Sweet summer so far

Well, we are nearly a week into summer vacation and it's going great thus far.  My kids already have that half-tired, half exhilarated look that is somewhere between beach bum and extreme sports enthusiast.  As for me, I am "tan," (according to my husband) which is no small feat for a person with 50% Irish heritage. 

One of my favorite parts of summer is my garden.  This being the third year we have lived here, it's actually starting to look a little presentable.  I have a sweet collection of coral bells in my tiny front yard that are in full, albeit miniscule bloom.  My lacecap hydrangea looks a little worse for wear after the epic snowstorms we had this winter, but it still got gorgeous, delicate lavendar blooms:

I went to my favorite garden center, Glicks greenhouse for their 1/2 price sale and loaded up on plenty of plants to fill in the empty spots in my side garden and backyard.  I filled my hanging baskets as well, with some favorite flowers:  lantana, sweet potato vine and this other one, whose name I can't remember but it looks like mini petunias:

I also got some annual black eyed susan, which are starting to bloom and are simply amazing:

We've been hit with heat wave after heat wave this spring/summer, so it's easy to forget that it is still June and technically on the 3rd day of summer!  I can't wait to see the growth in the garden this year.  It's time to get the pool bag ready again and pack lunches for the kids and me-life is so hard in the summer!