Happy New Year! 2012

Wow....it has been over a year since I have posted to this blog! I have taken a break to focus on other things....important things! I have wondered many times, throughout the year, if I would ever post here again, but today just feels like a good day to start anew! :-) I recently spent some time cleaning up my photo folders.....with the realization that I have many photos that are share-worthy. So the plan is to keep it simple, a short post now and then, as I find time.

We have experienced a unusual Winter this year.... mild temps, lots of sunshine, and virtually NO snow! So I pulled up some photos from 2006, to show how beautiful and fresh our part of the country looks.... covered with a soft white blanket!

These photos were taken on a drive in December of 2006 , when my husband and I were scouting for Elk.

Close up of the misty fog.... hovering among the trees.

A local farm. I loved the contrast between the red barn and the white snow!

A line up of of fence-posts marks the curve in the road.

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A good verse for the coming year...

The unfailing love of the LORD never ends! By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day. I say to myself, "The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!"

Lamentations 3:22-24 NASB

New Year Wishes

I can hardly believe another month has gone by...and with nary a post to this blog! It has been a busy month, with preparations for the holidays..... including several handmade projects I made as gifts. (more on that in a later post?)

The above photo was taken on December 6th. I was fascinated to see the cloud formation, which was quite unusual for a Winter sky. Anyone have a name for these type of clouds?


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I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a
Happy and Prosperous New Year!!


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It is officially time to get out the seed catalogs that have been stacking up, and do some serious shopping! :-)

Spring Postcards from Idaho

Spring has come to our valley! A couple weeks ago we took a drive up the mountain to a nearby community to attend a funeral. I spotted this idyllic scene on the way up, so persuaded dear husband to stop for me on the way back down,...to grab a photo.

This is a view of the beautiful Clearwater Valley. I loved the resting cattle in the foreground and the grazing sheep in the background. (Click on the photo to enlarge)

Just before we approached the above scene, we were surprised to see this herd of Elk, on the opposite side of the road. Seeing Elk is always an occasion, and a good reason to pull over and stop the car! (Click on photo to enlarge)

And lastly, I leave you with a lovely Spring sunset .... captured from our deck. There wasn't much light left when this was taken, but I liked the effect of the mountain silhouette.


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Happy Spring..... to everyone!

Form vs. Color

I recently gave myself an assignment. It was to take some outdoor photos in black and white only. It was a good lesson, because it forced me to view things differently. Color is usually the first thing to grab the attention, so its absence causes one to look more deeply at scenes and objects....to see and realize the beauty of form, in the absence of color. Below are some images from my self challenge....

A Locust tree in our neighborhood.

The swollen buds of Forsythia.

The skeletal remains of Queen Anne's Lace.

Sun setting behind the mountain.

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"There's something strange and powerful about black-and-white imagery."

Stefan Kanfer

Snow Moon Rising

I couldn't resist the title for this post, though I'm aware that the moon in these photos isn't actually rising, but setting. Maybe a more fitting title would be.....Goodnight, Moon.

These were taken in the morning, the day after our first snow. The sky was a gorgeous shade of blue, making the moon quite visible.

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A close up of the moon above the mountain. It is in the waning stage, a few days after the full moon. (If you click on the photo, you can see it much larger.) Here is a little Moon trivia I found with a quick internet search:

The Moon is visible in the evening (PM side of the Earth) starting a few days past new moon, during first quarter until a few days before full moon. It will be visible in the morning (AM side of the Earth) starting at full moon, during third quarter until a few days before new moon. The Moon will not be visible for a few days around new moon because the sunlit side of the Moon is facing away from Earth, towards the Sun.


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"The moon, like a flower
In heaven's high bower
With silent delight
Sits and smiles on the night."

"...and sometimes the morning." My addendum ;-)

~William Blake, English poet

Welcome December

It's the second day of December, and we are still enjoying such unseasonably mild temperatures that the Lilacs, Service berries, and other shrubs think it is Spring....and are budding! I took advantage of the mild weather today to take a walk in the neighborhood.....camera in hand.

This country road is where I take my (sometimes) daily walk. I tend to not walk as often as I should this time of year, because of rainy days and early darkness. Today the mountains were wearing their white shawl of low hanging clouds. I love the mood and effect it casts on the surrounding scenery.

A view towards town.....with lots of gray clouds in the sky. The river runs just below here, though not visible in the photo. Today I received my first seed and gardening catalogs which, for me, officially marks the beginning of the "Plan and Dream" season. :-)

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"From December to March,
there are for many of us three gardens ~
the garden outdoors,
the garden of pots and bowls in the house,
and the garden of the mind's eye."

~Katherine S. White

Thoughts of Spring

We have had several snows and thaws already this winter. Recently, we received another fresh blanket of snow, with a couple more storms in the forecast for the coming week. We've had more snow and cold weather this winter than I recall for many years. Though it is all quite beautiful, I am beginning to look forward to spring...and warmer weather!

The trees are heavy with snow, but it was the morning sky that drew me outdoors to capture some photos....it was the most glorious shade of blue!

My greenhouse waits in silence for planting time....and I wait, too. In the meantime, I am browsing the seed and garden catalogs, planning, making seed orders, and starting some winter sown containers of perennials and hardy annuals.

The quacking aspen tree we planted in our front yard around 17 years ago has died, so it will have to be cut down and replaced this spring. But for the moment it is still beautiful, dressed in it's pretty white frock!

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Longing for Spring

Once a day and sometimes more
I look out my day dream door
To see if spring is out there yet
I'm really anxious, but mustn't fret.

I see the snow a melting down
and lots of mud and slush around
I know the grass will surely sprout
and birds and flowers will come about.

But why oh why does it take so long?
I'm sure the calendar can't be wrong.
Sunshine fills my heart with cheer
I wish that spring were really here.

Soon mother nature will sound the alarm
Wake up! get dressed, turn on your charm
Winter's gloom has gone its way
It's Spring! It's Spring! Oh Happy Day!

Edna T. Helberg

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Postcards from Idaho

In honor of the upcoming New Year, I thought I would send a couple of 'virtual postcards' from our beautiful state! The photos below were taken on Harris Ridge, about 20 minutes from our home, where my husband and I spent an afternoon Elk hunting this week. The land is owned by a cattle rancher friend of ours and it is a beautiful place....seemingly on top of the world!

There were 30+ plus Elk in this herd, including cows, calves, spikes and one big bull. (The two small dark spots on the left are 2 deer....who were watching with interest.) We hiked about half a mile in nearly a foot of fresh snow, and the scenery was spectacular....providing some great photo opportunities. The hunt was successful and we are grateful to God for the provision of meat to fill the freezer for yet another year. Just as our vegetable garden makes an important contribution to our diet in the summer, this wonderful low-fat grass-fed meat rounds out our healthy diet all through the year!




This tiny log cabin sat just off the road, not far from where we parked our vehicle. I tried to imagine myself living here, in years gone by. I venture to say there are no modern conveniences in this humble abode. ;-)


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Wishing you all a Happy New Year..... and your very best garden in 2008!