Welcome to JOYFUL REFLECTIONS. Also welcome to MARCH!!!! My header picture this month is a photo I took of the pretty Crocus blooms in our yard... The Crocuses and Daffodils are the first signs of spring here in Tennessee. I am definitely ready for SPRING...

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Even the Flowers don't Like THIS much RAIN

Those of you on Facebook have heard me complain and post comments and pictures last weekend.  On Saturday and Sunday (July 6 and 7),  we had 6.5 inches of rain.... On Saturday,  the rain was constant and we had 5 inches that day.  Then Sunday,  it only rained once --but it was a 'gully-washer' since we got another 1.5 inches at one time... Most of these photos were taken on Sunday--after the 'gully washer'... Luckily,  the skies cleared on Sunday afternoon--and we actually saw some SUNSHINE for a few hours that day.  It felt wonderful...

The picture above shows some of the daylilies begging for the rain to finally stop.  Be sure to click on the photos in order to see enlargements.




Here's a photo of one of our rose bushes... Note that all of the roses are drooping and turning brown because of TOO much rain... I always say that the roses are bowing their heads and praying for the rain to STOP.




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Here are some photos of the heavy rains in our front yard.








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And here are some photos taken from our deck of the back yard (near the golf course fairway).   Bet nobody played golf on this rainy day!!!!







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Here is a photo of our driveway---with the water running across it --as it makes its way down the hill.




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Now---here's the good news.... We DO need rain---and the plants/flowers love it (unless it is too heavy like now).  BUT--when I think of the alternative--drought---I'll choose rain anytime...

More good news is that we have had a COOL June and July so far because of the rain.  I hate HOT weather ---so I am thrilled to say that it's been fairly cool most of the summer.  BUT--August is usually our hottest month---SO??????????

And --more good news is that we can get some great pictures outside AFTER the rain.  Here are four pictures for you to enjoy!!!!

Lily Buds with water droplets

Lavender Deal Daylily with water droplets

Touching Lily with water droplets

Sedona Rose with water droplets
See????  There is good that comes along with the 'not-so-good'..... Don't you just love seeing the water drops on the flowers?   We manage to take plenty of photos during the rainy days --as well as the sunny days.

Truly though,  there has been WAY too much rain in all of the surrounding areas  of Tennessee lately.   Our home was 'high-and-dry' here --but don't forget those who live on the river or creeks --and who may have had some severe damage to their homes and other buildings/property due to the flooding...

UPDATE:  I wrote this post on Sunday ---and am here to say that on Monday,  we only had a tiny bit of rain about 6:30 p.m.  Then on Tuesday,  we had a rain-free morning with some sunshine (yeah) ---but had some thunderstorms and a rainy afternoon....  At least though,  the rain was not heavy.

AND--I heard on the news on Tuesday night that there is a tropical storm which 'could' come our way the first of next week and give us LOTS more rain... Gads---I hope not!!!!!  

Have a great Wednesday --and be sure to hop over to my Photo Blog (click HERE) to see a gorgeous photo today.

Hugs,

52 comments:

Ms. A said...

Betsy, there is a creek running through your yard!!! But I DO love the water drops in the photos!

Fun60 said...

You might have to rethink your garden from roses to reeds!

Twilight Man said...

Here our weather is so hot with lots of haze from Indonesia enveloping our skies. We would welcome rain to breathe better.

Let me share a trick I saw a professional photographer did. He used a powerful torch to shine at the droplets and they all sparkled beautifully in his photos.

Sr Crystal Mary Lindsey said...

Hello Betsy, your beautiful plants will thrive after the rain, and they are so beautiful. Glad you also have that new roof I saw on FB.. You and George are a great team with your lovely photography and supporting each other.. May God watch over you both.

eileeninmd said...

Your flowers are still beautiful, even with the raindrops. I would take rain over a drought anyday! Have a happy day!

Rose ~ from Oz said...

I'll say a wee prayer that the next one gives you a miss Betsy, it seems you've had your fair share of the wet stuff! But yes preferable to drought of course!
I adore the waterdrop photos, just gorgeous!
I hope not too many of your lillies and roses have been bruised from the onslaught.
Take good care and stay dry for a while!
PS: I don't like the heat either!

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

It wouldn't take much for you to have your own waterfall right there in your yard. :)

We've had a lot of rain, too, but not THAT much. Every time we're tempted to complain, though, we remember the previous two years of drought.

Beautiful pictures of your flowers after the rain.

Elizabeth Edwards said...

i love the rain droplets on the blooms. so pretty. ( :

we have been having lots of rain as well. i guess we need it but it is getting a bit swampy around here. ha. ha!!

big big hugs.

