May 31

Every day when I go for my walk, I find it amazing that although I often go on the same path, there are always different things to see! I love looking at the different wild flowers that are blooming along the side of the road. I never used to take my camera along and would miss all this beauty - intent only on finishing my walk. Looking at the beauty is so much better!
These little purple flowers were in a field I pass every day. They only stand about 6 inches tall, but together they make a nice splash of color.

May 30

Here's what I worked on this afternoon. My flowers have been taunting me, asking to be planted! So, this afternoon I dug in the dirt and planted my impatiens. We put them in our front yard every year because we have a lot of shade and they do well there. Soon they will fill in and give a nice splash of color all summer long.

May 29

I opened the door from our garage to outside and almost walked right into this giant spiderweb! This must have been quite a busy spider, because the web appeared overnight.

I had a hard time getting a picture of it because the camera kept focusing on the car and tree.
I thought the web was neat to look at, but it didn't stay there because too many people walk through that door!

May 28

As I was driving home from work today, I got the call the every parent hates. "Mom, We were in an accident". It was followed by - "we're ok, can you pick us up?"
My daughter Heather and her friend Melissa were driving home, when another car ran a stop sign and hit Melissa's car in the driver side. They both were scratched up by flying glass and have some bumps and bruises, but otherwise are all right. When I saw the car I realized how blessed they were to be ok. It was spun around and was damaged on all 4 sides. God was watching over them today.

May 27

Look what came in the mail yesterday! A gift card from Barnes and Noble! Renee from The Shirks had a giveaway to celebrate her 100th post and I won. It's always nice to get something good in the mail, instead of junk mail and bills. Thanks Renee!

May 26

Today I have a sad post. This is our cat Cleo and this picture was taken a few months ago. Cleo had found a spot to enjoy the sunshine on our kitchen counter. Of course she wasn't supposed to be there, but she looked so cute sitting in the sun that our daughter Heather took her picture before making her move.
We had to put Cleo to sleep today because her kidneys were failing. She was a part of our family for over 8 years and was well loved. She will be missed.

May 25

I had to work today, but went to my sisters house for supper. We had a wonderful meal with ribs, hamburgs, potato salad and fruit salad. No one left the table hungry!
As we were talking, her little dog was looking for attention, so I laid on the floor and snapped his picture. Isn't he cute? His name is Oscar.
*For those who asked, he is a Havenese, Pekinese mix.

May 24

This is a picture of our little township cemetery. I thought it was a good place to take a picture for Memorial Day. Memorial Day is a federal holiday designated to thank those who have died while in military service. Freedom isn't free - someone paid for it with their life!

While enjoying your holiday, remember to thank the veterans and honor those who gave their lives.

May 23

It's a bugs life! I walked past a patch of long grass and wondered what it looked like from the ground. This is the result!

May 22

One of the horses from the neighbors farm came over to greet me as I walked past him this morning. Usually they are busy eating and ignore me!

May 21

I don't know what kind of weed this is, but I've seen little splashes of it growing in fields. When I drove by this field I had to stop and take a picture. The whole field is covered with this bright yellow weed. It's another one of those pretty weeds!

May 20

As you know I always take my camera along when I go walking. I love to take pictures of flowers, trees or maybe a bird. Today I didn't see anything cute when I was out. Instead, there was this snake sunning himself on the road. He just sat there while I took the picture, then slithered off into the grass at the side of the road. Although snakes don't thrill me, there really is something neat about the way they move!

May 19

These lilacs are on our bush in the backyard. I thought I would post them today in memory of my Mom who just loved lilacs. She passed away suddenly, 6 years ago tonight. She was only 69 years old when she died. I've been thinking about her a lot today and am happy that I know I will see her in Heaven!

May 18

Today I had the day off and went to my sisters house about 20 minutes from me. On the way I passed a farm where I spent a lot of time as a teenager. I worked on this celery farm all through high school. In the spring we planted tiny plants in the green house, later we transplanted them into a field riding on a 2 person planter down these rows. When they were grown, we trimmed, cleaned and packed it for shipping.

I think these fields are neat to see, with the black dirt and the long rows of celery.

