Thursday, June 30, 2022

6/30/22

 For a couple of days in the evening while watching TV I spotted a visitor to my yard.  The second time that I spotted her, I went out the back door very quietly and sat down on my deck steps.  She was very cautious but let me snap a few shots before she made her way off in not a huge hurry like the day before.  I think my sitting down made her not so nervous.



Wednesday, June 29, 2022

6/29/22

 It's Wildflower Wednesday once again on the Blog!  Today's flower occurs in the wild in Kansas but this one is actually in my yard.  I was given a Nipple Cactus last June and planted it in what must be an optimum location because it flowered very well this year.  The cactus is only about 3 inches across at most and each flower is only about an inch and a half wide.



Tuesday, June 28, 2022

6/28/22

 A sure sign of spring is when these birds arrive.  This is a Dickcissel that I captured on a bike ride a while back.  It was very cooperative and sat in some great light with a nice background and rather close.  They get their name because their call sounds like dic - dic - sisss.



Monday, June 27, 2022

6/27/22

 I planted these Poppies about 3 years ago now I think and every year it produces more flowers.  This year it produced 4 blooms so I was quite happy.  I love Poppies, the crinkly quality of the petals. I loved the light on these.



Sunday, June 26, 2022

6/26/22

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog once again.  We are midway through the year already!  Today's image goes back to the Pennsylvania Railroad in Strasburg.  This is locomotive 520 which was built in 1916 and retired in 1957.  It's a Mikado (L1 in Penn RR terms) or a 2-8-2 wheel arrangement which were one of the most popular wheel arrangements.  They could pull heavier loads but also be light enough to pull lighter loads at 50 mph which made them very versatile.



Saturday, June 25, 2022

6/25/22

 I was in Minnesota last weekend and I was able to get a couple of neat photo opportunities.  This is one of them.  There was a pair of Loons on one of the ponds near where we stay.  As I watched them, I realized there was a baby behind one of them.  As I watched, the baby got on mom's back to ride and I was able to get this photo.  I had seen pics of them doing this but this was the first time I was able to see and capture it.



Friday, June 24, 2022

6/24/22

 It's Friday, TGIF!  Friday's are Bokehlicious and I have a lovely bubbly bokeh image of  the Orchids I had shared earlier.  I loved the backlighting on these and the bokeh is created from the light on the leaves in the tree outside.



Thursday, June 23, 2022

6/23/22

 I captured today's image while out on Konza Prairie.  I had heard of this before but had never seen it in person until that evening.  This was a huge swarm of Honeybees in the crook of a tree.  I heard they do this when they leave one hive and are in the process of finding another place to make one.  This was on a Friday evening and when I went by on Sunday there was absolutely no evidence they had ever been there.



Wednesday, June 22, 2022

6/22/22

 It's a double digit day!  😁  It's also Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  Today's flower is a lovely Spring one that can be found growing alongside the road in ditches.  It is called Dame's Rocket and is in the Mustard family.  It was originally an ornamental flower planted by early settlers that escaped.  It blooms in May and June.



Tuesday, June 21, 2022

6/21/22

 This is an image I was able to get earlier this spring while the Cedar Waxwings were around enjoying the Crabapple trees.  I captured this pair taking a rest from their meal.



Monday, June 20, 2022

6/20/22

 Happy Monday!  I received a baby African Violet from someone recently and it is starting to bloom.  It is a gorgeous deep purple frilly variety.  I am so pleased it is doing OK for me as they can be a touchy plant, they are picky about how they are watered.  😄



Sunday, June 19, 2022

6/19/22

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is another from the Steam Up a friend of mine had over Memorial Day weekend.  The wind was blowing very hard that day, 45 mph gusts so this G Scale locomotive had a bit of trouble firing.  It was running on miniature wood pellets and it also runs on coal chips.  It smelled great and was neat to watch.



Saturday, June 18, 2022

6/18/22

 I was recently out on Konza Prairie a couple of times due to their annual Wildflower Walk.  On Sunday the clouds were rolling in but the rain held off and we all had a great walk.



Friday, June 17, 2022

6/17/22

 It's Friday, we made it TGIF!  Today's flower is actually a wild one that I have been able to see when I am in Minnesota in June.  This is a Pink Lady Slipper that can usually be found at the Tamarac Wildlife Refuge.  I had to share this one today due to the lovely bubbly bokeh behind the flower because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!



Thursday, June 16, 2022

6/16/22

 I finally was able to capture a fairly good shot of one of my frog buddies at the Gazebo pond.  So far this year I would hear them jumping into the pond as I got close and couldn't get a shot.  I captured this Green Frog, I think, before it had a chance to hop in the pond with my Zoom lens.



