Friday photos

Well, it's been a while since I've posted any Friday photos, so here goes:

This first photo was taken mid-morning following a super-cold night. We had some fog the night before, so the fog froze to the trees. I believe it's called "hoar frost". The whole area was covered in this frost - it was beautiful!

This next photo is from the same morning, before the sun burned through the low clouds. This decorative grass sits just off the edge of my back-yard deck.

This next photo was taken on the morning following a big snowstorm (January 2, 2008), and shows a scene looking up my neighbor's driveway. The snow started out really heavy and wet, then lightened up into powdery snow. There was no wind in the morning, so the snow stuck to all the trees for a while.

The one really good thing about a heavy, wet snow is that it's great for packing and making things. So, we made a sledslide in our front yard, complete with iced-down walls (to keep the sled on course) and a nice jump in the road-side ditch. Sadly, though, the sledslide lasted only a few days, as temps climbed into the 50s and the whole thing melted! Oh, well! It was a lot of fun for the kids, while it lasted!

Of course, you couldn't have a winter photo without a snowman!

Keep smiling!

Friday photos

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Well, the fall colors have just about faded in our area. On a recent sunny day, I captured a few final views to remember through the coming winter.

I caught this view while driving west on Bethel Church road, about half-way between Dell and M-50. There is a rolling valley to the north of the road there, which has always captured my gaze. There are plenty of pines and cedars on the hills, and right in the center was this golden hickory tree (from a distance, that's what it looked like). It was hard to peel away from this site!

This next photo jumped up at me. I was walking across the lawn and this red leaf caught my eye. The wind made it tumble away, but I chased it, because there was something about it that struck me. When I turned it back over, it was all the veins in the leaf that caught my eye originally. I'm sure, by now, this leaf has turned brown. But, what a blazing way to go out!

Friday photos

Flowers in November? How can that be?


Contrary to what you might think about the weather here in Michigan, we've had great weather so far this autumn. So much so, that there are still some flowers blooming around my house.

I'm not an expert on flowers, so I don't know what these blue flowers are called. They started blooming in July, and have been blooming ever since. Notice the date stamp in the lower LH corner - to prove this was a recent photo.

This flower sits really low to the ground, so the plant has already had to put up with some frost this fall. Still, the blooms keep coming along.

The way that both of these flower plants look, we'll be having flowers bloom well into November!

Friday photos

The fall colors are definitely changing around here. Despite some windy days and nights, the colors are hanging on.



Here's a recent beautiful sugar maple tree I spotted. Do you know where it's located?

Friday photos

It's October here in Michigan, so that means that the wonderful fall colors are with us - only briefly.

While travelling down a country road the other day, I stopped to take this photo. The colors are just turning, so they could be brighter, but you get the idea here.

Now, does anyone know where this picture was taken?

Friday photos

Lighthouses fascinate me! This is the lighthouse at Betsie Bay harbor in Frankfort, MI. If you've ever been there, then you know how peaceful the setting really is.

Gaze at the photo, take a few deep breaths, and let go of some of that stress!

Friday photos

We just celebrated Labor Day here in the U.S. - a uniquely American holiday. In keeping with that theme, this photo from our summer trip to Yellowstone should be familiar to all.

If you've ever been to Mount Rushmore, in the Black Hills of South Dakota, you know how impressive the site really is. First you wind your way up the mountain to the entrance of the memorial. Then, you park in this huge parking structure! When I visited Mount Rushmore back in 1980, there was only a small surface parking lot. It just goes to show you how we Americans love to travel!

Leaving your car, you proceed up this fabulous granite sidewalk to the base of the memorial. From there, you can overlook the amphitheatre - which was bustling with the setup for a concert on the day we arrived.

Sadly, a rapidly-approaching thunderstorm overtook the mountain while we were there. We ran back to our car and made our way back down the mountain to find our hotel for the night.

I encourage everyone to visit Mount Rushmore at least once!

Friday photos

Now that the summer vacation season is at a close, it's time to look back on the vacations we took.

Right after school ended in June, my family and I headed out west. We hit all the major sights along the way - The Badlands, Mount Rushmore, Devil's Tower - to our destination of Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park.

Here's a view of Mount Moran, in the Teton range, as reflected in the Snake River.

If you've ever been there, you know how captivatingly beautiful the Teton range really is!

More photos of our trip in future Friday posts.