Coloring Outside the Lines said...

You sure have had a bountiful amount of rain. I just heard yesterday that Arkansas is back in drought mode...I don't like this at all!

Connie said...

We've had some rain the past week or so too, but not nearly as much as you have had. I hope you get a little more sunshine to balance things out a bit. Hugs to you!

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

Wow, you did get a LOT of rain. We've had a lot too and like you I am thankful. We had a 3-4 year drought and that was not nice at all.

Your flowers are beautiful as always.

Oh no, I've not heard about the tropical storm. Guess I better check the weather website, something I've not done much of lately.

Have a great day ~ FlowerLady

Shug said...

Love how you captured the rain gently falling in the first photo....Then, the picture of the rain droplets is gorgeous!! When it rains that much, so fast, it can do some havoc on the landscape. Sure wish there was a way that you could have sent that rain our way....
hugs Betsy...
Hope you and George have a great day.
shug

Catherine said...

Gosh everyone has been having the weather extremes haven't they? We have been lucky in having some rain in the evenings and then nice warm days. But goodness we have way too many mosquitos! :(
xo Catherine

linda m said...

Your flowers are gorgeous as usual, but I can hear them saying rain, rain go away. We've had so much rain here also that the soil in my planters has green moss/mold growing on it. I am praying for all those people who are suffering from too much rain and I pray that the latest tropical storm changes course and blows out to sea.

Marcia said...

That is an incredible amount of rain. I bet there were floods in other parts downstream from you.

We have had hot and humid after all the rainy days we had. No fun at all.

MadSnapper said...

it has been many years since we had typical weather here in Florida, which was just enough rain. we went from 4 years or drought to floods of rain. the past 4 days has been what was typical, but now that Chantal TS is going to bring more rain this week end... they say it is a rainmaker. lets hope it blows itself out before it gets here and on up to you

Janice K said...

We have more than enough rain up here to the last week or so, but I don't think as much as you. With all the dampness this year, the mosquitoes have been ferocious, and they seem to just love me. And to think last year it was so dry, dry, dry.

diane b said...

Boy oh boy that sure is a lot of rain. I hope your cameras didn't get wet. nice shots of the raindrops.

CJ STITCHING AND BLOOMS said...

Hello Betsy, WOW lots of rain indeed.. Wee stream coming out of nowhere.. I do hope the rain stops for you all... Love all your flower photos.. They are always so wonderful to see. thanks for sharing.. Hugs Judy

Arkansas Patti said...

Wow, white water in your front yard. The West is in flames and you are under water. Something wrong here.
We have been cool also but tooo dry.
Hope you don't get any of that tropical storm. It seems to be heading for those who really don't need it. Stay safe.

Sylvia K said...

Wow!! You have indeed had lots of rain!! I do hope the tropical storm doesn't come your way!! We've had relatively little rain -- for the northwest -- so far!! Stay safe!! Your flowers are gorgeous -- even drenched with rain!!

Joy said...

Oh my! There is so much rainwater alright. Here is not raininng too much, but no sunshine. I miss the sun:(

Anonymous said...

Yep, sounds a lot like our summer too. I just got in from cleaning up the yard after last nights storm dumped an inch of rain in 5 minutes and almost blew over my arbor!

Rose said...

We have actually slowed down on rain, though we just had a downpour for a few minutes. But even when it was raining every day, it wasn't a super lot.

Donna said...

I think our area may very well bust the all-time precipitation amount in a year! It's been a mite ridiculous this year. But I agree that flowers are always pretty to photograph when they have water droplets on them.

LV said...

I wish the weather could spread things around better. One part of the country gets too much and we need it so badly. I do have a high water bill.

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

Our driveway is gravel and curvy and all this rain keeps washing it out. But it has been cooler than last summer which is good.

Big Dude said...

We got about a half inch less and like you, mostly in one day. The lake is up a couple of feet and water is spilling over the dam, as are many. It's a shame we couldn't send most of it about 1000 miles west.

I Am Woody said...

It was amazing to see the difference after leaving New Mexico and west Texas which have been suffering from severe drought for close to 10 years (huge lakes just gone!!) and coming home to all this water!!

Nellie said...

Yes, much too much rain here, too. I am like you, however. I dislike HOT weather, so the temperatures have been more pleasing to me.

Hugs,
Nellie

Ginny Hartzler said...

Wow! Your place is starting to look like one of the places you hike at! TONS of rain here too. Of course my favorite picture is the last beautiful rain drenched rose, bejeweled! Did you get my e-mail?

