Blue skies

Hello, at this time we had pretty blue skies and lovely weather. I am a warm weather person and I love sunny warm days. How about you, do you love summer?

This week I am sharing some fence, sky scenes and birds from my yard. Also, sharing some of the clematis, beautiful blooms this year on my fence. Sometimes I find the hummers sitting in the tree tops but my hummingbird likes to sit on top of an old antenna on our roof.

The male Ruby-throated Hummingbird has been seen often sitting on top of an old antenna on our roof. I guess it gives him all over view of the whole yard and his feeders. The male hummer is very protective of his space and feeders.

"When we feel stuck, look at the sky. The clouds reminds us that everything changes."  unknown

I just loved seeing the clematis growing in my yard this year, I hope you do not mind I am sharing more blooms growing along my fence.

 "Where flowers bloom, so does hope." Lady Bird Johnson. I love all our summer blooms, they make me happy.

Another species of called Jackmanii Clematis growing in our yard.

Happiness is feeding the birds. The Blue Jays seem to know just when I come outside with the peanuts.

I never get tired of the blue sky! Above my capture May 29th of the moon and a couple of jet contrails.  Thanks for visiting and for all the nice comments. As always, thank you for visiting and for the nice comments. I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead.

Here is a list of linky parties for part of the week, I hope to see you there.

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences.
Thank you to Sylvia, Yogi and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.

Spark Bird

I have a list below of memes I am joining for this week, and to save time I am doing one post for all. They are all fun memes to participate in...I hope you can join in with the fun  and check out some of the participating posts. Special thanks to all the wonderful host and their memes, I hope you have some time to check them out.

Hello & happy month of June. I hope everyone is well. We are finally enjoying some nice weather.

For Teresa's Friday's Hunt: the letter "w", week's favorite and rough.

1. The Rose-breasted Grosbeak was my "Spark Bird" .  A spark bird is a bird that caught your eye and kindled your interest in birding. I hope you are not tired of seeing my Grosbeaks photos, I was just thrilled to see them here for such a long time this year. I have many photos of these beauties! One of my favorite photos!

For Tex's Good Fences, below I am sharing our neighbor's fence with our blooming white azalea.

2. "If you strive for the moon, maybe you will get over the fence." James Woods

3. I am sharing my simple pleasure of skywatching.  Watching the sky, does it make you feel big or tiny?

"Enjoy every sunset, look forward to every sunrise." unknown

4. My moon addiction continues with this Waxwing Crescent seen on May 8th.  The sky captured close to sunset.

For Teresa's Friday Hunt: my favorite photo is this Crescent Moon photo.

5. The evenings lately are filled with  frog sounds in my yard, they are pretty loud. Check out my video of the moon and you can listen to the music of the frogs.

To see more pretty skies, fences and fantastic photos from around the world please visit the memes below.  As always, thank you for visiting and for the nice comments. I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead.

Here is a list of linky parties for the last part of the week, I hope to see you there, whether it is just one party or all of them.

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences.
Thank you to Sylvia, Yogi and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.
Thank you to Nancy the host of Random 5 Friday
Thanks also to Teresa Friday's Hunt
Thanks to Tom for hosting The Barn Collective

Making lemonade

I have a list below of memes I am joining for this week, and to save time I am doing one post for all. They are all fun memes to participate in...I hope you can join in with the fun  and check out some of the participating posts. Special thanks to all the wonderful host and their memes, I hope you have some time to check them out.

I am behind in sharing my photos and jumping all around these are from April 30th. At this time the weather was usually either cloudy, rainy and chilly. The reason for my title, the weather was not going to clear up days so we took our chances and made lemonade out of one of the cloudy days. We were able to do some walking, birding and make it home before the rain started.


Teresa's Friday's Hunt:  The letter V,  Week's Favorite, Sunshine.

Start's with V..photo below. I like the Virginia Bluebells in bloom along the river trail.

 Weeks Favorite  is below, I like the mill and the big knotty tree. These trees in the spring are full of warblers and Baltimore Orioles. The birds, it is one of the reasons for being at the park on this day.

Random 5 Friday

1. Rock Run Historic Area with the Grist Mill at the Susquehanna River State Park in Maryland. I was looking for some fence scenes, the fence around the mill is perfect for Tex's Good Fence meme. The Grist Mill was erected in 1798 and in 1958 three hundred acres of this land was donated to the State of Maryland to create a park.

