Extra-territorial

This is a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird that I observed over a two-day period at the local arboretum. She had competition and was not going to concede in any way, shape or form. Her feistiness was inspirational. A female warrior. She didn't care that I stood close by. No, this girl had a one-track mind: keeping the competitor away from her flower patch. What a treat this was and worth the sunburn and mosquito bites.

Sharing with Anni at

And also Stewart at

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Please visit the links to view other birds around the world!

Fishing and Bonding

This has been a pretty good summer. Many days have been spent fishing with my dad, enjoying each other's company and getting a good tan in the process. After fishing we always stop by Sonic so Daddy can get a large caramel malt.

Around the middle of August I caught a 5 lb. bass, reeling him in all by myself. I may have mentioned it in another post; if so, sorry to repeat myself. The last three times we've been fishing we haven't caught anything worth bragging about. Daddy suggested the next time to get out to the fishing hole by daybreak on a cool morning. I told him to test out his theory first and if it works, then I'm in.

It's so hard not to have my big girl camera by my side, but I want to concentrate on bonding with my dad and fishing without the distraction of photography. Now I can't totally eliminate photography, being in such beautiful surroundings, so this is where my trusty iPhone takes up the slack.

This is my dad. The foggy morning was beautiful. In Lightroom I chose the Creamtone preset.

Five horses came galloping up to us at one point. The one closest in the frame was their ringleader, apparently.
Anyway, I tried to make friends with him and remain calm, but he had crazy eyes and wouldn't stop hovering and snorting.
He was all up in my face. I don't know much about horses and was afraid of getting kicked, so I hightailed it to the other side of the pond.

The pole from the bird house looks like it's holding up this horse's head. Haha

I don't know what kind of horse this is, but I love that blonde mane.

Isn't he cute?

Wishing everyone a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend!

Sharing with the wonderful Tex at

And also sweet Eileen at

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Blessed

Last week I made a quick dash to the local arboretum with the express purpose of photographing butterflies. Instead, I was blessed with a female ruby-throat who guarded her patch of flowers tenaciously. She was so obsessed with protecting her territory that I don't even think she noticed me, since I stood a mere 5 feet from her perch. Below are shots of her preening. I have many more. Oh, so many! I thank God for this beauty and for the opportunity to click to my heart's content.

I know I'm behind in visiting. For whatever reason I cannot seem to get back into the blogging routine which is why I don't like to take breaks. If any of you are on Facebook, please connect with me there (see my badge on the sidebar). Thank you for your patience as I slowly get around to making visits.

Sharing with Anni at

And also Stewart at
Wild Bird Wednesday

This post was chosen by Hilary at The Smitten Image for her Phine Photography category. Thank you, dear girl!!! I am honored.

Hummer-mania

Greetings everyone! Sorry I have been a bit absent from my blog and visiting. I am trying to rectify the situation, but it seems that something always comes up. For example, tomorrow and Wednesday I will be in Mississippi, fishing with my dad. While there I will get to see my 5 lb. bass that Daddy mounted for me!

Last Friday, a friend (Annette), from the Spring birding class, invited our entire class to her home to see her hummingbirds. It was so fun and I am so thankful for the experience. Annette let me hold a feeder and as I stood very still a bodacious hummer came and drank from it. He did not perch on my finger, but I could feel the cool air from his wings and I was super close, able to make out every tiny detail. I was in awe, as you can imagine. It was also nice to photograph them drinking from her plants in addition to the numerous feeders she has placed around her magical yard. They seemed really smitten with the Firebush plant. Annette let me come back again later that evening for round 2. Thank you, Annette!

Cat's Whiskers

We did not get to go the the Hummingbird Festival in St. Francisville because when Double D came home from CA, he had burned the bottom of his feet at the beach. He has been limping and hurting, so no walking for him for a while!

A Humdinger of a Weekend

I'm SO excited!! Today and tomorrow will be filled with hummingbird activities. If you're reading this post between 9AM and 10:30AM, I will be at a friend's home to see and photograph the multitudes of hummingbirds that are visiting her yard. She has trained them to perch on her fingers as she holds the feeder. Not all of them participate, but the gutsy ones do, apparently. I believe my camera's video feature will come in handy for this. Hope I remember how it works!

Saturday morning Double D and I are headed to St. Francisville's Annual Hummingbird Festival where hummingbird biologists will capture and band birds at two private gardens.

In the meantime, I have been enjoying the pair that have visited my yard this week; an adult male and a juvenile male (I think).

Lullaby...and goodnight....

Depending on which web site you consult, below are the collective nouns for hummingbirds:

Charm (my personal fave)

Troubling

Hover

Glitter

Shimmer

Bouquet

Chattering

Drum

Sharing with next week's.

Thanks so much, Anni!

Still here!

I've missed blogging and I've missed my blogging friends. A huge THANK YOU to those that checked in on me in my absence. I did not mean to be gone so long, but life suddenly became a bit overwhelming and I needed a break from just about everything, only doing what was absolutely necessary.

Chance is still with me, but the Vestibular Disease has taken a toll on him and us. He wouldn't eat anything for a while so I cooked chicken and rice for him. He tried to humor me, but soon after, threw it all up. My next move was offering canned food. He gobbled it up like there was no tomorrow and most importantly it stayed down. We took him in for follow up blood tests and learned that his liver is severely compromised. He also has cataracts and hearing loss. The vet said Chance is on borrowed time...he's 14, after all. She said to give him all the canned food he wants and keep him comfortable. I pray the Lord will take him when it's time, to spare me having to make "that" decision. Ooops, here come the tears.

My beautiful and loving Chance in 2011.

Let's see...what else have I been doing? I worked for my former boss for ten days which left me very tired. But it was so nice to talk to some of my clients. We have the nicest customers!

I also enjoyed a few fishing excursions with my dad. Caught a 5 lb. bass, which made my dad so proud he took it to the taxidermist to have it mounted. Exactly an hour after I caught the 5-pounder, Daddy caught a 6-pound bass. It was one of the best fishing days we've had so far.

A couple weeks ago Double D and I purchased new bikes. We have been riding around our neighborhood every day. I love riding so much better than walking or running. The most distance we've covered in one ride is 5 miles; the goal is to get up to 10 miles. I installed an app called Runkeeper that stores all the details, such as average mph, speed, distance, GPS coordinates and calories burned. It's a great way to get us moving.

One more thing I'll mention is another app called Day One. I use it to journal my prayers. Often I find that my thoughts are so easily distracted that I can hardly put one coherent sentence together in my head. However, writing my prayers helps me focus. I figure God must love the written word since he gave us the Bible. I think doing this has finally solved my prayer problem.

Well, I've prattled on enough. If you're still here, below are images of an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail that visited my lantana on August 8th. Surprisingly, I really love the black and white versions! I will catch up with everyone this week!