Wednesday, June 15, 2022

6/15/22

 It's Wildflower Wednesday once again here on the Blog!  Today's flower is the one I have been mentioning that I was out to photograph when I captured the Eastern and Western Kingbirds.  This is Sulphur Cinqefoil. It's a lovely flower that blooms in May and June.  It is very common in Europe as well.



Tuesday, June 14, 2022

6/14/22

 Today's image is a kind of companion to my post from June 4.  I captured both of these birds within moments of each other and unfortunately mixed them up while posting.  This bird is another "Lifer" for me for this year and is an Eastern Kingbird.  I captured it one evening while out to photograph a wildflower.



Monday, June 13, 2022

6/13/22

 Happy Monday!  Today's image is a nice bright one to start off the week.  I have a yellow variety of this flower which has performed exceptionally well. When I saw this beautiful orange variety I had to try it and so far it has not been without at least one bloom going.  It's a type of Gerbera that reblooms more often.



Sunday, June 12, 2022

6/12/22

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  On Memorial Day weekend, a friend had his yearly G Scale steam up once again after Covid began.  There wasn't a lot of activity due to the high winds the day I was there, 45 mph gusts.  One of the guys that came had this lovely British style locomotive that he had run at some point before I arrived.  G Scale locomotives can be made to run on alcohol, butane or even coal.



Saturday, June 11, 2022

6/11/22

 This was my favorite photo that I was able to get during my trip to the Baker University Wetlands.  I usually capture these birds fairly far away and flying away even further.  I was able to capture this Great Blue Heron fairly close and as it caught and tried to eat a large fish.  I stood and photographed it for a bit trying to get this fish down.  I think it probably finally managed it but I had to leave before it did.  It would put it down into the water and move it around in it's beak to get it in position to swallow it.  Very interesting to watch.



Friday, June 10, 2022

6/10/22

 TGIF It's Friday!  Yay!  It's been another long week.  Today's image is another flower that is done for the year, a Peony.  They smell so wonderful, I wish they lasted longer.  We got a lot of rain while they were blooming and it kind of beat them up a bit.  I got this lovely one before that happened.  I had to share it today due to the beautiful bubbly bokeh because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!



Thursday, June 9, 2022

6/9/22

In the spring for the last few years I have been able to spot and capture a Question Mark Butterfly.  I was sitting in the Gazebo one afternoon and it came to sit on one of the Redbud tree leaves.  I liked how the wings were backlit.



Wednesday, June 8, 2022

6/8/22

 It's Wildflower Wednesday!  There are lots to choose from these days and so many lovely ones to choose from.  Even the trees have had flowers recently.  These are the flowers of a Black Locust.  They remind me of Wisteria blooms.  They smell lovely as well.

Also, just a reminder that there are Wildflowers by Color Pages here on the Blog that are helpful in IDing the flowers you may be seeing.  I actually used it on the Konza Wildflower Walk to ID a flower my mind went blank on that I knew I had seen before.  😀 They are listed across the top of the main page.



Tuesday, June 7, 2022

6/7/22

 The Mississippi Kites are back.  It's been neat to see them gliding around the area.  There was one sitting in one of our trees a couple weeks ago and I got a lucky shot of it as it left the tree that was actually in focus.  I was disappointed I clipped one wing off a bit.  



Monday, June 6, 2022

6/6/22

 Happy Monday!  It's a double digit day!  😀  My Spring Cactus is blooming again this year.  It seems to do it rather sporadically.  It's lovely when it does I think.  A bit different flowers than a Christmas or Easter one.



Sunday, June 5, 2022

6/5/22

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog.  I was out playing with our Iroquois steam roller last weekend ago for the second time.  Still need practice steering.  The wheel by the seat, you turn that to go right or left and it is backwards from what you would think it should be. This side shot shows the cylinders which are much like a Shay locomotive.



Saturday, June 4, 2022

6/4/22

 My lucky streak with birds continues today, here is another bird I have not seen before, at least not that I know of, so a "Lifer" for me. This is an Western Kingbird that I captured one evening while out photographing a wildflower.  Edited due to having the bird labeled as an Eastern version.





Friday, June 3, 2022

6/3/22

 It's Friday, TGIF!  It has been a long short week.  😅  The Daffodils are done now but there are the photos to remember them by.  Posting this one with some lovely bubbly bokeh because Friday's Are Bokehlicious as well! 



Thursday, June 2, 2022

6/2/22

 The Damselflies have returned to my pond.  I haven't seen any dragons yet.  I captured this one on my Arrowhead plant recently.



Wednesday, June 1, 2022

6/1/22

 It's June!  It's also Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog as well!  Today's flower is one of my many favorites.  This is a closeup of our native Columbine.  I have tried to grow other varieties as well but they never do as well as this one which makes sense I guess.  These will spread pretty well.  I transplanted one into an area where I hope it will spread and it seems to be doing well as it bloomed.