2. "Go all out, don't be embarrassed or scared." I love this shot below with the Great Blue Heron sticking it's head into the water for a fish.

3. We enjoy a spring walk at the Susquehanna River State Park, the wildflowers are so pretty in the spring. Advice from a wildflower: Show your true colors, delight in simple pleasures, celebrate your natural beauty, open up, spread seeds of joy, it's OK to be a late bloomer and be wild and wonderful. Thanks to Denise the host of Today's Flowers!

4. I do try to learn the bird id's. I guessed right on this bird and received confirmation that it is the Northern Rough-winged Swallow. This bird was flying around and under the fishing bridge at the Susquehanna River.

5. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.  In our case it was get out for a walk on a cloudy chilly day. The weather was only going to get worse. My Friday Skywatch, a cloudy day at the Susquehanna River.

Did you have fun on my walk?  I hope you enjoyed my post and images. As always, thank you for visiting and for the nice comments. Have a happy weekend ahead!

To see more pretty skies, fences and fantastic photos from around the world please visit the memes below.  Thanks for visiting and for all the nice comments. I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead.

Here is a list of linky parties for part of the week, I hope to see you there.

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences.

Thank you to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.
Thank you to Denise the host of Today's Flowers

Thank you to Nancy the host of Random 5 Friday

Thanks also to Teresa Friday's Hunt 
Thanks to Tom for hosting The Barn Collective

Warbler Time

I have a list below of memes I am joining for this week, and to save time I am doing one post for all. These links are not just for me but you can also copy them and join in with any of these linky parties. . They are all fun memes to participate in...I hope you can join in with the fun  and check out some of the participating posts. Special thanks to all the wonderful hosts and their memes, I hope you have some time to check them out.


Teresa's Friday's Hunt
1. Start's with U
2. Weeks Favorite
3.  Morning

Random # 1. In the spring we see some pretty warblers pass thru our neighborhood and around our lake. The warblers like to stay high up in the tree tops which makes it almost impossible to get a good photo. I still like to document what I see and when.

#2. My name is Eileen and I have an addiction to birds. On this day I saw the Prairie Warbler, White-throated Sparrow, possibly a female Pine Warbler or Kinglet and a Chestnut-sided Warbler, Woodpeckers, Hermit Thrush and the Eagle nest.

We watched the Prairie Warblers chasing each other around the trees and bushes. This may not look like the best photo. But it is my favorite for the week, mainly because I love the bright yellow warbler checking me out. 

The Lousiana Waterthrushes show up a near the creeks that run into our lake, the same time that the warbler arrive.

Overhead looking up at the top of the pine trees, we saw a Red-tailed hawk.

"The sky is the daily bread of the eyes."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

3. Skywatching is another one of my simple pleasures. On this day, we drove around the lake for a walk on another fireroad, it is the same spot where we found the eagles nest. Another favorite photo, this shot of the sky and field was taken from the parking area.

4. Hubby and I are proud of our son at 23 years old, he has purchased his second home. After living in his first home for two years, he spent a lot of time renovating the first place and sold it within a week of listing. Some scenes from our ride to our son's new place, we take the back roads and there are a lot of farms, barns and animals.

5. The spring baby animals are so darn cute. We pass by this farm with the Longhorn cattle, do you see the little calf  laying in front of the whitish colored mom. Click on the image for larger viewing, it is in the middle of the photo.

  Lots on contrails from the jets and a pretty blue sky.  Make time for the simple pleasures. My simple pleasure is skywatching.

"Be thankful for what you have. Simple Pleasures are the best part of life."

I hope you enjoyed my post and images. As always, thank you for visiting and for the nice comments. Have a happy new week ahead!

To see more pretty skies, fences and fantastic photos from around the world please visit the memes below.  Thanks for visiting and for all the nice comments. I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead.

Here is a list of linky parties for part of the last part of the week, I hope to see you there.

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences.

Thank you to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.

Thank you to Nancy the host of Random 5 Friday

Thanks also to Teresa Friday's Hunt 
Thanks to Tom for hosting The Barn Collective

Location, location, location

I have a list below of memes below. They are all fun memes to participate in...I hope you can join in with the fun  and check out some of the participating posts. Special thanks to all the wonderful host and their memes, I hope you have some time to check them out.


