a few favorites

(very random)

In the Spring of 2011, we re-nested 3 baby barred owls.  This is "Barry," the first baby owl, so named by the neighborhood children.
I blogged about the owls:
Re-nesting 
Baby Owl #2 

I love exploring nature with my camera.  The tiny details of flowers fascinate me.  Sometimes I'm lucky and capture a creature as well.  This photo is my blog avatar which I've used since I started blogging in January of 2009.

I love to hike, especially in the mountains.  This photo was taken at the end point of a hike in Lake Louise, Canada--The Plain of Six Glaciers.  It is one of my all-time favorite hikes.  The scenery along the entire route is stunning.  To the tea house is about 3.5 miles with an elevation gain of 1200 feet. 

photos of the hike on AlbertaWow

I love the beach and the ocean.  I grew up 3 hours from the Eastern shore of the US, so trips to the beach were frequent.  This is a photo of Cupecoy, a beach on a favorite Caribbean island--St. Maarten.  

Alphabe-Thursday, hosted by Ms Jenny, is so much fun!  This week our letter  is "F."  Come visit others' submissions HERE and join in the fun! 



photos by me  © 2007-2013   all rights reserved

Eager Oliver is...

Ebulliant!
 
He is Enormously Enamored with his new catnip toys! 

no Ennui here!

Why this toy is so scrumptious, it MUST be Edible!

Alphabe-Thursday, hosted by Ms Jenny, is so much fun!  This week our letter  is "E."  Come visit others' submissions HERE and join in the fun! 


 
photos by me  © 2013   all rights reserved

child + dog

This picture was unintentionally over exposed when taken.  I do like that version, but decided to play with the photo in PicMonkey.  Now it's edited a bit.  To me, this scene seems to have a timeless, ethereal quality. 

It was taken on a trip to the Caribbean island of St. Maarten in Winter 2012.

Alphabe-Thursday, hosted by Ms Jenny, is so much fun!  This week our letter  is "D."  Come visit others' submissions HERE and join in the fun! 


 
photo by me  © 2012   all rights reserved

Apple Cranberry Cobbler

My daughter and I made this dish for Thanksgiving dessert and it was oh so yummy!

INGREDIENTS:  (Measurements are approximate.  This fills an 11" diameter round 1¾ inch deep dish baker well.)
4 granny smith apples or other tart apples (I like McIntosh when I can get them.), thinly sliced

½ C heaping, fresh whole cranberries
1 orange-- zest and 1/3 C juice
1 lemon-- zest and ¼ C juice

spices--2 t cinnamon, ¼ t freshly grated nutmeg, ¼ t cardamom

¼ C white sugar
¼ C brown sugar

 
½ C pecans, slightly broken
butter
pie crust dough for one pie

sugar crystals (a few tablespoons)


DIRECTIONS: Into a bowl add the following:  
lemon juice
orange juice 
spices

sugars

orange and lemon zest

Cut cranberries in half and add to bowl.  Stir.

Add sliced apples and mix till apples are well coated.

Lightly butter a baking dish and spread the apple mixture into it.  Sprinkle with the nuts.

Dot with just a little bit of butter if you wish.  I used about 1 t.

Roll out the pie dough and cut with cookies cutters.  Dip the top of each into the sugar crystals and place on top of the apples.

Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes or however long it takes to very lightly brown the edges of the pie dough cookies.  

NOTES:  
1.  We made this dish for Thanksgiving by "intuition."  I re-made it today to get some measurements.  However, this is more of an idea than an actual recipe.  You can add ingredients in whatever proportion you like.

2.  I like to make a dessert of this nature less sweet especially if I'm going to eat it with ice cream.  The amount of sugar in this recipe is about right for me.  The dish is still a bit tart which I like.    You may wish to add more sugar.  This was delicious the next day for breakfast.  Yep.  We made a lot and there was some left over.   

3.  We used a clay baking dish on Thanksgiving and I used one today.  I like how the clay keeps the cobbler moist.


4.  I was inspired to make this by Rocky Mountain Woman's amazing Apple Cranberry Tart.  It's different from mine, but it was the inspiration.  She has wonderful photos and great directions, too!  So do go check it out!  One day, I'll make her tart, too! 

