It’s the end of June already and time for the month-end wrap-up, otherwise known as Changing Seasons.
June was dominated by travel and my calendar was full of activities with friends and family. However, this month I’m going to take a step back from all that busy-ness and focus the spotlight on home.
Spring was very late in coming this year and it seemed that everything exploded into summer with little warning or fanfare.
I’m a haphazard kind of gardener. It’s more wishful thinking than calculated effort, but in spite of that messiness, my backyard is a quiet oasis where I can retreat during the hot summer months.
Welcome to my world. I hope you’ll stay a while.
In spite of living in the largest city in Canada, my backyard is surprisingly quiet except for the wind in the trees, the loud calls of the cardinals, and the occasional chittering of squirrels during their turf wars.
While it seems that we skipped from cold season to hot overnight, there are no complaints from me – even though I don’t particularly like hot. All the promise of summer is still ahead of us and it’s looking good.
Changing Seasons is a monthly photo feature showcasing photos from our month. It is hosted by Su Leslie at Zimmerbitch.
Theo is lovely! 😍
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Thanks, he is … in many ways 💕
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Yes, we can perceive it even from a picture😍☺️
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Everything is so beautiful. Lovely photos.
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Thank you 🙂
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Puss looks pretty happy with the whole deal
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He’s master of the castle and knows it 😏
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I love your garden Joanne! I can’t believe you have such extremes of temperature from summer to winter and yet your garden thrives. Loving the peonies and the sleeping Theo.
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I’ve lived here all my life and some days I can’t believe it either 😏 Nature provides us with remarkable miracles everyday!
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A beautiful and very relaxing spot. You seem to be doing just fine with the gardening, Joanne..:)
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Thanks George. The weeds certainly like my space 😏
The irony is not lost of me that I regularly walk out in nature and marvel at the beauty of the wildflowers that blanket the landscape and yet curse those same plants that presume they are welcome in my personal space 😉
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I know what you mean about not having enough time to relax in the garden. It seems to me that I hardly spend any time in the backyard at all except to feed the fish (which I do daily), or to weed the garden, which I don’t do nearly enough.
Jude
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I’ve come to terms with the fact that gardening is not my thing. Some people may find it zen-like. I just find it annoying 😏
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Ahh, how kind of you to invite us to your beautiful garden. I could stay for a while indeed. That is one gorgeous sunflower, or better two! And you’ve got a pool! Fancypants! 😉 (I’d die for one right now.)
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Most of the year the pool is just a big pain, but on those hot and humid days of summer – sublime!
We would never have gone through the trouble and expense of having a pool put in, but when you buy a house that already has one …. 😉
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Joanne your backyard looks like an oasis! I can see why you would want to spend time enjoying it. Summer seems to fly by in Canada so do soak in all of the quiet relaxation. Summer hugs across the miles.
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Before I retired I dreamt of idyllic days just lounging in my backyard with a book. Now that I am retired, I rarely do it. There are just too many other distractions.
Maybe someday when I slow down …
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Lovely to see your garden, Joanne. I especially like your gardening philosophy…”It’s more wishful thinking than calculated effort” 🙂
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It sounds so much nicer than saying I’m lazy 🙂
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What a gorgeous backyard area. It looks so relaxing and inviting! We are experiencing a pool here in our rental house for six weeks and it is such a treat on days that are sweltering. Thank you for the visit. i love the bougainvillea, the peonies, the purple clematis, and is that lilac? And of course Theo is the “cherry on top”. Funny that he is so camera shy…
Peta
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Yes, it is a lilac! My favourite flower 🙂 and this year it seemed to attract a lot of butterflies.
Yeah – it’s funny about the camera thing. Whenever Theo sees me with a camera he gets up and moves away.
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Joanne, your backyard looks beautiful! Thank you for the invitation and the tour! 🙂 I hope that July is off to a wonderful start for you.
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So far July is wonderful and promises to be packed to the max with activities!
Hope you have a great July 4th long weekend!
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I’m so glad to hear July is shaping up for lots of fun. Thank you, Joanne!
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It was perfect weather for lounging and relaxing this past long weekend and you have an ideal sanctuary for it to happen in. Enjoy your summer 🙂
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That’s exactly what I did this weekend, Norm, and it was wonderful.
Hope your summer is off to a great start!
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Theo is adorable, and doing what the wisest thing given the sunshine & warmth! Lovely lovely garden, Joanne!
