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Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Springtime at home in the U.P.! : A Series of Signs: Part ONE

When you live in the U.P. (upper peninsula) of Michigan...
way north, directly across Lake Superior from Canada...
you have long, long, cold winters with tons of snow.

So,
when Spring arrives
it is a true celebration!

I look forward to every single sign
that the glorious season
has indeed, arrived.
So, I will be posting some of the
"Thank GOD, Spring has really, finally and absolutely arrived!"
photos of the things I am glad to see every spring here.




Some Primrose in my garden:



Double tulips and more primrose in my gardens:



Yes, I am even happy when I see the dandelions come up:



Double tulip:



Daffodils...the first flower that usually blooms in my garden (but next year I think I will plant crocuses too!):



Cherry blossoms! (The always come before my apple blossoms, which are just starting to peek out now):




The back of a gorgeous purple finch!:




His beak is all messy from seed...he's hungry! After all, he had to fly all the way this far north!!:

Stay tuned for more "Springtime at home in the U.P." photos...
in between
our trip to Florida pictures...
I'm SURE you will be able to tell the two series apart...
(Hint: Just think: HOT versus un-thawing). 

But, that's what makes the world go round, right??
I love both places!!
**************************************************************************
Get busy looking through your archives
or
going outside
and
get your photo entry
for
MAY's FREE PHOTO CONTEST!!!

The theme is:

LANDSCAPES!!

Follow these rules and send me your photo by midnight, MAY 31st....the deadline is getting close!

25 comments:

DJan said...

Lovely pictures! I especially love your beautiful purple finch, he is gorgeous. And your picture taking is stellar!

The Retired One said...

DJan: Thanks.I think those little finches are so darling.

Tatyana@MySecretGarden said...

You know how to do it, don't you?! Those blooms and birds are jumping straight on me from the screen saying they are beautiful! And they are!

Bossy Betty said...

Sweetheart! Your pictures knock me out! Love, love, love the dandelion and the finch pics!!

Jeanette said...

Gorgeous pictures as usual! You can be hard pressed to find anything more glorious than spring in Michigan!

Shelley said...

Spring is looking spectacular in the U.P! Your flower macros were so concise and perfect! I also can't wait for summer nights of looking at clear skies and counting the millions of stars.

Brian Miller said...

that purple finch is phenomenol. i dont think i had ever seen one....i love spring too!

rainfield61 said...

Lovely and gorgeous.

CiCi said...

I showed the picture of the purple finch to hubby and he says he hasn't seen one like it here either. Just beautiful. We have some cardinals that are getting comfy in the back yard though. But every time I get my camera aimed they take off.

Unknown said...

The flowers are so pretty and the finches are gorgeous!

Bernie said...

Yaaaaaaaay I'm back in.

Love these photos and how you have displayed them.

So happy Spring has arrived my friend, I think we all can use a dose of sunshine......:-) Hugs

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Amazing the differences in the UP and FL.... Like night and day, huh????

Great spring pictures. Love the double tulip.

Hugs,
Betsy

The Retired One said...

Tatyana: Awwww, thanks, Sweetie!

Bossy: I am so glad! Keep coming back, I love hearing from you.

Jeanette: I agree, and we sure appreciate Spring here when it gets here.

Shelley: I have never tried taking photos of stars, that will be a challenge for me. ha

Brian: Some of the birds knock my socks off...and they fly through our area, so we don't see them long. Last week,we had a bright tangerine colored one here, I have NO idea what it was!

Rainfield: Thanks!

TechnoBabe: Same thing here...we hardly EVER see Cardinals, but when we do, they are shy and take off and I can't get a good, clear picture of it!

Eva:Thanks so much!

Bernie: So glad you are back up and running and reading blogs, I have missed your comments!

Betsy: That's for sure, and I love them both very much.

VaBookworm87 said...

Great shots! Love the flower close ups :o)

Mike said...

Don't know what is better, your gardening or your photography!

Rick (Ratty) said...

Dandelions have been my favorite flower since I was a kid. That's partly because our mean neighbors back then didn't like them. But I always thought they brightened up a lawn real well.

Joanna Jenkins said...

A purple finch!?!?! Who knew. He's gorgeous.

And so are all the other photos.

Thanks,
jj

RNSANE said...

Great photos and I love your contests!

SquirrelQueen said...

Beautiful blooms, you are getting some great colors in your yard. I love the little purple finch, what an adorable little bird he is.

Loree said...

It's amazing that you are still seeing the first signs of spring. We are s tarting to see the first signs of summer and, indeed, the first 2 weeks of May were really hot and summer-like. This past week the weather went crazy and we've had a lot of cool wind and some rain. But I am not complaining. I know we will be at the beach soon and the heat can get pretty tiresome after a while.

The Retired One said...

VaBookworm: thanks! And I loved your sign and quote that you put above your bookcases too!

Otin: What a great compliment, Otin! Thanks!

Ratty: You are just like my hubby...he absolutely loves them and hates that people complain about them in their lawns. They really are pretty up close and the bright yellow is delightful to see after the dull browns of melting snow!

Joanna: thanks, I am surprised how many people had never seen one before.

RNSane: So, you better enter the May contest!!!

SquirrelQueen: Yes, he is a gorgeous little bird!

Loree: Yes, we are behind the rest of the country pretty much...we are more like Canadian weather. But it is beautiful here. Believe it or not, though,we are getting 80 degree temps. all this week. We need rain though, it is really dry here.

Wanda..... said...

Joan, your flower photos are Exquisite!!! The Purple Finch is a favorite!
♥...Wanda

The Retired One said...

Wanda: Thanks so much!! I love those little finches too..and I never met a flower I didn't like. ha

L. D. said...

I love all flower photos, but the purple finch is my favorite.

The Retired One said...

L.D.: The finches didn't stay here for long though...I miss them already!

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REMINDER: All photographs on this blog are COPYRIGHTED.
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I retired in June 2008 and started my blog in November 2008. I worked at several jobs as a Registered Nurse prior to retirement. I LOVE being retired! Blogging has offered me a whole new venue to start writing again and to share new hobbies such as gardening, birdwatching and sharing my nature photography. If you like my blog, PLEASE click on "follow this blog". Having a lot of followers reading my blog gives me incentive to continue to do photography and to continue to write. I also LOVE comments, so I encourage you to leave me a comment after you read my posts. Thanks everyone, for taking the time to read me!!

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