Young great blue heron learning to fly

first of the young birds that flew awkwardly to a pine branch near the nest

2nd young bird checking out the view after it's clumsy flight

3rd young bird in another nearby tree top

I last visited the nest on over the weekend on Saturday. So today I was happy to see that the birds were testing their wings and learning to fly to nearby branches. Hope they don't take a tumble and land in the water far below.

one of the parent birds on a nearby dead tree limb watching the young heron attempting to fly. It was hot and the bird had its beak open to try and cool off.

I took another friend to watch the birds as she had never seen a great blue heron's nest. After we stayed for awhile we decided to go blueberry picking down the bog.

On the way to the bog I stopped to take a photo of this huge pine tree that was uprooted in the blizzard this past February. Look at the huge rocks that are still embedded in the soil and tree roots.

My friend, Betty Ann at the bog picking blueberries. Betty Ann loved the Ocean Spray hat I let her wear.

 

one of the bushes we picked there are still a lot more that will ripened in a few days. I plan on making muffins and a blueberry cake with the berries I picked.

This afternoon I picked up my aunt and we took a ride to the Cape to the Lutheran Church on route 6-A in West Barnstable. We went to listen to a Finnish choir group from Helsinki, Finland. They sang some songs in English and some in Finnish. Even though I didn't understand the songs that they sang in Finn I enjoyed the music. I only understand a little Finn.

Elaine

Fuji Film instax mini camera 7 S

Last week while I was checking out Canon digital camera's I spotted a Fuji instant mini camera for $59.oo.  I thought the camera was pretty neat. Kind of reminded me of my first instant Polaroid camera, the Swinger. Anyone else have one of those instant camera's from the 60's ?
Today when I was at WalMart, I decided to to use some of my birthday money and I bought the camera from Fuji. The camera  takes instant credit card sized photos. The camera comes with a pack of film that takes 10 photos and 4 AA batteries. Everything to get started taking pictures right away.
To turn on and off, just pull out the lens. The camera has 4 settings for indoor/dark, outdoors-cloudy/shady, fine/mostly clear day, and sunny/clear day. The film inserts easily by matching up the yellow lines. A green light comes on when the camera is ready to take photos after the lens have been pulled out. The actual photos are a little bigger than those from the old Polaroid I Zone. I thought this little instant camera would be great when you want to use photos right away in a journal or scrapbook pages at home or away from home while traveling.
You tube video on how the camera works

When I told my husband I had bought another camera and was looking at new digital camera's that you could change the lenses, he rolled his eyes.
Elaine

7.25.2013

I love pond lilies.

I took my friend this morning to the cranberry bog to show her the great blue heron nest. What a change in weather from the hot and humid. This morning it was overcast and very windy with the occasional raindrops. I'm glad I had a light jacket on. Below are a few more photos I took of the heron.

great blue heron wading amongst the pond lilies.
The bird standing is one of the parent birds. My brother told me there are 3 young in the next and they are quite big now. I could see 2 of the young birds in the nest, but you can really only see ones back in this photo.. You can barely see a 2nd bird in the back of the nest on the left.
 

hanging on for dear life in the wind.

Below one of the parent birds preening on a tree limb a distance away from the nest.
Preening

   scratching itself

After observing the birds my friend, Shirley and I joined my son, Steven, Robin, Bella and Sammi and off we went to Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford. I took lots of pictures of the animals. Bella loved the zoo and visiting the farm animals. This is a wonderful place to take kids. There is a cafe, gift shop, picnic area and playground area, zoo  animals, birds, reptiles. There is also and area that has farm animals. If it hadn't started to rain we would have stayed longer. I use to take my sons and cousins when they were young. It has change so much since then.  For zoo info click here...Buttonwood Park Zoo
train that rides around the zoo.
  Bella and I riding in the caboose. It started to rain as we boarded the train so we chose to ride in a covered car.
all aboard
Bella riding the carousel with daddy
  riding on the bear

  Bella on the pigs back

After we left the zoo due to the rain we went for a late lunch at Pa Raffa's which is also in New Bedford. Their antipasto salad is out of this world. I order it every time I go. The antipasto comes in several sizes. The can't finish the individual size. So Yummy!        Pa Raffa's restaurant info , menu... http://www.aol.com/
large platter size antipasto salad shared by 4 adults and we still had plenty to bring home. Topped with tons of shredded mozzarella cheese and roasted red peppers which covers the lettuce, tomato wedges, cucumber slices, black olives, onions, green peppers, salami and ham slices and pepperoncini peppers.  The salad dressing is red wine vinegar and oil.

