The day started out beautifully. How could it not? Wandering out into the garden to gather some blossoms and leaves for an experimental batch of beads (which came out better than I'd dare hope!), I snapped this shot of the little sulphur sipping on the sage flowers.
Also, one of the delphiniums managed to escape the teeth of the resident rabbit and/or groundhog. The flowers are so pretty, fluttery blue with a blush of pink in the center. They remind me of seashells from some faraway island beach. Ahhh...... The flower garden is really mature right now. Some of the echinacea flowers needed be-heading, as they were turning black. The butterfly bush (tree, more like!) got all of the spent spires trimmed the other day and looks like it did in the late days of June, and the Mexican sunflowers are making a spectacle of themselves. It is really lovely out there.But there were more pressing activities for the day than lollygagging in the garden admiring the flowers. I had a morning appointment to have new tires put on the car, so I dragged my sister along so she could spend the hour wait with me.
We decided to visit a couple of the new business that have opened in the last 6 months or so in "downtown" Mount Joy.
A block down from the tire place is a new coffee shop that our kids love, called Higher Grounds Cafe. We decided to stop in for breakfast. I had the best mocha latte ever, with a bagel. Maryanne had a plain latte, but later decided to get some hazelnut added, along with a cherry turnover. We sat in the window and talked about how much activity there is on the streets of this small town. For 10:00 in the morning, there was more foot traffic than I'd expect to see in downtown Lancaster on a non-market day. It was impressive.The lunch menu looked good. Along with fruit smoothies in great flavors, they offer soups, salads, quiche, and wraps. Light refreshing dishes. I'm sure we'll be back.
We wandered another block and a half down to the new gift shop "As The Crow Flies". It is filled with lots of primitive decor, candles, tableware, etc. Really beautiful stuff! The owner engaged us in conversation, and it turns out that he is another hot air balloon pilot who the pilots in my family (brother John, and brother-in-law Bob) know. He's taken off from the family property! We had a good time talking to him. He's had lots of adventures, and many of them were things we have either done ourselves, or have mutual acquaintances from. One of his past lives includes old time medicine shows. 
He gave each of us a bottle of his home made sarsapirilla to take home. Haven't tried it yet, but I sure like the looks of it.During our walk, we talked about how many good restaurants and nice shops are finding their way into Mount Joy. This is the town that holds our farmer's market on Saturdays from May to Oct. The architecture is great too - reminding me of Andy of Mayberry - RFD. Covered porches that go out over the sidewalk, recessed courtyards, alleyways, etc. I hope this continues. It's going to be a cool little town.
What a great way to spend a morning. The tires are nice too.
