A kick butt Father's Day

Phenomenal Father’s Day here today. Low 80′s, sunny and not the least bit humid.

After today, I can confirm that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.

Events in chronological order:

Breakfast in bed – Lemon ricotta pancakes, double thick bacon, pineapple/strawberry mix, black coffee.

Me personally running baseball/softball practice in the front yard – Impressive showing by both children.

Strawberry picking at a local farm – Impossible for me to describe just how good they are

Dinner – Filet mignon with blue cheese butter, corn on the cob, mozz and tomato salad

Dessert – Angel food cake, fresh strawberries and freshly made whipping cream

Walk – 2 mile family walk at dusk that capped off a perfect day.

And somewhere in between all of those activities, I managed to get out in the garden, pick some weeds, plan some future plant moves and purchases, find a bunch of infant rabbits living inside of a Barberry, get filled with plant related anger and take some photos.

Enjoy the pics.

Possibly my new favorite shrub – Physocarpus ‘Amber Jubilee’ – in a container on the deck for now. How about that foliage color:

Still managing to keep the lettuce and kale going even as the temperature starts to trend higher:

We’ve got tomatoes:

I love the subsequent red seed capsules on the Physocarpus ‘Diablo’ more than the flowers:

I have found that Veronica likes my conditions more than I ever imagined so I have placed them all over the garden for much needed color at this point in the gardening season:

A new Monarda cultivar this year, ‘Pardon My Purple’, is performing well to date:

Maybe a bit boring, but Itea ‘Little Henry’ has proven to thrive just as ‘Henry’s Garnet’ has for so many years:  

Astilbe love continues:

Still not sure about the color combo above, but for most of the year, it won’t be a concern. Have to let this one marinate for a while before I decide to keep it or not.

The first coneflower has appeared:

Um, what exactly do these “dots” represent? Maybe it is a secret message/code I am supposed to crack:

Rabbits didn’t get the memo that ornamental grasses are off limits:

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there from a dad who has never felt more appreciative of all that he has in his entire lifetime.