Teresa's Friday's Hunt
1. Start's with T
2. Weeks Favorite
3. Evening

1. It is Thursday, I am Thankful for living in a beautiful area. It is like having a park right outside my door. I am blessed with beautiful birds visiting my yard like the Rose-breasted Grosbeak seen below. I guess you have heard the saying location, location, location when looking for a house. I can say we live in a beautiful location.

2. The other side of our lake is the dam and the Gunpowder River. I leaned over the dam wall to get a shot of the overflow of water. A cormorant was swimming in the lake above the dam.

Below,  it was a dreary foggy day but the rain stopped so we had to get out for a walk on the fireroad and to the lake.

3. The park I mentioned right outside my door is the watershed and reservoir. The lake is one of three reservoirs that holding drinking water for the city of Baltimore. I can walk out my door and take a walk straight to the lake.

My favorite photo below for the week, we see these wild White Dogwood trees growing in the woods around the lake and off the fireroads.

4. May flowers always line your path and sunshine light your day. I have always loved the Irish Blessings. Have you had to chance to visit Lynne @ Irish Garden House . Lynne has some beautiful images of Ireland on her blog.

Another favorite Irish blessing:
May the Irish hills caress you,
May her rivers and lakes bless you,
May the luck of the Irish enfold you,
May the blessings of Saint Patrick behold you.


5.  A photo of a farm we ride by on the other side of the lake after leaving the dam for both Good Fences and The Barn Collective. Where I live we have the hills, lakes and rivers are nearby, it reminds me of the Irish blessing above.  The cloudy foggy sky continues,  our weather at the beginning of May was not very Springy..

For my Skywatch Friday I am ending my post with another favorite shot of the moon taken on the Evening of April 26th. After that our skies were either cloudy or rainy..

I hope you enjoyed my post and images. As always, thank you for visiting and for the nice comments. Have a happy new week ahead!

To see more pretty skies, fences and fantastic photos from around the world please visit the memes below.  Thanks for visiting and for all the nice comments. I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead.

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences.

Thank you to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.

Thank you to Nancy the host of Random 5 Friday

Thanks also to Teresa Friday's Hunt  

Thanks to Tom for hosting The Barn Collective

Back Bay NWR Virginia

I have a list below of memes I am joining for this week, and to save time I am doing one post for all. They are all fun memes to participate in...I hope you can join in with the fun  and check out some of the participating posts. Special thanks to all the wonderful host and their memes, I hope you have some time to check them out.


Teresa's Friday's Hunt
1. Start's with S
2. Weeks Favorite
3.  Smile

1. I am sharing more of our trip to Virginia Beach and a visit to the Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. It is a gorgeous refuge and reminded me of Chincoteague NWR. There is more walking and they do not have the wildlife drive.

Above the Cardinal, Redwing Blackbird, Yellow-rump warbler, Eastern Phoebe, Horned Grebe, Gull, Northern Gannet, Brown Pelican, Cormorants.

2. One of my simple pleasures... watching the Sunrise. 
For Teresa's Friday's Hunt.. also my Favorite photo for the week.  My photo with the letter "S" the last Sunrise of our trip to Virginia.

3. Another simple pleasure are walks on the beach.
I am not positive but I think the gull above is the Great Black-backed Gull. It looks like it has misapplied the lipstick, LOL.

4. Walking is cheap, fun and safe acceptable exercise.

For Tex's Good Fence meme.....There is also a trail that takes you up to the beach. Check out the Shadows from the fences.

There are five or more trails, some were the boardwalk trails with pretty views of the bay.

5. An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day.

 I love this deserted beach, not many people around. Pretty blue skies during our whole trip.

 We had fun watching the dolphins swimming back and forth while we were on the beach. I hope you enjoyed our visit the wildlife refuge. We were able to see two refuges during our Virginia trip, this Back Bay NWR and the Great Dismal NWR. I recommend visiting both if you are ever in the area.  As always, thank you for visiting and for the nice comments. Have a happy new week ahead!

To see more pretty skies, fences and fantastic photos from around the world please visit the memes below.  Thanks for visiting and for all the nice comments. I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead.

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences.

Thank you to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.

Thank you to Nancy the host of Random 5 Friday

Thanks also to Teresa Friday's Hunt  

York PA Rookery

It's time to link up with Skywatch Friday  and Good Fences and Random 5 Friday and Friday's Hunt . Join in on the fun and share your post with these fun memes.

