Peonies and Roses

Some of my favorite things.

Flowers would be right up there near the top,

and of course roses would have to be the number one flower.

All these pictures were taken in Winnipeg at the English Gardens.

For those who follow this blog,you must know by now that this is one of our favorite photography places.

This soft Peony glowed in the late afternoon sun.

Earth laughs in flowers.

AS I look at this display of Gods' handiwork my heart laughs as well.

A dark red Peony stands out above the foliage.

Bread feeds the body,but flowers feed the soul.

A large patch of orange Poppies light up the area.

These flowers were so bright that it was difficult to get a good picture of them.

I hope these flowers brought a ray of sunshine into your life.

Thought for today:

I'd rather have flowers on my table,than diamonds on my neck.

A Day At The Marshes

Jake and I have found  a new favorite birding spot.

The Kaleida Marshes have been a good place to see lots of action.

These marshes are about a 20 minute drive from our place,so it is easy to visit them.

One of the more abundant birds is the Black Tern.

These birds have proven to be a challenge to photograph.

Fist ,because they are dark it is hard to make the eye visible,and second,

They are extremely fast fliers as they hunt for food.

On Saturday,June 19,we found these ducks.

The Northern Pintail is an elegant looking bird.

I think they have an air of sophistication about them.

This has so far been my best chance to get some good pictures.

 Here is one on take-off.

I would have preferred to have them closer,but that was not an option.

 In flight one can see the colors in the wings.

 On the other side of the road,this Wilson's Phalarope made a pass.

I am not very good at these flight shots,but I do like this one.

 Driving down one mile,this Blue-winged Teal allowed me to get reasonably close for at least one shot.

These marshes have three roads going right through them,so one can see birds on either side of the road.

We usually park the car and slowly walk along the road,this allows us to shot in either direction.I might add,there is very little traffic in this area.This is a real bonus.

Thought for today:

Today is the first day of the rest of your life.

Rain and More Rain

We have had a lot of rain recently.

I keep reminding myself that we were being told it would be a hot dry year.

Hmm,I wonder where the dryness is staying.

Farmers are working down fields that have been wet for too long.

I have not been out taking pictures of this but I found a few from 2005

which seem to be appropriate now.

The massive thunderheads that form are truly amazing.

To see these in the sky gives one a sense of awe for the power within it.

Some of these can also generate harmful weather,which of course no one wants.

When the sun breaks trough these clouds it fills the earth with light.

Whenever I see this kind of sunlight streaming down,I am reminded of our Lords' second coming.

I am one who watches the weather closely and take note of the various cloud formations.

This dark sky was threatening rain.

Some of these dark clouds yield nothing more than some wind.

And after the rain,comes the rainbow.

Gods' promise in the sky.

I caught this rainbow one evening,just outside our back door.

Thought for today comes from Gods' word,

Psalm 8:3+4

When I consider your heavens,the work of your fingers,…

what is man that you are mindful of him.

Friendships and Flowers

Thought for today:

In the plan of God,a friendship is a touch of heaven on earth.

And we can all bring a touch of heaven 

into someone's life.

Mark Connolly

With this thought in mind I bring to you some of our flowers.

It is my prayer that these will  bring a touch of heaven to your life.

Gathering nectar.

A small part of our Lupin patch.

Lower angle view.

Another busy bee.

 The bees love the Lupins and can be seen around them all the time.

Have a beautiful day.

A Day at the Marsh

Jake and I spent several hours today,at a local marsh area.

These are a few of the many picture I took.

The weather was beautiful,a few clouds,almost no wind and comfortable temperatures.

This combination,together with quite a few birds,resulted in many pictures being taken.

Some of the more numerous birds were the Black Terns.

This one is flying away with a morsel of food.

The picture has been cropped a little,to show the bird better.

We were also pleased to see a few Common Terns diving for food.

This one is just taking off from the water.

Again the image is cropped as these birds stayed farther away.

Here you can see a Common Tern almost submerged.

I do hope he ended up with a tasty lunch,for all these efforts.

Again the image is cropped quite a lot.

A shorebird who graced us with his presence was this Willet.

This is a fairly nondescript bird,until he takes off and shows  the lovely wing patterns.

As we were about to leave this area we saw this cute scene.

Mother American Coot is tenderly feeding one her babies.

There were several babies,but only one was close enough to Mom to get a good picture.

