Leaving the Nest

A few weeks ago I posted a picture of one of a pair

of hawks that has been raising their babies in our

oak tree for the past ten years or so. There are two babies

each year as a rule and the process of teaching

 them to fly and be independent takes several weeks.

The weather has been extremely hot and dry this year and 

the babies have been making trips to the bird bath in the back yard. This is a first and we can only attribute it to the fact there is no lake water behind our house right now.

Here are some pictures David took one afternoon as the youngsters

sat in the tree above the birdbath. You can tell they are still very young by their size and the large eyes that aren't hooded yet.

They are pretty much on their own by now.

Quite a few homes have been built in our neighborhood

in the past several years and I am concerned that we are becoming too populated for them.

I am glad the hawks still feel at home here and chose to

raise another family this year.

We are still experiencing extreme heat and I am staying

indoors so not much to share. I am ready for Fall!

And in the case of butterflies,

So rich it looks as if all summer settled there and died.

                                                                                     Philip Larken, "Autumn"

It has taken somewhat longer than expected to bounce

back from the surgery. That, along with the unbelievable

heat and continued drought,

 has left me with little interest in the outside world.

This butterfly caught my attention out the

kitchen window. Maybe it is a sign of better days ahead!

Hope you find beauty in your world today.

TAKING A BREAK

Our weather continues in drought conditions.

The rain we had so hoped for didn't appear.

There are chances of thunderstorms every afternoon,

but so far, none for us.

The temperature continues to climb over 100 daily.

This is summer in the south.

The flowers I planted with such promise 2 months ago

are showing signs of severe stress.

I am a little stressed also by dragging

that water hose everywhere the sprinkler doesn't reach :)

I will be taking a blogging break for a couple of weeks.

There is a little matter of unplanned surgery that has

to be taken care of. I expect to be fine and back to normal

soon and I hope to check in from time to time but it

will be a while before I am out and about again with my camera.

Hope your summer stays green and under 100 degrees!

See you in a few weeks.

Carolyn

* Happy 4th of July *

Thank you, to all who make it possible

to celebrate this day of freedom.

 These pictures were taken July 4, 2008 at my

 mother's house in Mississippi.

My daughter and I are planning to visit again this weekend.

I am looking forward to visiting with my family, catching up

on what is happening in their lives and seeing how much the

children have grown (not to mention eating mother's good cooking).

Have a Blessed and Happy Holiday.

~ Pretty in Pink ~

Crinkled, ruffled and watermelon pink.

Another beautiful reminder of summer.

There is a chance for rain today and tomorrow... 

praying it will come and give a drink to this dry and

parched area of the south. 

~ Hawkeye ~

When I hear the word  hawkeye, I think of two things....

a character on the t.v. show, MASH or

someone with very keen eyesight.

This guy fits the second thought. This is one of a pair of hawks

who have nested and raised their young close to our house

for the past several years.

 As I was going out the driveway Sunday,

there he was, sitting on the mailbox.

Of course, I didn't have the camera with a zoom lens

in the car with me, so I used my little Canon.

They are always a joy to watch, especially when they are

teaching their young to fly.

To be sure, he had his 'hawkeye" on me

 and I wasn't  allowed to get very close before

he took flight, but it was such a treat to get a couple of

pictures before he flew.

Hope you enjoy!

Seven Things

One of my favorite blogging friends, Cheryl at The Farmer's Daughter  bestowed the Versatile Blogger Award to me
and several others.

The idea, as I understand it, is to tell you 7 things about myself you may not know. Here goes.......

1. Paul Newman was my favorite actor for years.

2. I really don't like being confined in a crowd. I can ride in an elevator perfectly well with a few people, but if we are crammed like sardines, I get a little antsy.

3. I was painfully shy as a child, but somewhere along the
way I discovered I love people!...all kinds..all shapes...all sizes...all ages.

4. I love desserts....my favorite is Key Lime anything.  Strangely,     chocolate, I can take or leave.

5. I am a cancer survivor going on 5 years....yeah!!!!

                         This is harder than I thought!!

6. I am a "ducks in a row" person. I like to have a plan but don't have a problem changing direction in midstream as long as I know where that stream is going!
Flying by the seat of my pants....not so much.

7. I love to read. Christian fiction mysteries are my favorite. I also love reading poetry...Robert Frost is a favorite.

It's funny how it is easy to write my thoughts about things I see or capture in pictures, but very difficult to share about me personally.

Thanks for including me Cheryl.  I enjoyed reading what everyone  wrote.

~Sunflower Trail 2011~

A sunflower turns its face to the sun and

basks in the warmth of its glow.

It's that time of year again.

Time for my favorite Sunflower Festival.

 A friend and I traveled the Sunflower Trail this past week and

I took just a few pictures. The flowers were late in blooming and the blooms are sparse compared to previous years.

I think it was close to 100 degrees and very humid by the

time we reached the festival and we along with the

sunflowers felt a little wilted.

These pictures are not the best quality, but it is hard to hold a

camera when you are melting into a puddle!

Even so, these bright, cheerful blooms made the trip worthwhile.

Here is just one of the beautiful homes we passed on our drive.

