Last Day to enter the FREE PHOTO CONTEST: Theme: Action or Motion!

Just a reminder

today

that

you have

UNTIL
MIDNIGHT

TONIGHT

to e-mail

me your entry

for

the July PHOTO CONTEST.

The theme

is

ACTION or MOTION

I know you have some photos in your archives

or

that you can go right out your door

and

get that marvelous shot!

Maybe a bird in flight, a rushing waterfall,  a child playing baseball, a deer or horse running across a field

or a runner finishing a race....

Go

ahead...

let your creativity go wild.....

Here is one of mine for an idea:

This guy was surfing a SMALL RIVER

at

Michigan State University.

I had my camera because I was taking pictures are their flower gardens,

and

I heard a crowd of kids laughing beside the river.

I knew I had to capture him with my lens....

it was unplanned and wonderful.

I hope you always carry your camera

and

that you think of snapping "action" photos...

Who knows!

Maybe they will turn out to be some of your most fun pictures.

Now,

I know you can do it.

 Please ENTER THE CONTEST!!!!

More Images of Summer

Today I am continuing

images

of

summer.

Because, before we know it, summer will be over.

Can you believe that August is almost here?

I can't!

It seems like we were just talking about crocus and the budding of the leaves!

This was a yellow lily in my garden:

A large tree root in the middle of a beaver dam in the woods:

(it reminded me of a sculpture!)

A dreamy pond...

A turtle who didn't want his picture taken!:

A swan in the middle of the beaver dam:

A beautiful purple wildflower!

Does anyone know its name? Is this a nightshade?

Another shot of the same kind of wildflower:

One more butterfly on the blossoms picture:

Embrace summer over the next  few weeks....

because

it

is

almost

over!!!

June's WINNER for the PHOTO CONTEST: Theme: Flowers (finally!)

I am so sorry to all my readers

that were waiting

for the winner

of the 

JUNE 

FREE PHOTO CONTEST.

I have had company for a week and haven't had a moment to go to my computer

plus

my judges were very slow in getting back to me

in picking their winner.

Must be proof that it was a very close contest....

As you remember (or maybe NOT remember due to how tardy this post is!)

the theme was:

FLOWERS

We had such wonderful entries again.

I could not have chosen a winner

for the life of me.

But, my judges came up with a final winner after much delay (and reminder e-mails sent to them by me)!

Let's just say

it was very,very close between three of them.

Without further delay....

Here

IS

the

winning

entry:

Congratulations

Tatyana!!!!

The judges loved how you arranged the flowers into an interesting arrangement 

and one of them said they picked yours since it took so much creativity to make such a pretty arrangement

in the colors and shapes of the flowers in the photograph.

Close runner-ups and entries of special mention goes out to:

--Bossy Betty

--Lynn

--Insanity Kim

&

--J.J.

Congratulations to every one of you for your hard effort and wonderful entries...

As you can see by the comments in this blogpost (where I showed all the entries)

everyone of the entries were loved and appreciated and marveled at.

You all continue to amaze me with your photographic talents.

By the way,  I have had company and been away from my computer for a week now, so if you noticed that I haven't visited your blogs or left comments, that is the reason...

I will do my best over the next few weeks to get to your blogs and older entries and read them...so be prepared for some late comments from me coming your way. ha

I can't bear not to read them...it is like missing reading a chapter in my favorite novels....

Thank goodness I prepublished my own blogposts over the last two weeks, because I haven't had one second to post or download pictures to my own blog either!!

 I had such a wonderful time visiting with my 8 childhood girlfriends, that I wouldn't  have traded it for the world.

But today, (when I get done washing sheets and towels and vacuuming and maybe taking a nap or two to collapse on my couch from having my visitors :0}, I will get back to routine over the next week or so and get caught up with all my wonderful blogging friends.

Congratulations Tatyana, again...and to ALL of  you...well done!!

*********************************************************************

DON'T forget!!!!

July's PHOTO CONTEST theme

is:

MOTION OR ACTION.....

Get your photo entry into me by midnight, July 31st

(that's just a few days away!!!!!)

Forest Images

Once upon a time,

we

went for a carriage ride in the forest

looking

for

enchantment.

I knew I was on the right track,

when

I

saw

THIS:

A heart-shaped mossy rock!:

And a lovely pair of Flag Iris beside a wishing pool:

I think this one granted me three wishes:

And remember the baby ferns I showed you a few blogposts back?

