Coming Soon to a Yard Near You

Tomorrow is February 1,2011.

What does this mean?

We are one day closer to spring,yet in southern Manitoba,

we can probably expect at least 6 more weeks of winter.

Since it will still be a while before the signs of spring show up,I will take a look back to spring 2008.

What says spring better than skeins of geese in the sky?

Early in spring I can look forward to seeing these Crocuses in my garden.

The color is so bright after all that winter white.

To me there is perhaps no sounds more spring like than that of the American Robin or the Western Meadowlark.

Each spring I know that the yellow-bellied Sapsucker will come to the Amur Maples on my yard.

The male with his bright red cap is quite a lovely bird.

Another spring bird in my area is the White-throated Sparrow.These guys not only look good,but also have a delightful song,which they whistle frequently.

Are you ready for spring,or have signs of it already made their presence known in your area?

Thought for today:

After winter comes the summer.

After night comes the dawn.

After every storm.there comes clear,open skies.

Christmas Memories

I know that it is no secret,I am waiting for spring,but,

I have a few pictures taken this last Christmas which I would like to share.

Although in my home  there was one empty chair this Christmas,we did have an enjoyable day.

A friend had given me this ice-sculpture candle holder.

I know they are meant to be used outside,but that didn't work too well,so I decided to use it as a centrepiece.

This is how it looked right after taking it out of the freezer.

In case you're wondering,the tea towel was to help absorb the melted water and also stabilize the candle.

The display lasted about 5 hours,and that in a warm room.

Here it has been burning for several hours.

All I had to do was occasionally pour off the water which was collecting in the plate and inside the ice.

Christmas,of course means gifts to the little ones.

My precious Kai,loves to put on make-up,whether it is mine or her own.She was a very happy girl to be getting her own Barbie make-up kit.

As you can imagine,anyone willing to allow it, was also made up throughout the day.

Kai and her Daddy,my son,Steve,are enjoying another one of her gifts,a velvet doodle art book.

I love to see the two of them enjoying time together.

One more close-up of my fashion Princess,applying her lipstick. You will notice that her nails are already painted with the nail polish in this kit.

Thought for Today:

You can't light a candle

To show others the way,

Without feeling the warmth

Of that bright little ray.

Birds and Tea

In thinking about what I should post today,I had lots of different ideas,but decided to show you some recent bird pictures.

These are perhaps some of my best shots of these particular birds.The Setting was at A Rocha,in the Pembina Valley.The birds were quite used to human activity and therefore came very close,a photographers dream.

The Black-capped Chickadee is a favourite.

I love this birds cheery disposition.

An American Goldfinch in winter plumage is still just as pretty,if not as bright as in summer.

Until this picture was taken,I had never been happy with the pictures I got of the White-breasted Nuthatch.

They seldom sit still for very long and I find they are often on a high branch,thus the pictures are not great.

Now I have to admit that I got a good shot of the Nuthatch.

Will that keep me from trying for more? Definitely not.

The fun is in the trying and so I will continue to take pictures,every chance I get.

As for the tea in the title.

While taking the above pictures I was treated to a warm cup of tea and some good conversation.

The other day while having a cup of tea with two friends,I realized that I don't have to go to the beach to see a sandy shore.

I looked into my cup of tea and saw this.

It reminded me of sand on a beach.

Hmmm,does this mean that I am wishing for warmer temperatures? YES!!!

Until those warmer days come I will continue to enjoy a cup of tea whenever I can.Who knows what other scenes may show up in my cup.:)

A promise for today:

The steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting,and you're right in the middle of it.

Allow Me to Dream

It is bitterly cold outside,and so my thoughts go to better days ahead.

One of the events I am looking forward to is the annual Hawk migration,through the Pembina Valley.

This takes place from the end of February to the middle of April.During this time record numbers of Raptors pass through this valley.

I am waiting for that time,a time to watch and photograph birds and meet many friends who share the love of birding.

Today I share with you some of the pictures Jake took last year during this event.I have picked only 5,just to give you a taste of what we experience during this time.

Whenever a Bald Eagle comes over,one can hear the ohs and ahs.Sometimes they will surprise us and come over fairly low,but often they are a speck in the sky,heading to their northern breeding grounds.

Not all birds which pass over are Raptors.This flock of Sandhill Cranes was a special treat.

The most numerous birds are the Red-tailed Hawks.

One can see them in various plumages,some light like this one and some very dark.

This Sharp-shinned Hawk gave us good opportunities for pictures.

The last picture is an immature Golden Eagle.

This one was spectacular with those white patches in the wings.

