Photohunters boogie steps and The Weekend in Black and White

My baby could boogie with very young steps. Since my baby turns 29 on March 2, I thought it appropriate to use this shot for the two photohunter themes and also for the Weekend in Black and White.

Click for the boogie photohunt; and/or Click for the steps Photohunt; and/or Click for the Weekend in Black and White.

SkyWatch Friday: Varied sky shots

The purple band of color behind the tree at sunset reminds me of a mountain.

 Below the jets were drawing on the sky.

 I frequently see birds on the branch tips of the tree below.

 We've had many days where the sky is gray until sunset and then the colors and shapes burst out.

 I like the silhouettes of birds that I see at the end of the day.

Most of my sunset shots are taken from my bedroom window.

Especially this time of the year I get better sunset angles from inside than when I go outside.

It's different in the summer when the best sunset shots around my house are taken from the street.

I use the term sunset loosely because it's the colorful sky I can capture from home not so much the sun itself going down.

 From home the sun itself is hidden by trees before it changes colors.

 I see a heart and a kite shape in the sky below.

 The next shot was one I took from my driveway facing east while the sun was going down in the west.

 The clouds have been great this winter.

 I love cotton ball clouds against a blue sky, a statement I make on my blog frequently.

I keep thinking I'll try captions in between shots but that takes me longer than rambling sentences.

 I love the sky reflected in the lake.

 The gulls like to line up on the bridge railing.

 We even had one day over the past seven with a solid blue sky.

 The little warbler below was keeping an eye on me.

 It's looking more and more like spring.

Every time I see flowers I photograph them because we had a string of warm days but it's turning cold again and most of the early flowers won't last long.

We usually have our last frost date in April so not too long before we'll be past the freeze thaw pattern.

 Click for the home of SkyWatch Friday.

ABC Wednesday: G is for guessing game

My guess from a distance was that the neighborhood children had drawn a hopscotch board on the sidewalk for a hopping game.

When I got closer I wasn't sure what the game was but it definitely wasn't hopscotch.

The first two shots are from last week and are only a small portion of the drawings I spotted along the sidewalk.

The third through last shots were taken this Monday and this group looked like perhaps they were playing a safety game.

The children and parents weren't outside when I spotted these sidewalk games so your guess is as good as mine as to what game, if any, they were playing.

Click for the home of ABC Wednesday.

Our World and Nature Notes: spring like days

We've had a string of days with spring weather although it's supposed to turn cold again.

My hellebore (lenten rose) above was beaten down by the snow and ice but is still a harbinger of spring.

The birds watched the sunset with me one evening after the rain ended.

I was photographing the sunset from my window and the birds were in the tree tops.

Most of the birds left but there was one that watched the sunset as long as I did.

 A bird was watching the sunrise with me one morning below.

 Male cardinals usually stand out but the one below found a tree with camouflage to suit his feathers.

 I love bare winter trees but am beginning to look for signs of new growth.

 A few of my daffodils are already blooming.

 The female cardinal below was keeping an eye on me.

 The titmouse below was also watching me.

 Titmouse move so fast it's hard for me to shoot them (with my camera of course).

 We've had some beautiful skies in between gray periods.

 The rest of the shots are from a walk this Sunday.

 It was a great day for a walk.

 The cormorants are still at the lake but they usually leave in the spring and return in the fall.

The gulls also leave this lake in the spring and return by late fall or early winter.

 The gulls must breed somewhere else because there are gulls year round where I live but they aren't at this particular lake after spring gets underway or in the summer.

I always start watching for them to return in the late fall.

 The great blue heron are at the lake year round.

Click here for the home of Nature Notes and here for the home of Our World Tuesday.