Well,

in this magical forest,

they were already grown up:

And the good luck

dragonfly

even paid me a visit:

We chatted a bit,

and then he said he had to fly off

Ater all, he had other people

to visit that day, too:

We ended our trip by selling our souls to the Devil.

Oh.

Wait a minute.

That wasn't the Devil.

Silly ME.

It was the Devil's Paintbrush!:

We agreed to go back again soon.

Because, as you know....

the enchantment doesn't end

in the forest.

EVER.

*************************************************************************

Do you realize how CLOSE the DEADLINE is

for the JULY's free PHOTO CONTEST is?????

You must get your entry in by midnight, July 31st, folks!

The theme is:

MOTION or ACTION

You don't need to be a blogger to enter.

Just follow these rules.

Butterflies and more...

Today?

A mix of butterflies, flowers and other things that makes summer wonderful!

A butterfly on some blossoms:

A butterfly AND a bee!! My that bush was BUSY!!:

A blackberry blossom:

A baby bird:

A bunch of wild flag iris by a pond:

A closeup of my yellow bearded iris:

A closeup of my columbine:

Purple lupines!:

O.K.

Maybe EVERYTHING in the summer

isn't

quite

all

beautiful.....

I mean,

I

also

saw

THIS!!:

Feeling itchy?

Looking over your shoulder?

Sorry

about

that!!

Forget that last photo.....

Turkey Vultures!

You know the expression: "A face only a mother could love?"

Well, this post will convince you of this!

While out on our boat, we spied a bunch

of

Turkey Vultures (also known as Turkey Buzzards).

This shot is a bit blurry since the boat was bouncing up and down,

but LOOK at his face:

(Do you SEE what I mean about his face?)

But they really are magnificent birds.

HUGE

and with wide, wide wingspans!:

Just hangin' out on the branch, thinking: "Where is my next snack going to be? Is that dead animal I smell? YUM!":

Ready to fly off the branch:

Can you imagine the energy to flap these huge wings to take off?:

They often sit in the trees and spread their wings to cool off. I read about this in my bird book, it is a way to ventilate themselves to cool down:

They are so ugly, they are kind of beautiful:

"Damn STRAIGHT!!" he said, when I admitted to his beauty:

So my advice for today?

Go out and re-look

at something you don't find so attractive....

You might find hidden beauty in it, too.
*************************************************************

Listen up, folks.

ONLY ONE WEEK LEFT

to enter the FREE July Photo Contest.

Remember,

the theme is:

ACTION or MOTION

Get out there and capture some fantastic shots and mail me one by midnight, July 31st!!

Flowers and Hummers

I still have some early summer photos to share with you.

I have taken some  photos of my garden flowers

along

with some hummingbird photos for you.

This is one of my "lemon lilies":

A yellow bearded iris. I love the fuzzy parts of the flowers above the beard hanging down:

A little clump of these tiny white flowers were growing wild in our lawn. 

I dug them out and placed them in my garden, where they have gone wild there

and make a lovely ground cover.

Does anyone know their name?:

Another flower that was given to me, it is a perennial that flourishes every year.

I am sorry to say I don't know it's name either!! (I'm a flower lover, not a flower expert!) ha:

This is a columbine, that I DO know! :0}

Another columbine caught in the shadows:

A hummingbird closeup:

Such a cutie pie:

I hope you  have a chance to

go out and smell some flowers today

and

maybe see some birds too!

*********************************************************

Time is getting shorter!

Please remember to enter the July FREE PHOTO CONTEST!

July's theme is:

MOTION OR ACTION

Please send me your entry before midnight, on July 31st,

following THESE RULES.

(Except you CAN enter a previously posted photo of yours if you are a blogger).

If you aren't a blogger, that is ok too!

More This and That from the U.P.

Today, I have random photos for you

taken either from my garden

or

from the woods

in beautiful Upper Michigan (the U.P.)

While taking a ride on our boat on Lake Michigamme,

we spied a mom and her baby ducklings:

(I count seven baby heads, how about you?)

They were soooo cute:

These little blue flowers are allllllll over my yard. Does anyone know what kind of wildflower they are?:

A purple wildflower that I also don't know the name of:

A closeup of the baby ducks. Yup, SEVEN!:

Pansies from my garden:

They self seeded themselves from last year:

A closeup:

Have a great day!

I hope I brightened it a bit for you!