Not a prairie, but this is a popular hangout for people - animals at the Armand Bayou Nature Center
This quiet spot is a favorite of mine.Sadly it has been a year since my last visit to Armand Bayou Nature Center....During the mild days of winter I like the feeling of being in the middle of this prairie! Especially on a sunny and breezy morning, when this park is deserted..A pretty place to walk, birdwatch, take pictures and paint plein aire :-)
This past weekend I participated in the Great Backyard Bird Count...
I got prepared by uploading the Merlin e-bird app for my phone, an easy way to record and submit what I identified....
I would start my day with planned birdwatching sessions while drinking my coffee on the backyard patio..Later in the day I would go for drives to parks or walks on the beach..
Last year I used pencil and paper and submitted my results online at the end of the day, before bedtime..
This year I submitted and reported my findings in real time via the e-bird app on my smart phone...
A fun way to learn about the birds that live in or pass thru our area :-)
My Backyard
A foggy Friday February 12 , 0800- 0900..All of these birds came to visit me in my backyard.
A young Red Bellied Woodpecker
Cardinal
Mourning Dove
A fellow birdwatcher
Yellow Rump Warbler
Yellow Rump Warbler
Pictured below are my sightings for Saturday February 13, 2016..
I went to a state park and then to a beach to walk and bird watch..
A quiet place to be alone with my thoughts-Battleground State Park
Sylvan Beach, in La Porte Texas
Sandpiper
Egret
Red Breasted Merganser
Sunday February 14, 2016, My backyard
This is a U-tube video I made..A backyard mockingbird gave us a Happy Valentine's Morning Serenade.
My Simon was busy stalking squirrels, Oscar was by my side while I made this video..
The windy weather and Oscar's snorts can be heard throughout the audio, lol :-)
This concludes my observations for today, because I am feeling under the weather.. I have high hopes that I will be bird watching tomorrow morning, weather permitting..
Monday February 15th....
The weather was beautiful but I didn't venture out until late..The birds were camera shy, lol..This place is another favorite setting of mine, to hang out, birdwatch, walk, think, and take photos :-)
Bay Area Park, Clear Lake Texas
Such a fine weekend to be part of the Great Backyard Bird Count!
I always thought Robins were more common place in colder climates, away from the coast..I began to notice their presence in my area late this summer! With this week's visits to my backyard, the robins hung around long enough for me to run, grab my camera, and return to the backyard in time to get some decent shots.. Pictured is the male robin who came and went all week, I'll call him Romeo..
I am planning to participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count 2016.
Friday Feb 12, thru Monday Feb 15 th..
It is not necessary to carry out the entire weekend of bird counting from one place..One does not have to count and record birds every day..Links to websites with instructions at the top of my post :-) I think this will be fun and easy to do :-)
Free apps are available to identify and record what, when and where birds are seen..These apps are provided by The Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, for I-phones and Androids.
The older I get , the more I understand that love is more than the sum and total of what we do for others in a given moment..!
Love is leaving a tangible part of ourselves behind for others to remember and enjoy..!
Which is why gifts from the heart mean so much to me...Art pieces ... Photo journals of good times together.... Essays..Short stories...Poems...Music..! Finding a creative outlet and SHARING our creations is an act of love..We channel our feelings into something beautiful for others to enjoy, long after we are gone..!
Ocean view shot in Galveston..I worked with layers in PhotoShop to give this image a surreal quality :-)
Every now and then I will pick up some live cut flowers from the grocery store..Those flowers which get severely discounted due to being a couple of days too old..I tend to do this when it is dreary outside...More often then not, I shoot still life photos with these flowers as my subject...Then I move to editing..I enjoy editing and altering photos almost as much as I do shooting them..When I am working on my photo edits, sometimes I feel bored with using the same editing style... I test one plug in / filter after another on one or two images such as these shot with my Samsung Galaxy 5..I am still a fairly new user of Photo Shop and Light Room..I still have to find my way well enough to get a better idea what this software is capable of..
Anyway I think this is how I see my world before I get enough coffee in my system :-)
Happy Monday! With my first cup of morning coffee, I enjoy reading the first few blogs shown on my reader..
This morning there was one common thing I noticed about each person's story and photos..
You are covered in snow!
For those of you who are buried in snow, let me send you a little sunshine :-)
Yesterday's walk featured partly cloudy skies with temperatures in the 60's..
I rarely get snow...It is either gray clouds with dreariness, or beautiful sun...
My sister gave me the inspiration to try this fun form of art..She gifted me with two of her folded books , one of her book pieces is pictured in yesterday's post :-)
There are several ways to make your designs and fold your books
This U - tube is one method for those who know how to draw -measure-plot
I will move to this method as I become more advanced..For people who have Photoshop, there is an app to convert shapes into lined patterns for folding books with this method.. U-tube tutorial is included at the end of this post..
For now my process was simple, as this is my very first folded book art.. I used a ruler and a pencil to make my marks, I worked from a free pattern I found on line....I was fortunate this pattern worked well with the size book I used.. If you use a pre made pattern, look for size and page specs in the pattern..It is essential that the book isn't too tall, squat or thin..
I learned that I needed to fold the pages in my book project at a 90 degree angle and I folded them all in one direction...
Here is a 7 lesson course on book folding ..This was the method I used with my free pre made pattern :-)
I woke up early this morning intending to chase a sunrise, but ended up being a Miss Lazypants...
After I got a couple of cups of coffee in me I decided it was time to shoot some still life shots while the light was still nice ...Yesterday I received a birthday/care package from my sister in the mail..These goodies became the subjects of my stills..
Then I did my chores..
Then I became a Miss Itchypants..Right before a storm I decided to take a drive and a walk..
These are photos of my happy Saturday :-)
I crocheted these last night when I had a touch of insomnia..
My sister made me this
Goodies included in my package except for the glass bead..
Hand made heart my sister included in my package..She bought this years ago at the Bayou City Art Fest..We went to this art fest together every year for many years...
