I can see clearly now, the rain is gone.

We've made a couple of updates this week to the front of the house. Our old garage lights were just not cutting it. When they start blending in with the brick, it's time for a new coat of paint.

Here's a better angle.

Can't hardly see them, right?

Well, here they are, sporting their new shade.

(I apologize for the difference in brick color- the sun makes such a difference on the time of day!)

A bit of sanding and scrubbing brought these babies some new life. A little wash of the panes even revealed seeded glass! Oh happy day to have light shining through these gems at night.

Here's a better look.

And one more for the full effect...

Notice anything different about this last one? Hint: There's a living green thing growing between the windows in the front bed. Weee!

We finally planted the Sunshine Blue bush where it should have been placed when we first brought it home. 

(Ignore the weeds.) 

The next step will be to rip out the existing weed blocker fabric (which is obviously doing wonders), remove the mulch and excess yuckiness, then reshape the bed to make way for new bushes and perennials. I'm sighing right now just thinking of all that work we have ahead of us...in 100 degree heat and humidity. Joy.

While I'm at it, I'll take you on a tour of the rest of the growth activity we have in the yard.

This cute 'lil guy we bought around Christmas from Wal-Mart for $8. It was about half the size then, planted in a 4" tin pot. Since we've transplanted it to a 10" pot and moved it outside, it has just exploded. We're hoping that once the bed is reshaped in the front, he can live on the corner or the house to give some height and dimension to the front.

Here's the veggie garden, starting to look tired and hot from all of this heat. Yellow squash on the left, purple potatoes in the middle, shallots in front, snow peas growing on the chicken wire, tomatoes in the Topsy Turvy, and peppers on the right side all by their lonesome.

On the other side of the backyard, our pepper plants and growing nicely, too.

Serranos in the back, jalapenos in front, habaneros and bell peppers in the pots-soon to be transplanted to next to the other peppers in veggie garden box.

On the back porch, trying to stay out of the scorching sun rays, our herbs are blowing up.

Spearmint on the left (which has already been severely trimmed back twice), Spicy Globe Basil in the middle, and Sweet Basil on the right. The little pots in front are cilantro and salvia, growing ever so slowly. 

So, there you have it. A little tour of what's been popping up around the yard and the summer and the heat drag on. 

I'll leave you with a bit of happy... a view from our driveway a few weeks ago. Breathtaking.