Carrollton Yard – April 2023

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I took pictures between rain showers…tended to do zoomed images because it was too breezy for macro photography. The irises were past their peak…but there were still plenty to photograph.

What a difference light makes! The two images below were taken less than a minute apart with clouds moving rapidly through the sky.

The glass orb among the oxalis and Queen Anne’s Lace just missed being spotlighted in the same situation!

Other flowers were blooming as well. The white daisies were photographed with different lighting…but enough to freeze their movement caused by the breeze.

It was still cool enough for roses to be blooming too.

Of course – there were the ‘always there’ subjects…dandelions and red yucca pods.

Overall – lots of beauty in the yard to photograph…cool temps and rain made it a little harder to be out and about.

Carrollton Yard – January 2023

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I was in Carrollton, TX the last week of January. It was almost spring-like on a day early in the week. I took pictures of the yard – dried or frost damaged vegetation – but noticed signs of spring as well: the Japanese quince in bloom, the fronds of the naked lady lilies up through the mulch and some new leaves on the rose bushes. The oxalis had recovered from the deep freeze in December…providing swaths of green in the flower beds.

The bird feeder is very popular with a flock of house sparrows. They like the larger seeds – often flying to nearby bushes with their seed – leaving the feeder available for their friends. There are occasional chickadees and house finches that comes to the feeder too.

The mourning doves clean up the seeds on the ground – the rejects of the feeder birds.

There seemed to be more robins around in the front of the house – another sign that spring is on the way!

Carrollton Yard – December 2022

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A few days after Christmas – a cold morning in Carrollton TX.

I ventured out a little after sunrise – when the clouds were still tinged with orange.

The oxalis edging the pavers that had all been green when I arrived a few days before Christmas had transformed to a layer of frozen, deteriorating leaves protecting a green layer underneath.

Even the kale was different after the very cold temperatures – oddly looking more like a light-colored flower with green leaves below.

As few minutes in the cold…the sky had brightened…I took one last picture and went indoors.

Our Missouri Yard – October 2022

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We had two mornings with temperatures in the 20s last week after I took some pictures of the yard. The frost didn’t seem to impact the oak or river birch in our neighbor’s yard very much.

The rose petals are all limp now, but the leaves are unchanged. Some of the buds might still open now that we are going to have at least 10 days of temperatures well above freezing.

The pokeweed flowers and berries survived very well but the leaves or limp. The berries that are already ripened will probably be eaten by birds, but the immature fruits are probably not going to develop further.

The oxalis triangularis that is growing on the east side of our house survived the frost unscathed! Maybe it benefited from being close to the brick wall of the house and getting sun first thing in the morning when the temperature was the coldest.

Now that is it warmed up again – I am planting bulbs: daffodils, hyacinths, allium, and crocus. The previous owner put landscaping fabric then rocks in the flower beds, so the task is very difficult. I removed a small cedar that had died and planted bulbs in the space – filling in the bigger hole I made in the black fabric with cedar mulch and rocks. Over time, there might be more and more of that…until there is not as much of the black fabric in the beds.  I am probably going to plant the rest of the crocus in the lawn since they will come up and bloom before the grass would need to be mowed!

Carrollton Yard in Early Spring – Macro

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I posted about the larger view of the Carrollton yard last week; today the post is from the macro perspective. I started indoors where my mother had some vases of spring blooms (daffodils and hyacinths) that looked cheery.

A few days later, I walked around the yard…the hyacinths and daffodils were mostly spent so I photographed other flowers: oxalis, Japanese quince, dandelion. The dandelion is my favorite.

The new rose leaves were not wet…but the new leaves must have some waxy material that protects them from cold temperatures this time of year.

A larger rock under one of the old mulberries had several kinds of lichen growing on it. The encrustations overlap and I found myself wondering if, in the overlap, are they melding or overlapping. Lichen are an organism that operate on an entirely different timescale than me do; some might continue to slowly grow and dissolve their rock for thousands of years.

Ten Little Celebrations – April 2019

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April has been a busy month – only at home for a week out of the month and not all at the same time. There was plenty to celebrate with spring in full swing and the travel to see it in different places.

Certified Zentangle® Trainer (CZT) class. There were so many perspectives of the CZT class to celebrate: the beauty of the creations everyone was making, the conversations, the food…the challenge of being a student…the Zen.

