Spring Green

The green of the hillside is stunningly green to me. And no, I didn't edit this photo or have the camera on colour enhancing settings. I think it's the effect of grey, overcast skies above the grass. This is a hill outside College Place in a quiet piece of country.

The Road

It looks like this road leads right to the tree behind the hill in the countryside just west of College Place. The clouds look foreboding, don't they?

Skywatch Friday

A sparrowhawk perches on a power line above an open field, watching for lunch on a sunny Sunday morning.

Goodbye Daytime

Another view from my friends' house out in the country just past the state line in Oregon. They own 20 acres and grow alfalfa, corn, and other things, as well as sheep, goats, cows, cats, chickens and dogs.

Trampoline Time

Here's a photo of Little Miss; I don't think I've shared one with you in a while. Just to see how big she's grown, here's a photo of her as a newborn, and one of her at 8 months. She is now just about 22 months and I treasure every minute I spend with this sweet girl. Here she is enjoying a trampoline in the backyard of some friends of ours. They live in the country just across the Washington border in Oregon and have a fantastic view of fields (mostly theirs because they own 20 acres), the hills, and both sunsets and sunrises. They own goats, cows, sheep, chickens, dogs and cats.

Summer Puffball

This is commonly known as a weed, though its flower is quite attractive. It's a dandelion and blooms bright yellow in yards across America in the spring and summer. When the flower dies, it turns into this puffball of seeds, which scatter and create new little yellow flower plants in yards across America. This is my first attempt at a super macro shot.

Posted

It may surprise you to know that this picture was not edited. I actually shot it just like this...unfortunately I cannot tell you how! Again, it is not my camera, it was a borrowed camera I was experimenting with, and I bumped some buttons and when I looked at the pictures on the computer (not in the bright sun on the small camera screen) I realized the colour was funny. I like it, but I wish I knew how I did it! On the other side of this tree is a small piece of grassy hillside (bordered by a creek) that someone could potentially walk on to get into our neighbour's backyard, but it is highly unlikely. I guess someone felt the need to demand solitude here. The sign is broken, but its message is still clear.

Beautiful Mistake

I had intended to focus on the little green weed poking through the crack between the boards, but, this being a camera that isn't mine, and me being very much an amateur photographer, the camera focused on the boards instead. At first I was annoyed that it hadn't turned out, but the more I look at it, the more I like the focus on the weathered boards and rusty nails. This was taken in my front yard.

Nasturtium

These little white flowers popped up in my garden this year and I had no idea what they were, as I didn't plant them, nor remember them being there last year. When seeing them in a vase on my dining table, someone asked if they were nasturtium. I shrugged, not knowing, but later looked it up. Sure enough; that's what they are. Gorgeous flowers, and they smell amazing, too. I wish I could post scents for all ya'll on here!

Lucky Catch

In the same trees from yesterday, I managed to catch a few shots of this little guy, who actually stayed long enough for me to get some pictures. Anyone want to venture a guess as to what he is?

Nothin' But Blue Sky

I really don't know why, but this picture makes me think of Australia. And I've never been there, so I have no idea how I would even know. At any rate, this was part of my view during lunch on Friday. I ate on my front patio in the gorgeous 70-degree weather.

Just to Make You Hungry

I recently attended a bridal shower and this amazing strawberry trifle was made fresh at the party. It didn't last long, either; it was so delicious it disappeared in a matter of minutes. Ingredients include: Fresh strawberries, strawberry yogurt, pound cake, whipped topping, almonds, frozen strawberries, and lemon. Beautiful AND delicious. Even in the small country towns we can make fabulous dishes like this!

The Administration Building

We had one absolutely gorgeous morning last week and I just had to go for a walk and enjoy it. This is a photo I took on that walk; it features the administration building at Walla Walla U.

Fields of Gold

I wish I could claim this picture as my own, but a friend of mine, Marci, went walking with her family on a Saturday afternoon and took this fantastic photo. This is a canola field outside of Milton-Freewater. Canola is turned into oil, which is actually healthier for you than vegetable oil, though not as good as olive oil.

The Red Shoe

This shoe belongs to the 18-month-old daughter of a friend of mine. I thought it looked neat sitting the grass without its match, silent in the evening spring light.

Rainy Evening

If you look closely you can see the rain dripping steadily from the roof of my porch. We got a pretty good downpour Saturday evening, and yes, I opened the door to enjoy the sound and smell.

Back in Time

It's Mothers Day here in the United States, so today I will share with you the moment I first saw my mother, and she first saw me, all the way back in 1983. Happy Mothers Day, Mom! I love you!

Mmmm...

This is handmade pasta with asparagus and spinach and Parmesan cheese. I got it for dinner at The Green Spoon, a new restaurant in downtown Walla Walla. It was delicious...and now I'm hungry.

Doing the City's Work

This is my neighbour. We share a gravel/dirt driveway, and it very frequently develops large potholes that make driving down the driveway a real pain. The driveway is actually no one's property; it is owned by the city due to the creek that runs just on the other side of the driveway there. At the other end of the driveway (to the left of the photo) there is a walkway across a water gate that the city needs daily access to. So the city has a lien on the driveway, meaning it's really public space, in spite of the fact that it's our driveway. Unfortunately the city's claim to our driveway only stretches so far as to allow them to drive up and down it whenever they wish, and not as far as repairing the damage done. So our neighbour, who for some reason owns a small piece of machinery as you see here, took it upon himself to repair the holes himself last weekend. The driveway is much better now...but a few more rains and a few more packing down of the hole fillers by our heavy cars will mean another leveling out is due.

Discovering Spring

In honor of May Day I share with you a shot of my Little Miss checking out the daffodils outside our house. She absolutely loves flowers, and has to point them out whenever she sees any. (It comes out more like, "wa-wee" but we know it's "flowers.") If she can, she'll walk over and "smell" them, which is actually her putting her nose down by the petals and blowing out of her nose instead of sniffing, but she will figure it out eventually. the hat she's wearing was an Easter gift from her auntie.