06/09/25

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  My water Lilys have just about finished for the year.  They were quite lovely while blooming and gave a nice pop of color to the pond.  

06/08/25

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  A friend had his yearly Steam Up get together over Memorial Day weekend and I took a couple engines over to play.  This is my Accucraft C-21 on one of his layouts.  This one is interesting to run on as it changes elevations and has a pretty good grade.  I was able to get my sunset photo before it started to rain.  Had to end the run slightly before it ran out of gas and steam because it was sprinkling with harder rain on the way.

I have a short video of it running on that layout HERE.

06/07/25

 I have gotten lucky lately.  While sitting in my office one morning I happened to look out the back window and saw some birds in the Walnut tree that didn't look like the usual visitors.  I got my camera and zoomed in and it was Cedar Waxwings!  I have seen them every weekend now.  I think they may be coming to visit the small pond in the backyard for a drink, that's where they seem to be going back and forth from.  It's been very neat to see them around still as I thought they usually left after their initial Spring visit.

06/06/25

 It's Friday, TGIF!  It's also a double digit day!  😁  Today's image is one of my Weigelia bush that I have had growing in a pot for years.  It still blooms faithfully in the Spring even though I usually neglect it.  It had some wonderful bubbly bokeh in the background so I had to share it today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious! 

06/05/25

 It has been a weird Spring, very cool, we are still having 40s and 50s in the mornings, and fairly rainy.  I am finally seeing some more butterflies around.  Hope to see more.  This was one that was visiting my Milkweed that I planted for Monarchs.  This is a Mourning Cloak butterfly.  Apparently it is name due to someone wearing a bright dress under their dark one and letting a bit of it show while in mourning.  Adult butterflies hibernate over the winter and are usually one of the first to emerge in Spring.

06/04/25

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  The Yuccas are in bloom right now and are quite healthy looking with all the rain we have received lately.  I captured these blooms in a close up, I had never really paid much attention to the details of them before, just the plant in general.  Yuccas generally bloom in May and June and are part of the Asparagus family.  Their roots can grow quite long horizontally.  When soaked or rubbed in water the roots can be used as a soap substitute and the plant is often known as "Soapweed".

06/03/25

 So I got really lucky recently with a Heron sighting.  I was on a bike ride and stopped by the spillway at Milford Lake.  I had looked and saw nothing in the water where I usually find them and so was mainly looking for lizards.  I happened to look down the way to where some people were fishing and what did I see standing in the water...a Great Blue Heron!  I could not believe it.  There was someone else opposite it taking photos of it and I was able to get closer and get several shots and it didn't even seem to care.  It was quite amazing. 

06/02/25

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  Spring is going so quickly.  Soon it will be boiling hot if not already, I do these in advance.  😊 I miss a lot of the Spring flowers that last such a short time.  This is an image of my one Crabapple Tree's blossoms that was so beautiful and perfect for such a short time.  I wish I had had time to sit under it for hours and enjoy it but, alas, too much to do and so little time.

06/01/25

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog once again.  It's June and we are halfway through the year already!  Wow!  Today's locomotive is the last one I ran on my mini steam up in early May on the new/used raised layout.  This is my Accucraft Live Steam Emma.  Emma is a model of a Brooks industrial 0-4-0T. Brooks Locomotive Works, of Dunkirk, New York was an important supplier of locomotives to railroads and industry. In 1901, Brooks and several other locomotive builders merged to become the American Locomotive Company, or ALCO.  It's a bit larger than a usual G scale locomotive which is generally 1:29, this one is 7/8 scale.  It's a really fun locomotive to operate though and it's run time is quite long as it has good size water and fuel tanks.

I have a video of it operating on YouTube HERE.

05/31/25

 We have had a significant amount of rain lately.  It's been so much I am even tired of it though I shouldn't be as we will probably now go for months before it rains again.  We were in drought so needed it badly.  The clouds have been very interesting due to the rains.  I captured this image while walking.  The cloud in the center kind of resembled a mushroom cloud at first but then reminded me of a dog's head.  😁

05/30/25

 It's Friday, TGIF!  The Blue Jays usually don't sit for a picture in my yard very often but I got lucky a couple of times recently and this is one of them.  I could hear a Blue Jay calling so went to see where it was and it was perched in the Mulberry tree just outside the house.  I watched it for a moment and got a couple images before it picked a Mulberry and flew off with it.  Sharing this image for today due to the lovely bubbly bokeh in it because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!