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Thank you Ju-Lyn 🙂
Theo really is adorable. He’s a big cuddly bear of a cat ❤️
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Beautiful yard and flowers. I love the photo with the watch on the table because, do we really need to wear them anymore!?
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hahaha!! I admit to owning many watches and wear one everyday. I think of them as jewelry. The only reason the watch was on the table was because I had just had a swim. For the record, the water was cold!
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I wanna lie down on the warm deck with Theo 🙂 Looks like haphazard works well for you (and me) and who could complain about a backyard oasis? Yessss. So good!
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I think you also have a dog-cat, don’t you? Theo likes to hang around us when we’re in the backyard especially where he can stretch out his full length in a piece of shade 🙂
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Joanne, that looks like my kind of drink. I do love a martini, especially a dirty martini.
You have such a very lovely home! I enjoyed every photo, and it’s wonderful to see one of handsome Theo. Happy summertime. Hugs on the wing!
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Love, love, love your backyard. All the flowers, the yard art, the drinks by the pool. I have back-yard envy now!
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Thanks Pat! … now if only I could get someone to take care of it for me 😏
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Happy Canada Day!
Enjoy your lovely oasis to the max!
Give Theo a scritch from me.
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Thank you! The weather couldn’t be more perfect for a Canada Day celebration.
Theo says ‘purrrrr’ 😻
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It is summer in Montreal as well and it feels good. We also had a very quiet backyard despite the fact we lived in Leslieville close to Queen Street East. It was quite amazing actually to get out and feel you weren’t in the big city. Lovely set of images. (Suzanne)
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I think that’s one of the truly interesting things about Toronto. There are numerous pockets where it is easy to forget you are in the middle of a large city.
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Looks so inviting & relaxing! Enjoy your home time my friend💕
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Thanks Lynn. Hope you are having a great Canada Day long weekend and enjoying this amazing weather!
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I love your sunflower door! Looks like a lovely place to retreat to. We are still a bit on the cool side – can wear shorts but too cool for swimming. Love it.
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The sunflower isn’t really a door – just a very large hanging. But I love it too!!
We’re having a heat wave now and swimming definitely feels good. Unfortunately we don’t have a pool heater so our water temperature is rather ‘bracing’. Right now the water is somewhere between 70-75F.
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Your garden looks beautiful, Joanne. And I always live pics of Theo. Thanks so much for sharing!
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Thanks Donna. Theo is a reluctant model 😏
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Well that was a lovely invitation, don’t mind if I do. Mine’s a Margarita or a G&T and I you and I can have a lovely chat whilst looking over that pool. I think your white peony is far more beautiful than the common red ones and I like your quirky fence decorations – makes it a unique and personal chill out space. Perfect for hot summer days.
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I’m happy to mix you up a beverage of your choice and we can chat away in the shade watching the butterflies flit by.
Glad you like my white peony. I couldn’t really be too disappointed – I was just so thrilled that it’s finally starting to thrive. SO MANY BUDS!!!
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Yes, once you find the plant’s happy place it will reward you.
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You were the one who actually inspired me to move it. I remember you saying that you were brutal with under performers and they quickly get ripped out. With the success of the peony I moved another non performer this spring it’s already doubled in size. This tough love works!
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Of course my fave is of Theo. He’s such a lovey–at least he looks like it. And martini by the pool–you’re living the life!
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Theo is the nicest cat. He’s super affectionate and has behaviours more like a dog than a cat.
… and any drink by the pool is a good one, especially coffee on a beautiful morning while the world is still sleeping. Yes – I savour those moments a lot.
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Very pretty, I love the decorations on your fence as well as the plants.
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Thanks – I love my fence art. If I had my way, there would be a lot more of it 😉
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[…] Joanne at My Life Lived Full […]
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Your garden (edited highlights notwithstanding) looks so lovely, and Theo is gorgeous. Cheers to enjoying your oasis this summer.
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Thanks Su. I know I’m actually quite fortunate – even with all its warts 😉
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🙂
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What a beautiful garden. Joanne.I was especially taken with the picture of the columbine in the same planter as the dahlia. How do you manage an all-season flowering plant with a spring-only flower?
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Our climate is pretty unfriendly to many (most?) flowering plants – like the ones in the planter – and they don’t survive our winters. They have to be replanted every spring.
I buy whatever plants catch my eye at the local garden centre and stick them in the ground. Last year was the first time I started to experiment with different plants together. I liked the result so much, I’m trying it again this year.
