Slow Down and Take a Closer Look

My front yard is a hillside chock full of weeds. Every once in awhile I go outside to pull weeds. I do it simply for exercise because they grow back faster than I can possible clear them all. Oh I have plans for this expanse but for now it is just too expensive, too huge, and too time consuming of a project to do on our own. For right now it is an acre packed with weeds. Thankfully the house rests at a dead end and the two neighbors don't mind.



But wait. Slow down. Let's take a closer look.
These just started blooming. Are they a variety of bleeding hearts maybe?
And these clusters are ready to open.
I love my new camera because it has a one centimeter macro button. I didn't even realize this was a bee until the picture came out. I guess my eyes aren't that great.
My daughter P was roaming the hillside picking flowers while I was crouching in the weeds. When I stood up she came running towards me with this wonderful bouquet! And then she tells me. "Each flower is doing it's own unique flower business. " And then she proceeded to tell me why she picked each variety.
I love that in some parallel way we were able to both see the splendor growing on the hillside.
The bouquet was our center piece at dinner last night and one of the topics of our conversation. Thanks to the hillside of weeds!

Muzzle Lickin' Good

If only my kids had this ability to clean up after themselves! Imagine my boy without a food stained shirt shoulder and my girls with clean shirt sleeves. And the corners of their mouths wouldn't look like a glazed donut all the time!

My son is 4 now. For his 3rd birthday we gave him a real hammer and a box of 250 nails because he learned pretty early on that the toy tools don't quite get the job done like daddy's do.
So watch out when you come to our house because you might just step on a board of nails. This artwork is everywhere. There seems to be more of it this spring because we have been building a deck.
Here is the piece he worked on last night while I was fixing dinner.
And a piece from a week or so ago that sat out in the rain.

Picture This

I was playing around with the macro mode on my new camera the other day (Thursday) and this is what I came up with as I was sitting amongst the weeds. I really enjoy observing insects because they are always moving around as if on some urgent mission. So small but yet they are wired to get whatever job they are programmed to do done.

Withering

I finally got a new camera because my other one broke 6 months ago. So, I found some withering daffodils to capture. I liked this one the best. She looks like she has a head of hair. And can you see her snout? Nature constantly reminds me how much dying is a part of life. I'm not fascinated so much by the permanence of death but rather the cycle. In order for me to have become who I am now, layers of my old self have withered away or have taken on a different form. The part that remains today is partly memory grown together with new growth. Just like this flower. I remember it in the prime of its beauty. Her face held high towards the sun soaking in all the pleasures of the day. She was happy. Next year she will be back again only stronger.

39 Candles...count em!

I love bugs!

The other day it was warm outside and the ladybugs came out of the woodwork. Funny but they really do. They hide underneath the siding on the house and when it gets warm they come out and start trucking up and down the house.

It was difficult the photograph them because they were so busy crawling all over the place. I'm not sure where they were going or what they were trying to accomplish but with my camera only inches away I had to move my hand right along with them to capture these photos.
The entire house gets covered like this on a warm fall day. I know that the title of this post is "I love bugs" but I don't love bugs INSIDE the house. So, when they come inside the house and cover the walls and doors I suck them up with the vacuum cleaner. (sorry!) I'll get indoor photos this weekend of their favorite little huddle spots.
This photo is my favorite.
...and who ate all my decorative corn?

I'm baaack!

It has been awhile since I've updated this blog...I know I know. But, I've been busy and since I haven't been taking very many pictures I just don't feel very introspective lately. So, I've had nothing to share. I guess I've been moving FORWARD so quickly that I haven't had time to look around at what is HERE.

So, for this entry I am choosing 5 pictures from the last 40 days.
Yes, this is me in some new "skinny jeans", platform heals, scarf, cami, and jacket...I was asked to model in a fashion show for a local store by a friend/colleague of mine. It was tons of fun struttin' my stuff on the catwalk. I was nervous as hell and my shoes almost fell off but I held it together for the team! And if she asks, I would do it again.
We took S and K to a baseball game in Milwaukee...I found this building interesting on our walk around the river.

Happy Golden Birthday!

Emmitt turned 14 on the 14th! She is still a spunky old girl. We took her out for an evening drive through the country and let her put her face out the window and enjoy the breeze. Sadly, we haven't done this in a very long time. We, as a family, have become so busy lately and oftentimes we leave her behind, tucked away in the laundry room during the day while we go out and enjoy ourselves.
We came upon some cows crossing the road and were forced to slow down and let her bark at them. The farmer in his pickup truck wasn't too thrilled with this but we didn't care, it was our dog's birthday! We also came upon several deer and we slowed down to watch them perk up their ears and stare us down. She loved every minute of it. Hmmm, what will we do next year?

Just two photos

My hand prints in the sand at the lake.
This is the last of the cucumbers and the beans. I have pulled most of the zucchini plants. The peppers are supposed to be red but they are not ripening on the plant and I have become impatient waiting for them. There are more tomatoes to come but we haven't had the heat this year.