We’ve had a brutally hot summer—it seems the heat index is always soaring above 100 degrees, sometimes before 9 am. Fortunately, the tomatoes don’t seem to mind.
Archive for the ‘Outdoor life’ Category
25 Jul
Light up the night
While we were at the cabin, I visited one of my favorite little shops in Sauk Centre. Sadly, it was for the last time—they family-owned store was going out of business. Everything was 30 percent off, and while I could have spent my last paycheck without much trouble, I settled on these lanterns.
I picked up eight small, glass lanterns in pink, yellow, orange and lime green. I also found four larger, plastic lanterns in the same colors, though Olivia managed to break one roughly 8.5 seconds after picking it up.
Nevertheless, the 11 lanterns, filled with a bit of sand and votive candles, looked gorgeous hanging in the ornamental pear tree off our deck at dusk. As an added bonus, I found an extremely efficient way to make Bryan nervous…
22 Jul
Lakeside lillies
30 Jun
Backyard birding
Again this year, we have a houseful of wrens—a mother, father and what sounds like roughly 38 babies. I have no idea how they all fit into this house (and more importantly, I have no idea how their parents keep their collective bellies full!).
Wrens make me particularly happy: I distinctly remember my late grandmother telling me she could hear the wrens sing as Bryan and I exchanged vows during our outdoor wedding. I wonder if this little guy knows that I often depend on him as much as those babies do.
27 May
Indigo Bunting
We’ve had a number of new birds to the backyard this spring, capped off by this Indigo Bunting from a few days ago. We saw him several times before I could snag this photo.
This blog is suffering from a clear case of neglect, but I promise to get my act together following the holiday. Enjoy the long weekend!
25 May
Mile High Sky
Bryan and I had the opportunity to visit Denver last weekend, thanks to a conference, a good friend and generous grandparents. More soon!
14 May
A bowl of blooms
Last year, I planted 15 or so containers…most of which suffered from a combination of heat and neglect. This year, I settled for one bowl of Purple Wave Petunias. I hope they make it!
29 Apr
Garden girls
After digging up what seemed to be 15 square feet of solid spearmint two weeks ago, the girls helped us put in the garden. A few heirloom tomatoes, sugar snap peas, zucchini, cucumbers, peppers and herbs (NOT mint)…just a short season away!
28 Apr
In celebration of the macro lens
I’m still getting the hang of my new macro lens and SLR camera, but I love the results so far. Here’s a close-up of our dogwood tree:
Compare that to my attempt with my old point-and-shoot digital last spring.
I love the way the background gets—and don’t let me overwhelm you with my expansive knowledge of technical photography terms here—ultra blurry.
Something to do with aperture, as Doug tells me.
It’s not easy to get the right part of the shot in focus, as you can see in these two examples. In the first shot, the small, unopened buds popped into focus.
This is more what I was looking for. I’m still trying to figure out the way to get exactly what I want, without just making a wish before I push the button. I need more time with the manual.
Doug’s friend Chris suggested using the macro lens for portraits, which I’ve been doing quite a bit (here, here and here, for example). It also does well with cupcake photo shoots, and I have some pretty amazing shots from the butterfly exhibit at the zoo this weekend, too, which I’ll post soon.
It’s making me appear to be a better photographer. Now, if only there was some sort of app for composition…
11 Apr
Appreciation fail
It’s the little things that make a big difference in a marriage. Often, they go unnoticed, but I am trying to do a better job of showing my appreciation.
Bryan hand-washes (two!) to-go cups of coffee everyday without complaint. He upgraded my cell phone plan to include unlimited texting. And, most recently, he plugged the holes on the valve boxes throughout our yard. Of all of the things he does for me, this means the most.
I have an unnatural and totally overblown fear of snakes. I KNOW it is unreasonable, the mere thought of a garter snake keeps me on the concrete for weeks. Thanks to the waterway in our backyard, we seem to have an overabundance of unwanted visitors.
After listening to me grouse pretty constantly last year, Bryan put down snake repellent. However, he put it on the perimeter of the yard, which, if you think about it, really only keeps the snakes we have IN the yard. And, do you know where the snakes in our yard love to hang out? Sprinkler system valve boxes.
So, I was thrilled to see Bryan’s creative solution. I was completely relieved . . . but only for a few moments. Now, I have no idea where those beasts are hiding.
So, while I contemplate what’s rustling the bushes over there, I’ll make good use of my new texting package. Thanks, Bry!
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