Hopefully, I will get up to the sunflower fields before they have bloomed out and take a few more pictures,

 but I wanted to share these just in case I miss them.

Hope you have a weekend as happy as the sunflowers!

The Old Homeplace

On our outing last week, we traveled the old road back to Shreveport, through farmland green with cotton & soy beans & rice fields. We passed this lovely old homeplace and dear hubby just knew I would want a closer look.

I am not sure why old houses, especially a white clapboard house with a porch, hold such an attraction to me, but I dearly love them.

I can just imagine the family that lived here, the wife

who lovingly decorated and cleaned this home, the children

who played on the porch and under the magnolia tree in the yard

and the father who came home from a day in the fields to his family and a homecooked country supper.

Can't you just imagine them sitting on the porch in the

swing or perhaps a rocker?

 So many things revolved around the southern porch

in the days before air conditioning.

Visiting with the neighbors, shelling peas, rocking babies to sleep, telling stories or watching fireflies at night are just a few

memories from my childhood.

I wish this little red swing could talk, or maybe not.....

Sometimes memories and imagination are better than truth.

I do wish someone would restore this grand old lady.

I think she still has a lot to offer, starting with character......

if only we were younger, had more energy, and

 probably lots and lots of money............. sigh

A Visit to Natchitoches

Last Monday, we spent part of the day in one of my favorite Louisiana cities, Natchitoches (pronounced NAK a tish). 

It was established in 1714 by Louis Juchereau de St. Denis as part of French Louisiana, the community was named after the Natchitoches Indian tribe.

It has lots of French inspired charm, located on the Cane River. We just walked around town, enjoying the scenery.

 

Here we are on Front Street which faces the river. This balcony is over the sidewalk below, the second floor being living quarters. Lots of beautiful ironwork balconies are seen all over town.

Wouldn’t this be a nice place to sit in the evening

and look over at the Cane River?

 

Pretty gardens and great live oaks and magnolias to enjoy.

This is the city where  the movie "Steel Magnolias" was filmed.

 

Front Street is still made of bricks and the buildings are connected by brick walkways with lovely courtyards in the rear.

 

There are many beautiful churches in the area. I loved this window……reminds me of a flower.

 

I love these columns and the window detail.

Another beautiful church located at the corner of

 Second and Church Street.

One of my favorite places to eat, home of the famous Natchitoches meat pie. Sadly, they weren't open on the holiday.

Another great eatery in Natchitoches, fortunately for us, was open and we enjoyed a delicious lunch.

 David had their (also famous) baked potato with crawfish etouffe and I had a grilled chicken salad. Since it was a holiday and all.....

we decided to have dessert.

Chocolate for him and bread pudding for her......yum.

Live oaks, the river, flowers, history and good food.

It was a lovely, relaxing way to spend a day together.

Visit beautiful Natchitoches if you have the opportunity.

You will love it.

Swamp Critter

Do you see who I see?

David saw this little friend in the front of the yard this afternoon. We see raccoons often in the evening, but rarely in the middle of the afternoon.

 

He kept peeking over the retaining wall to see where we were

 and finally decided we were there to stay.

 He headed for the tree………….

And evidently the tree is hollow, because up he went,

into the middle of the tree!

We never know what we will see here on the Cypress Swamp.

 

Can you see his little ringed tail right at the top of the split?

Pretty cozy home I would imagine.

We were both off today which is a rare thing, so we decided to take a little road trip to one of Louisiana’s oldest cities.

I will share more of about that later this week.

Ok, maybe just a hint!

In Memory

In Memory of All Who Served,

Especially Those Who Gave Their All

For Freedom.....

Thank You

Unexpected Surprise

Wildflower:  a flower that grows without deliberate

care or cultivation.

I have shared several times about the wonderful place I have to walk close to my home. It is a well maintained walking path,

a half mile long and well used.

There is a pasture next to the path that has these beautiful wild blackeyed Susans blooming now. 

On this particular day, I noticed a small path through the trees farther along and caught a glimpse of bright orange!

Of course, that was as good as a Red flag to me so

 I grabbed my camera on the next lap and struck out on

 this little path to get a closer look.

I found this little patch of Butterfly weed (also known as chigger weed!) blooming in a small field that I think is a cut through for the  power lines.  I am still practicing with my camera and the color is a little saturated, but the blooms were so bright and pretty.

Not only did I find Butterfly weed, but several varieties of Coneflower and Rudbeckia along with the sweetest little pink flowers and some purple as well.

 

 

 Aren’t these the happiest colors? I felt like I had found a

 “secret wildflower garden”.

As I wandered around, enjoying the beauty of God’s planting, I couldn’t help wonder if I were picking up any of those “chiggers” or "redbugs" as they are called in Louisiana. 

 Thankfully, I didn’t bring any home with me!

Hopefully, no chemicals will ever be used to control

the grass in this little wildflower garden and we can continue to enjoy this secret place.

Just don’t tell anyone it is there, ok?

I came across this poem and thought it reflected my feelings as well.

God, make my life a little flower,

That giveth joy to all;

Content to bloom in native bower,

Although it's place be small.

                                  Matilda B. Edward

Hopefully, I can give a little joy to someone this week in return for the joy I received from discovering this "wildflower garden".