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







Saturday, July 1, 2017

Eighth Year Blog Anniversary, Part 2 of 2~



In my second part of a two part celebration of my blog's eighth year, I am posting some of the most viewed of my published posts.  Many others I have left off.  It's always interesting because you can work really hard on a post, share many images and get some nice traffic, a comment, or two and then share something more routine, not so very exciting and find that you have had over 1,000 views...which is always wonderful!

Page views all time history is: 295,329
Most of my views are coming from the USA, France, Germany, United Kingdom and Australia.
1,110 posts have been published to date.
11,511 comments have also been published.
Along with a few of the most viewed posts, I have also selected some of the images that have received some very kind comments both on my blog and Facebook where many friends have been following my blogging pathway for also eight years.
You all make this journey possible and I always say in all of my writing, I cannot convey how mush I truly appreciate you, your visits and when you have opportunity to leave  comments.  

My blog can be reached directly as well by using my Facebook page:
Photography by Mary Howell Cromer

~Thanking each of you so very much~


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

I am joining in the fun with Eileen at:
Saturday's Critter

Anni at:
http://id-rather-b-birdin.blogspot.com/ 
I'd Rather Be Birdin'
 Linking to I'd Rather B Birdin'

    
Maggie's  MOSAIC MONDAY
                                              https://normandylife.blogspot.com/


Stewart for:



Wild Flowers in Montana above and Cedar Waxwing below~



Female Red-Shouldered Hawk that gave my blog it's name~



Waverly Hills Sanatorium~

This was my beloved grandmother Hazel Howell.  She died many years before I was born from Tuberculosis at the now world famous Waverly Hills Sanitorium~ 


Waverly Hills Sanitorium took 2 years to build and opened in 1926. The top 3 floors had open air solarium's where all patients were taken daily for 13 hours, 365 days a year. The electric blanket came about as a result of these patients needing fresh air every day, even in the cold winter months
To read more about this famous place, please copy and paste the URL address below into your browser bar~

http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2011/12/waverly-hills-sanatorium.html
3,336 views




This made quite the interesting story as when shared there were only two documented cases of this happening.  A Red-Shouldered Hawk and a Red-tailed Hawk caught in breeding mode.  To read more you can check out the URL above.  Just copy and paste it into your browser bar~

http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2012/03/if-raptors-are-monogamous-breed-within.html
676 views





http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2012/07/once-upon-time-there-was-screech-owl.html
408 views




Monarch Butterflies are on the faltering end of their counts every year failing more.  
A first year Red-tailed Hawk~




http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2013/05/as-pretty-as-peacock.html
1,167 views


A watercolour that I did many moons ago above was shared along with a post done about Peacocks along with other things for this post share~



http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2013/09/post-title-1000.html
1,102 views



http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2013/10/leaving-south-dakota-and-heading-into.html
408 views

The horse image in the mosaic below was taken through my husband's car window, that was closed, while he drove some 70 + mph~



http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2013/11/enter-hoh-and-quinault-rain-forestwell.html
433 views

For 43 years I had waited to visit the rain forest of the Northwest.  We drove 5 long days to arrive and find that our Government had a called on a SHUTDOWN and all state and national parks were closed.  I took many photos on the outside side of the gates~


http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-odd-duck-and-goose-fight.html
408 views

This Wood Duck just seemed to be a bit conflicting, not sure if it was a male, or female as the plumage was just plain wrong, but still beautiful~




Eyas are what young hawks are called.  
These are Red-Shouldered Hawk eyas~

Female Red-Shouldered Hawks are easier to get close to than the males~


A fully fledged eyas~



American Kestrel







http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2016/03/two-weeks-of-missing-you.html
1038 views


Bradford Pear trees in bloom~





http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2016/05/bald-eagles-eaglets-and-memorial-day.html
1477 views

This year the pair of Bald Eagles that I have watched for three years had three Eaglets~



http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2016/06/fifty-images-to-celebrate-seventh-year.html
1642 views





http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2016/07/tingsgrove-my-home-my-county.html
1,498 views


Above Tingsgrove...home and below a Ruby throated Hummingbird~


http://tingsgrove.blogspot.com/2016/12/the-ending-of-another-year.html
897 views


White throated Sparrows migrate through and stay with us all Winter~


















I was invited by my neighbors to attend a horse show in the county one over from us.  I rode English during my youth and young adult life and LOVE everything about being around horses and so I could hardly wait.  
The image above was taken there.  The image below is of my neighbor Megan walking alongside the horse she rode.  
Sometimes it's not the quality of the image so much as it is a special feeling one gets~




















One of my favorite mosaics done this year~


Thanking you once again for your kindness, encouragement and support~ 


28 comments:

  1. Love all your images and thank you for eight years of seeing your art and for many more years to come! Love love the whittle owl 💖💖💖

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  2. Hello Mary, it has been a pleasure to visit your blog and read your posts. So many gorgeous photos and wonderful birds and critters. Thank you so much for linking up and sharing your post. Happy Saturday, enjoy your weekend!

