Saturday, August 6, 2011

The Things of Summer

An evening photo of a yard sprout.  I didn't know anything could grow as fast as mushrooms do.


I find all kinds as I do my daily scans of the yard for intruders.

Some are quite striking in color and patterns.

I thought perhaps this trio would sing me a song but I guess they weren't in the mood.


After I admire them for a moment or two, they all end up in my basket.  A perfect yard can't be seen with such uninvited characters!

"Blue Flowers at Dusk"

Low light softens but doesn't diminish this beauty.

"Please, please, let us stay up 'til the fireflies come out."


Dew sparkles on the grass in the early morning sunlight.

My niece, Tamara, and her new husband, Brian, posed for me at their summer wedding reception, following their March wedding in Mexico.

Could he be working up the courage to jump into the birdbath far below?


The early bird gets the worm and is the first to bathe besides.

Look closely and you'll see a green bug atop that leaf.     

Tis the prettiest butterfly I've seen this summer.

Impatiens' nectar aplenty kept him busy flying from flower to flower for several minutes while I tried to catch up with him with my camera.



After taking seventeen photos, I got the one I wanted.  Isn't he grand?

Ahhh...a well-earned reward after a busy day.




"Fascination in flame form"

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was worried when I saw that basket full of mushrooms that you had decided to start cooking. :)

Great mushroom, bug and butterfly photos. Your niece and her new hubby are stunners. They look like models.

Cheryl Peters said...

BETH: That's a legitimate concern! It would be a strange turn of events if I spent more than a few minutes at a time in the kitchen.

I was so happy that Tamara wore her wedding dress to the reception since we didn't go to the wedding in March.

Nature is amazing, as you well know. I've discovered so many things during the many hours I've spent in our yard.

Happy Sunday to you and Buck.

Sarah said...

Beautiful, beautiful post my dear. I love! Now that the heat is gone for a while, I can enjoy summer again too! Hugs to you my dear friend :)
xoxo

Cheryl Peters said...

SARIE: Thank you, Sarie.

Cooler temps are definitely welcome. I was beginning to wear down with the relentless heat and humidity. The brown spots in the grass from grubs are a bummer as well. Oh well, at least I had the perfect yard I was aiming for for a little while!!

Enjoy the nice days with your choice of the wide variety of interests you have.

Walk said...

I'm so glad that someone is enjoying their beautiful yard. I stepped out into our grass last night and it felt like walking on pin and needles and the grass is soooooooooooo dry. So I'm green but with envy.

Cheryl Peters said...

WALK: It's extremely unfortunate that things are so dry in Oklahoma. We've received enough rain recently to green up everyone's lawn, even those who never watered when it was dry a few weeks ago.

I spoke to a skyful of rainclouds this afternoon. I told them they were desperately needed down your way. I hope they heeded my plea and will spill their contents on your lawn very, very soon.

Linda McMann said...

I love the butterfly and the fire pictures on this post. Sounds like the weather is calming down in your area, thank goodness. We are finally having our summer - into the 80's each day, after morning clouds.
Thanks for sharing your lovely pictures.

Gullible said...

Love that butterfly picture! I once chased a hummingbird around a huge flowerbed in Xi'an, China, trying to get a good shot. I wound up with about a hundred pictures. Their hummingbirds are quite different than ours.

Cheryl Peters said...

PARROT: I'm glad it's warming up to nice temps where you are and cooling down where I am. Temps around 80 degrees are so pleasant!

GULLY: We may look silly with our cameras but it's worth the chase when we capture the object of our quest exactly as we most appreciate it!

Natasha Alexander said...

Hmm, I think my comment went into the ozone.

These are great pics, Shaddy. I've seen that same butterfly (or a cousin) in my yard but never at the same time that I've had my camera, so THANK YOU for capturing it for me.

It's too hot here to spend much time in the yard.