What a beautiful night it is in Hermiston! Partly cloudy, full moon, slight breeze, 47 degrees. The wind chimes are singing, the lights create an ethereal glow ... peace. A wonderful way to top off a busy day -- standing around your garden in the semi-darkness, watching the solar lights go from red to green to yellow to blue to indigo and back again, the lights hanging in the purple leaf plumb are up lighting the pink flowers into different hues based on the color of the light. Man, it's magical. Despite living practically in downtown Hermiston, on nights like these, you can almost imagine yourself in the country. An occasional car drives by but it's driving slowly, as if down a country lane. A dog will bark once in a while, but thankfully, not for long. Barking dogs drive me nuts -- especially since it bugs my husband more than me, if that is humanly possible. Sadie slinks around the plants, looking for an opportunity to get back in the house and start that long evening of necessary lap time. Pita is off somewhere, looking for who knows what. Then she skitters back to us, ready to go inside, too.

It is inside time, unfortunately. Forty-seven degrees gets a bit chilly after more than 25 minutes. Good night, back yard. So lovingly created by my husband. Thank you, Michael, for creating such a serene place to come home to after a long day.