Gone - Back - Gone - Back....

I WAS home, but then I left again.  Two more trips.  One to Raleigh, then to Kure Beach, North Carolina.  The first was a family event, the second to recover from the family event - LOL!

We were only there a few days.

One morning I woke early to watch the sunrise.

Rather, I tried to.  

The morning was blustery and cold.  I know why lobsters have red claws as mine were pretty red and curled up by the time I meandered an hour or so waiting for some sun.

I did find some wonderful shells.  The early bird definitely gets the best shells.

However, the clouds were so pretty and made gorgeous dancing wisps above the ocean.  Lost of Maxfield Parrish clouds by the time the sun rose higher.  

Simply lovey.

I know I promised a story about a ranch in Nevada and that will come later.  In the meantime I've tons of Bat Mitzvah pics to process and upload, AND more beach pics, AND I'm getting to see my baby again soon!  More baby pics, more pics ... pics and pics and pics!  

By cracky I think I'm coming alive...

I'm back!

Mt. Charleston, Nevada

I've been MIA!  I know, I know!  But for a good cause.  You're gonna love this!!!  Our daughter and son-in-law live in the outskirts of Las Vegas, Nevada.  Please note that I emphasize "outskirts" because they live in a beautiful section of a normally brown desert land punctuated by the most outlandish "Disneyfication" of a city.  (learned that word from NPR)  Not a Vegas fan, me.  BUT, I do love the surrounding areas.  Mt. Charleston, above, is a favorite jaunt whenever we visit.  There's a fabulous restaurant - old, never-changing, filled with character and good food - oh, and a great view - that is an easy 40 minute drive from their house.  I adore Mt. Charleston.  There's already snow at the highest peaks, but maybe it just never left.  ?

The daughter has filled her backyard with all manner of desert-loving cultivars.  She misses the seasons but has lots of flowers and even a small patch of grass for the dog.  Of course, I gravitate to the dead, interesting pieces - ha!

This is a reserve a short distance from their house.  A fascination place for a future blog.  You're gonna love it.  Well, I think you will.  It's a interesting bit of history that I enjoyed learning about.

Daughter (my step-daughter) and son-in-law, dog and new baby!  (and George, the dog)  This is why I've been gone.  My first actual swear-to-goodness grandchild!!!  The experience shared with them was one of pure magic and deep bonding, filled up to here with love.  Leaving made me misty eyed and I became one of THOSE grandmothers proudly showing everyone in the airport and on the plane his image.

Some of the flowers enjoyed during my stay.  There were many I never photographed because I was BUSY with the new baby!

I do know this one, above.  Bougainvillea.  

Pink berries dangling from a neighbor's tree into their backyard.

The reason for my absence.  I'm going to become the next Nancy Bond and post his pic everywhere.  He is the love of my life right now, this sweet boy!!!

Meet Jude William.

Autumn

"Life has been your art. 

You have set yourself to music. 

Your days are your sonnets."

Oscar Wilde

"Delicious autumn!

My very soul is wedded to it,

and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth

seeking the successive autumns.

George Eliot

"No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace,

as I have seen in one autumnal face."

John Donne

"Youth is like spring,

an over praised season more remarkable for biting winds than genial breezes.

Autumn is the mellower season,

and what we lose in flowers

we more than gain in fruits."

Samuel Butler

My zinnias have faded, the autumn sedum is in full bloom and I anxiously await the changing of the leaves here in North Alabama.  Autumn is my favorite time of the year for it's a freshening of air, a clarity of breezes, and the leaves look like flowers.  Happy Autumn!

Gardening Gone Wild Picture This Photo Contest Entry

Small bumblebee pollinating the Autumn Sedum

Gardening Goes Wild hosts a monthly photo contest.  I've entered once before but our moving sorta took away my fun time blogging and entering contests.  However, I was inspired to enter their September Picture This Photo Contest with the above image.

Bees are all over my Autumn Sedum.  Bees of all kinds, as well as butterflies and skippers, weird flies and tiny bugs buzz in and around the pink flowers.  Kinda like Saturday at the Mall, there is activity everywhere, all day, every day.  I've had more fun chasing bumblebees and honeybees, all of which have been very patient with me.  Although I have some images that are more striking of the bees themselves, this one caught my eye because of the focus.  I used my Macro lens, F 2.8, 1/800 sec, ISO 400.  Can't wait to see all the entries! 

The Creative Heart

Heart-shaped leaf in the birdbath

Long ago a friend told me that she could always tell when her daughters were about to go though a growth spurt.  Their little bodies would began to visually thicken, expanding outward, building deep within before - whoosh! - growing several inches or more within a short amount of time.  This "thickening" was a signal to her that new clothes would soon be needed as her precious daughters grew up.  

What a wonderful analogy for Life itself.  This long ago conversation came to me recently when trying to describe my current status.  A Thickening.  I'm in the midst of my own personal, creative thickening.  

Everyone goes through this I'm sure, but I know this phenomena definitely occurs when it comes to artists and their work.  Painters, musicians, photographers, everyone who dabbles in a creative hobby or business experiences a down time.  This is a time to observe and meditate.  A time to explore and dream.  A time to open our hearts to different pathways.  A time to rest and absorb.  

I believe this thickening time important for the creative process.  As frustrating as it has been for me lately, I finally figured out that this down time is necessary.  Many friends have told me this but it seemed so that I was losing myself, my creative.  As Bart Simpson would say "...Doh!"  As my favorite season approaches and the dry drought heat of summer diminishes it is a relief to realize that I'm in the midst of a thickening.  What a lovely time to be resting, absorbing, observing, meditating, dreaming and exploring!  Welcome Autumn!