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Train ride home. I don’t go many places where taking the train is feasible…but the CZT class was one of them. I celebrated the low stress hours going home…a fitting finale to the class.

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4th and 5th grade field trips. The early April field trips happened with great weather and the students enjoying being outdoors to learn about the Patapsco heritage (land, water, and rocks) and BioBlitz. It’s always inspiring to see their curiosity and enthusiasm --- celebrating a spring field trip.


Getting to Dallas. I had to travel to Dallas quickly and it was easier than a thought it would be. And I celebrated that I was less stressed by the rapid change in plans (maybe the Zentangle class providing an added benefit.

Spring days. Noticing the rapidly developing blossoms of spring is fodder for many celebrations – oxalis is probably one of my favorites right now. It blooms when the sun is shining!

Rainy day (spent indoors). After busy days – having a rainy day spent indoors is something to celebrate…with homemade soup for lunch!

Josey Ranch Pocket Prairie. A little bit of prairie – carefully tended by volunteers – in a Dallas suburb! Right now it is a celebration of spring wildflowers.

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Cedar waxwings. Birds are migrating and there are serendipity sightings of birds that don’t stay around the area long. I celebrated seeing a small flock of cedar waxwings last week.

Botanical reminders of my grandmother. Many flowers in my parents’ Carrollton yard were planted by my grandmother…good memories to celebrate.

Home again. Providence, Rhode Island to home to Carrollton, Texas to home to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and Smith Island to home. I like to travel…but coming home is celebratory too.

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The Zentangle® Method is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns. It was created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. "Zentangle" is a registered trademark of Zentangle, Inc. Learn more at zentangle.com.

A Carrollton Garden – Part II

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It’s been more than 8 years since my grandmother died – but there are still many plants in the garden at my parents’ house that she started. The pink preference sage all came from a plant from her sister’s garden.

The oxalis was something she saw first in her sister’s garden then ordered some from a catalog (we think). It is growing so profusely these days that some of the plants are being potted to be part of the floral decorations for my niece’s wedding.

The bees like the flowers too.

The evening primrose is self-propagating around a rose bush my grandmother got as a birthday present (the rose bush must be over 20 years old now) and she planted the primrose seeds at its base.

I’m not sure where the daisy-like flowers came from, but they’ve been in the garden for a long time. These days they bloom in enlarging clumps in the front yard garden under the big mulberry and beside the red yucca.

The continuity of plants – passed between family members and through generations. Remembering her…in her garden.

A Carrollton Garden – Part I

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I am visiting my parents this week in Carrollton TX and their garden is responding to the warmer weather. Mounds of oxalis line the large patio – carpeting the partial shade area under the mulberry trees.

Various kinds of iris are in bloom. The Dutch iris blooms seem to last longer than the other kinds.

The mulberry trees are a fruitless variety. The trunks of the largest trees have a lot of color when they are wet. Most of the trees have small branches emerging along the big branches. The larger branches have been thinned to allow more sunlight to reach the ground so all the little branches that are within reach of the pole clippers are snipped from the trees keep the canopy open.

The pecan tree is finally old enough to bloom and may produce some pecans this year. Hopefully the nuts will be the paper-shell variety.

The red yuccas are not blooming yet but the seed pods from last fall are still on the stalks. Some of them look almost black (like they were burned). I like the shapes of the empty pods.

More pictures from the garden tomorrow.

Zooming – December 2018

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It’s been somewhat cold this month – but no snow yet. I’ve enjoyed photographing our transition to winter using the zoom on my camera to set the frame of the scene and/or to enable me to stay out of the mud (we’ve had lots of rain) or indoors and warm. There is still a little green left…and the sky sometimes seems brighter when its clear and cold. Enjoy the December 2018 Zoom slideshow!

Texas Sunrise

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I was in Texas last week (Carrollton near Dallas to be precise). They were experiencing their first round of cold weather. The first morning I got up to early enough to see the sunrise (not hard this time of year).

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The garden still had a surprising amount of green I wondered how long it would be before the plants succumbed to frost. There were some that already had dried to brown (leaves and flowers) but the soft greens of oxalis and sedum

And the brighter colors of kale dominated the view.

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I took my pictures and hurried back inside…it was cold. Little did I know that the next 3 days would be cloudy…and then wet.