05/29/25

 There is a spot along the Milford Lake spillway on a path where I can usually see and try to capture this particular type of lizard.  I believe this is an Eastern Six Lined Racerunner.  They are VERY fast moving and difficult to capture.  I got lucky that this one paused long enough for some captures in a spot where I could still see it, most times they run under rocks.  The males are very colorful lizards.

05/28/25

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  One of my favorites that I find very picturesque is beginning to bloom in my area.  This is Queen Anne's Lace which usually blooms June through September but was already blooming on the 20th of May.  They are also called Wild Carrot and are part of the Parsley family.  It can be an aggressive invader crowding out other flowers.  It does not seem to do that in my area, I actually wish it would spread a bit more where I have it planted.  😁 

05/27/25

 I have had numerous opportunities this spring to see and capture Killdeer.  They are a large Plover that are found in the Americas and their call sounds something like their name.  There is a family of them that were nesting fairly close to a small pond in a ranch's field that I would pass by on while riding my bike so I could see them pretty reliably.  The 3 young chicks were out by the water's edge getting drinks recently and I was able to capture them fairly close together. 

05/26/25

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  Happy Memorial Day as well.  Posting an Iris flower for the day.  Iris have spiritual meanings if you are into that.  Generally, an Iris represents Faith and Hope.  Purple Iris like these are a representation of royalty, respect and knowledge.  I mainly like them because they are pretty and smell like grapes.  😊

05/25/25

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  It's also a double digit day!  😁  Today's image is from my little steam up that I did on my new/used raised layout not too long ago.  Today's locomotive that I ran that day is the first live steam locomotive that I had.  It's an Accucraft Mimi locomotive.  This one is very picky about where it is run because, without remote control, on an uneven layout, it can run very quickly and derail.  It's very nice to have a level surface to run it on when I want.  I usually could only run it at a friend's house on his layout.

I have a short video of it operating on YouTube HERE.

05/24/25

 On This past Monday we had storms move through the area.  We lucked out with just some heavy rains and a little very small hail but in other areas of the state, there were tornados.  In the evening I went outside and saw that the sky was looking rather ominous but cool.  The sky to the south, in this photo, had all these Mammatus clouds and then to the west had a very cool painted effect.   

05/23/25

 It's Friday, TGIF!  The Lilacs are finished in my area already so this image is a bit old since this bunch has not even opened yet.  I liked this image for the subdued bubbly bokeh so sharing it today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!

05/22/25

 This is another friendly horse that I was able to photograph while out walking with my brother in Pennsylvania.  I wanted to give it a pet but figured I better not.  😁

05/21/25

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  Today's flower is one of my favorites, I do have a lot of favorites though.  😄  This is Ox-eye Daisy which are in bloom around the area.  These usually bloom in May and June.  They are usually found along roadsides, in waste areas, prairies, meadows and fields.  I saw huge amounts of them along the highway around the Kansas City area this past weekend which was quite beautiful.  They make me happy and I love to have them in my yard.

05/20/25

 Today's image is one I love to capture.  This is a Western Meadowlark singing in the fields.  They have a very distinctive song and most times you can hear them but not see them as they are usually down in the long grass or wheat.

05/19/25

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  The Peonies are blooming like crazy in my area.  Another flower that is lovely for only such a short time and smells great as well.  We had a recent rain and I captured this before it opened fully.

05/18/25

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is one from the mini steam up I did recently where I had some friends over and ran 4 of my locomotives on the new/used raised track.  This locomotive is one of my favorites, a C-21 2-8-0.  This locomotive is based on a real one that was built for the Crystal River RR in Colorado and there were only 2 C-21s built, this one and 360 as numbered by the Rio Grande Western in 1924.The real one was built in 1900 and scrapped in 1951.  My locomotive had to be repaired over the winter due to some faulty O rings and this was it's first run after that.  More details and a very short video of it operating can be seen HERE. 