Unknown said...

Gosh that is a lot of rain, welcome to my reality however we have had lovely sunny and hot weather during the past week. Too much rain is never good, but the plants and all needs some of it at least. Hope it won't get too bad. I love the pictures with the raindrops on the flowers, beautiful.

Ann said...

That is a lot of rain. You'll need life preservers for all the lilies and roses if it keeps up....lol

DeniseinVA said...

A real deluge! They do make for some real pretty photos though. The droplets of water add a lot of beauty to these already beautiful photos.

Anonymous said...

Your yard looks especially beautiful this year Betsy. I love all your pretty flowers.

With all that rain you now own waterfront property ~:)

Gardener on Sherlock Street said...

You certainly got some beautiful rain drop photos. Ship the rain my way!

Grandma Bonnie said...

Way too much rain for me! We just had another storm pass through with a tornado warning. I sure need a little sun this way. I do like the photo with the water droplets on that pretty rose. I do agree about the heat we had better be ready for the heat in August.

Serenity Cove said...

Same here Betsy. We just had a torrential storm come through this afternoon. Just got in from trying to get some of it cleaned up. It's a mess. Tree limbs all over the place yet my daylilys are all standing up straight. Amazing!

Susannah said...

Hi Betsey, Have you or Senior Hiker ever considered adding your beautiful photographs in a contest or to a newspaper. They should not be hidden. I am sure you both have thought about it but decided not to but they sure would be a challenge to any other photographers. Just a thought!

Excuse me for being so bold.

Susannah

Marie said...

The roses do look like they're praying. :) Love that last photo of the rose! WoW! You should print it and frame it!
hugs,
Marie

Small Kucing said...

oh poor them...they didnt like much shower ya...but have to be thankful at least no flood over there :)

Jeevan said...

The droplets simply add glory to the lovely buds and flowers. We too had good rain yesterday night here, and it came as a great relief from hot and humid weather. Yes, too much of rain or sunshine is bad. I see a natural stream run around your yard, but I am very sorry for the flowers that suffer rain.

Small City Scenes said...

My goodness you have had a LOT of rain. We are known for being wet out this way but we have been hot and dry. That is way too much rain. I remember when you all put in that retaining wall and when the rains came they washed part of it over. It looks to be ok now. Rain does make for good photo ops. Here's wishing you moderation in your weather. MB

Chatty Crone said...

I can see that you had as much rain as we did. And I like thinking the roses are praying - even for the rain to stop. You have a beautiful yard and I love the way you have made a way for the stream to flow off. sandie

KathyA said...

Those drooping roses could easily be mine!! We've had a lot of rain in Maryland as well. All the plants have gotten a little 'leggy' as a result, so I've been cutting back and spraying fungicide in between downpours!

Your gardens still look LOVELY!!!

happyone said...

Wow that is a lot of rain.
We have been getting rain every day here too but each day we get the sun also so it isn't bad.

Cheryl @ TFD said...

Oh wow, Betsy, you have had too much rain. But you are right, I'd choose it over the drought like we had last year. Do you have a basement? If so, hope it's staying drier than ours did the earlier part of the season. We're going to have some major work done thia fall on ours to stop the water coming in. Seems like we get a least one huge rain every spring and that is when it comes in. We're getting too old to fight it any longer. Anyway, a major expense that follows the major expense of 2 new roofs last year so there probably goes my vacation plans. :(

Have I mentioned how much I love your header photo? It's just gorgeous!!

Sharon said...

We've actually had a couple of rain free days now, but looks like there may be some showers headed our way later tonight. The flowers are so beautiful. Our daylilies are waning - we've loved them so much this year.

Preppy Empty Nester said...

Oh sweet Betsy... Could you send some rain to Texas??? I have to water my flowers twice a day. We haven't seen rain in months...Love seeing your beautiful flowers.

SquirrelQueen said...

Oh wow, that's a lot of rain. We are into our summer dryness so that rain really looks nice to me....but not that much of it.

In that one photo it looks like you have your very own waterfall. Love the flowers with water drops.

Anonymous said...

Hi Betsy, I don't even think we get that much rain here in Florida where I now live! Yikes! So, who needs a lake when you have a creek running down your street? Just kidding, of course. I hope the Glade dries out a bit. I am thinking that the remnants of the former tropical storm will be a lot less than first expected. Hope so! Have a wonderful Friday tomorrow!

Lynda said...

I think my "orange" lilies may rot at the stem before they bloom due to the rain but as you said, at least they aren't in drought conditions! Your pics with water droplets are beautiful.