211 Hawksbeard and Aphids

I got on a little Wikipedia kick the other night. I had a sudden urge to know what kind of mutant dandelion was growing in my yard, and I was involved in a discussion about ladybugs and aphids. I wanted to make sure I knew what I was talking about, so I did some research.

Turns out, those are NOT dandelions at all, but something called Hawksbeard (Crepis). Which led me to another site, since wikipedia's article is a "stub". So, I headed on over to the USDA site, and found out that my particular kind of Crepis is a Crepis pulchra (smallflower hawksbeard).

I also have a friend in California that was complaining about the hundreds of Ladybugs (and she looked that up and apparently she actually has lady beetles not lady bugs) on her lawn, and that reminded me of a picture I had recently taken of this tiny little bug on my Crepis. I wanted to be sure before I started threatening her with aphids, so I looked it up to make sure it truly was an aphid. I did not know there were so many kinds of aphids. I found out way more than I really cared to know about aphids. Like the fact that they give birth to live young. And of course it led me to another site where I found out I am the not-so-proud owner of hundreds (or thousands) of Brown Citrus Aphids. And I have no citrus ...

Being the weirdo that I am, I took pictures of my unwelcome guests the next morning. And wouldn't ya know it ... they apparently give birth frequently. I was definitely NOT looking to take a picture of that wonderful event, but I did anyway. Later as I was looking through my pictures I discovered squirmy little legs emerging from the backside of a fat aphid.

Poor aphid Mom looks like she doesn't get a moment to herself either ...

210 Love Thursday: Zoo Edition

I was thinking I had not caught a Love Thursday picture this week. I was scrolling through my zoo captures, and I saw it! A HEART! Sure, it is hard to look past the orangutan and her gleaming smile, but look to the bottom of the picture. It is small, and it is upside down, but it is a heart just the same.

We all deserve a little love in our lives.

Happy Love Thursday!

209 Teaser

Just a quick preview before I go to bed. I had a WONDERFUL day full of adventure and fun. I took a TON of pictures that I can't wait to share, but I am EXHAUSTED! If I were standing I would completely fall over. I uncovered the exercise (edit-see how tired I am, I meant to say exercise BIKE) and the BowFlex last night, and then walked my tushy off today. Lots of sun and exercise. Even more fatigue!
Insects and a Barn and the Zoo, OH MY!

Tomorrow when I am more coherent I will elaborate!

208 In Mimi's Garden

We took a day trip down to see Chip's family in Cleveland, MS. It rained off and on the whole way down, the dark clouds closely followed by white fluffy ones and blue skies. I still love that you can see the rain falling in far off clouds. The slight grey shadow it creates underneath.
The moment I stepped out of the car I knew I was going to be taking A LOT of pictures. These beauties were the first things I saw!And then I took advantage of everything that would sit still. Which did NOT include the flowers! The wind was quite brisk and the flowers were waving wildly. And there is a feeling of peace and timelessness in Mimi's yard. The wind chimes sound softly.
And this patio set is straight out of the 50's or 60's. It came with the house. As I said, the wind was strong, and the flowers were swaying a good bit, but that didn't stop me from taking pictures ...

Katie couldn't wait to see her cousins. Tori was sick and was only able to stop in for a few minutes. Michael and Scott were there most of the time, and Will showed up a little later. They found a football to throw around, so Katie and Connor made a nuisnce of themselves trying to play along. Michael is a Dad, so I expect him to be patient with the kids, but Scott is just 14. Most boys his age try their best to ignore small children, but Scott is WONDERFUL with them! If they annoyed him trying to worm in on the football tossing then it didn't show. Katie had SO much fun with her cousins. She can't wait to see them at her birthday party next month!

Katie also took control of my camera for a little while. I love when she takes pictures! It is fun to see what she finds the most interesting, and to see how she improves in framing a shot. I did not retouch any of these, although there are a couple pretty good shots I might go back and clean up a little. Katie still has a bit of a problem getting the whole subject into her shot. She did pretty good until she asked me to stand by the tree. Then I ended up with a couple shots of my legs. She still tends to be happy as long as she gets at least part of what she wanted into her shot. I think she is doing great, and I am less tentative about trusting her with my camera.

And we got to see my Great Niece Presley. She started walking the night before and she showed off her new skills for us!
Connor was hilarious to watch playing football. He would just run back and forth, trying to be wherever the ball was. Every once in a while he would get handed the football, and he would walk it to the next person, or more often than not, SPIKE it like he had made a touchdown. Of course the instant the ball was taken away form him he would scream and cry. That part was not as funny.Connor also discovered Pop Pop's John Deere. What boy can resist a ride-on lawnmower??
We finished the evening off with a fish fry. The guys all sat outside and fried up a huge amount of crappie that Tanya's father had caught. It was the first time I had ever eaten crappie, and it was delicious!! Much better than the traditional fried catfish. And of course there were fries and hushpuppies. Oh, and Mimi made coleslaw that was so yummy! And to finish it all off ... PECAN PIE! Yum! Yum! and YUM!

