Nature | May 2026

 I have so many pictures this month. From tree frog tadpoles to dew drop bejeweled roses this May was packed with natural beauty. My favorite picture this month has to be the roses.

I found this bee impersonating fly who paused for a couple pictures.

This is the first year that I have ever seen the parts of a Cottonwood tree that release the tufts of cotton. We were at a waterfront park after a storm and we found several of these cotton dispensers knocked to the ground. I was fascinated to learn what goes on at the tops of those giant trees. 

A smart little frog has taken up residence in this hollow post. I hear him singing after dark. His music is many times amplified by the pipe. In the video you can hear the other frogs in the background and see how loud the pipe frog is in comparison.

The frogs I saw mating in April must have laid a healthy batch of eggs because our little pool is filled with hundreds of tadpoles.

The pictures of the tadpoles are unclear because all my camera wants to do is focus on the surface of the water.

It has been so fun to go out and check the tadpoles everyday. They do not have legs yet. It is taking so long for them to grow legs!

Something about this millipede looked a little off, as in not lifelike. After I took the picture of the millipede I poked it. It remained static. I'd say it didn't look lifelike because it wasn't alive. Oh well. I still thought the picture turned out to be good.

I was super excited to find this baby Spiney Soft Shell Turtle during a visit to my brother's pond. It was so cute!

Here is a skink that was fun to be able to observe. I have never seen one at our house. It was at my parents and they live in a similar habitat to us. We have to keep a lookout for skinks.

Now we are to the roses! The grand finale! These roses were blooming at my mother's house. When I went out for my morning walk everything was covered in beads of dew. It was a gorgeous morning! 

And the birds...... I can't even tell you how amazing the birdsong variety was. I took a short video so you can hear a little of the morning music.

Here is my lovely walk curated in photo and video for you.......

And that is a wrap!

I hope you have had a nice May and are getting to enjoy nature out of doors.

Nature | April 2026

I have found it hard to choose a favorite nature photo from this month's collection. I love so many of them!

The first pictures are of Pawpaw blooms. Pawpaw are a fruit tree native to North America. (I wrote a post about Pawpaws a couple few years ago HERE.) They grow in the understory near the edge of forested areas. We visited a historic site this month and while I was there I saw the largest Pawpaw grove that I have ever seen. They had not leafed out yet and they were all in bloom. The blooms are a unique chocolate color. 

 

This next group of pictures is of the tiny unfurled oak leaf with the pollen catkins dangling. So cute!

Here is a pair of mating frogs I found in our pool one morning. I haven't tried to identify what type of frogs these are, but I thought the yellow back legs might help in that pursuit. 

We have been hearing SO MANY singing frogs in the night! It is definitely the sound of spring here our part of the world. I shared a Henry Beer poem about Spring Peepers a few years ago that expresses the strangeness of their songs. You can read it HERE.

And the last picture this month is of the beautiful wild Columbine growing in our woods. This might be my favorite, but the Pawpaw buds and the oak leaves are so close to being my favorite that it is hard to choose!

This Is My Father's World

 

I love the nature imagery used in this song. Here are examples; "all nature sings,"..."birds their carrols raise,"......"rustling grass I hear him pass,"....."rocks and trees,"......"skies and seas,"...," morning light, lily white,"....etc...

 Spring is a beautiful time of year and there are so many reminders of God's goodness and power and love of beauty during these months.

This is my Father's world,

And to my listening ears

All nature sings, and round me rings

The music of the spheres.

This is my Father's world:

I rest me in the thought

Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas--

His hand the wonders wrought.

 This is my Father's world:

The birds their carols raise,

The morning light, the lily white,

Declare their Maker's praise.

This is my Father's world:

He shines in all that's fair;

In the rustling grass I hear Him pass,

He speaks to me everywhere.

This is my Father's world:

O let me ne'er forget

That though the wrong seems oft so strong,

God is the Ruler yet.

This is my Father's world:

The battle is not done,

Jesus who died shall be satisfied 

And earth and Heaven be one.

I like to think of the last word as a homophone- one as in unity, and won as in conquered.

This Bible verse keeps popping in my mind when I sing the last line- "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever." (Revelation 11:15b) Handel's Hallelujah Chorus has this verse set to music and it plays in my memory when I read the words. It is so magnificent!

The wrong does oft seem so strong. I like the admonition to remember that God is the ruler yet. This part of the song makes me think of Psalm 73-  "And they say, How doth God know? and is there knowledge in the most High? Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches."

"Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end."

Nature | March 2026

 It's March! This is the first month of the year with flowers! We have daffodils and crocuses at our house. 

  My favorite picture in this month's collection is the picture of the ant. I was entranced when I saw this ant pulling a dried, dusty piece of hotdog up a vertical surface. It was grasping the hotdog particle in its mandibles and going it reverse the whole way up a perfectly straight up and down surface. It blew me away!

I saw some cat paw prints in the light dusting of snow.

This icy surface had a very interesting look. The day before had been very rainy and left a lot of standing water in low spots. The temperature dropped significantly over night and we got to see these ice formations in the morning. 

Flower Update as of 3/28/25

 

   So many things are happening in nature this time of year. These flowers all popped open over night. I see these flowers on my walk in the morning. I'm not sure what type of shrub this is, but it's flowers sure are pretty. 

  I found my Bleeding Hearts! I was so happy to see them. I have been looking for them for a couple weeks. This morning I was looking again and gave up. I figured they must have been too trampled during the summer and frozen solid in the ice over winter. As I straightened up and turned to leave, my eyes landed right where they are coming up! I had been looking in the wrong place all along.

The Lilac buds are forming. I am looking forward to their sweet, sweet perfume.

The Daffodils are going to town! Pretty blossoms and more infant buds coming up still.

Matthew 5:44-45

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, 

bless them that curse you, 

do good to them that hate you, 

and pray for them which despitefully 

use you, and persecute you; 

That ye may be the children of your Father 

which is in heaven: 

for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil 

and on the good, and sendeth rain 

on the just and on the unjust. 

To Everything A Season

 Do you need some sunshine today? We have had a cloudy day in the sky but these little packages of sunshine made up for the lack of real sunshine.

The red tips of the peonies are starting to unfurl! They look so promising. 

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

 To every thing there is a season, 

and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

A time to be born, and a time to die; 

a time to plant, 

and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

A time to kill, and a time to heal; 

a time to break down, and a time to build up;

A time to weep, and a time to laugh; 

a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

A time to cast away stones, 

and a time to gather stones together; 

a time to embrace, 

and a time to refrain from embracing;

A time to get, and a time to lose; 

a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

 A time to rend, and a time to sew; 

a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

A time to love, and a time to hate; 

a time of war, and a time of peace.