August 17, 2013 - The Lord God Made Them All

Grand Teton storm

Fireweed

Bosduval's blue

 

Lilac-bordered copper

Bison and calf

Osprey and merganser family

Mount Moran from Paintbrush Canyon

Excelsior geyser crater

This is the final entry from vacation.  As much as I love the Grand Tetons, I am back living at home, and wonderful and beautiful things are happening here, as well.

 

For instance...today I saw the first blue butterfly I ever recall seeing in this area.  I often see them in the mountains...but not here.  Then this afternoon, a monarch flitted through my garden!  I haven't seen one in years!  Maybe all the milkweed I'm allowing to grow will help some, after all.

 

The sunset last night was incredible...vivid in some places, a gentle gold in others, with a thunderstorm thrown in for good measure.

 

And the garden keeps producing.  Tonight's dinner, courtesy of the garden, included tomatoes, two kinds of cucumbers, three kinds of peppers, yellow summer squash and basil.  All we needed to add was lettuce, a grating of cheese, and a few leftover shrimp from last night's dinner (which included fresh sweet corn.)  I'm waiting anxiously for another watermelon to ripen...or for a cantaloupe, which are late this year.  So much goodness out of such a small area.  I am indeed thankful.

August 16, 2013 - All Things Wise and Wonderful

Mt. Moran

Asters

Insect mimicking butterfly

Camp moose

Flycatcher

Sunset from the fishing hole

Bison

Osprey

Not much text today...simply a request that you enjoy the photos taken a week or so ago.  It's fun to revisit vacation!

August 15, 2013 - All Creatures, Great and Small

Pelican at Massacre Rocks

Fritillary

Bluebird

Bison

Checkerspot

Hoary comma

Bull moose in camp!

There is always much that is beautiful that surrounds me, but in going on vacation, I found much more, each and every day.  I haven't focused on photographing butterflies before, but there were so many around us, I started waiting for them to land.  Many just kept fluttering, but a few lit, and even let me get relatively close.

 

The moose and bison are not so close.  I was using a telephoto lens, and in the case of the bison, shooting out a car window.  The moose were two campsites down from me, browsing their way through the campground.  (Willow, bitterbrush, the occasional wild rose seemed to be favorite foods.)  They created quite a stir among the human inhabitants of the campground.  I got to spend time talking with a lovely mother and son from Belgium, who also viewed from the relative safety of my campsite.  I occasionally forget the loveliness of our own species, and was glad to be reminded!

All Things Bright and Beautiful - Aug. 14, 2013

Sunset at Massacre Rocks

Flax at Teton Pass

Red Hills above Lower Slide Lake

Aster

Weidemeyer's Admiral Butterfly

Bacteria mat at Yellowstone

Grand Prismatic Spring

Ahhhh....two weeks of vacation in the Grand Tetons (with a brief excursion to Yellowstone.)  Lots of fishing, hiking, kayaking, visiting with friends and family, wildlife watching.  Not too much relaxing, but for me, vacation is for seeing more, enjoying my surroundings by being actively out in them.

 

This is the beginning of a brief series that will include photos from vacation.  There was so much to see - so much that was beautiful - so much that made me want to jump up and down and shout with joy!  The Red Hills, Teton Pass, the Tetons themselves, the storms, the wildlife, the flowers...and the butterflies.  So many different types!  And a few were even polite and posed for me!

 

I look forward to sharing with you over the next few days some of the beauty and wonder that surrounded me.

July 25, 2013 - Changes in the House

New flooring is finished!

Of course, we had to move the furniture...

New carpet on the stairs

Smoke filled sunset

Some days the best possible thing to happen is that the house gets emptied out (or at least a portion of it does) and you get to deep clean, and enjoy all the space!  That's been our house for the past few days.  Everything in the fridge got moved to the camper fridge...so the home refrigerator got thoroughly scrubbed.  Everything in the kitchen, dining room, and family room got moved out in preparation for new flooring.  Which means as everything moves back it gets scrubbed a bit more thoroughly than it might normally get.

 

We're going to need to do some touch-up painting.  1/4 inch of plywood had to be removed, which means the baseboards no longer match the paint.  Oh well, that just means we can paint behind the baseboards, and get a more complete job done there, too.

 

I'm playing with a new camera today.  I picked up one for use underwater, kayaking, boating, etc.  It'll take me a bit of time to get familiar with it, but as I used a similar one in Hawaii, I'm hoping the learning curve won't take too long.  I will, of course, share the results with you!

July 23, 2013 - More Sights Out Back

Orange globemallow

Yellow salsify

Yellow salsify

The top photo is of one of our loveliest summer-blooming perennials.  Few things manage that in the very dry climate here.  The bottom two are of a common weed that has an uncommonly lovely seedhead.  I remember being enchanted with the flower when I first saw it as a girl - a bright yellow star, blooming out of a crack in the sidewalk.

 

Today was filled with experiences that were delightful.  I went kayaking with a good friend - and oh, the things we saw!  Of course we disturbed quite a few carp.  Then we saw three different groupings of pelicans, busy fishing in the shallows and gulping down fish right and left.  (Probably eating baby carp...)  Closer to Foundation Island, we watched the cormorant colony, then spied three black-crowned night herons.  And yes, the Canadian geese continue to flock up.

 

Later my covenant group met for good food, wine and conversation.  It's always good to get together with this group that's been meeting for...what...I think about five years now!  It's hard to believe it's been that long.  We e-mail each other weekly (or almost weekly) but try to meet in person once a month. 

 

Finally, back home for conversation with my husband, for the fun of opening a couple of packages that came (my new water camera is here!) and for clearing out a couple of rooms so we can get new carpet tomorrow.  That might not have been so much fun...but the results will be!

July 22, 2013 - Out in Our "Way Back"

Milkweed

Dragonfly

Dragonfly

Migrating geese

Dragonfly

Milkweed pod

Dragonfly

Dragonfly

Ladybug on milkweed

Dragonfly

I allow milkweed to grow out back because I hope it will provide necessary food for monarch butterflies.  That said, I haven't seen a monarch anywhere on our property...but I keep looking.  Which is why I headed out back today.  No monarchs, but dragonflies of so many different colors and sizes!  A few white butterflies were in the area.  The ants seem to love the milkweed flower, too.  And one ladybug.

 

The geese flew over about halfway into my visit out back.  We've been seeing them begin to flock up already.  It's only July...one would think they would want to stay on summer holiday for a bit longer.  But I expect we'll hear flocks going over every evening and every morning, very soon.

 

Back to the dragonflies.  I am wondering the purpose of having so many colors, so many different types.  I know the kingbirds like them all - the bigger, the better.  There was a green one I didn't get a photo of, and the grey one was quite shy.  Actually, they're very sensitive to movement, which is understandable, when you're the favorite prey of flycatcher.  So...now I need to learn a bit more about dragonflies - they've piqued my curiosity!