Thought for today from George Washington Carver:

I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station,through which God speaks to us every hour,if only we will tune in .

Images That Make Me Smile

Today I want to share with you a few images that bring a smile to my face.

This first picture has always been a favorite of mine.

Jake took this many years ago,using a film camera,

but I think it is timeless,and makes me think happy thoughts.

The rest of the pictures are ones I have taken over the past few years.

This Tulip shines with beauty and has a look of sunshine.

What's not to love about Daisies?

I have used this one before on this blog,but it is pretty enough to use again.

The flower for the month of June is a Rose.

How perfect since I love Roses.

Images like this simple Red Rose will bring a smile for sure.

All roses are beautiful,but there is just something about a red one that is special.

I end with  a bud of one of the Wild Roses growing in many ditches.

This bud reminds me to see the beauty of the flower in all stages of growth.

On this day,June 11,1949

Jake and Annie Janzen welcomed their first daughter

and gave her the name Ruth.

Today I am thankful for parents who showed me by example how to live.

Birthdays are blessings as seen through Gods' eyes

In the light of forever we soon realize

that birthdays are given to prompt us

to pause and assess what is precious.

Life might otherwise filter away

like sand in an hourglass day after day.

What a remarkable gift it is

that God has given to us from above:

The gift? It is Life!

And the reason? It's Love.

A Special Day

June 9,1972

This day two people who grew up in separate homes about 3 miles apart,

started their lives together as husband and wife.

After all these years we are still warmed by each others' smile.

More Birds

For this post I will share with you some of our recent bird photos.

The first two pictures were taken by Jake.

Once again a visit to the lagoon provided some good photo opportunities.

This Gadwell was not going to hang around and wait for any photographer.

Another shot of the Gadwell.

The water was like a mirror and resulted in some amazing reflections.

I think the pictures should have been in reverse order.

The last three pictures are done by Ruth.

The Eastern Bluebird is usually one that stays further away.

This one gave me a chance to get some closer images.

This is still cropped a little,so as to show the bird well.

I might add that he also sang me his sweet song.

On our travels down the country road,I spotted the Red-headed Woodpecker.

I would certainly have preferred him on a tree,but will take him anywhere I get the chance.

This is  a bird we don't get to see every year,so any picture is special,even one on a hydro pole.

The Ruby-throated Hummingbird was taken a little more than a week ago.

Once again,having him at a flower would be more desirable,but since 

that is not where he wanted to be,I will be satisfied with this one.

Thought for today:

Learn to relax without feeling guilty.

A Special Moment !

I do not usually post only one picture,but today is different.

Jake and I spent yesterday at A Rocha,hiking and just simply enjoying nature.
The birds were singing heartily,but,alas,they were hidden among the leaves.
Hiking along the well groomed trails was very enjoyable.
We met up with another group of hikers,who informed us of a special find.
Just a little ways up the trail,look what we found.

This little White-tailed fawn must be just a few days old.
It had its eyes opened but other than a twitch of the nose and seeing it breathe,it never moved a muscle.
He was bedded down right beside the trail,so it was easy to get pictures.
This is the first time either of us has seen a new born fawn.
What an amazing experience!
We took our pictures and walked away with smiles on our faces.
Thank-you Lord for giving us this special moment.
As we returned to the A Rocha Field Center for our lunch on  the deck,
we knew that this day was a special gift to us.

Butterflies - Flying Flowers

Once again I will feature Jakes' photography.

We have had more butterflies on the yard in the last week or so

than we had all last summer.

This first one is a Red Admiral.These are by far the most abundant right now.

It is not uncommon to see 3 or 4 in a small area.

Of course the most well known butterfly is the Monarch.

Again,last year we saw only one or two,and that was late in the season.

We now have several floating around the yard.

The Lilacs have lost most of their beauty,but the butterflies still seem to find some nourishment.

I am thankful for these flying flowers,as they grace the faded blooms.

These are all taken by Jake,and here is one reason why.

This Mourning Cloak landed on my arm and hand twice in a short time.

I find it to be such a special thing when a butterfly softly lands on me.

He then decided to go for a ride on my camera lens.

It's pretty hard to take a picture of him myself.

I did take a picture of a different one,while I had this visitor on my lens.

We had been disappointed with the lack of birds,but God knows how to send a ray of sunshine into each life.

God adorns each day with bouquets of blessing.