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, December 30, 2017

Sixty-Five Images, Both New and 2017 Favorites~



HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I hope that everyone enjoyed a beautiful time together celebrating Christmas.  Our week was packed full of wonderful fun.  A special dinner celebrating the husband's 70th birthday, and then came mine and it was a joy filled day, with all kinds of sweet surprises. Next we had a lovely dinner outing for our 48th wedding anniversary, followed by Christmas Eve at our daughter Hillary's and her family and then Christmas morning with daughter Brittany and her family.  Our youngest daughter was very much involved with all of the festivities, though she resides in Florida and could not make it home.
The Snowy Owl above was my birthday gift to myself last week.  It needs a name...and so go ahead if you leave a comment, I will take suggestions ;)

Included in this post presentation are some of my favorite images from this past year.
How do you choose which images you will share in a post, do you linger over them, delete a few, add more back in ...is it a pop of a favorite colour that draws you to it ...are there subtle textures, lighting, or things that sentimentalizes some unique memory you had, symbolic of something special...

For me, I think it is colour, texture and the willingness to be a little bit creative as in using simple water reflections, that as the water moves, it also moves me to a place that I a few minutes before had not been and yet all of it very calming and peaceful~    

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:






Christmas Eve with daughter Hillary's family~


Christmas morning with daughter Brittany and her family~


One of our two grand-cats~






Yesterday I had my knee surgery to remove what the DR found to be scar tissue bands that were creating for me tremendous pain and tightness to the point it felt like I was wearing a tourniquet.  Today as I write this post, I am feeling very hopeful~


White Throated Sparrow~

Eastern Towhee~




Crow and Red-tailed Hawk chase~



I loved it then and love it now this capture...a Sandhill Crane ;)~



This was from my journey to Florida last Winter~






My daughter Ashleigh and me~





Great Blue Herons nest building~



Anhinga...a real favorite~


The Brown Pelican and the BIG FISH!!!










Wild Coyotes are growing in great numbers here and are a real pest~



Red-Shouldered Hawk~







White-tailed Deer~



Mom with her 6 Baby Groundhogs~



June 2, the first fawn that was seen down the lane, one of twins...maybe even dear Muff~



Carolina Wrens and the young~







 





The Bald Eagles pair I keep up with had three Eaglets this past season~




Black Swallowtail~





A Chipmunk begging the Groundhog for some carrot~



The last two...sadly all others were taken by Red Foxes~



Red-tailed Hawk~



Mississippi Kite~



One of Mannie's twin fawns took a brief ride one day ;)~









Chickadee and Black Throated Green Warbler~




Northern Mockingbird in territorial display~





Ruby Throated Hummingbird~



Sunrise and fog~



Red-Shouldered Hawk~





Cedar Waxwing came to my window~



Yellow-Rumped Warbler~



My favorite from Autumnal colours~



Great Blue Heron~



My favorite fawn for this season...Muff~





Muff's twin sister watching for their mother~



Turkey Vulture~



White-tailed Deer~






Red-tailed Hawk~






The End of 2017 posts by Mary Howell Cromer of Tingsgrove.
Be safe, be healthy and be loved...you are each and all a blessing~

11 comments:

  1. Hello Mary, I hope you are doing well. It looks like from all the photos you had a very happy Christmas, wonderful birthday and Anniversary celebrations. Gorgeous birds and critters. I enjoyed all the photos. Thank you so much for linking up your post. I also appreciate your visits and comments on my blog this past year. I wish you and yours all the best in 2018. Happy New Year!

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  2. What a wonderful review of the year!
    May many blessings be yours in the new year!

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  3. It's always a pleasure to sit down and look at your photos! I'm amazed at all that you see and photograph! It's a joy to visit you my friend. Happy new year!

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  4. I can only imagine how long it took you to sift through your 2017 photos to make these selections - because from where I sit, your pictures are always so amazing I am not sure how a choice can be made. Thanks for sharing your talent with us throughout the year, even when you were in pain. I sincerely hope that 2018 brings you peace and freedom from discomfort! Happy New Year!

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  5. oh, so many great shots. Thank you for the visit through 2017

    Happy New Year

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  6. Dear Mary, What a prodigious work. You have shared with us some of the most extraordinary photographs.
    Please take care of yourself. I wish you and your family a very Happy New Year. I also wish you health and prosperity.

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  7. Lots of December celebrating! Looks like it was all fabulous fun! Boy, the photos are amazing...every one! You get so many great shots all the time, and it had to be hard to pick a selection for this post!

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  8. You looked like you were having fun, I love your blog, I am not very good at recognising which one, sorry. Have a wonderful new year Mary.

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  9. Happy New year Mary. But goodness, how did you find the time to take all those wonderful pictures and convert them into a blog post? those poor groundhogs - nature is so cruel to maintain that essential balance. I can see that you enjoyed Christmas as much as ourselves, filled with family ge togethers and happy days. Let's hope indeed that 2018 is a better year for all of us on both sides of the Atlantic and that our two nations can be best of friends, just we two are.

    Hope you staying free of the extreme temps that we have just watched on the news? Stay safe.

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  10. OH Mary I don't know how in the world you choose favorites, since every picture you take seems to be a small miracle. Love all these memories and beauty. I think the fawn riding on mother's back is still one of my all time favorite wildlife photos (anywhere, not just here) .. and actually, although you remind us that they are pests, the coyote and horse photo is amazing (I don't remember that one the way I do some of your others -- so I'm really glad you posted it again).

    It looks like you had a wonderful Holiday/Birthday/Anniversary Season .... Happy New Year (and I hope your knee keeps getting better).

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  11. so many gorgeous images and memories from your year Mary. I particularly love the ones of the countryside. Thank you for taking us along. Wishing you peace and a very happy, healthy, happy and inspirational 2018. hugs from me to you always xx

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