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I like your idea of planting different plants together. I do that also, and like you, must replant annuals every year. But no matter how I try, my planters never look as beautiful as magazine arrangements.
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I know the feeling. Last year must have been beginners luck because the planter was outstanding! I wish I had taken photos.
This year it lacks the same wow I got the first time.
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Your world looks pretty darn good and inviting. I like the liquid in the pool and in the glass. 🙂
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I love that view – sitting on the deck with drinks on the table and the blue and green background. It’s peace 🙂
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My kind of place but I am just like a cat, afraid of waters.
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Awww. I love water. I can’t imagine not living anywhere near it.
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Beautiful
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Thank you 🙂
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Wow!Great post with superb photographs.Thanks a lot for sharing
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Thank you 🙂
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You are most welcome 🙏🌷🙏🌷🙏🌷
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Your yard is beautiful, Joanne. Mine is…..wild? I think I need to get out and work in it. I especially like, besides the adorable Theo, the framed artwork hanging on your fence. Here’s to quiet backyards **tips wine glass**
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I haven’t shown you the ugly bits of my yard … and they exist. I just turn a blind eye to it because there’s not much I can do about it until our neighbour agrees to cut down the cedar trees lining their side of the fence. The acidity kills everything … except weeds 😕
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Your backyard is a lovely oasis, Joanne! Glad to see it survived our tough winter.
Deb
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Thanks Deb – a few plants appear to be a little worse for wear but so far none have died …. yet.
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Looks like a great place for a snooze. Nice backyard.
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It is a great place for a nap. Naps are good 🙂
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Your garden/yard is beautiful, Joanne. Theo really is a big boy! It doesn’t take much of a zoom to catch him 😏 but he’s a handsome boy. I hope you have a great July.
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Theo is both big and handsome. In spite of his size, he’s also a big cuddly fur ball.
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🙂
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Thanks for inviting us into your private and relaxing back yard, Joanne. Loved the begonias, peonies and other flowers, the pleasant touches, and hearing your clever solution for capturing a photo of Theo. Really sweet post.
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It was great to have you visit and stay a while 🙂 Summer doesn’t last long here so we try to squeeze as much out of it as we can!
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What a heavenly retreat! And Theo makes it perfect. A multi-olive martini doesn’t hurt, either. I wish gin liked my head as much as I like gin. Unrequited love is a painful thing.
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It must be one of those annoying aging things. My beloved martinis are also causing me considerable discomfort after the fact. Each time I say it will be the last one …
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Here’s to a less rainy July and August so we can enjoy our backyard havens.
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Amen to that!!
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There is a pool in your yard! Yay! Water is so soothing. I have the pond. I don’t go in it without waders (fish pee in there) but it offers a peacefulness that can’t be beat. I also have a white peony that was labeled red. #$@# I try not to buy anything unless it’s in bloom. Make mine a margarita and I’ll be over at suppertime! Never mind I’ll bring the margaritas!
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LOL!! We’ll raise our glasses to water in backyard havens and &^%$@#* white peonies 😆
I hear you about the fish pee. Every spring for the past 27 years we’ve had a pair of mallard ducks visit our backyard. They feed off the wormy/buggy gunk on the pool cover. One summer they decided to hang around for the entire summer. Husband was not impressed because – as ducks are apt to do – they would poop in the pool. Terrible house guests!
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No manners at all!
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What a peaceful oasis you’ve made for yourself. I can imagine many happy hours relaxing there. Your Theo is very handsome! Oh, and I love the symbolism of the wristwatch in your first photo since I take mine off on the last day of school and don’t put it back on till the new year begins!😊
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I agree that Theo is very handsome … and a big baby.
Today’s he’s in the proverbial doghouse because he knows he has to come in at night. I let him stay out all day but insists he come in at night … which he doesn’t like to do. Normally he comes when he’s called but last night he was nowhere to be found. Today he’s acting all contrite and love-me-love-me-love-me because he knows he was ‘bad’ 😏
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Oh boy! Maybe he has a girlfriend?😊
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hehehe! Not likely if the vet did his job properly 😉
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😄
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You’re back yard is an oasis Joanne. Save a Martini for me 🙂
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Anytime Joe. My bar is always open 🙂
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I love your yard Joanne. What a lovely place to relax after your super busy explorations
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Thanks Jacquie. Obviously I focused on the nice bits and left out the ugly 😉
I often tend to see only the stuff that’s messy and needs work but it’s nice once in a while to be reminded that I have a special corner to retreat to.
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