May 15, 2008

We have a busy day here so I will just post a few pix.





I found this weed growing on the creek bank. Doesn't it look like a bouquet that a child has gathered? Actually, all those flowers were growing on one big stalk just as you see them in the pix.




Playing with the macro lens.





Rhododendrons. Another sign that spring is here.

May 12, 2008

Dear husband and I went fishing last Monday. I caught three large mouth bass and dear husband caught two. He had two to get away; one right at the boat. I reached for my camera when I should have reached for the net! It was a beautiful day. Foggy and cold first, but then sunny and warm. I looked like I was dressed for the antarctic instead of the lake. I had on long johns, jeans, and then dear husband's coveralls. I was also wearing thick mittens that fold back so your fingers can stick out when you fish. My feet got cold, but I didn't open my mouth. I knew if I did, dear husband would make me wear his boots! :-)

I saw several Great Blue Herons and a beaver! In case you are wondering, I caught all my fish on a Yum Wooly Hawgtail (Green Pumpkin). I kid you not...wooly hawgtail. Here are some pix from our trip.



Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam! I always sing this when I see a sunbeam.




Sometimes the fog rolls off the water like a big cloud when the sun comes up.



And sometimes it hovers over the water in wisps and curls.




We found this little waterfall on the bank in a little cove.



I found this on the bank when I had to get out of the boat to stretch my legs. The blossoms were fragrant. I brought one back to the boat with me.



Beautiful purple-lined clover growing on the bank.

May 8, 2008

We came home in time from the graduation to watch the Kentucky Derby. It's always fun to see the hats! Dear husband and I both knew that Big Brown would win. We had watched him in the Florida Derby and he was a joy to behold. You could tell by watching just that one race that he loved to run and he loved to win. Too bad I'm not a bettin' woman.

In this year's Derby, we saw two riders get thrown from their mounts. One before the race and the winning jockey after the race. I was amazed that they could hold on and even ride standing up going full speed without falling and then get bucked off when the horses were just walking. I guess they both were caught off guard. Maybe it's common. I am not a horse person. My sister is. She has always owned horses. I am sort of afraid of them.

There was tragedy at this year's Derby, too. Eight Belles broke both front ankles and had to be put down at the track. I don't think I have ever seen this happen before. Eight Belles finished second.

Here are a couple more pix of the azaleas and our redbud.




I love how the redbud blossoms grow right on the tree trunk.

The mountains are full and green now. I have a few bearded irises getting ready to bloom. That will be it for a while, except for some daisies and lilies I have up on the hill. I need to buy some annuals to set out now that the danger of frost is over. I should have a handful of strawberries pretty soon. I can't wait.

May 4, 2008

May 2, 2008

I saw a beautiful eastern cottontail rabbit in the back yard yesterday morning. I have seen a few squirrels this spring, but not many and most of them were young. We have been watching a young mourning dove at the feeders. He or she is much smaller than the other doves and has more spots. We now have a brown thrasher coming to the feeders. He is such a big bully. He has to run all the birds off before he can eat. He does this by running at them headfirst. Sometimes, it takes him a while to scare them all off and he will not eat until they are gone. We are waiting for the showdown between him and the mockingbird that always fans out his wings at all the birds before he can eat. In the past week, we have had two different birds sit on the kitchen window ledge and look in. One was a juvenile titmouse. It was flapping its wings like baby birds do when they are waiting on a parent to feed them. I suspect it was seeing its reflection in the glass and thought a parent was there. The same thing happened with a song sparrow. Mom has baby robins now on the nest over the downspout of the gutter. I have been watching a robin in our front yard, but I can't find a nest.

The azalea bushes are blooming now and I hope to have pix soon. I already have tiny strawberries forming on the plants that I have in two large pots. They had to go in the carport for two days this week because of frost! The lilac was pretty this year despite the squirrel's efforts to plant walnuts in its roots. I saw a sapling growing there yesterday that I need to pull up. It is one of their favorite places to hide their stash of nuts and seeds.


A not so great pix of the lilac. The wind was blowing.




Another not so great pix of the little bush in the front yard. Does anyone know the name of this? It was given to me years ago and I don't remember the name. It has tiny white blossoms in the spring, and sometimes again later in the summer. I have even seen it blooming in the winter, but not as full as spring. It branches will bow and weep like a forsythia, but it is much smaller.