05/17/25

 On Monday, the moon was full and is named the "Flower Moon" because of the abundance of flowers that are visible in May.  Because of the name I decided to do something artsy with the image that I took of it that night before I went to bed.  Hope you enjoy my take on the Flower Moon.

05/16/25

 It's Friday, TGIF!  Our Lilacs are finished for the year already, makes me sad as I love to see and smell them but they don't last very long at all.  I captured this image while it was blooming and processed it with a more artistic flair.  I loved the bokeh in it as well so sharing for today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!

05/15/25

 So I was able to get a bit better photo of the Elk that seems to be a new resident with a ranch down the way from me that has a couple horses.  It was still a fair distance away but I had my actual camera with me for a capture.  It appears to be a female.  

05/14/25

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  Today's flower is one that has been very abundant in my area recently.  This is Prairie Blue-eyed Grass.  It usually blooms April through June.  It is a rather dainty plant, growing from 4 to 16 inches tall with fairly small flowers.  The name is mis-leading as it is not a grass but is part of the Iris family.

05/13/25

 I have seen Meadowlarks around a lot this Spring.  I have been very happy to see them because, for a while, it had been mentioned that they were on a decline, at least in my area.  They sure seemed to have bounced back in the last few years.  I have been trying out a new focusing mode on my camera which has enabled me to get better birds in flight images as it locks in on them much better.  I captured this one on a fairly recent bike ride.

05/12/25

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  The Iris are blooming everywhere in the area right now.  This image is of one of my yellow variety that blooms near my Gazebo pond.

05/11/25

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is my yearly Spring photo that I photograph on my ground layout with the miniature Lilac.  It bloomed quite well this year.  I took the photos in the evening so the sky color made for a nice backdrop.  The locomotive is my Live Steam Accucraft Mimi.

05/10/25

 We had gotten quite a bit of rain recently so the local ponds were fairly filled up.  I saw a Blue Winged Teal, the one on the right last weekend on a very small pond while out for a bike ride.  I am not sure what the other 2 birds on the left are, probably Teals as well.  I read in my bird book that they are usually the last ones to migrate through the area.  I missed most of the migration this year unfortunately.  I think they started earlier due to the warmer weather.

05/09/25

 It's Friday, TGIF!  This flower is a wildflower but I am sharing it today for the wonderful bubbly bokeh in the image because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!  This is a Wild Columbine flower growing not so wildly in one of my gardens.

05/08/25

 While I was out in PA I would go on daily walks with my brother.  Around where he lives are a few Amish farms.  These were a couple of friendly horses at one of them.

05/07/25

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  Today's wildflower is one that is blooming like crazy in my area and smells quite nice.  These are from Black Locust trees which were planted by settlers and escaped into the wild.  At night the leaves will fold together, I have to admit, I have never checked this out.  Black Locust is very drought tolerant but can be susceptible to fungal diseases and insect issues.  I think the flowers remind of Wisteria.  Black Locust is part of the Fabaceae or Bean family.

05/06/25

 Today's image is another of the Horned Larks.  I believe that this one is a female.  I took this image shortly after the male I shared recently.  It was smaller than the male and it's "horns" were not defined.  I find them on gravel roads somewhat consistently looking for seeds and bugs.

05/05/25

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  Today is a double digit day!  It's also an interesting number day as 5 x 5 = 25!  😁  Today's image is one last capture of my Amaryllis that bloomed very late in the year but bloomed rather well when it did.  I captured this image of it against the window so turned the sunny window white as I brightened up the flower.  

05/04/25

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is of my Accucraft Live Steam Shay locomotive on my new/used raised layout.  A Shay locomotive is geared differently than the typical locomotive.  Shay's were designed with a flexible geared wheelbase and a jointed driveshaft.  This made them able to negotiate tight turns and handle steep grades so they were used in logging operations primarily.  It's a fairly smooth running locomotive but is not able to go very fast.  This locomotive is fun for me to run even on my layout on the ground as it negotiates the uneven grades of the track well and doesn't want to move too fast on a down grade.

I have a video of this locomotive running on the track on YouTube HERE.

