Midsummer Macros

Just a few little somethings I happened to find in my yard this evening. 

It's really amazing what you can see when you look close, isn't it?

Day 3 of the SITS Girls Summer Photography Challenge.

On a fun note: Each day the challenge sponsors choose their five favorite photos from the previous day's challenge to feature in the morning email. And guess what? They chose my picture from yesterday for today's list. They said: "We love how she captured the story of her summer day. The photo feels casual, but it is really set up well." How cool is that?

Early Spring

Our beautiful spring weather continues. Easter was a bright, sunny day with balmy temperatures. A lovely day for worshiping, relaxing, and fun family activities. We opted not to go to the early service or breakfast at church, due to the long hours Lyle had worked last week. After putting in 77 hours, he decided that it might be wise to sleep in a bit.

Late in the evening we went for a walk in Falls Park. I thought we might see some ducklings, but maybe it's still a little early for babies yet. We'll be sure to check back soon.

 But look here! See the tiny yellow flowers in the grass? Spring is officially here! (Still no blooms in my yard... but Falls Park is only about 2 miles away, so it can't be long.)

 Lots of water flowing over the dam, but it's still not at full capacity. One side of the gates was not completely open. I expect the snow on the mountains will be melting pretty quickly now, if the sunny days we're enjoying continue.

Happy Spring!

Camping on the Border

This past weekend we went camping
up in the very tip-top of the Idaho panhandle,
just 1 mile from the Canadian border.
The weather was iffy all weekend.

Our campsite was right on the Moyie River,
which was pretty full... and cold!

What's this?
A flirting bench?
Why, I believe it is!
I think that handsome man is
just waiting for me to sit down and flirt with him!

The sun was out on Saturday morning when we got up.
We cooked our breakfast over the fire.

We had planned to go for a hike after breakfast,
but it started pouring down rain,
so Lyle took a nap under the awning instead.
Notice that the sun is still shining
even as water streams off the awning.
That's the way it was all weekend...
alternating between rain and sunshine.

So we decided to go for a drive up the mountain.
We went as far as we could before we got turned back by snow.
Here's the gang tromping through the snow
to see how deep the snow is around the next corner.

So then we came back down the mountain.
And the sun came out.

The wild roses are budding.
It's still early spring in the mountains.

Since it wasn't raining
when we got back down to the trail head,
we decided to hike in to see Copper Falls.

Beautiful!

Lilac Days

Often I find myself thinking...

... "Life couldn't possibly get any busier." And then it does.
... "Surely my responsibilities will lighten up soon." But they never do.
... "When I get caught up I'll have time for all the other things I want to do." Instead I just get further behind.

It seems like a vicious cycle. In the meantime, life goes on. The sun is shining and the lilacs are blooming outside my window. My children just keep growing up.

I don't want the important things in life to pass me by because I was too busy to appreciate them.

So today, I'm going to soak in the sun for a few moments, and inhale the fragrance of the lilacs. I will spend time listening to the things my children want to talk about. And I will hold hands with my husband every chance I get. I will appreciate the strong work ethic he has and try not to mind the excessive hours he has had to work lately.

No matter what... life is sure an adventure!

May Flowers in April

The second day we were here in Arkansas, Becky presented me with a bouquet of tiny wildflowers she had gathered as she explored the farm. I was going to write a post about that, but remembered that I already have. So this one's a re-run from May 2009:

My favorite playmate when I was a little girl was my aunt, Rachel. She was the expert on... well, everything! Not only did she have the advantage of a year-and-a-half of seniority... she was also the aunt... so that definitely gave her extra authority!

I remember one spring in the early 1970s... we were probably about 7 and 9, or something like that... Rachel introduced me to the joys of Mayflowers! We scoured the hillsides of the Arkansas farm where we lived, looking for tiny little flowers hidden in the grass or fallen leaves. As I recall, there was quite an assortment... but we just called them all "Mayflowers"!

