The boys wanted a tractor ride while Daddy was mowing lawn, so we got our shoes and socks on and – eventually – trooped outside for said ride around the yard. Thumper always wants to be first, but Cricket beat him to the punch. So while Daddy adjusted Cricket’s hearing protection, Thumper and I retreated to the sidewalk.
Apparently he thinks lawnmowers are quite loud, but he still had a great time riding around the yard when it was his turn.
(c) 2014. All rights reserved.
Inspired by my good friend Mara, I’ve decided to undertake a new project. I’m going to post a photo a day for a year. I hope my skills continue to develop. Also, it’ll be fun.
Right?
Right. 🙂
So, without further ado, here’s a picture I took as I was leaving work tonight. It’s a perfect depiction of how I felt all day, of struggling to shine on despite the haze, and I love the way it turned out.
I hope you like it, and I hope you stick around and see where my camera and I end up. Happy Friday!
(c) 2014. All rights reserved.
Today’s Photo Friday theme is all about the great outdoors. If you keep tabs on my Instagram widget in the sidebar on the right, you’ll see that I take lots and lots of pictures of flowers. Like, seriously, a ton. I may not be able to grow flowers worth a hoot, but I sure can take nice pictures of them.
More pretties are hidden behind the cut!
It’s been a whirlwind sort of day around here. I stayed up till 2:00 a.m. reading Inquisitor by RJ Blain, which I’m really enjoying, so I wasn’t exactly ready to rise with the boys this morning at 7:00 a.m. I spent half my day running all over three counties to get last-minute things done for the kids’ fair projects, which are being judged as we speak.
At last, I have a little bit of peace and quiet to get done the dozen and one other things I have to do today, and I’m so tired I can hardly keep my eyes open.
So. I think I’m just going to go sit down with my candy-coated licorice bites and listen to the birds sing in the trees while I finish reading my book. It’s nice to relax every now and then.
(c) 2014. All rights reserved.
You may recall that last weekend, we had some wild weather. It’s actually been a wild couple of weeks, weatherwise. Between floods and tornadoes, we’ve had all we can do to keep up with the effects of the storms leveled at us. Last week’s storms knocked down two of our trees, and left branches dangling from a couple of others. Seymour and I spent Sunday afternoon trying to clean up the yard, only to have more storms roll through that night.
My hometown was too close for comfort to one of Sunday evening’s passing tornadoes. Apparently, our new house was also fairly close, but I didn’t know that till Monday morning.
So today’s Photo Friday theme is inside. But inside what? Well, how about inside the universe? No? Okay, then feast your eyes on the inside of this pretty, pretty flower:
We have this bush in our yard that looks a lot like a lilac bush but, as far as I can tell, it’s not a lilac bush. It smells glorious, though, and when it was blooming a couple weeks back, I had to snap a few quick pictures. This fly sure was happy that night. 🙂
Don’t forget to check out Charnele’s inside post, and have a great weekend! I’ll be back…uh…sometime to finish catching up on my Writing 101 posts (Only yesterday’s and today’s to go – woo!) and fill you in on all the craziness from the past week. Stay cool out there!
(c) 2014. All rights reserved.
Today’s challenge was to go somewhere public and write a detailed report of what we see without using any adverbs. I’m not sure I succeeded on eliminating all my adverbs, but the following is what I can see through the front door of my office. It’s a pretty sight, and I hope you enjoy it as well.
As I sit at my desk, trying to avoid the mound of paperwork that needs filing, I can see a fraction of the courthouse square. Most of the parking spaces on the street sit empty as the day draws to a close; the courthouse has closed for business and its employees have all gone home, free from the shackles that still restrain me.
Brilliant sunshine gleams against a vivacious backdrop, blasting away the few clouds that litter the sky and casting charcoal shadows on the emerald grass. A woman down the block strolls the main drag, enjoying the warmth. Leaves flutter in the late spring breeze as it sends the flower baskets suspended from the streetlamps swinging.
A rusted-out delivery truck ambles past, searching for an address; the noise from its grumbling engine disturbs the stillness. A happy little bluebird sings a sweet song, but I can’t hear it over the engine’s roar; I only see its little beak open and close, open and close. But when the clock in the tower begins to chime the hour, the dings and dongs reach my tired ears, filling me with joy at the prospect of a quiet evening at home.
(c) 2014. All rights reserved.
In case you missed it Monday, I’m participating in the Writing 101 challenge this month. Thanks to Thumper, who insists he’s big enough to dispense with daily naps (he’s two, so he’s not), I went from having an afternoon to catch up on some blog-related affairs to having about an hour to catch up on everything, and this is one of the things that was left undone when I finally collapsed into bed last night. Day two’s prompt asked where I would like to go if I could be transported anywhere, and I added the extra twist of anytime because I’m not sure that Europe would count for this (but in case it does, I want to start in the west and work my way east, exploring everything on the continent). So!
If I could be transported anywhere (and anytime), I’d stay right where I am, but 150 years in the past, when our farm was first homesteaded. Back in the 1860’s, Iowa was still covered in prairie grass and, compared to today, more sparsely settled. We’re talking Little House on the Prairie-type stuff here, and I LOVED that show…
So…how did that happen? Wasn’t it just Monday yesterday? Not that I’m complaining, mind you, it’s just that I’m now left wondering what in the world happened to the month of May. It was just May Day last week, right?
Right? No? Okay, fine.
Well, today’s theme is movement. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll know I’ve been spending quite a bit of time out in my yard taking pictures of all the pretty things sprouting up from the ground. We’ve had quite a lot of wind lately, too, so getting those great shots has been something of a challenge.
Yesterday, though, I headed out across the driveway and got down in the dirt to get a shot of the pretty green shoots coming up in the neighboring field. I’ve been wanting to do this for a week or so, but I just haven’t made the time for it. Until yesterday, that is, while the boys were occupied with the cat.
It’s the little things. 🙂
Of all the shots I took yesterday morning, this one is probably my favorite, and features tiny little corn stalks waving in the wind.
Don’t forget to stop by Charnele’s blog – she’s got an amazing photo to share with you all today. 🙂 Happy Friday, everybody! Have a fantastic weekend!
(c) 2014. All rights reserved.
Today’s Photo Friday theme is change. What with moving and attempting to downsize, I’ve got plenty of change happening in my life at the moment, but I chose to ignore all of that today and instead focus on the changes happening around me. In the space of a month, the life-giving rain has taken us from scenes of death and decay to the blossoms of youth, and it’s a change I relish every year.
Don’t forget to stop by Charnele Henry’s blog and check out her wonderful photo post! Have a great weekend, everybody!
(c) 2014. All rights reserved.
Suddenly they all died. The end. 