Thank You for Letting Me Share....

Yesterday I felt like a celebrity with all the congrats and well wishes here on the blog as well as on Facebook. I so appreciate the kindness and it was fun to share with all of you. With Bailey gone (I know I keep saying that, but I truly miss her) and with neither son or daughter or my sweetie here, there was nobody to share that momentous moment when I opened that package with the magazine inside. Thank you again for letting me share that joy with you.

It was quiet around here yesterday afternoon. We really have no little children left in the neighborhood except at the other end of the street so the only sounds I usually hear are the birds chirping (which is mighty pleasant), or the squirrels of which we have at least 5 running up and down the tree limbs or along the back fences, a car or two, and motorcycles.  We have two households that have a motorcycle. One is an exceptionally loud rumble, rumble, the kind that likes to announce his comings and goings and the other is an older gentleman that takes his out for pleasure, ambling slowly down the street, as discreet as possible. Occasionally, depending on the way the wind blows I can hear the happy sounds from the kids at our communal pool.  And ofcourse, my kids (the dogs) bark at anyone or anything that dares to walk by our house. so protective of their kingdom. Now you know why I am keeping my fingers crossed that whoever buys the house for sale next door falls into that quiet category.

With all that quiet I grabbed my camera with the BIG lens and walked across the street where there is a large retention area with lots of tall grasses and wild-flowers. It's a good place to spot a bird or two which is the real reason I purchased that big lens.  As soon as I raised my lens to my eye, I saw this......

And then right next to her was obviously her mate.....

The lens performs like binoculars, bringing into sight objects that I might miss with just my eye. Altho, admittedly it's a lot heavier than binoculars. It's difficult to keep it steady, I might have to break down and use a tripod. UGH!  Birds don't stop and pose for you so I'm not sure how that is going to work.

Spotted this in the grasses....she is a female Red Winged Blackbird

And he is the male Red Winged Blackbird

Walked over by the pond and found at least 25 male Mallards and 2 females (why only 2??) snoozing on the grassy banks. Obviously I interrupted their nap and the Mister wasn't too happy.

Today my newly planted daylily bloomed for the first time....her name is Entrapment. Pretty snazzy name, but I think she is right snazzy with her deep pink ruffled petals. There are lots of blooms so Entrapment will keep me dazzled for quite awhile.

"There is not one blade of grass, there is no color in this world that is not intended to make us rejoice."  ~  John Calvin

Until next time......

Whose Winning the Population Battle??

I am not sure who is winning the population battle in my backyard between the robins and the sparrows. The sparrows are like little piggies at the bird-feeder and the robins love splashing in the bird baths which in turn drives me to continually fill the feeder with birdseed and add the water for bathing.  There was a time when I didn't feed the birds in the summertime, I felt that there was plenty of rations in nature that it wasn't necessary. I still believe that, but now I do it for purely selfish reasons, I enjoy watching the birds.  If it wasn't for the feeders my porch sitting entertainment would totally diminish. Between the regular feeder, the finch sock, and the hummingbird feeder I have continuous delight throughout the day.

Today was B&N day and we had quite a group, counting from memory (which varies from time to time) I think we had nine today. I love it when so many come to visit. The only down-side is that when there are that many, there will be different conversations at different ends of the table. I want to hear it all, but it's just not possible. It's our connection time which now that Bailey is gone, I really need.

After B&N, I decided to grab a bite to eat and take a stroll down by the Riverwalk, with camera in hand.

I honestly don't know if this is a grass of some sort or a weed, but I love the feather like branching.

The orange day-lilies were in bloom.  I do love day-lilies, they have hyberdized them so that you can plant just about any color you want from the traditional orange, to yellows, to pinks, purples, reds and whites. I planted a new one this year, right now it is full of buds. I am anxiously awaiting that first one to pop to actually see the true color.

And these sweet little daisy-like flowers that I honestly think are some type of weedy wildflower. No matter weed or wildflower, it's a charmer.

The front gate arbor is covered with this lovely Etoile Violette clemantis. I planted this many years ago when the trees were just saplings. Now they are covered in shade for most of the day, but they still manage to bloom their little hearts out for a short while.

It's been hot, but we had a good rain yesterday and last night so the grass and garden are happy, which makes me happy.  Toby, on the other hand, was not happy. He does NOT like rain, nor thunder, nor lightening. I guess Mother Nature can't please everyone.

Tomorrow I will share a sweet surprise!

"Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one."  ~  Dr. Seuss

Until next time......

Keeping My Fingers Crossed

On the drive to church this morning I made a few observations....1) there seems to be an influx of houses for sale. My guess is homeowners were waiting until the housing market regained an uptick before downsizing or upsizing, or moving to a retirement area.  There are 3 houses on our street that are "for sale", one of them happens to be right next door. Since I have lived in our home for 38 years, we have had several different families living next door. Some with small children, some without, some with dogs, some without. It remains to be seen who will choose next door as their new dwelling. Keeping my fingers crossed they will be "neighborly".

The 2nd observation is how quickly nature changes.  Three weeks ago the crab apples still had blossoms, 2 weeks ago the tulips were fading, last week the iris's were in bloom, today the rose bushes are enveloped with blossoms. Time passes way too quickly for me. And it is evidenced in the very nature around me.

I hope your weekend was wonderful. Today was delicious beginning with church this morning, breakfast with a couple of girlfriends, and worked in the garden all afternoon. Dug up a large hosta and transplanted it, planted 7 new perennials in the garden left empty by the bee balm that did not return this year....still a mystery to me.  Dug up and replanted all the "tiny" bee balm in one spot, and dug up the black-eyed susans that had meandered to different parts of the garden and planted them in one spot. Wow, I wonder if those muscles that I don't use very often are going to shout at me tomorrow.  Now I need to shower to wash away the bug spray on my body and the dirt under my fingernails.  

