Mr. Personality

The Mockingbirds have such personality and are so feisty!

And they have such a beautiful voice too!
A Link to his song - HERE 

You can find Nature themed gift ideas made from my images at:
Kreations by Kerri

So Much Color

This is from one of my "outings" with the macro lens. I really LOVE that lens! The Macro has shown me how lovely some not-so-lovely creatures can be. I now have a new respect for flies! Who knew they could be so colorful? I sure didn't!

More of my insect images - HERE 

Surviving

April 2010 - Song Sparrow with missing leg 

Sometimes even to live is an act of courage.

― Lucius Annaeus Seneca

Through the Needles

I find that the female cardinals are very shy. I usually have to shoot them through the glass door or through the pine needles. I am very blessed to have a lot of pine trees for these lovely ladies to hide in.

A Little bit Messy

 
.. to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring - these are some of the rewards of the simple life.  
 — John Burroughs

It was quite thrilling for me to get so close to this little Downy Woodpecker who is a frequent visitor to our deck. I slowly approached and he didn't seem to be bothered by me at all and continued pecking on the seed bar. As you can see, he was a bit of a messy eater and has seed all over his beak. If you look closely you can see just a bit of his tongue sticking out too. And I LOVE that little out of place feather on top of his head.

A Journey Of Discovery

A little water droplet on the stem of a lilac bloom. 

The seeker embarks on a journey to find what he wants and discovers, along the way, what he needs.

~ Wally Lamb

Hiding in the Bush

A white-crowned sparrow hides in the bush near my deck.

Each situation is a blossom to be picked with a curious spirit.

~ Donna Quesada

Squirrel ~ Balancing Act

I am AMAZED at how the squirrels can balance and hold on with just their TOES

And don't they have just the cutest little faces??

Wishing you a Wonderful Day!

Nature shop ~ Kreations by Kerri

Feathers and Flower Bud

Mourning Dove posing for me on my deck :)

To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of the arts.

~Henry David Thoreau

Let's Take Care Of Her

The truth is: the natural world is changing. And we are totally dependent on that world. It provides our food, water and air. It is the most precious thing we have and we need to defend it.

 - David Attenborough

Little Bluebird Launch

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.

 ~ Henry David Thoreau

 

Going Green

The wonder is that we can see these trees and not wonder more.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Print Available - HERE 

Sometimes you feel like a nut ....

  ....or two or three! The Blue Jays LOVE nuts ~ shelled or unshelled ~ any way you serve them up ~ they love them. If I buy them shelled I make sure that they are unsalted. I LOVE the beauty of their "blueness" ~ such lovely feathers. I know there are some that have found them to be very agressive. That has not been a problem at my feeders. This guy was quite a treat to watch ~ he seemed to want to gobble up as many nuts as he could.

Reflections

This is one of the sights I see when I walk along the Gateway Trail in Blacksburg. About a 1/4 mile or so into the trail there is a bridge that crosses a stream ( possibly Tom's Creek) and this is looking to the left off of the bridge. I've seen this sight many many times yet when I took this picture it was like seeing it for the first time. Maybe it was the lighting .... maybe it was the reflection that caught my eye .... not really sure what it was ..... but I must admit that I like that feeling .....when something routine becomes new again. Yes, I like that feeling a lot!

Along the Huckleberry Trail

Each day as a set out on my walks I ask myself "what amazing thing will I find today?" It may be at the beginning of each walk, in the middle or at the end, but I do find something amazing each time. On this day it was this Eastern Towhee. I heard him WAY before I saw him and slowly approached. He sat there and "called" for several minutes ~ I think there might have been a Mrs. Towhee near by. Sometimes all we have to do is slow down or stop .... and listen to the world around us ~ Amazing things WILL happen.

More of my Eastern Towhee Images - HERE 

We Remember

We Remember April 16

It has been said, 'time heals all wounds.' I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, protecting its sanity, covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. But it is never gone. 

 ― Rose Kennedy

Through the Cracks

You can become blind by seeing each day as a similar one. Each day is a different one, each day brings a miracle of it's own. It's just a matter of paying attention to this miracle.

~ Paulo Coelho

Mourning Cloak Butterfly

 To me, every hour of the day and night is an unspeakably perfect miracle. 
~ Walt Whitman

Print Available - HERE 

I didn't know....

....that squirrels like strawberries. I put this out to see if a bird would come by and take a bite, but the squirrel came instead. Later I had another one out and a mockingbird came by and had a bite ~ so birds will eat them too. It was quite a treat for me to watch this little guy.

Print Available - HERE 

Time Well Spent

Spring forever appears 
 the soothing music part of lyrics unspoken. 
It thaws the frozen fears, 
 mends the wounded heart that 
Winter has broken. 
~Aarno Davidson 

I may be biased, but Blacksburg, Virginia is an absolutely beautiful area.  Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall - there are always trails/greenways/parks to visit that allow for great photo ops.
  It wasn't until I was 39ish that my love for nature developed.  Now it seems that every chance I get, I want to be outside.  And it is ALWAYS - Time Well Spent.

Go To Nature

I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order.
~John Burroughs

Prints Available - HERE  

Bird and Blossoms

 Manifest plainness, Embrace simplicity, Reduce selfishness, Have few desires.

~ Lao Tzu

Tufted Titmouse in the Spring Blossoms

Print Available - HERE 

Sweet Simple Things

(House finch in Callery pear tree.)

I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.
~ Laura Ingalls Wilder

Hope you all are able to slow down and enjoy the simple things in life. 

Chipping Sparrow Perhaps?

Another new visitor .......
I believe this is a Chipping Sparrow.

The Red Dragon

 If you wish to know the divine, feel the wind on your face and the warm sun on your hand. 

~ Buddha

Bloodroot Wildflower

“The sun just touched the morning; The morning, happy thing, Supposed that he had come to dwell, And life would be all spring.” 
 ― Emily Dickinson 

One of the first Spring wildflowers 
seen in my area is Bloodroot

Wishing you a wonderful day!

Eastern Towhee - Backyard Visitor

“Happiness is a condition of mind not a result of circumstances.” 
 ― John Lubbock 

An Eastern Towhee visits my back yard in early Spring.

Little Miss Daisy

Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.
 ~ Mother Teresa

I have been reading a LOT of quotes by Mother Teresa lately ~ 
what an extraordinary woman!

American Robin

 Every spring is the only spring - a perpetual astonishment.

~ Ellis Peters

The Artsy Version is - HERE