Cherish is my favorite word, and I cherish the ability of turning the routine into a beautiful moment.
Nature creates in me, a spiritual and meditative time to bring peace, harmony and balance, into an otherwise ordinary day~
Mary Howell Cromer







Friday, August 8, 2014

Barn Swallows, Butterflies and Sunrise~


The photograph above and many of the wildflowers and butterflies in this post were taken at the Parklands.
The city of Louisville took 3 large parks and joined them to form this gigantic single park.

First things first!
I so apologize for never making it to very many blogs for a visit this past week.  
Our oldest daughter Hillary and her husby Andrew are celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary in New York City this week.  
Their twin 5 year old sons, as well as our daughter Brittany's 6 year old son have all been with us this week. 
It has been quite delightful and at the same time, makes me realize, I am not getting any younger.  Whoosh, we had 3 daughters and they played with dolls and dress up and could entertain themselves for hours.  
For these 3 young men, they are on constant go ;) 
On the left is Braden who will begin 1st grade in 2 weeks and the twins will begin K class.
That is Cullen on the left and his brother Kerrick on the right~


Remember to double click on the first image, to view a larger slide show presentation after you have read the narratives~

I will be linking up with Judith for:
Mosaic Monday
at: 
www.lavendercottagegardening.com

&

Stewart for:
   Wild Bird Wednesday





All of the Barn Swallow images were taken at my favorite Foxhollow Farm~



A Green Heron thought it was hiding from me, and actually it really was doing a nice job.  
This one was at the Parklands~








I caught a quick glimpse of an American Goldfinch on the grounds at the Parklands.  
Too far away to try and get more~





The Black Swallowtail and garden images here were taken in Mona's garden, across the lane from me~






Dawn over the fields of Foxhollow Farm~





26 comments:

  1. beautiful blooms! what a great park! i have no doubt you are worn out! :)

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  2. Dear Mary,

    The grands and the flowers and fields and fabulous flyers are simply BEAUTIFUL! Your photos planted a wide smile across this face, which went into freeze frame mode, from all the gorgeous splendour it absorbed!

    Happy weekend, my friend! Wishing you lots of joy!

    Poppy

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  3. Brilliant photos of the butterflies, my favourite. But, all have them are excellent Mary.

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  4. Cute kids! I absolutely LOVE your flower photos. Very nice post as always.

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  5. You always have a feast of mosaics! I'm enchanted by the birds and the flowers. I thought of you when a hawk blew in at my place this week. I think he was a Cooper's Hawk.

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  6. The wildflowers are just beautiful. We've been pleased to see so many here in NC this week, too. Love the cute photos of the grands! They give you a work out but it's fun to make memories! Sweet hugs, Diane

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  7. Sweet boys Mary and like you we had daughters that played quietly with Barbies. I love your photos of the wildflower field, this is what I strived for with the butterfly garden I planted.
    I'm glad you participated in Mosaic Monday as I always enjoy your posts. Just to note that the party is at www.lavendercottagegardening.com as I see you have typed in Mary's blog address. (old habits die hard)

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Judith...;) ha you got me right in the middle of copying and pasting your name and making sure it updated before I added your website. I think I got it all in right now and saved. Thank you so much my friend~

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  8. Your grandchildren are cute, Mary! And your flower images are all gorgeous... I also love the cute swallows. Awesome post! Enjoy your new week ahead!

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  9. Cute grandchildren, Mary. The young ones certainly do make us feel our age, don't they? Your bird photography is simply amazing. Love those barn swallows. The flower filled meadows are gorgeous - perfectly summer!

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  10. Beautiful and wonderful photos of flowers, butterflies and birds, Mary, but my favorite photos were of your handsome grandsons! My son and daughter-in-law celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary recently--my blog post is about that.

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  11. Ooh I loved seeing your little grandies Mary - aren't they lovely!!
    I've three granddaughters - I often wonder if I'll ever get a grandson too!
    They certainly keep us on our toes don't they!

    I love you pics of the barn swallows especially the first one of the fledgling with his mouth wide open!

    The sunflowers and the butterfly are gorgeous too

    nice to catch up with you at Mosaic Monday.
    Enjoy your week.
    Hugs
    Shane

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  12. You've got three handsome young lads there - and how lovely to be spending time with them - precious memories in the making. I love your photos, as always - the American Goldfinch amongst the blue flowers has to be that most spectacular photo I've seen for a long while - that yellow really pops! And I love the action shot of the Barn Swallows - beautifully captured.

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  13. Such a wonderful collection of photos. I'm visiting from Mosaic Monday.

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  14. I know how you feel Mary. After our Tuesday date with Olivia and Isabella and then Theo on a Wednesday we are ready for a rest and a large glass of wine. As you say and display they are worth every second of our input.

    So wonderful that you got the Swallows in all their glorious activity. I could watch their feeding antics all day long.

    The Black Swallowtail. What a beauty it is - magnificent.

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  15. My first time here as I popped over from Judith's party...your collages are absolutely stunning...you have brought it all to life!

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  16. I grew up with a sister and didn't have a clue about boys until I had my son ... I honestly was in shock. I started out with a daughter who, like you said, was easy, predicable and self sufficient ... then came my son. He still wears me out, but I couldn't love him any more. I know that you dropped into bed every night wondering how you will make it through one more day, but I also know you had a big smile on your face. These three boys are gorgeous ... You have so much to be proud of. On the same note, aren't you glad you aren't a Swallow parent ... oh my, those little swallows are a hoot. Your pictures are wonderful and they remind me of one of my old posts where the baby swallow was having a foot stomping tantrum waiting to be fed. Wonderful pictures and presentation, as always ... then the flowers and the butterflies. They couldn't be more beautiful. I am awe struck ... you do this to me every time, Mary and I love every minute of it. Thank you so much ...

    Andrea @ From The Sol

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  17. How wonderful! The flowers are gorgeous. I love the sunflowers and the cone flowers. The swallows are adorable.

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  18. Breathtaking collages, butterfly ones are so unreal!

    I really like this photos you're making, would you like to follow each other? Let me know!

    http://savicious-photography.blogspot.com/

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  19. Wonderful photographs! I love all the many wildflowers and the birds! Especially love the goldfinch with outstretched wings in that field of flowers! Great shots! Glad you've had the grandkids too. They can be such a joy, but they DO take a lot out of you! :-)

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  20. Oh my gosh Mary (or should I say Grandma) ... I am surprised you had time to breath, let alone share your beautiful collages. Wonderful nature photos as always. And those boys are so cute -- I can tell they are full of energy and joyfulness. Which is how you want them to be, but I am sure you are/were exhausted. (We are traveling in Alaska; today is a rest-day and we have good wi-fi and it is raining. A perfect combination for catching up with my favorite people and trying (vainly) to sort some of my own pix.)

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  21. Outstanding collages!!! I am drawn to two for favorites this time around...the first swallow image [the feeding frenzy] and the Goldfinch in the blue/purple wildflower field!!

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  22. oh these lovely fields of flowers and stunning bird shots ( as usual ! :) ...but I had a good laugh in the beginning about BOYS...oh my yes they are so different than little girls. Yours are very very cute ! :)

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  23. An amazing collection of incredibly beautiful photographs, Mary!
    I thoroughly enjoyed looking at each of them. Your bird photography is out of this world!
    Cheers,
    Merisi

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