Alphabe-Thursday, hosted by Ms Jenny, is so much fun!  This week our letter  is "C."  Come visit others' submissions HERE and join in the fun! 


 
 photos by me  © 2013   all rights reserved

blessings

In the US we celebrate this day of counting blessings.  I feel blessed to have met so many wonderful people through the medium of blogging.  I wish health and joy for you all!
 

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

~John F. Kennedy 

LINKS for some inspiration:
Huffington Post  Thanksgiving prayers, blessings, and quotes (scroll down just a little for slideshow)
Poets.org  poems about gratitude and thanks

Alphabe-Thursday, hosted by Ms Jenny, is so much fun!  This week we begin the alphabet once more--with the letter  "B" of course! Come visit others' submissions HERE and join in the fun! 


 
 photo by me  © 2013   all rights reserved

snow!

 

Melting snow dripping off the trees is endlessly fascinating.  However that warm grate below is calling... 

Wordless Wednesday--where I linked up: 

  The Art and Tree Chatter of Aquariann

Create With Joy

  

 
photos by me © 2013  all rights reserved

abstract

design on a business garage door in Asheville, North Carolina

Alphabe-Thursday, hosted by Ms Jenny, is so much fun!  This week we begin the alphabet once more--with the letter  "A" of course! Come visit others' submissions HERE and join in the fun! 


 
 photos by me  © 2013   all rights reserved

The End: Alphabet Soup

The end of yet another odyssey with Alphabe-Thursday has been reached!  What a challenge it has been at times to come up with a creative post for the current letter of the alphabet.  I've enjoyed this journey with you, my readers and fellow Alphabe-Thursdayers, sharing our posts and lives. 
Thanks, Jenny!
(You can click on any of the following links to go to that post.)

A  Athabasca Glacier  a hike in the Canadian Rockies through a landscape that seems other worldly

B  Animal Bridge   wildlife crossing over the highway in Banff National Park, Canada

C   cats...sleeping pose expertise   so many wonderful ways to sleep!






 
D   Desert Dwelling   Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado, USA

E   Eager Oliver  in which Oliver elucidates his elan for life




 




F   Five Fs  a montage of random photos

G   Green  photos from my yard on this day




 

H   haiku  3 photos + 3 haikus

I   invaders  a bird's nest in my yard is invaded by snails




 

 

J   July  a few random photos from my life in July

K   Krohn Conservatory  a visit to this most wonderful greenhouse during a butterfly exhibit







L   Lepidoptera  butterflies and moths

M   Castries Market: St. Lucia  on National Geographic's  "World's Best Top Ten Food Markets" list






 



N   Professional Napper  Oliver shows off his skill!

O  orange  photos of random orange things





 


P  pertinent to the letter P

Q  quiet  Balenbouche Creek, St Lucia (and a haiku)





 


R  Bow River  near Canmore, Canada

S  signs  I've come across in my travels







 

T  turquoise Lake Louise  Banff National Park, Canada

U  seeming to undulate








 

V  Roadside Views  "drive-by shootings"

W  water  Canadian Rockies












 

X  xenial Sunny Point garden  delightful organic garden of Sunny Point Cafe in West Asheville, North Carolina

Y  yesterday  old family photos








 


Z  zealous zzzs  There's a lot of SnooZZing that goes on around here!

THE END

LINKS:
POST   Alphabet Soup I
POST   Alphabet Soup  II
POST   Alphabet Soup  III
POST   Alphabet Soup IV

Dear Ms.Jenny, 
I LOVE Alphabe-Thursday!  Thank you so much for hostessing this awesome meme AND visiting EVERY single post!  You have created a wonderful community of bloggers.


It is often challenging to come up with a post for each letter as well as committing to posting for every letter.  But it is so much FUN!

So begins Round 8 in which we start with the Letter "A."    Come visit others' submissions HERE and join in the fun!  

NOTE:  You do not have to post for every letter.

photos by me © 2009 - 2013  all rights reserved