Flowers for Friday: Pretty in Purple

Morning glory

Balloon flower

Shadows on the picnic table

There isn't much left blooming in our yard these days. Soon it will be time for the chrysanthemums, herald of the fall season. Autumn is my favorite time of year. I like the cooler temperatures and the sunny days seem even more precious when I know that winter will be next. What's your favorite season?

Saturday Shadow Fun

Today we celebrated my son's birthday by taking him and four of his buddies out for miniature golf, go kart rides, and laser tag. It was a wonderfully sunny day and I saw shadows everywhere! After I'd taken numerous photos of the boys, I decided to have some fun experimenting. I loved the way the shadows fell on the support legs of the picnic bench in the photo above and couldn't resist snapping a picture.

I liked this action shot that shows what activity we were participating in without revealing any of the kids' identities.

When I saw this giant golfer man shadow, I had to act fast and snap this picture. The boys were always in motion so shadow shots of them were hard to get.

This rope bridge railing left a beautiful shadow on the green mini golf fairway, don't you agree?

This is my first tree shadow picture. I like how the mini golf setting appears in the upper right of the photo. The rock that extends over the curb looks to me like a pig. Can you see the pig's snout, eyes, and ears?

Queen Anne's lace makes a delicate shadow in this picture. The rounded shadows in the bottom right of the photo are made by short log pilings bordering one of the golf holes.

Yes, I know my feet are in this photo. You can blame Marnie for that idea.

Another shadow self portrait against the green of the mini golf course. Hope you enjoyed the photos at least half as much as I enjoyed taking them.

My Mother's Garden

My mom didn't want me to
miss seeing her hostas when
I visited her house today.

Here's another hosta variety
from her garden. I love
this green and white kind
and want some for my yard!

This pink rose has tiny blooms,
perhaps an inch in diameter. I used
a macro camera setting to take this closeup.

Astilbe
My mother told me she
loves this bloom's lacy quality.

CoreopsisMy mother said this flower
reminds her of a star.

This fuchia hanging basket
hangs just outside my mom's
kitchen window. While we were
sitting at the table admiring it,
she mentioned that last year a
hummingbird visited it regularly.
Just then, two hummingbirds
appeared, the first she'd seen this season!

As I'm still experimenting with
my new cell phone camera, I
wanted to try taking a sky watch
photo framed by these teeny red
berries that the birds love.
But by the time I snapped it, the
lovely shaped clouds had moved
almost completely out of the photo.


This is my first attempt at taking
a shadow photo. I really like the
shape of the shadows cast by these
potted geraniums and the curlicue
shadows from the corner post of my
mom's front porch.

Happy Birthday, Mom!
Thanks for the tour of
your beautiful garden.