Loving September

Our Spring September is a wonderful time of year. Perfect weather for enjoying walks any time of day.

The new life of bulbs blooming is the icing on the cake.

I LOVE the fragrance of freshias! Another first for me this spring.

Miss E surveys the scene from church. Dry winters and a few frosts leave most the grasses dry and yellow.

Growing Anemone Poppies for the first time has been a sheer delight.

Looking like we will have at least one lemon from our tree this year.

Each spring this plant flowers beautifully, hiding away on the shady side of the house.

Our twins aren't so fond of their curly hair, yet every time I see these wet ringlets I am amazed at the beauty.

No, not my rose, but in a garden nearby which is a mass of colours and mixed bloom right now.

Last but not least, I've made a little progress on the Flying Geese quilt I began last year. I'm hoping October will be a time for some more sewing. Hope you have been loving September too!


Sharing at Flower Art Friday.

Drawn

Drawn by the golden western sun, I grab my camera and head towards the bridge, my sunset trysting spot.

It had been a full day, having been out on errands twice and also a walk to the bridge earlier today with the children and one of their neighbourhood friends.

New activity surprised us, the familiar scene before our eyes changing without warning.

 As we headed home we crossed paths with the Wood Duck family again.

When I last saw them I counted 10 ducklings, today there were 9, each noticeably bigger with more feather markings on their chests. Should I be sad that one has gone, or grateful that 9 remain?

The busy-ness and relentless ordering of family life fills my day, again.
The light is fading, am I too late? As I make it to the bridge, the sky glows golden orange.

I am not too late, I am just in time to witness the splendour of another sunset. I wander slowly back and forth, catching the sinking orb as it slips from view.

I stand, gently collecting photos and filling my soul. I wipe tears from my eyes as I'm lost in another magnificent sunset.

The glory of God shared yet again for all to see, all who have eyes see and ears to hear. In the cool of the evening, I turn for home, having gratefully witnessed another of God's generous miracles.



Sharing at Our World Tuesday, Sweet Shot Tuesday, Color Your World, SkyWatch Friday, Orange You Glad It's Friday.

Coriander/Cilantro and Friends

I marvel at our Creator's hand as I observe another miniature world. The intricate details of the flowers are amazing - and so are these tiny beetles (3mm, 1/8" long) which have been calling my coriander "home" for weeks.

Covered in tiny dewy droplets, shimmering in the early morning light.

You can see why I overlooked these beetles at first, they almost look as if they are part of the flowers themselves.
I grew the coriander to use the leaves in cooking and was at first disappointed when they bolted so quickly to flower - not disappointed anymore!



Photographic Notes:
Photos #1, 2, 6 and 7 were taken using a Raynox Macro Conversion Lens with my 55-250mm kit lens.
Photos #3, 5 and 8 taken with a 50mm f/1.4 lens plus the Raynox lens. Photo #4 with 50mm lens alone.

Sharing at Macro Monday.

She's Here!

Isn't she beautiful! This is the sight which greeted me this morning, the first three cornflower blooms.

9 days ago

I've always loved cornflowers but have never grown them myself. In fact I don't remember even having seen a cornflower plant before. Four months ago I planted some Polka Dot Cornflower seeds, a dwarf variety of cornflowers. It's been exciting to watch as the plants grew taller and taller then slowly the buds began to form.

4 days ago

There are many more buds swelling, in an intriguing variety of colours. I think I may soon have enough to cut some blooms to enjoy inside too. 

Do you leave all your flowers in the garden or do you like to bring some into your home as well?

Sharing at Sneak Peek Friday, Weekly Top Shot, I Heart Macro.

Recent Days

No, we don't own a rabbit, although some of our children  are hoping we will....
We had the privilege of petsitting Lucy for nearly two weeks, her fur is SO soft. Lucy returned home yesterday.
We'd be happy to look after her anytime, a short-term pet works very well.

You may remember Master T's birthday piñata, Miss E was very keen to have her very own stash of lollies mini piñata. Her siblings were happy to help her construct and "open" the baby piñata.

Our piñatas proved to be more like bouncy balls than brittle pots! But where there's a will, there's a way!

Hockey season finished with a flurry of preliminary finals, a grand final win (Master T's team) and presentation events. One of Miss O's hockey clubs finished with a ten pin bowling presentation event for all their teams which proved to be very popular.

Badminton with a soft foam ball suits our backyard restrictions perfectly. A birthday gift for Master T from his siblings.

Miss E always likes to play on the swings at church before and after the service.

The view from our church grounds last Sunday, the clouds were amazing. The flood plains below and hills beyond are quite brown following our dry and frosty winter. Thankfully we have had a few spring storms this week, bringing much appreciated rain.

I hope your recent days have yielded joy and beauty of their own too.

Sharing at This or That Thursday, SkyWatch Friday, Photo Show and Tell: Animals - second photo (chosen as a feature) , Mandarin Orange Monday.

Double Pink

 10 am

Growing in my garden, this double pink Anemone Poppy has been flowering for weeks, a daily delight.

Fully opened at noon

Each day the petals open wide as the sun marches high.

8:30 the following morning

Late afternoon, like dozens of protective arms, the petals arch high and gently close. Overnight dew settles on the outside, away from the delicate centre.

10 am

Somewhat different to the pink and purple Anemone Poppies I have already shared yet equally, if not more, stunning. Double pink, double delight!


Photographic notes: All taken with my Canon 600D + 50mm f/1.4 lens.
All except the the fourth were taken with my Raynox Macro Conversion (DCR-250) lens added to the 50mm lens.
Aperture Priority at f/7.1 for the first four photos, f/20 for the fifth and f/9 for the last.

Sharing at Sweet Shot Tuesday, "Wordless" Wednesday, Flower Art Friday, Weekend Flowers.