I hope you can understand why I am looking forward to this event.Yes,I will no doubt miss Jake,as this was something we did together,but I will continue to enjoy God's creation as he wanted me to.

There will also be another person missing,and that will be Dorothy Schritt.She along with her husband were the main raptor counters for many years.She and Jake will be watching the birds from Heaven.Hmm,I wonder how that will look to them.

I leave you with a portion copied from an article in a local newspaper.

From late February to mid-April, diligent counters documented more than 11,000 raptors of 15 species passing through, including almost 8,300 red-tailed hawks, more than 1,200 bald eagles, 190 turkey vultures and 95 golden eagles. Golden eagles are rare elsewhere in Manitoba, and this year numbers sighted in the Pembina Valley broke previous records.

I NEED COLOUR!!!

Right now I am so in need of some bright colours,so I decided to do something about that.

I went back into Jake's slide scans and picked five of my favourite flower pictures.

Most of these have been posted on this blog before,but I feel they are worth sharing again.

In my opinion,Jake had a good eye for composing flower shots.

OK,maybe I am just a little biased,but I think I have that right.

Looking at these images brings back wonderful memories,of time spent together and a precious love that we shared.

I would not be able to choose just one favourite,but this first one would come close to that.

More Tulips.

I love the back lighting.

Actually Jake loved taking that kind of picture and often encouraged me to try it.

The gently and delicate beauty of a Wild Columbine is seen here.

Look at this,another back lit picture.

These Tulips were growing in our own garden.

Daisies! I love Daisies in all colours.

Again,this was on our yard.

Two things I wish for right now.

One would be to have Jake at my side again,but I know that is not possible.

Perhaps,he is even closer than that.He is in my heart with all the memories I have.

I remember telling him,during the last weeks,that I had a heart full of memories,which would help me through the tough times.

Besides the memories is the assurance that God is leading me,yes,even carrying me through these days.

The other thing I wish for right now is no less possible.SPRING.

This year the winter feels much longer than usual.

I know it is not,and that it is my circumstances that make it feel that way,but I am so ready for spring.

Thought for today:

Whatever our problems,

Our troubles and sorrows,

If we trust in the Lord,

There'll be brighter tomorrows.

Photoshop Fun

I have been having a little fun playing with Photoshop Elements.

Here are some of the results.

Some of the flowers sent to me by a friend.

A frame around them just brings their beauty.

Here is another picture of the frost covered branches.

Yet another frost picture.I guess I need to get out and do some more shooting.

I need some new images to work with.

My son just recently installed Photoshop CS5,on my computer.Now I have more learning to do.

Thought for today:

Today appreciate the beauty surrounding you,

and you'll recognize that God is here,there and everywhere.

More Winter Beauty

Today I would like to show you a few more pictures I took before Christmas.

I enjoyed the time spent outside,in the beauty of God's creation.
I trust you will enjoy these images as you stay warm in the comfort of your own home.


It was midday,but because I was shooting towards the sun the picture looks quite dark.

I like how the snow is coming over the edge.
This picture was taken at the same place as the other one,just in the opposite direction.

Again,another picture from much the same place.
I guess this just shows that there are a variety of scenes in one small area.

As I turned my eyes to look towards the ground,I saw this snow covered weed.

Finally a picture which was taken a few miles down the road from the first four.
The friend I was with taught me how to get the sunburst effect.
This was also taken mid afternoon,and the sky was really a bright blue,but when shooting toward the sun,this was the effect.
I liked how it turned out.

I hope you enjoyed this adventure into my snowy world.

Thought for today:
He has made everything beautiful in its time.
Ecclesiastes 3:11

Photo Memories

The quieter you become the more you can hear.

I start this post with a thought,because this thought reminds me of my husband,

He was a quiet man,few words,but a deep thinker.

A while back I did a series of posts using Jake's slide scans,

Because he is no longer taking pictures,I want to honour his memory by posting more of his work.

This post contains the last pictures he ever took.

I share them with you as a way of keeping his memory alive.

The Bald Eagle is always a bird that is a desired photo subject.

On this day we saw only this one,and he was not willing to pose,yet Jake captured this image as he flew away.

 These pictures were taken on September 4,2010.

The roadside ditch had these purple Asters growing in profusion.

I do not know what type of moth this is,but Jake and I found them to be quite beautiful.

The following picture was the last one Jake took.

The shutter was triggered on September 12,2010.

At the time we did not think that this was to be our last photography session together.

The Great Blue Heron was sitting at a small pond just off the road.Of course as soon as we had stopped he took off.

Jake managed just one picture and this is it.

This one is SOOC.

The memories live on and I hope to share more of Jake's work on this blog.