Tomorrow a whole group of girls from my 2nd Wednesday of the month bookclub are meeting at the movie theater to see "Me Before You".  I just hope somebody brings a box of kleenex because I think this may be a make-up remover kinda movie.  I'll let you know.

"If you think you can, you can. And if you think you can't, you're right."  ~  Mary Kay Ash

Until next time....

Bullets, Birds, and Buds

The hummingbirds are loving the feeder this year....I know I have at least two that come regularly, but as I said those "faster than a speeding bullet" birds are tricky to catch on camera.  But.....this morning as I walked out to the back porch for my usual coffee and newspaper, there she? was.  I slowly, slowy walked into the kitchen to grab my camera with the BIG lens and then again slowly, slowly walked out to the yard and ta da.  I can do wonders in bathrobe and slippers.

That little piece of fluff on her? beak is from some trees around here.  That fluff is flying everywhere, sticking to everything, creating a mess. I thought maybe it was cottonwood trees, looked it up on google and sure enough that's where the fluff is coming from. Did you know that there are male and female cottonwood trees, the females are the messy ones. Surprise, you would have thought it would be the males since most males I am acquainted with are definitely the messier of the species. (except for me)

And the peonies are blooming.....

Petals are bountiful, scent is delicious, colors are superb, they are a most beautiful flower.  It is just too bad they are here for such a short time.  This year my two bushes were kinda sparse on blooms. I know it is because they get less and less sun each year as bushes and trees grow taller.  I have a spot in my garden that could probably use a new peony bush. Mine are the old fashioned kind (about 40 years old) that droop. The new ones have stronger stems so they stand tall.  Yup, probably drop a few more coins.

"It always seemed to me that the herbaceous peony

is the very epitome of June. Larger than any rose,

it has something of the cabbage rose's voluminous

quality; and when it finally drops from the vase, it 

sheds it petticoats with a bump on the table, all in

an intack heap, much as a rose will suddenly fall,

making us look up from our book or conversation, 

to notice for one moment the death of what had

still appeared to be a living beauty."

Vita Sackville-West

Until next time.....

The Simplicity of Days

I love this quote....and I definitely think this is exactly what happened to me after I really dug deep into photography.  You just really see everything differently.  Personally I have always been a very visual person, whereas my sweetie could not see the rosebush in front of his face.  But photography has definitely been a re-awakening of the little things, the commonplace things in my life.  I appreciate the simple everyday images that encompass my world.

The simplicity of fresh blueberries purchased at the farmer's market...

Along with the beautiful veggies, purple onions and peppers..

And the additional lucious looking raspberries...

The beauty that I find in my garden....

Bringing that beauty inside....

Discovering that my new favorite annual is the Dragon Wing Begonia....I swear this baby will grow just about anywhere....sun, shade, and no maintenance.  You can't ask for better than that.

Having a ground cover that has these beautiful pink leaves makes me very happy.

And seeing the garden in the morning sunlight is always a bonus...

Even the spent flowers have a beauty in the morning sunlight.

And now joining Kathy's Sunday Song ography with the theme being Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" I found this old tractor that in it's day was probably born to run all over these midwest farms.

Hope your Sunday is filled with joy and your week brings all good things your way.

Joining Madge at ....

"Don't count the days, make the days count."  ~  Muhammad Ali

Until next time....

Some Of This....Some Of That

I did mention that I was dog-sitting, right?  So far so good, except for yesterday when Mac decided to hop the fence because I was standing in the driveway with one of my gal-pals who had come for coffee and he felt the need to get up close and personal.  With one leap, over he came.  So now, instead of feeling comfortable with a fenced in yard, I now have to consider that a fence does not equal total captivity.  If Mac has a hunkering to check out what is on the other side of the fence, a mere effortless leap is all it takes.  Toby's kingdom has been invaded by outside forces and he is being tolerable, but definitely not happy with the intrusion.  I can see the pleading in his eyes..."Mom, when is he leaving?"

Yesterday, a box from Amazon arrived on my doorstep, in it was some new software and a new instruction book on HDR (High Dynamic Range photography).  I have been fascinated with the images you get utilizing HDR, so thought I would dive in and give it a try.  No, I have not even downloaded the software, yet.  But soon.  While reading the book there was a quote that really tickled my funny bone, I was sitting on the back porch laughing out-loud.  Maybe you won't think it as funny as I did, but it did make me laugh in its simplicity....Photographer Jay Maisel says, he likes to always carry a camera because it is hard to take a photo without one.  That just struck me funny.  Maybe I had one too many cups of coffee by this time.  But it's true, it's hard to take a photo without a camera, pretty damn near impossible I would say.

Also in that box from Amazon was this little sign, that I just couldn't resist purchasing.  It now sits in the downstairs bathroom, and it too makes me giggle.....

The garden's best month is July.  Most everything comes alive in July...at least in my garden.  Yeah, there are a few beauties that arrive in early Spring and a few more that come along in the Fall, but July is the best.

And I also had the urge to buy some new actions by Paint The Moon.  I use her actions on practically every photo I edit...have been very pleased with her actions....this one is called Luminocity and I particularly liked this b&w action....

And this one on Sammie and her family....wish I could change that little frown to a smile, but the software doesn't go quite that far.....

And this one of the roses.....

OK, that is definitely enough rambling....hope Thursday brings you special things...

Joining with Kim at "Little Things Thursdays."

"Think left and think right and think low and think high.  Oh, the things you can think up if only you try!"                              
                                              ~  Theodor Suess Geisel  (aka Dr. Suess)

Until next time.....