Milkweed & the Beetle, et al.

You probably know by now that the kids and I were in Iowa for several days last week.
We ended up going to the fair on both Thursday and Friday...all day, both days. I'm still worn out just thinking about it! Saturday we spent the morning at my grandparents' farm. The shots for today are from the countryside around their house.


This is some kind of beetle on a milkweed pod.
I'm amazed this turned out at all.
It was incredibly windy...but it was a blissfully cool wind, so I really can't complain.





My youngest sister is seventeen and beginning to get into photography.
I'm pretty excited and wish we lived closer so she and I could do photo walks together.
So we walked down to the creek and around the bean and corn fields taking shots of anything and everything!
She was determined to find caterpillars...and she did.





Then our dad found a cocoon!
I've never seen one out in nature before, so that was pretty cool.



My grandma has a really lovely flower bed which was buzzing with all kinds of bugs.
Can you see the nearly clear little guy above?



And here he is again with a giant bumble bee.

Coneflowers

These petals remind me so much of Fall and harvest...it just seems odd that they would bloom at the beginning of summer. ;)

  

A Simple Monday

Not much pomp or circumstance going on today. Just a simple, cleanly edited shot of a flower.
:)


  

Semi

This is one of my son's Hot Wheels - this particular one is a pretty cool semi that hauls the other cars!

One Last Bloom & A Line of Flags

Quick Note: We were out of town over the weekend with no internet access, so I'm trying to get caught up on returning comments from the weekend. So it may take me a little bit to reply - don't worry, I'm not avoiding you! :)

I was outside shooting the Fall leaves and noticed one lone, full clematis bloom laying on the ground amidst all the dead leaves. It was really pretty and surprising to see, so I got down on the wet ground and shot this. 

Yellow flags marking gas pipes.

A few days after these had been placed, the crew workers came and fixed a broken water pipe right across the street from us. Needless to say, my two kids loved watching all the big construction machines at work!

Pretty in Pink

...another beaded purse from the closet. 

I think it's a fairly accurate statement to say that I tend to lean towards the low-maintenance tomboy side of the female spectrum. But the older I get, the more I love the color pink! 

Just Chillin'

I've been waiting and waiting to share this yellow grasshopper with you!

I saw him at the arboretum, just like my last grasshopper shot.

I've never seen a yellow one before!! And I love how he's chillin' upside down like it's no big deal.

 


Turning Leaf & Two Loose Screws

Show of hands: Based on that title, who thought I was going crazy with a cheap bottle of wine in hand?!

Don't worry, I'm not.
...yet.

I absolutely love maple trees in the Fall! This tree is in our front yard, which is a nice treat.
The texture I used is Kim Klassen's 'Scratches'.






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I'm not really sure what there is to say about this...it's two loose screws.
:)

I did add a bokeh texture to the background, just to jazz it up a bit.
It was a little boring sooc.

Just Another (not so manic) Monday

Anyone have a guess?

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The theme this week for the RAW(e) challenge is Fall.

That's pretty easy, considering I can't walk outside without being bombarded by everything Fall: colors, crunchy leaves, cooler weather, holes in our yard from the squirrels burying acorns...

Wild Berries

I almost didn't see these berries on a recent walk with my kids. I loved the bright pink of the stems though, and that's what drew me in!
Does anyone know what these are? My guess is wild blueberries, but I wasn't about to test it out by eating one! ;)

Day Lily

This is a day lily we have in our backyard.





I love the texture and 'sparkles' of the petals!





Now that I'm getting used to my new macro lens, I think I love it!
:)