Queen Anne and Her Maidens

Summer officially left us two weeks ago but that doesn't deter me from posting about some summer flowers. I mean, how can I let all my lovely photos go to waste?!

Summer flowers have a beauty that is uniquely theirs, so fresh, light, delicate and, well...summery! And WILD summer flowers are even moreso, in my opinion.

One of the large fields of Queen Anne's Lace.

In July we were at a camp in Virginia. I was impressed with field after field of Queen Anne's Lace. That's right, not just a plant here and there or a small patch but large fields of it! It was amazing, I'd never seen so many at once and I was totally captivated by the utterly delicate loveliness of their white laciness (Wow, did that just come from my fingers??). I was further captivated by the many maidens which surrounded her, seemingly tending to her every whim, bowing and curtsying in the wind. I felt like I was in a storybook flowerland...

*Sigh*. Happily, I have myriads of photos to remember the experience. Please enjoy some of them with me!



Queen Anne herself!

 

One of my favorites. This butterfly has good taste, don't you think? I do believe she was using the Queen for her
helicopter pad!

 

Not a daisy but maybe a cousin. It's a larger version of one that's called "Forever Summer".

 

Black-Eyed Susan. Uh-oh, I see some little purple flowers which I failed to take a picture of...

 

This summer I learned the name of this lovely blue flower: Chicory.
 The roots can be baked, ground and used as a coffee substitute!

 

Wild Sweet Pea. That grasshopper has good taste, too!

 

Looks like Pink Clover but I think it may be something else.

 

Don't know the name of this cute little weed either but I think it resembles an orchid! It might be the wild version of
Lady's Slipper. Yes, that'll work until I hear otherwise from someone more knowledgeable of botany than I am.

 

Another unknown by me but, oh, so lovely. Apparently Miss Ant thinks so, too!

 

The color combination of Queen Anne and her maidens was beyond beautiful,
 I just couldn't get my fill of taking pictures. Does it look like it might be a piece of heaven there? It was.
The place, scenery, colors, weather...head-shakingly perfect.

His creation always turns my heart and mind towards Him. Thank You, Lord, for the loud message of Your
wonderful works of creation!

"As for man, his days are as grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourish."
(Psalm 103:15)

"The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry?
 All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field."
(Isaiah 40:6)

Have You Watched the Fairies?

When I was in grade school I had a teacher who often required me to memorize poems. The following is one from which I still often remember some of the lines (not that I believe in fairies, of course)...

A "fairy".

Have You Watched the Fairies?

Have you watched the fairies
when the rain is done,
Spreading out their little
wings to dry them in
the sun?
I have, I have!
Isn't it fun?

Have you heard the fairies

A diamond in the center of my Rainbow Plant...

all among the limes
Singing little fairy tunes
to little fairy rhymes?
I have, I have,
Lots and lots of times!

Have you seen the fairies
dancing in the air
And dashing off behind the stars
to tidy up their hair?
I have, I have,
I've been there!
               -Rose Fyleman

The past few mornings when I was taking pictures in the sunny, dewy outdoors, I thought of this poem. See if you can understand why...



From a distance, one would never dream that this simple flower held such breathtaking loveliness. In reality,
it's only about one inch across.

I just can't get over how beautiful this looks with the teeny drops of water...

T

 

I never tire of trying to capture the full beauty of drops of water on leaves. Haven't quite succeeded yet.

 

This picture gives me the warm fuzzies. :)

> One cannot know the beauty of the tiny details unless he looks really closely! So much for calling it the humble weed!
Que nada!

Spider webs with drops of water are TOO beautiful for words. I should have saved this pic for a later post just about webs but I couldn't resist putting it here. How cute wouldn't this be for a fairy's house (without Miss Spider, of course)?!

Did I already say I love drops of water??

 
Aren't the delicate, intricate, tiny details SO amazing? Makes me smile and look up to my Creator and say "I LOVE YOU!!". I believe that only the eyes of His children can truly notice, admire and appreciate these things more than anyone else can.

Have YOU watched the "fairies" where you live??

"But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." (I Corinthians 2:9)

"Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law." (Psalm 119:18)

North Carolina Birds

I have been SO very blessed and entertained by the birds that I have seen here in North Carolina over the past six months! I could write a book just about my observations of their habits and antics but this collage of the majority of them will have to suffice. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

(Back & forth from top left: dove, grackle, mockingbird, sparrow, baby sparrow (?), eastern bluebird, robin, junco,
purple finch, male & female cowbird, male/female/juvenile cardinal)

       But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee:

   Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee.

   Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the LORD hath wrought this?

   In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind. (Job 12:7-10)

A Thousand Shades Of Green

I have been impressed with SO many shades of green (maybe because it's my favorite color!) as the trees and other plants have burst forth with their clothing of greenery. Although, of course, the camera failed to capture some of the most spectacular scenes that I wanted to preserve, here are several photos to give you an idea of what I have seen. From our back yard in North Carolina to the mountains of Tennessee to the rolling hills of Virginia, from light green to dark green and every shade in between...these are His creations!

"O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches." (Psalm 104:24)

Transformations

I'm enjoying watching many transformations happen before my eyes these weeks. These pairs of photos show some of them, from bare trees with no buds to those of blooming beauty.

From buds (and Mrs.Cardinal)...

...to blossoms...

                                                  

...to baby cherries!

From bare branches...

...to flowered ones.



From lovely blossoms...

...to promising pears!



From dreary winter...

...to cheery Spring!

God's power to change and transform are a wonder to behold, not only in plants but also in people. We are thankful for that power, we have seen it SO many times, in so many places during our lives!

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (II Corinthians 5:17)

Creatures In The Snow

Here's another post about the snow we had several days ago, this time of the various "creatures" and other things that I saw there.

I'll start off with the birds. They began flocking around pretty early, obviously looking for food. Poor babies, couldn't find much of it elsewhere, I guess, so I welcomed them with open arms...or maybe I should say open lens, heh.

I saw a flash of red in the trees, starkly contrasted against the white snow. The cardinal decorated the winter scenery so beautifully.

He flew to a tree that was a bit closer to me...

...and finally only a couple meters away. I guess he was hungry enough! Yes, that's birdseed that I scattered on top of the snow. 

Then there was the lovely robin, a bit more shy than her cardinal cousin. There's something about birds in the snow that looks picture-perfect, don't you think?

Well! It's obvious there's some sort of creature prowling around! Let's see if we can find it...

Aha, there he is. He looks a bit bewildered with the white stuff all around him, don't you think?

Here's Kitty, my daughter's cat next door. It took her several minutes to get adjusted to accepting her first snow. But she obviously liked it because she stayed out all day.

This little junco is all balled up, trying to keep warm while sitting in 2 inches of the cold, soft stuff. Or is she sitting ON it? I'm not sure!

What about this creature?! Looks like a rose but it's a camillia. She certainly contributed a lovely decoration to the scenery. I felt sorry for this beauty but she seemed to survive just fine.

Speaking of surviving, I've been amazed at my little pansy that I bought a month ago. It has survived at least 2 strong winds, 5 or 6 frosts and now this 2-inch snow. Look at the next photo to see how she's still as perky as ever...

I think its theme is: "Just keep on keepin' on"! A fantastic winter flower.

I shall end with this photo which might just be my favorite of all the ones I took of the snow. I've been calling it my little snow family. Aren't they the cutest?!

"Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow...?" (Job 38:22)