April 26, 2008

Nature's toy



Every child's...



favorite flower.

Honeybee on dandelion

April 23, 2008

It has been four years today. Today is the anniversary of youngest dear son's diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes. We have made it four whole years. We won't celebrate in the normal way you celebrate an anniversary, but I will thank God that we have made it this far and without any complications.

I have to share a funny with you or what I thought was a funny. I took my mom out shopping Monday morning. She wanted to pick up some cleaning supplies for spring cleaning. She said she wanted gravy and biscuits from McDonald's and that she would rather go through the drive through window. I pulled up to the window and I meant to tell them to give me a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit. What I said was, "Give me a bacon, egg, and cheese burger!" Mom and I thought it was horribly funny and started laughing. The young girl on the speaker was not in the least bit amused and that only made it harder not to laugh.

The mountains are several shades of green now, sprinkled with lots of dogwoods and redbuds. I love spring in Appalachia. The azalea bushes are starting to bloom. I worked in the yard last night. I weeded the rock garden up on the hill. I started out with my little hand rake and scissors. Then I had to go back down for the big rake. Then back down for the loppers, or whatever you call them. I thought I was going to have to go back down for the bow saw! Sassafras saplings had sprouted in my Sweet Williams and I had to cut them out along with some horrible vine that had taken over the whole bed. Ugh. Some wild blackberries had also sprang up in two places. I huffed and puffed and whined the whole time, stopping many times for water. My hat kept blowing off. I was just a whole pack of weenies as my dear husband would say. I will keep at it though. My flowers are in serious need of TLC and goodness knows I need the exercise.

April 21, 2008

I took these pix on one of the Dogwood Trails in Knoxville. I have never seen so many tulips! These pix do not do it justice. It was windy and very hard to get a decent shot, but I just had to try.

April 9, 2008

Happy Spring! Most of these were taken in my yard. I tresspassed to take the rest. ;-) I hope you enjoy them.

Flowers and birds and warm breezes. I love spring!

First To Leaf Out; Last To Fall

We have two Bradford Pear trees in our front yard. They are the first trees in this area to leaf out in the spring and they are the last trees to lose their leaves in the fall. Sometimes, it will even snow before we are able to rake leaves. They have beautiful white blossoms in the spring that seem to glow in the sunlight. In the fall, they can turn red, yellow, orange, and almost black or dark cherry color.

Random Ramblings

Made In America, Or Is It?

Dear husband had to buy a new pair of work boots this weekend. He bought a pair of Red Wings that had this tag attached:

He was pleased to find a pair that were made in the U.S.A. He bought them and brought them home only to find a label inside the boot that said "Made in China". He was not one bit pleased. This really should be against the law.

Another Photography Contest

Yes, I, the one who said she would never enter another photography contest, did. Forgive me for lying. I had no intentions of entering, but dear husband asked me if I would enter another local contest. This one was much bigger and scarier than the one I entered earlier. I took second place on this pix in the Flowers category:

Opossum
We saw the opossum last night. We were pulling in the driveway and the headlights caught him scurrying along the creek bank. He hasn't been back to the bird feeder since dear husband moved the wire he was using to climb up onto the roof. He looked fat and sassy, so I am pretty sure he has found another food source. That's good.

Elk
I saw my first elk in the wild this week! Well...he wasn't really in the wild; he was on the side of the road and several cars had stopped to watch and take pix. What makes this especially interesting is that elk were introduced into this area in 1997 and I am just now seeing my first one. It only took me 10 years. I hope to get pix soon.

Early Morning

The Dogwood Trails

The flower pix were taken on our Dandridge trip. The street shots were taken on one of the Dogwood Trails in Knoxville, TN. Knoxville hosts the Dogwood Arts Festival every year. The two street shots were taken through dirty car windows. It was raining that day. Pink lines are painted on the road for you to follow through beautifully landscaped neighborhoods. One year, there were vintage cars sitting in front of several houses. I will post those pix soon.

Shortly after these pix were taken, we had several hard frosts and snow. Most of the dogwood blooms are dead. Most of the azaleas hadn't bloomed yet and they are now dead. We had had a beautiful spring up until this point. We are expecting snow again tomorrow.

Pansies

Nothing Lasts Forever

Fairlight's Dandelion

My Yard This Spring

Lilac Bush


Forsythia Bush


Carpet Bugles


Bradford Pear


Primrose


Redbud