Cooperative Grasshopper

When I first saw this little creature, he was on the green leaves of the shrub around which the morning glories twine. I took a few shots, but it was hard to focus on him in the twilight, and then my batteries died. I went inside to switch out the batteries and almost called it a night. But I wanted to have another go at the flowers, so I went back out and took a few shots of closing morning glories before I noticed that my little friend was posing for me.

Reservoir, Again

Learning Curve

I got Photoshop Elements 4.0 for Mac for my birthday yesterday (thanks, Dave!), so today I went to the bookstore to find a book to help me figure it out (because that's how I learn best). I messed around with a cloud picture this afternoon and evening, but I don't love it, so this one seemed more fitting for the day.

Arborist

The tree guys (but their trucks say "arborists") came today. The woods were encroaching on the house, and it was driving me crazy, so I was very happy to see them. They took down this pine tree and some other trees and branches. It was a great birthday present for me!

Fences

Lily

Day lily, tiger lily, some such thing. A sign of summer, anyway!

Ben

It's Ben's turn for an updated photo for the 8x10 frame in the family room. I think this might be the one.

Weird Pansies

I've been experimenting with long shutter speeds for the past couple days. This is one result, with a bit of post-production tweaking. It probably just looks like a lousy picture to most people, but I think it's kind of cool, in a weird way.

Clover

Twenty-One Years

And a dozen roses. Happy anniversary to us!

Birthday Pie

My guy got his strawberry pie tonight for his birthday. Happy birthday, Husbo!

She Plays Socks

Someone gave Aimée socks with musical notes on them for her graduation; today she played the music and discovered it comes from Joplin's "The Entertainer." Who plays socks?! I should be glad they were not on her feet, I suppose.

Mom & Dad

My in-laws are visiting from Illinois; here they are after touring Gillette Castle, an early 20th-century actor's home. It's great to have them with us.

Green Cherries

Graduation Party

Self-Portrait with Graduate

Volcano

Last science activity of the year. It has clearly been too long since we did a baking soda-and-vinegar volcano, as Kipper thought it was pretty cool.

Poem for My Graduate

Be gentle. I only have a hundred or so words to work with on my Magnetic Poetry calendar.

Reading Stance

Party Shopping

Aimée's graduation party is Saturday, so I am busy preparing. Today was a big shopping day, with a trip to Target for decorations (pictured) and Costco for chips and soda, etc.

Nina

Our church's spring handbell concert was tonight. None of it would be possible without Nina, who oversees the entire program and personally directs three of the five groups that performed. Her patience with all of us, young and old (and I think sometimes the old require more patience than the young) is legendary, and I praise God for her ministry among us.

Mets Baseball

They lost, but it was a fun game right to the end.

48-Hour Reader

This weekend Aimée is participating in a 48-hour book reading challenge; the idea is to read and blog about as many books as possible in a 48-hour window. So we are seeing a lot of this today, not that that's unusual. Info on the challenge can be found here, and Aimée's book blog is called Chapter Eighteen.

Setting Up for Sunday

Putting the covers on the tables for handbell performances is a tedious, finicky, multistep process best suited to perfecionists. I managed to avoid participating tonight by taking pictures instead.

Sleepy Guy

We did some babysitting this evening. I wasn't the only tired one!

Hail

I was out in a pretty impressive thunderstorm today--impressive by Connecticut standards, anyway. Years can go by without my seeing hail, so it was worth a photo.

Droplets

Spider

Damselfly

Project 365 forces me to learn stuff, like this: dragonflies rest with their wings open, while damselflies rest with their wings closed. Oh, and, I recommend clicking to see the image in its full glory.

Rosebud Impatiens

Every year I get a hanging plant for the front of the house. I like these rosebud impatiens (also known as double impatiens) best. I bought my plant this afternoon.