In July, I entered a radio competition for "top lawn cuts" and won a year's worth of lawn care. I took this photo: 

And came home to this sign in my yard: 

Meanwhile, in the backyard I brought the office outside and enjoyed all the greenery that July provides: 

And all the colour too:

It was Chris' Birthday (*cough* week), we celebrated with steak and oysters ~

And a fancy dinner out with friends. On the weekend we went out to the lake for more birthday celebrations and to visit with family ~

And then we had a backyard bbq and fire jam ~

Wasn't that a party!

July streamed along with our usual outings to garden shows, Cariwest, picnics, bike rides, patio dining, fireworks and all the good stuff that summer brings.

In August, I volunteered for the first time at The Fringe. It’s my favourite summer festival. Wikipedia describes The Edmonton International Fringe as "an annual arts festival held every August in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Produced by the Fringe Theatre Adventures, it is the oldest and largest fringe theatre festival in North America." I was a bartender at several of the beer tents and I had many perks including free tickets to some of the shows.

Added bonus, my nephew, Jonny also had a play in The Fringe called, "Way To Go Neil", a musical comedy that he both wrote and directed... way to go Jonny!

We had a beautiful August ~ 

And then September said, "hold my beer" and brought her beauty ~ 

It was a fantastically long drawn out fall and the colours were unreal. Below, a section of one of my Hydrangeas, it was stunning! 

And I grew an artichoke! Just to see what it looked like when it flowered ~ 

But the warm weather couldn't last forever and my front step went from this:To this in a blink of an eye:

Speaking of "eye", I made these monster cookies for Halloween:

They're pretty silly, but scrumptious. If you're interested, the recipe can be found here. * Read the comments for extra tips if you do make them. I put far less baking powder and baking soda in so they would flatten more.

Judy and I made these pumpkin bouquets too: 

And now I will bid you adieu. But first, if you've made it this far, I offer you a few haikus:

kitty-kat haiku #1

my jewel-eyed friend
tender heart in soft fur shell
always close to me 

kitty-kat haiku #2 

biscuit making tools
tucked in tight to tender heart
blinking “I love you”

kitty-kat haiku #3

curling ball pose, Yo!
working on my yoga goals
but first a wee doze

 Have a lovely fall, stay cozy. :)