We decided it would be a fantastic idea to make lovely terrariums with our precious Mayflowers, so we carefully pulled the tiny plants up by the roots and tenderly transplanted them into the bottoms of wide-mouthed canning jars we had half-filled with dirt. We watered them gently... but to our disappointment they didn't survive.

Our mothers, however, were appropriately appreciative of the beeeeautiful bouquets we presented them with!

Years later, when I was an adult, Grandmother told me, "Rachel always brought me the first tiny flowers of spring when she was a little girl." I hadn't realized it was something she pursued every spring.

I guess there's just something enchanting about finding touches of beauty in unexpected places.

Lilies of the field...

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 

And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 
--Matthew 6:28-29

How many of these friendly faces of summer do you know? I had to look up some in my wildflower book... and some I couldn't find in the book. Maybe you can help me out with the ones I don't know by name. (Also, if I've misidentified any, please do let me know! I don't like to perpetrate wrong information, you know.)

Bluebell

Giant Red Paintbrush

Nootka Rose

I'm not sure what this pretty white flower is. When I took the picture I thought it was a trillium, but when I got home and compared the picture to the book, I don't think that's what it is.

Orange Agoseris

Sticky Cinquefoil

Can you believe this guy wasn't in my book? Or at least, if he was, I couldn't find him. I'm pretty sure he's a Thistle, though. What do you think?

Twinflower

Yarrow

I couldn't find these last three in my book. Anybody know what they are called?

What wildflowers have you enjoyed this summer?

Ramblin' Thoughts

This past weekend we went camping Up the River.

 It was an uneventful weekend, as far as excitement goes. The weather was lovely. Sunny. Not too hot. Though the flies were nasty through the middle of the afternoon, for some reason.

It's always so good to get away from our normal day-to-day responsibilities and just enjoy some down-time deep in the forest. We drove over the mountain and stopped for a couple of short hikes. I particularly enjoyed the wildflowers. (Watch for those pictures soon.)

We spotted a few squirrel, a couple of deer, and a hawk soaring in the sky. We also came upon a strange bird sitting in the road perfectly still. None of us knew what kind of bird it was. We could see its eyes moving as it looked around, but it wouldn't get out of the way. So we crept closer (in the truck). Finally, it waddled off into the brush and then flew away. Anybody have any idea what kind of bird it was, and why it acted that way?

I miss living in the country, so I'm glad we are able to go camping frequently.

Daisy Season

 My favorite wildflower is the daisy. They are in full bloom around here right now, and I have been enjoying seeing them blooming all along the road as we've been out and about. Living in town, we don't have any growing in our yard. Wonder if they'd come up again next year, if I transplanted some from the wild?

On Friday evening we stopped by to see some friends who live out in the country. They invited us to take a walk with them "down to the creek." It was a gorgeous evening for a walk in the woods. I couldn't resist picking a handful of daisies as we walked along. They were just growing everywhere. Five-year-old Michael noticed what I was doing and asked the obvious, "Are you picking flowers?"

"I am!" I told him. "Is that okay?"

"No!" he declared. (We've learned that he likes to be obstinate just to get a rise out of people. It's quite funny... and very cute!)

"Too late," I said, faking regret. "Your mama said I could."

"Okay," he said. "Then I'll pick some, too. But I'm gonna scrunch mine up."

So he did. Tossing the pieces hither and yon. What else would you expect from a 5-year-old boy?

I brought my flowers home and put them on a vase on the table. I love looking at them in the sunlight coming in the kitchen window.

I'm enjoying summer. Are you?

Early Summer Wildflowers

I love the wildflowers of early summer... especially the cheerful daisies that flourish in the mountain meadows. I've enjoyed snapping pictures of a wide variety of wildflowers on our hikes recently, and trying to identify them with my wildflower book. It's not as easy as one might think because of the wide range of colors and sizes. What I call purple, the book may identify as blue or pink. Here are some that I captured, along with the names of the ones I could identify: