Bumble bee on a thistle

I guess we just passed 'midsummer', if you count 6 weeks from June 21st, and nature seems to already, albeit slowly, real slowly, wind down a little ...
Summer flowers are starting to look just slightly 'over the top' and of course the days are getting just a tad shorter every day.

         

Wild (oregon) sweetpeas and corn flowers are still brightening up the now dead-looking grass in the meadows ...

                                    

We finally made it to the Sheridan Saturday market.
They only take place every 2nd Saturday of the month during the summer, so it's a little bit of a hit or miss if we can make it, but today we did!

                                                 

Well .. we wouldn't have missed much if we couldn't have made it. There were only 4 booths and none were much of an interest to us:

Except for the baked goods booth of course!

One of those Maple sweet rolls with Bacon(!) just had to come with us.
But only one, since they looked to have a zillion calories to begin with, and also because she charged $5.50 for the one! Holy smoke!
I thought they were $4 and James was already sort of committed to buy but I almost walked away without buying one.

It was really delicious though so at least there was that ..

Meanwhile, at the RV, we're having a little bit of a war going on at the moment with the Red-winged black-birds.
They come in large flocks, bully all the little birds away and empty all the feeders in no time!

                                                                                

I guess they raised their young, among the reeds of the lower pond, and are now bringing them over and teach them where to find an easy meal!

In an attempt to make them loose interest so they'll try their luck elsewhere, I've taken down the feeders for a week or so.
Of course I did some googling and found some other tips and ideas to handle the problem but I'll try this first. Keeping my fingers crossed ..   

And look, the first blackberries are starting to ripen around here!                                                                                                              


I've picked a bowl almost every day and there's lots and lots more to come!
James already has visions of blackberry cobblers, pies, crisps, buckles and muffins ..

                                             

Also, I finally found a perfect little shelve for the empty wall space where the printer used to live (which moved to the office since):
              

Isn't it a cutey? I'm tickled pink with it!
A little plant and some candles completed the 'look'. Perfect!

And that rounds up another summer-week. Only about 6 more weeks to go until Fall! Yesssss!
Here's a few pictures from an 'al fresco' Sunday morning breakfast (Grand Slam!), and an evening BBQ (Ribs, baked beans and macaroni salad!)

Life is good!

Oh, and of course the Olympics have ended:

Of course the US came out on top but 15 Gold medals for Holland and a 6th place in the medal tally is not bad for such a tiny country!