't help it, I love me some roses) but that's not to ...

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

These are just a few of my favorite photos from today. I've yet to go back through the ones I took with my Polaroid digital camera so there are more to be shared for sure! (These here were taken with my BlackBerry). Thankfully the upwards of 6"s of rain from Tropical Storm Andrea (Thursday through the wee hours of this morning) didn't dampen the beauty of the gardens I saw today (or the ones I will see tomorrow from what I heard). There's barely a petal left on my own roses here at home! Keyport is a beautiful community my husband and I spent a lot of time in (before we met and after), having lived minutes from it before we moved roughly 13 miles south along the coast back in 2005. While I was out & about exploring a few gardens, Hubbs dropped by the grand re-opening of the American Legion, where we used to be members, which was damaged by Hurricane Sandy this past October. I met him there when passing rain cut the garden walk short for me. (Trying ...

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Knock Out Rosa 'Radrazz' in my garden today. It's not only #GardenWalk Thursday, but our "Featured Tweeter" returns to Connect*Share*Grow this week with a few new twists! Every Friday, I will post two #GardenWalk "Featured Tweeters" on Connect*Share*Grow , picking one as the #GardenWalk Thursday featured tweeter and another as the Weekly #GardenWalk featured tweeter.  This way, those who share daily and those who only share on Thursdays all have a chance at being a #GardenWalk Featured Tweeter on Connect*Share*Grow .  (Depending on the shares in a given week, there may be weeks were the featured tweeter will be the same person for both). If you are chosen as one of the #GardenWalk Featured Tweeters, I invite you to share a bit about yourself with us on that post in the comments section that go along with it on Connect*Share*Grow .  (A few brief questions will be included in the post for you to answer). Participating is super easy: Post...

For two of my latest additions of pink to the garden, visit Through My Eyes 360 by clicking here .

"I like pink. Pink is my signature color." -Shelby/Steel Magnolias (movie) It's mine too. Geranium, 'Presto Pink + Eye' Fuchsia hybrid 'Electric Lights' in foreground, Bleeding Heart in background. (I didn't realize this was so blurry. Apologies!)

Love at first sight today with this purple-pink Victorian! Because of the bright Spring sun, this photo doesn't do this magnificent home justice! Much better from this angle! "Rose Cottage" A home that's for sale we would *love* to buy... Yes, another 'Bleeding Heart' photo, from my garden this morning! What did your Sunday look like?

'Bleeding Heart' in my garden. Camellia 'April Blush' in my garden. Miss Boo waiting for Hubbs to get home. Mama kitty's way of telling me to feed her. Now. Breakfast bookclub this Thursday. Despite this being a funeral home, I love the house! These are a few of my favorite things from the last week.  What are some of yours?

Are with the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings, their families & friends around the World, the city of Boston and our Country.