Petunias

A while back I showed you the huge pot of petunias that was a Mother's Day gift from our oldest daughter's family.

 And now here it is - after some good pinching back of the petunias it has filled in beautifully.

 I have forgotten the name of this lovely flower - it is exactly the same shade as the red petunias.

 And the sweet pink petunias are the perfect place for the elves, Tammson and Pirphal to rest on a sunny afternoon

The pot of flowers has been a wonderful gift that I've been thankful for all summer!!!  

Thankful Thursdays

Green Heron

I find plenty of Great Blue Herons to photograph - but until this year I've not been able to get shots of the smaller Green Heron.  There seem to be a lot more around this year - and finally I got a couple chances to get photos.  These were all taken in the area of the Alaska Ferry Terminal in Bellingham.

 First seen near the Alaska State Ferry on Friday night.

 Then seen at a tidal pond just a little nearer downtown Fairhaiven. 

Tuesday's Treasures

It is so wonderful to have my white dining room set - at last.  I've wanted it for years, and now my dream has come true.  I've had it for about a year and a half and love displaying some of my many dishes.  Today it is blue - mostly.

 Across the top of the hutch are serving pieces called Rose Parade - more about that in a bit.

 Blue Willow transferware - always a favorite.  And a teacup and cream and sugar with forget-me-nots, Alaska's State Flower and the flowers bring us special memories of Don's mother.

 Such a pretty covered casserole.

 Moss Rose child's tea set - just the perfect spot.

 A sweet flower fairy with a candle.

 Blueberry tea set for one.  Goes perfectly with the Blue Willow.

 Pretty vintage blue mixing/serving bowls, found in a cute little shop in British Columbia, and half price too.

 Gravy boat on a small platter.

 The name Rose Parade comes from the rose decal on the handles.  Some of my favorite serving pieces.

 My child's Blue Willow tea set, a gift for my seventh birthday just after we moved from California to Southeast Alaska, missing one saucer, as I leaned my elbow on the saucer while having a tea party one day when I was sick in bed.

  

Tuesday's Treasures

Barns in the Summer

We have such glorious summers in NW Washington - mild temperatures - bright blue skies and lovely green scenery.  Absolutely the best summers of any place we've lived - and we've lived a lot of places.  

Alaska, Texas, back to Alaska, back to Texas (it's a long story), Wisconsin, Northern California, more northern in California, Kansas, back to California (in the lower desert), northern California and finally  NW Washington.  We've stopped now - we've found the perfect place to live.  Long lovely springtime, mild and beautiful summers, good and rainy autumn and mild winters. Let's see some of the barns in perfect summer settings.

 A favorite barn - always ready for a photo shoot

 It sits atop a lovely little hillside

 Some barns are old and weary - sitting in green hayfields

 Sad but not lonely - the cows are in the barnyard 

 Well tended with the third crop of hay this summer growing in the fields

 A great mountain backdrop - with corn to the right of the barn and hayfield in front

 I've shown this one before - but it almost takes my breath away each time we pass and I just have to take one more photo.  The field is about ready for harvest.

 A drive in the country takes us past so many beautiful farms

A wider view shows us four farms - looking around we counted 17 farms visible from this same spot.

Barn Collective

Saturday's Critters

I haven't been on my blog much this summer - but I've been busy - we had a wonderful visit from our son and his family from West Virginia in June - that was a good start to the summer.  We've done a lot of bird watching, seems to be a particularly good year for birds.

Thank you to those who were concerned when I was absent from my blog - thanks for the notes and the concern.

We spent a day at Wylie Slough on Fir Island - near Conway, WA.  The Shorebirds are beginning to migrate in and it was a wonderful day.  The path is flat and well maintained, lots of good parking and lots of birds.

There were Lesser Yellowlegs and Greater Yellowlegs 

 Lots of them standing on logs floating in the slough as the tide came in.

 Plenty of flapping about - and knocking others into the slough

 And ruffled feathers

 Flying in and landing

 Trying to get the best spot

 Lots of leg stretching and wing exercise

 A couple squabbles

So many reflections in the water of the slough

 And then they all flew up when a Great Blue Heron flew over

 And then settled back onto the logs

It was indeed a great day.

Saturday's Critters
Weekend Reflections
I'd Rather B Birdin'
Camera Critters