Change Is Hard

…but change is certain.


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Gift of water

Last summer days.

Last summer days.

My dad was always a water person. He played, as a boy, on the banks of a river and he and my mother went on a canoe trip down that river for their very first date. During his entire life he wanted to live on water, and he accomplished that when I was a kid, and then again later in life.

Reflective.

Reflective.

The love of water is one of the gifts my parents gave us. And another is their home. Tucked away on a big lake in a warm state it’s a place their kids gather to relax and spend time together.

Water that goes on forever.

Water that goes on forever.

I was thinking about what a wonderful gift the love of water is as we were out on their lake today. Big puffy white clouds interspersed with ominous dark streaks floated above us as my brother skied, as we floated near our favorite island, as we visited the mountain near where their ashes were spread eleven years ago.

Mountain accompanies lake.

Mountain balances lake.

Water. The basis of life. Magical, ever changing. Beautiful.

Evening falls.

Evening falls.

Aren’t we lucky that our folks passed on their love of water and then made sure we were able to enjoy it for years to come.

They are always near.

They are always near.

And aren’t we lucky we get to spend time on a beautiful lake while thinking about them, telling stories about them, appreciating them.

Remembering them.

Island stands tall.

Island stands tall.


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Plans

Diamonds and cobwebs.

Diamonds and cobwebs.


Yesterday three members of my family joined me at the lake. We had the best intentions of spending the majority of the day out in the boat. You know; bobbing in the warm water around the islands, talking, laughing, catching up. Relaxing.

Raindrops were falling on our heads.

Raindrops were falling on our heads.

Plans sometimes change, but a storm blowing rain up from the south didn’t deter us. We sat in the boat, boat still in the boat lift, and watched the rain.

Twisted web.

Twisted web.

It was a beautiful thing.

Rain on water.

Rain on water.

And then we did what any typical northern family does in a rain storm in the south.

We went swimming.

Come on in, the water's fine!

Come on in, the water’s fine!


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Lounging

Southern pine

Southern pine


I have much to tell you, much to show you, but at the moment no WIFI where I am. So I am sitting at the public library (where else!) but there’s nowhere to plug in for electricity and my time is limited. Suffice it to say there will be photos later. Meanwhile, here are a couple of pretty things where I’ve been hanging out.

Little spider working hard.

Little spider working hard.

Peaceful here.

Nice view.

Nice view.

Take a deep breath and relax.

Sunset reflections.

Sunset reflections.


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Reflection

Morning quiet

Morning quiet

Early in the morning I sit on the deck overlooking the still lake. It is cool, surprisingly cool, as I prop my feet up on the railing and open my book. Neighborhood dogs are barking at something up the shoreline, but here on the deck it is quiet except for the fluttering of wings. So many birds flitting around the trees, I only catch a glimpse of some; a house finch, a cardinal glowing in the dappled morning light. I think the birds are startled to see me there, being used to the emptiness of this house. A hummingbird suddenly appears. It stares at the red t-shirt I slept in last night and am still wearing. Then he zooms away and I feel sad that there is no food for him, that there hasn’t been a feeder here for the past 11 years.

Mom always kept the feeder full.


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WordPress Photo challenge: Today was a good day

I’m a lucky person. I’ve had hundreds of good days and I’ve photographed many of them. Some of the very best days happened during trips; you’ve seen lots of them right here on this blog. It seems impossible to pick just one day, much less one photo from one good day.

Still, that’s the challenge.

Yosemite grandeur

Yosemite grandeur

So here’s a photo from a trip to California. We wandered Yosemite National Park during a misty chilly day. It was stunning, and not just at the famous and often photographed spots. Oh sure those were amazing, the waterfalls, the mountains, all were perfect even in the mist, but it was stunning everywhere we looked. And that’s what made that day a very good day.

Go to the original post to see other interpretations. Or check out a few of my favorites here, here and here.

Now take a moment and think about your life. What makes a good day for you? Share it with us, we’d like to see!

Walk into beauty

Walk into beauty


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Weeding peace

How does your garden grow?

How does your garden grow?


I weeded tall grass out of our wildflower garden this morning. It’s such an easy garden to maintain; this is the first weeding I’ve done, and with the grass as tall as I am it was easy to figure out which was weed and which was not. Plus I got to weed standing up, always a plus.

Pretty in pink.

Pretty in pink.

In the cool shade with a little breeze weeding was actually enjoyable. The only noises were the birds at the feeders and the bees buzzing around the flowers. I hummed along with them as I worked.

Bzzzzzzzzz....

Bzzzzzzzzz….

At one point, carefully standing in the middle of the garden I looked up and thought – – I should go get the camera. This is so pretty Mom would like to see it, I’ll email her some photos.

Does anyone know what this is?  About 3 feet tall.

Does anyone know what this is? About 3 feet tall.

