Gary and Peggy Fillion would have been perfectly happy to get two big sunflowers on each of the two stalks that sprouted up this summer by their home, but they are all smiles that the two plants have produced seven big blossoms. I don’t doubt that these pretty yellow faces are putting smiles on all of the other faces that pass them by, too.

I would like to put in my two meows worth with the rest of the town, welcoming Postmaster Cathy Zieff to the Newtown Post Office on Commerce Road. Cathy was sworn in last Friday, and she’ll be keeping things on the smooth and even from here on out. Good luck, Cathy!

Not blackbirds, but rather four and twenty red plums were baked in the pie that Bee Assistant Editor Shannon Hicks shared with her co-workers last week. Shannon had stopped by the Farmers Market at Fairfield Hills (every Tuesday afternoon from 2 to 6) and was hooked after sampling pie at the Whistle Stop Bakery booth. From the oohing and ahhing that went on in the office, I’m certain everyone agreed with Shannon’s assessment of the pie — two thumbs up. The Whistle Stop Bakery (old Branchville station in Ridgefield) is just one of many vendors with a wide array of fresh fruits, vegetables, breads and other goodies at the market each week. I know I’ll be pussyfooting down there on Tuesdays (hoping to find that blackbird pie, of course) and I hope to see you there, too.

You don’t have to be a blackbird to twitter. Newtown International Center for Education (NICE) is now registered with Twitter.com as NICE International @NICENewtown. It’s an easy way to stay connected to all of the NICE information and opportunities all year long. Follow on your phone, iPad, computer, or other devices. Pass it on!

Where is Edmund Road, anyway? While Googling around, I keep coming up with businesses listing addresses on Edmund Road in Newtown. And while cruising around the neighborhood, I did a double take when I passed signage for a new business on Edmond Road… or is it, Edmund Road, as the sign says? Curious, because they appear to be situated on Edmond Road, which is kitty-corner (a term I love, by the way) from the Mobil Station on Church Hill Road and runs through to Schoolhouse Road. A bit more digging around, though, and I came upon a Google map that notes that once Edmond Road reaches Schoolhouse, the road directly across the street becomes Edmund Road, which also zigzags away to a little private dead around the corner on Schoolhouse, near the Edmond Road intersection. You say Edmond, I say Edmund…

The road I’m going to be watching is Main Street, on September 3. Rumor has it, the Wells Fargo stagecoach, pulled by those magnificent horses, will be in the Labor Day Parade again this year. The bright red coach and driver behind those strutting horses is a sight to be seen, if you didn’t catch the parade last year. Our fire companies dressed in their best and featuring their shiny trucks will be in the lineup, of course, along with the many other annual favorites. Don’t forget that there is a new start time to the 2012 Labor Day Parade. The parade begins at noon, not 10 am.

My heart stopped one day last month when I stopped by the Country Mill on Route 302, only to find it was closed. What a relief to discover that owner Linda Manos has reopened the 15-year-old antiques and country shop in a new location, on Glen Road, in Sandy Hook Center. Linda tells me that business is good, and peering around the corners and peeking into shelves, I could see that customers will find their old favorite selections and lots of new gift ideas, too, at the re-created Country Mill. Not to mention, I can grab a cup of cream with some java in it right next door at demitasse, or a quick lunch up the street at Stone River Grille. Good luck in your new location, Linda!

Someone near and dear to Dick Baker thinks he ought to get the Good Egg Award. “Whenever the Cornerstone Store in the Newtown Congregational Church needs something, they know who to call,” says this admirer. Dick recently built the Cornerstone a nice shelf with fancy brackets on which to hang clothes. He is also the guy who rebuilt the birdhouse at The Pleasance this summer. Dick painted it blue, and granddaughter Rebekah painted flowers on it. I have no doubt that Dick will share this Good Egg  with his painting partner!

The summer has gone by so quickly, that it’s hard to believe the office will be wishing goodbye and good luck to its worker Bee interns, next week, already. Sarah Scinto and Steve Bonanno’s bylines have probably caught your eye, but they are on their ways back to school and the bylines that they add to term papers. Thanks, too, to a former intern of ours, Anna Hodge, who also contributed to The Newtown Bee this summer. We hope you’ve enjoyed reading their articles as much as we’ve enjoyed having them around.

NYFS has some fun lined up as summer winds down. Check out the daylight laser tag at Dickinson Park next Thursday, August 16, from 11 am to 2 pm, for ages 12 to 17. It’s first come, first served, and CT Funco provides the game. If the weather is bad, the games will be postponed to another date. Give Kaitlyn Fenton a call at NYFS, 203-426-8103, if you have any questions.

I just received a press release saying August 10 is officially “Lazy Day,” and I thought about not finishing the column; but I was too lazy to quit. Not surprisingly, there is no documentation as to where or when this Lazy Day was designated, apparently because someone was too lazy to document it. If you want to toss the newspaper aside and take a nap in your hammock now, that’s okay by me. Just be sure next week to… Read me again.