A few early Fall pictures

While refilling the hummingbird feeder, I encountered a huge, green grasshopper on a fading rose.

This morning we watched the Bluebirds having a good time in the water.

We are seeing a lot of Katydids.  I guess they are looking for a winter home.

The roses get happy when the weather starts getting cooler.

As we left early one morning on a day trip, we saw a lovely fog hovering over a field and the sun shining through the silhouetted trees.  Enjoying the cooler weather and looking forward to seeing the leaves change to Fall colors.

Happy Fall, Y'all

Fall is Here!

These Spider Lilies, Surprise Lilies or as some people call them, Johnny-Jump-ups, always bloom at the first of Fall.

The flowers have been covered with Gulf Fritiliary Butterflies.

This Bromeliad was not doing well on the sun porch, so I set the pot out in the flower bed and it promptly bloomed!

I got to photograph the ole 'Harvest Moon' the other night!

We've had lots of pretty skies lately.  Although this one is not colorful, I this it's beautiful.

This was at Ross Barnett Reservoir near Jackson, MS.

The Autumn Clematis at my sister's house out-did itself this year!
Autumn/Fall is my favorite season of the year.  I'm eagerly waiting for the foliage to give us their usual colorful show!  Happy Fall!

Enjoying Spring!

I think the Sunflower is beautiful, even before it opens up fully!

My 'Christmas Cactus' is blooming!

The Fern in my "Shade Garden" is getting lush and happy.

Several of these beauties are blooming now!

We have enjoyed seeing the Indigo Buntings at the feeders!

Sometimes I feel like I'm living in a wildlife refuge, because we see so many Rabbits, Squirrels, Flying Squirrels, Raccoons and Birds.

Once in a while we see Deer, Fox, Skunk and Armadillo!

I hope you are enjoying your Spring!

Spring=New Life

While taking a late afternoon walk around the yard today, I decided to check out the bird nest boxes and see if there was any new life there.  I opened the Bluebird box near the house where the Flying Squirrel raised little ones last year, and saw movement and this tiny nose.  I do not think they have opened their eyes yet.

When grown, they will look like this one we saw last year.

Checking out another box near the back of our lot, I opened the door and found the nest full of very newly hatched Bluebirds.

When mature, we will have three or four pretty bluebirds like the one below!

I lifted the dome of our LP gas tank to check on the Carolina Wren nest and found that one of the four eggs has hatched.  I quickly closed the lid and hoped that I did not disturb them too much.

The picture of the Carolina Wren below may be one of their ancestors :)

I hope you find some 'New Life' around your yard!

Let Nature Inspire You, by Dr. Norman Vincent Peale

"Have you ever wondered why God made the world so beautiful, so impressive, so awe-inspiring? Why did He fill the night sky with sparkling stars? Why did He invent the hush of dawn, the glory of the sunset? Why give us the superlative artistry of the autumn tree, the lacy beauty of a snow-covered landscape?

I think the reason is that He wanted to inspire His highest form of creation, humanity, to be big. We humans are peculiar beings. We have a capacity for greatness and an equal capacity for littleness. We can be very good and we can be very bad. But God longs to be among us. We are, after all, made in His image (Genesis 1:26).

And God gets at us in two ways. He gave us a message in two forms. One is in the words of the Gospel, a hopeful message about what we can be. “So then, if anyone is in Christ, that person is part of the new creation. The old things have gone away, and look, new things have arrived!" 

(2 Corinthians 5:17, The Daily Life Bible ).

The other is in the environment in which God placed us, showing us the glory and the wonders of the world. “He has made everything beautiful” (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

Nature can teach us many lessons, but one of the most important is this: Things change. Nothing is permanent. Seasons come and go. Plants bloom and fall to seed. Storms crash across the horizon…and then the sun comes out. The circumstances of life in which you find yourself at the moment are not permanent. They only seem that way. “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1).

So, don’t get the notion that, when you are blessed with everything good and pleasant, things will necessarily remain so. The Bible reminds us that “man is born for trouble” (Job 5:7). You must be ready and I must be ready, for we never know when a storm will come. And when it does come, we must not be discouraged, for always we can be assured that storms are limited in extent and there are better days ahead.

This is a necessary philosophy if you are to live in this world with courage and with skill. When we take the big, panoramic view we realize that. Jesus has promised us, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Don’t let your thoughts deteriorate into little ones. You may have yielded yourself to that kind of thinking–mad about this, discouraged about that, low, defeated. Lift up your eyes unto the hills right this minute, and you will lift up your thoughts also.

Lift up your mind to the high, elevated panorama of Almighty God. And remember, you are to think big and act big. Live on a big scale. Look BIG at life.

How can nature inspire you today?"  

by Dr. Norman Vincent Peale

Recent Joys

What could be more Joyful than getting  the surprise of a dozen Red Roses from your Hubby on Valentine's Day?

A visit from our Great-Granddaughter is always a Joyful thing!

Another very Joyful announcement came the day before Valentine's Day when our Grandson, Jesse, and his girlfriend, Casey, became engaged to be married!  We are so blessed to be welcoming this sweet girl into our family!  You did good, Jesse!

God is so good!