May 17

It was a very busy day today. I had to work, followed by a meeting at church, then on to a Bible Study group. I snapped this picture from my car. I thought this little creek looked so pretty with the sun shining on it.

May 16

It's cool and windy today, but these calves don't seem to mind! They just sat and watched me as I walked by this morning. Since my walk, it's been quiet here; a little laundry, a bit of baking and reading a book. It's rare, but nice!

May 15

These little violets grow wild in the wooded area next to our house. We find them in our lawn at times too. I guess they are technically a weed, but aren't they pretty?

May 14

About a week ago, my husband was up on the roof, checking our rain gutters. I was in the house when the phone rang and it was Bob, asking me to bring my camera to him on the roof. Of course - I was quite curious to see what he wanted to take a picture of.
It was our flowering crab apple tree, nearly ready to bloom. He had noticed that it looked even prettier from above than from on the ground.
This is the picture he took, looking down on the tree from the roof.

May 13

It's a rainy day here but the flowers are still beautiful in the greenhouse!

We have a huge greenhouse about 5 minutes from our home. People come from all over West Michigan to buy flowers here. I went there today to buy some hanging baskets for the front of the house. I got a beautiful fuchsia and a large mixed basket. They still have a huge supply, but since Mothers Day is done, everything is on sale. So - I got beautiful flowers for a good price!

May 12

I took this picture on my way to work this morning. It was only 6:30 so it was still rather dark. It got quite cold here last night so there was mist rising from the ponds and I thought these geese made a pretty picture swimming through the mist.

May 11

This flowering crab apple tree is in our front yard. It flowers every spring, but some years we've threatened to replace it because it has had very few flowers. This year it is loaded with flowers and looks just beautiful!

May 10

Happy Mothers Day!
This is a flower arrangement which came from my daughter Laura who is a florist. I love that all the flowers are different shades of orange. I also love the stones in the bottom in the vase.
Hope you all had a wonderful day!

May 9

This is my weekend off and I was looking forward to sleeping a little late and having a leisurely morning today. Those plans came to an end when the phone rang at 5 am to ask me to come in to work because one of the nurses had called in.

It was raining quite hard as I was getting ready, but had slowed to an occasional sprinkle when I left the house at 6:30. The early morning lighting along with the stormy skies, encouraged me to stop and take a picture of this old barn before continuing on to work.

May 8

I took my walk early this morning and thought the sun shining through the trunks of the trees was pretty. I like the way the fallen trees show up so clearly in the morning sunshine.

May 7

We have a bleeding heart plant near our front entry that is loaded with flowers this year. I thought I would show you a close up of one of the stems.

May 6

It's getting green here! Some of the trees are full of leaves while others are rather bare, but they are budding. When I walked past this tree, I thought the new leaves looked almost like flowers.

May 5

My sister, daughter and I went to Holland today to enjoy Tulip Time. This is a festival that the city of Holland Michigan has hosted since 1927, which celebrates it's Dutch heritage. It lasts for over a week, and includes parades, Dutch dancers, shopping, food, concerts and lots of tulips! The streets are filled with beautiful plantings. There are people, both young and old in costumes which include wooden shoes.
This is the DeZwaan Windmill, which is the only authentic windmill that was ever exported to the United States. It is 245 years old and stands 12 stories high. About 55,000 people visit it each year.

May 4

I had the day off today and went for an early walk. As I was headed home, 5 deer crossed the street in front of me. As I was trying to get focused on them, the last two stood and watched me.
They are such beautiful creatures!

May 3

This is the sunrise I saw as I was driving to work this morning. I pulled off to take this picture and had a hard time not staying to take more!

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"This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

May 2

This little bluebird has been tormenting me. I've seen him several times as I was walking. When I had my camera, I couldn't get close enough to take the picture, but twice when I didn't have my camera I saw him sitting on a fence post and I could get quite close.

Today I saw him on this fence and finally got a picture, although not the best shot!

May 1

No rain today! It's still cool and not too sunny but good enough weather to be outside. Bob is working on a new flower bed on the other side of our front walk. It angles out near the driveway, which will give us a place to put up a flagpole. We currently have a flag hanging by our front door but have always wanted a pole. It'll look nice when he is done!