Teresa's Friday's Hunt
1. Start's with R
2. Weeks Favorite
3.  Texture

April 10th hubby and I visited the York Pa Great Egret and Black Crowned Night Heron rookery. I thought it maybe a little early to see these birds working on their nest at the rookery, I counted at least 14 egrets and maybe 4 Night Herons.

For Tex's Good Fences meme I have an overall view of the lake and Rookery in York Pennsylvania.

1. Great Egrets were hunted for their plumes nearly to extinction in the early 1900's. Luckily laws were created to protect these birds. The Egret below is one of my favorite photos for my Friday's Hunt.

2. Not bird related, one morning while watching "The View" I heard Donny Osmond say he has been performing for nearly 50 years. Donny's deput was on the Andy Williams Show in 1962. I would have been 6 yrs old, this makes me feel old, LOL. Do you remember the Andy Williams Show and the Donny and Marie Osmond show?

3. A fun fact about the Egret, during their breeding season they have a patch of neon green near show up on their faces near their eyes.

For Teresa's Friday's hunt I think the features on the Egret above is great for the prompt Texture.

4. I just read this fact about the Black Crowned Night Heron seen below. A breeding Night Heron will brood any chick that placed in it's nest.

For Good Fences and for Skywatch Friday I have the pretty sky above and my moon addiction photo below.


5. On April 10th I was able to catch the waxing crescent moon and the star Aldebaran close by. Can you see the tiny star near the moon in my photo? The star is just a tiny dot near the bottom right side of the photo.  BTW, for Teresa's Friday's Hunt this is also my favorite photo for the week.

"When it rains, look for rainbows. When it's dark, look for stars." unknown

To see more pretty skies, fences and fantastic photos from around the world please visit the memes below.  Thanks for visiting and for all the nice comments. I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead.

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences.

Thank you to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.

Thank you to Nancy the host of Random 5 Friday

Thanks also to Teresa Friday's Hunt  

More Virginia Beach, Virginia

It's time to link up with Skywatch Friday  and Good Fences and Random 5 Friday and Friday's Hunt . Join in on the fun and share your post with these fun memes.

First, I want to send my prayers to the people of Houston and Ecuador and Japan. The flooding in Houston and earthquakes in Ecuador and Japan are all devastating disasters.

I am sharing some more photos from our Virginia Beach trip. The sunrise, moon rise and moon set were all beautiful sights.

For my Random 5 Friday

1. I am surprised by this information that Virginia Beach is the largest city in Virginia with a population of 425,000.

The sunrise on the March 23rd from our oceanfront room. There are various fences in this shot for Tex's Good Fence meme.

Teresa's Friday"s Hunt
1. Starts with Q
2. Weeks favorite
3. At rest

2. Watching a sunrise is one of my simple pleasures. Below is one of my favorite photos for Teresa's Friday's Hunt.

Can you find the moon, it is setting just in the middle of the photo below. A look at the sunrise reflection on our hotel and a view of some fences too.

3. There are four North American Migration Flyways: the Atlantic, the Mississippi, the Central and the Pacific Flyway.

Above an aircraft carrier and two Northern Gannets seen at Virginia Beach.

3. Did you know gulls are called garbage birds because they eat almost anything.
We  saw a lot of  the Ring-billed Gulls on the beach. For Teresa'a Friday's Hunt here are some gulls "at rest" on the beach.

4. In April the full moon has several names: Grass moon, Frog moon and Egg moon.  They seem like weird names for the moon to me.

Below are some images of the moon rising from the Atlantic Ocean on March 23rd.

I did say I was addicted to taking photos of the moon.

Another favorite photo above the moon rising and the three little lights are from boats out in the ocean.

5. During the full moon and new moon the gravitational forces of the sun and the moon combine to produce the highest tides called the Spring Tides.

If you look hard on the bottom left of the photo, I have included our shadows on the beach. I hope you enjoyed your visit and my post. Thank so much for stopping by and for the nice comments.

To see more pretty skies, fences and fantastic photos from around the world please visit the memes below.   I wish everyone a happy day and weekend ahead..

Thanks to Theresa @ The Run*A*Round Ranch for hosting Good Fences.

Thank you to Sylvia, Yogi  and Sandy for hosting Skywatch Friday.

Thank you to Nancy the host of Random 5 Friday

Thanks also to Teresa Friday's Hunt