And then, for a split second I remembered and waited for the sad to come rolling over me. But it didn’t.

Royal colors.

Royal colors.

Instead I felt sure she was already seeing it, even before I took the first shot. And I was also sure she thought it was just as beautiful as I do.

Crazy beautiful.

Crazy beautiful.

I remember as a little girl picking her flowers from the fields and woods around the house. She put them in a juice glass and set them up on the windowsill above the kitchen sink. So when I accidentally broke a pretty pink zinnia I tucked it in my shirt right next to my heart. And when I got inside I put it in a juice glass.

And I smiled.

For my mom.

For my mom.


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Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge

I’ve been trying to figure out how to convert photos to black and white for a long time. Maybe years. Oh, not constantly – just when I see something I think would look better in black and white. I have Adobe Photoshop and it should be easy, but I’ve frequently poked around there searching without any luck. So I did what I’ve heard lots of people do when they get stumped about something.

I went to YouTube.

Apparently people are right; you can find instructions for anything there. After watching a couple videos, and going back to figure out exactly which version of Photoshop I had, I figured out the basics. Then I tinkered around a bit more and came up with this:

Still working on the farm.

Still working on the farm.

It seems to fit in perfectly with Cee’s Black and White Photo Challenge, specifically a shot of something with an engine.

This old farm truck sits out by the road advertising events held at the farm. Soon it will be pumpkin picking time. Seems too early doesn’t it, but seasons come and seasons go.

This old workhorse has seen a lot of them, and I think it remains beautiful, and certainly photo worthy, no matter what the season.


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Bet you miss me!

Katie here. I bet you’ve missed me a whole bunch cause my mama won’t let me blog very often. She says it’s not all about me. Whatever do you think she’s talking about? Everything is all about me! Anyway since she’s sleeping in after our big adventure I thought I’d just hijack this blog and tell you all about it. Hurry, she could wake up any minute!

Last Tuesday mama started packing stuff in the car. Well! Last time she did that she left without me, so I made sure to stay underfoot all the time so she didn’t forget me. And guess what? Next thing I know I’m in my crate and we’re on our way!

Ready for take off mama!

Ready for take off mama!

We didn’t drive for very long and we ended up here at my favorite campground. We had a big campsite all to ourselves, and it had lots of grass for me to sniff! It was a pretty campsite, though not as private as the last place we camped. Still, I liked it a lot. So did my mama.

This is my tent.  I let my mama share it.

This is my camp. I let my mama share it.

Mama set up the tent. I have my own bed and pillows. I like pillows on top of my bed because I can see out of my own private window better. And because I’m a princess. But just to make mama laugh I often sleep next to my princess bed. On the floor. Without pillows. Cause I’m a crazy camping girl and always do what I want regardless of what mama thinks is good for me.

What are you looking at?

What are you looking at?


I do that outside too. In the morning when the grass is wet mama gives me a towel to hang out on. Just to prove my point I go lay down somewhere else. In the wet grass. Because I can.

I don't need a towel mama!

I don’t need a towel mama!

I don’t think mama understands me at all.

But anyway. We had a lot of fun. I got to go on lots of walks and take lots of naps…well not really a lot of naps. I stayed awake all the time protecting my mama. Yes I did. A camping dog’s responsibilities are very demanding. You have to be very vigilant!

Just resting my eyes.

Just resting my eyes.

Our second night mama says we had a visitor to our campsite. She thinks it was a raccoon. Or a camp monster. It stayed around our tent for at least an hour and mama was kinda upset. I slept through most of it until the ugly smell woke me up. I think the racoon monster needed to take a shower. I barked once at it and lunged at my window, but mama held me and said ‘shhhhhhh’ and so I went back to sleep. It appeared she had it under control and I was tired. Mama was sad because she wanted to go outside right about then to watch for meteorites, but she felt like it was easier to control me while we were inside the tent rather than us being outside with the camp monster. Sigh. At least that’s what she says. Personally I think she was just scared.

Don't be scared mama!

Don’t be scared mama!

I love camping. All you doggies out there — I can’t encourage you enough to get your moms and dads to take you camping! You’ll get to spend quality time with them under the night sky and on walks and just hanging out at the campground! You’ll get to meet other dogs too. You won’t believe how many dogs get to go camping! All kinds! And the smells! Amazing! You’ve just got to try it! Even if you do get a little damp!

Damp curls.

Damp curls.

Yep, I had a wonderful time and as always I was sorry when mama took the tent down. But she says we’ll go camping again someday. Now I have to go take a nap. I’m going to dream of sweet green grass and hundreds of stars in the dark sky and the fresh air blowing the leaves on the trees, and special smells, and lots of love.

Until next time!

Until next time!

Cause that’s camping!!

I took mama's chair.

I took mama’s chair.