Busy Backyard

The backyard has been a busy place lately. 

I finally decided which of today's photos to post on the 365 day blog, 

Curiously Intertwined, but couldn't pass up posting these also.

I took these with my 75-300mm zoom lens. 

 

A Day in the Yard

On this beautiful day Fireball and I went out to tackle a very overgrown boxwood hedge. 

We made lots of discoveries in the process. 

This little nest held lots of tiny ants and also a couple of frantic spiders.

Fireball wanted to know what was on his shirt, thinking it might be a grasshopper. 

It was not.

 As I took the picture for Fireball, it tried to jump at me. I dodged him.

 This little nest was full of scraps of who knows what.

 The third nest was covered with grasses and garden debris
but otherwise was made of mud.

And last but not least we found three balls that were so far under the bushes, 

they could only be found with all the trimming.

Searching for Goslings

Today I was on a search for goslings down by the canal. 

At first this little lost one was the only gosling I could find.

Next on the walk down the canal was this mama and her little ducklings.

This guy showed up next quite briefly. 

I am lucky to have gotten a picture. 

He was so fast I had to look at my picture when I got home 

to see what he actually looked like. 

I had no idea what he was so on a whim I looked up what a muskrat looked like and, 

what do you know, it looks just like him.

Finally I came upon what I was looking for - the geese and their goslings.

There were five in total.

Not shown are the turtles that were in the water and 

came up for air and were gone so fast, 

there was no chance to even try to capture them in a photo.

Hoping you find what you are looking for,

Sharon

Oh, Deer!

While at Crown Hill Cemetery (click here) today, we came across this herd of deer

 running across the road in front of us.  

They were so beautiful, we followed the road for a closer look.  

I got this close and was definitely being watched by several.  

I took one step closer and they decided that was close enough.

Off they went.

We thought there were about fourteen,

but if you zoom in on this shot, you can count fifteen in all.  

Wishing you wonderful surprises, 

Sharon

(In researching for this post I came upon no less than five different names for a group of deer 

so I went with the easiest: herd.)

Cicada Observation Adventure

GB#1 has been with us for a little over two weeks.  

We have had many adventures and done lots of fun activities, 

but every visit has to end and she will be flying back to her home tomorrow.  

While playing on the play set one last time before her visit was over, 

GB#1 discovered a cicada emerging from its shell.

We were fascinated by it so we watched its tiny curled wings unfurl.

It wiggled and twitched its legs until they were free of the shell.

Its wings continued to get larger 

and one final push was needed to finally be completely out of the shell.

It rested while its wings dried.

Once it was ready the cicada left the shell behind

and ventured off.

Cicada number two was found nearby and was a bit behind the first in emergence

but caught up quickly.

The third cicada was just as impressive as the other two. 

I hope this is another adventure that GB#1 remembers for years to come. 

Wishing you adventures to remember,

Sharon

Hello, It's Been a While

It's been way too long since I've posted anything here, 

so here's a quick look at our backyard this very summery day. 

There are so many more cicada shells everywhere. 

The robins are quite active as are the silly squirrels.

Later as we were out and about 

we drove by for a sneak peek at the former residence of Little E, L and GB#1  

and then stopped to watch the sun go down on our way home. 

It was quite lovely. 

And lastly, here are Fireball and I at a company event 

at a nearby amusement park on Saturday. 

I am wearing my newly refashioned t-shirt.

Thanks for visiting.

On a Walk

Summer is making the flowers turn brown. 

Although some of them are trying to hold on.

Wishing you beauty in the last days of summer,

Sharon

Can you come out?

This little guy came to the front door this morning.

Can you come out and play?

Or I can just lick your welcome mat.

But really, can you play?