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  3. Stunning pictures, MAry! all of them are amazing; lots of beauty and passion for nature in various aspects! such a great place to live and to observe/admire flora, fauna and whatever is incredible nice or interesting, a delight for eyes and soul. Thank you for sharing all of these with us. Happy 8th blog anniversary! And wonderful tribute to your grandmother, too!
    A very lovely and creative weekend! Alexa

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  4. WOW--great photos--loved them all--keep it going!!!
    enjoy the moments, di

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  5. I am very impressed with your stunning photos. Great photography. Congrats on your blog anniversary.

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  6. I agree...WOW! You've shown us some animals and birds that we would never get to see in real life. You are a fantastic photographer and we are blessed to have you share your photos here on this blog. My husband and I both read your blog and talk about your photos. Sweet hugs, Diane

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  7. Wonderful images Maey, and great 8th years blogging.

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  8. This is an amazing reprise of eight years of blogging. You obviously have a rich and varied life. I will look forward to the next eight years.

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  9. Those stats are amazing. I do think that the Internet is a really wonderful invention. It allows us to interact and make friends with like-minded people from all over the world and I am sometimes incredulous as to the cities and countries that appear on my blog visitor list. It is such a shame that the Internet is used for so many bad things when it is such a force for good.

    The sheer variety of your photos today is a real tribute to the depths and diversity of your interests, all brought together by your skill as a photographer and your eye for a telling photo. OK, I can take a decent bird picture but I do envy your ability to spot a photo opportunity from seemingly nothing.

    If you don’t mind me saying, some of your best photos have an almost “accidental” feel to them even though they are also clearly not an accident. Difficult to describe but I’m looking at those from the horse show, the deer in the trees etc, etc.

    I’m taking lessons from you from now on and promise to try a little harder with my everyday lens rather than the long one.

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  10. Hello Mary!:) Delightful and varied series of photos. I love your art work too. Well done, and congrats for your eighth year of blogging.

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  11. what a gorgeous collection of photos Mary to celebrate your eight years of blogging. Some of them I remember from the past. Your photography and posts are always a joy when I visit, however not so regularly as I might. Time does fly doesn't it. But I do love coming by and taking a peep into your world. Happy summer! hugs from wintery Australia - so cold today!

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  12. Such a great collection of wonderful shots.

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  13. You have taken my breath away with your art!! Wow, Mary!!! I only see your bird photos mostly, I didn't realize the talent that lays behind and between the Saturday blogs I see. Incredible. I like to sketch, but mine is nothing compared to your beauties.

    I'm late getting to visit with you, holiday company from Colorado, but want to wish you a happy week ahead and thank you for joining us birders at I'd Rather B Birdin'

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  14. Hi Mary,

    Happy 8th anniversary! Your images never cease to truly amaze me, and today I have been treated to a spectacular combination of different subjects, some of which I hadn't seen before, like your gorgeous water colour and collage of the peacock, the screech owl in the pines, and your beloved grandmother (do I see a resemblance?), all so very intriguing.

    It has been such a pleasure getting to know you and your art, which always inspires me to be aware of the simple beauty in our natural world, of which there is plenty.

    Have a wonderful 4th, tomorrow, dear friend!

    Hugs,
    Poppy

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  15. Wish you happy blog anniversary. Your blog has been my favorite.

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  16. Mary, your photographs always tell a wonderful story and I have enjoyed seeing many of them since I became host of Mosaic Monday almost one year ago. Some of the ones you've shared today I had seen, your neighbour and her horse for example but far more of them were new to me. My absolute favourite today? The fox and the horse, I almost held my breath as I looked at it as if the scene might shift at any second, amazing!
    Thank you for bringing these stunning images to MM each week.
    Maggie.

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  17. Oh my goodness -- what a delightful look back at your years of blogging. Spectacular! Happy Anniversary, Happy Monday!

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  18. Well, you certainly spoiled us with your magnificient photos! Happy 8th blog anniversary! Now I'm going to look the photos for a third time :)

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  19. Your photos are stunning, Mary. How sad that your grandmother died at such a young age, of tuberculosis. I'm glad it can be treated these days, although it's still quite a serious disease in many parts of the world.
    Your hawk photos are amazing.

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  20. Mary - since I have only been blogging and looking at blogs for a few months, I am grateful that you took the time to recap your last 8 years. What an amazing collection of pictures and art. My favorites are the peacock watercolor, Megan with the horse and the bird house with the burning bush in the background. Wishing you another 8 years of success!

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  21. Hi Mary, love your waxwing and hawks and owl and deer and all those vibrant flowers. You spread out a gorgeous display. Hope you're doing good.

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  22. Très belle série ;-) Céline & Philippe

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  23. Such amazingly wonderful photos...as always! I just love seeing some I never saw before. Your great grandmother has a face that intrigues me...a sadness and beauty. I would love to know more about her!

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  24. Congratulations on eight years of blogging and for the truly remarkable series of pictures you have assembled for us to enjoy.

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  25. Your collections are always awe-inspiring ... I cant even begin to pick a favorite of these -- some i remember, some were new to me, all were wonderful. Thanks for sharing.

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  26. So much beauty in your own piece of Paradise ... thank you for sharing.

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  27. Great post - there are so many things to see and photograph. I saw two new birds and one new mammal today - only got pictures of the mammal. Post to follow!

    Cheers - Stewart M - Grindelwald, Switzerland

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  28. Beautiful Photos as always Mama. Love you!-Britt

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