Bella loves pasta, can you tell by her spaghetti sauce face

  concentrating  
Elaine

Found a Great Blue Heron nest

great blue heron near the top of a tall, dead white pine tree down the bog
when I first drove up I saw a Great Blue near the water while it's mate was in the nest
then the bird flew to join it's mate in the nest

Photos below..these brownish colored birds are young ones still in the nest. My brother told me there are 3 young in that nest. Don't know how so many can fit in that flimsy nest without falling into the water below.
      


the nest was a long distance from where I was standing. If you look straight ahead in the photo to the left of the tree that is leaning to the right the nest is near the top where the tree kind of divides.
My brother had told me where to find the nest the other night, and today after I took my dad to two doctor appointments and did his grocery shopping I told him I wanted to go find the heron's nest. I wish I had had the tripod for my camera in the car, because with the zoom far out on my little camera and with the wind blowing my hand kept shaking. I was surprised that my photos came out as clear as they did. From now on the tripod stays in the back of the car.
I was thrilled to see these large birds in their haphazardly built stick nest, because I had never seen a heron nest before. I just love riding around the cranberry bogs because you never know what you will see..foxes, turtles, birds, deer, turkeys, and other wildlife.
Here is a picture of one of the male strays that I had neutered earlier in the year. Junior has turned out to be such a loveable kitty. Junior and the other cats love this cat tower.

Mama kitty who I captured and had spayed in February comes all the time to be fed. The other day I saw her sleeping in my platform bird feeder in the backyard. The feeder is pretty dilapidated and shaky now, because my Uncle Rei built it for me in the 70's. Uncle has been gone for a long time now, and when I see the feeder I think of him. My uncle created wonderful things with wood.
 

Gelli Plate papers

Good Morning bloggers. I haven't created anything in a long time, and this morning as I was reading my emails I spied my gelli plate. So, I decided to drag out a few paints, deli wrap, copy paper and my brayers.

I wasn't thinking when I created the paper below. I painted the gelli plate and then wrote on it. Note to self..next time you need to write the letters backwards so they will print the correct way. Duh!!! (you would have thought I would I would have remembered that from years ago when I did my first  eraser carved words.)  I used 3 different greens and then some iridescent green paint in a tube. I wanted to eventually use this page for a beach themed project. (Life is beautiful under the sea)

 

I found this on the Gelli Arts site  click to watch the video. Informative video on using words with your Gelli Plate

Below are the few papers that I worked on. I need to find a good source for some fun stencils.

  pinks and purple iridescent paints sprayed with white dylusions

  painted gelli plate with stencil and doilies covered with deli paper

finished deli paper using the stencil and doily above

a few different gold paints then sprayed with orange dylusions spray mist. I then used a removable Recollections brayer with dots to run over the surface of the gelli plate

black paint with yellow dylusions spray mist

gold paints then I used a jar cover to make the circles. I wish I hadn't then used this deli paper to clean off the plate,

cleaning off the plate of excess paints

iridescent blues background..cleaning off the gelli plate

 cleaning off the plate

I like these better than my first attempts using my gelli plate.

Last week was so very hot and humid, I didn't feel like doing much of anything, but staying indoors near the air conditioning. Last Wednesday I had to go and do grocery shopping for my parents, and so I picked up my granddaughter, Bella and we went for a quick visit to Plymouth Correctional facility. No, I wasn't carting her off to jail.  There is a area that plants are sold and they have farm animals that you can buy bags of feed for 50 cents to feed and pet the animals. Bella loved it there but we couldn't stay long as it was so hot and humid. There were goats, cows, mini ponies, rabbits, chickens, pigs with babies, sheep with a baby lamb.

all set to feed the animals

here chickie chickie

loved the ponies

looking at the sheep, and the baby lamb ran away

  Resting in the shade after feeding the animals

  out of the hot sun and into the air conditioned car to cool off.

Sunday, July 14, 2013 baptism at Sacred Heart Church, Middleboro

Sammi wearing sunglasses. 2  1/2 months old

 

I have a few Butterfly bushes in my back yard. The blooms are so pretty.

Off to do some errands and then weight watcher's tonight. Wish me luck.

Elaine

P.S...do any of you use picture trail? Do you still maintain it or have you deleted your account? Long before I started my blog I started a picture trail site to store art photos and projects and photos that I've taken. I haven't used it  lately I am thinking of deleting my account, but first I'd need to copy all of the photos that are in my albums to CD that are stored on my picture trail. Still debating on what to do....keep it or delete it.      www.picturetrail.com/elaine_akers