207 SOOC Saturday

It is Straight Out Of Camera Saturday (or Sunday) again over at Slurping Life! And because I appreciate being forced to NOT edit a photo I am joinging in for the second time. It takes someone twisting my arm to not automatically throw a picture into my Photoshop, but I guess I can give up control for one day.

Today was an outdoors kinda day. It was a bit of a surprise since the forecast was for thunderstorms throughout the day. Connor walks to the back door as soon as he can, begging to go outside. The rain would not have stopped him (and later in the day it DID NOT stop him). But, that is beside the point ... other than a shower before we woke up the day stayed pretty nice until 5pm. And of course, the camera came into the backyard with me. Katie had a few friends over and they were running around like wild things UNTIL ... they saw this guy.

Gross! I just realized it looks like he is sitting on a tongue! *shudder* Rest assured, he is just on the door to Katie's playhouse.

It does not matter how many times you tell a 6 year old girl that a grasshopper can't hurt her, she will still run screaming. I had the pleasure of THREE six year old girls squealing. To be fair, this guy does look pretty nasty! When I tried to shoo him away from the playhouse he took a flying leap and I lost him for a moment (much to the horror of the girls), but he was found hanging out in the tree. Beautiful, in that creepy crawly way that bugs have.

I mean ... EWWW! Check out the way his back foot is holding on to that leaf!

I'm glad I couldn't catch him to move him!

And what would a post be without a picture of a dandelion? So, here is one SOOC.

My Wish for Today:

Enjoy things the way they are, not how you think they should be.

Appreciate the natural beauty of the world around you!

206 My Three Wishes

My Three Wishes, right now? Right this minute ... Well, there is always the first wish out of our mouths in this family...

1. I wish for a CURE for DIABETES! Sure, Katie is extremely lucky to have the type of diabetes she does. She takes pills instead of shots. Her A1C is phenomenol! We have amazing control of her blood sugar. But, it is not a CURE! And there are so many kids and adults out there who are living with diabetes who are not as lucky. So, our first wish is always A CURE FOR DIABETES!

2. My second wish is for a successful business. I am launching my own photography business. Yes, no more dragging my feet. This is the real thing. Dandelion Farms Photography is now seeking models to build my portfolio. The first five sittings will be done absolutely free (prints not included, of course). If you are in the Desoto County, MS or Memphis, TN area and would like to sit for me leave a comment or email me.

3. My third wish? I wish everyone would just realize that we have to make the best of what we have! Stop complaining about the current administration. I will stop complaining about the past administration. Deal? We have all come to realize that voting for a President is choosing the lesser of two evils, and I think we have made the right choice! I hope we find that to be the case in the coming years! I am not blindly following anyone, but this is where we are RIGHT NOW! Make the best of it!

So, right now those are my three wishes. The first two will stay pretty constant, but that third one is up for debate on a daily basis. I have of course left out the wish that my family is healthy and happy - THAT wish goes without saying!

I am not a Genie, and I can't grant you three wishes, but I would love to hear them anyway!! What are you wishing for right NOW? Silly, selfish, or serious!

205 Its Love Thursday Y'all!

If you have been around here often enough, then you have noticed I have a certain penchant for taking pictures of weeds. There is a profusion of dandelions on my blog. I try to say it is just because it is the only flower in my yard, but truly, they are gorgeous ... if they were only in someone else's yard!! Well, I have discovered a new weed in my yard. And, like the dandy, it is beautiful! It is also a perfect accompaniment to Love Thursday. The first time I saw this weed I took this picture ... (and yes, the bloom is in the shape of a heart)

And then I looked past the buds and blooms, and I noticed the LEAVES! Amazing!

Can you see it? Here, lets get a little closer ...

But, I still had not seen the bloom fully opened. I am not normally running around my yard in the morning, so I thought I would look outside and see if it was a morning bloomer. And, of course it is....
Oddest thing about this though ... the leaves, which are spread wide when the blooms are furled, are laying down when the bloom is full! And then, with such heart-shaped perfection, I had to play with the hues! And have a little photo editing fun.And, to finish off this Love Thursday post, with a love that no one can miss!

Happy Love Thursday! Where are you finding love today?

and, as always, stop by Chookooloonks, the originator of Love Thursday!

---after posting this and heading over to Chookooloonks, I went through her comments to check out the other Love Thursday posts ... and I clicked over to the lovely Gabrielle Kai Photography blog ... and what did I see?? The same Heart Leaves!