05/03/25

 I could share birds every day for a while as I have been able to get some nice shots, for me anyways  😂 , lately.  I captured this image while at my in-law's house, they have a lovely Magnolia tree outside their living room window.  There were a pair of Cardinals that were in the tree and I was trying to take some photos and I got this one as the male was taking off.

05/02/25

 It's Friday, TGIF!  My Allium flowers are blooming.  It was attracting this Bumblebee to it's blooms.  It had some lovely bubbly bokeh in the image so sharing it for today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!

05/01/25

 I have been able to see and capture Meadowlarks this spring.  I was able to capture one in flight the other day and it turned out fairly well so sharing it.  😄

4/30/25

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  This one is currently blooming in a couple of spots in my yard.  This is Wild Columbine which usually blooms in April and May.  They belong to the Buttercup family.  It usually likes steep rocky slopes and moist soils though this one is growing in one of my gardens.

04/29/25

 I got another chance at a Horned Lark image recently.  I was bike riding and a couple kept landing in the road just in front of me so I was able to get a couple images.  This is the male and you ca see the "horns" in this image.  They are actually raised feathers.  They like very bare ground to look for seeds and insects so that must be why I see them in the road so much.

04/28/25

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  I grow this flower but it must not like where it is because it has not bloomed or not bloomed much at all the past couple of years.  My Mom-in-law's plant is quite happy with where it is apparently as it was blooming profusely.  I had never seem so many flower buds on a stem as this one had.  This is a Bleeding Heart.  They like shade and rich soil.  I am thinking that is what I need to do, make the soil richer.  In the photo, behind the main arch of flowers you can see one of the groups of LOTS of buds.

04/27/25

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is of my new (used) Forney locomotive that I got in Florida with the track.  I took this image on the first day of using it and running Live Steam on the layout.  Forney locomotives, 0-4-4Ts, are a type of tank engine.  They were developed by Matthias Nace Forney in the 1860s.  They were used for mining, lumber, plantations and some short haul freight and passenger service.  The most well known Forney locomotive is the Ward Kimble built by Baldwin for the Disneyland Railroad in California.

 There is a video of it in operation on my layout that I shared last week, HERE  if you haven't seen it and would like to.

04/26/25

 In the Spring the Cedar Waxwings seem to travel through and spend a bit of time in the trees by my Gazebo pond.  I saw them a couple weeks back and did not have a camera with me.  By the time I ran to the house and back there were only a very few in the trees and I only got off one shot.  Fortunately, it was a fairly good one.  I love Waxwings.  I have not seen them since unfortunately.

04/25/25

 It's Friday, TGIF!  It's also a double digit day!  😀  I had purchased a new Poppy this year so I was taking some photos of it including this one.  I love the texture of Poppies, very wrinkly, I think it is compared with crumpled paper.  The stems are quite hairy as well.  Sharing this photo today because I thought the bokeh was rather interesting and Friday's Are Bokehlicious!

04/24/25

 We have Collard Lizards in our area and there is a specific place on one of my bike routes that I see one fairly regularly.  I almost forgot to look for it while out on a warm day recently so only got one shot of it playing Peek-A-Boo over the rocks it lives under.  This has been about the third year that I have seen it there.  I looked them up and they can live 5 to 8 years in the wild.  This is, most likely, a female due to the color of it's head blending into the rock.  Males are more blue-green in color.

04/23/25

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  My wildflower to share for today is Western Yarrow which is in the Sunflower family.  This is from a group that I had transplanted off the road where it would be mowed down all the time.  It has fern like leaves and is very hardy during drought.  It usually blooms June through September.

04/22/25

 It's Earth Day officially but in my opinion Earth Day should be everyday.  I try to but and plant flowers that are native and that butterflies and bees will like.  You can do it for cheap with Zinnia seed.  They grow easily and butterflies love them!  I took this image of a male Tiger Swallowtail on an old established Lilac a little over a week ago.  It was perfect so must have been newly hatched.  My first butterfly capture for the year.

04/21/25

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  My Fern Peony bloomed again this year.  It seems to be an every other year thing lately.  It's beautiful to see.  Very dainty compared to other Peonies.