Sunflowers

School continues to take front row center of my life right now.  I've been at this long enough now to know that this is always the way it is at the beginning of the school year -- and yet, every year it feels more all-consuming than the year before.  Whether this is how it really is or simply my perception when I'm in the middle of the soup of the first few weeks of school is anyone's guess.  All that I do know is that I'm having to paddle mighty hard just to keep my head (barely) above water.

It doesn't help that the weather is still very warm.  It's cooled down from daytime temperatures in the low 100's, but it's still in the 90's, which means that I'm having to spend several hours watering every afternoon/evening when I get home.  I'm generally not back inside until around 8:00 every evening.  That leaves only time for making dinner (such as it is) and then getting ready for bed.  I comfort myself that soon the initial rush of school will be behind me and I can settle into a more comfortable routine.  But I'm not there yet.



As the seed  heads mature, they droop farther and farther down

The sunflowers in the pumpkin/corn patch are stunning.  Some of them are now over 12 feet tall -- they loom above me; faces hanging down over me like benign but curious aliens. 



A fat praying mantis has set up shop in this one



Sunflowers are one of my all-time favorite flowers and I can't imagine having a garden without them.