Welcome Home Mom and Dad!

Day 89/Year 2

Today was the official move in day for the folks. They are pretty much all settled in. They are exhausted! I'm pretty tired myself. Today's photos are more or less snapshots. Actually, more than less. :-) Did I say I'm tired? So just point and shoot shots for today. This is the entrance to their new home. Pretty, huh? Then once inside, this is the foyer you walk into.

Here is their living room. It hasn't been completely set up or decorated yet, but you get the idea. It's very spacious, huh?

Here's my Dad in his new den. He looks pretty comfy and at home already!

Notice the bay window? There are 3 of them in the apt......one in the living roon, one in the den, and one in the master bedroom.

I know they will be happy here. They already had a few knocks on the door with some of the other residents welcoming them. One woman named Myrtle (yes her name is Myrtle....she looks like a Myrtle....she's as cute as a button!) offered to walk them down to the dining room for dinner this evening. (Please dear Lord have my father like the food there!!!!! If he doesn't like the food......we're in for some big trouble!) :-)

I decided I want to live there myself. They come and clean your apt and even change your bed once a week and they serve you dinner every night. They even have a beautiful pub. I KNOW my father is going to love the happy hour at the pub. :-)

Cheers!!!! ;-)

Dexter's Grist Mill

Day 88/Year 2

This was our final stop in Sandwich. The Grist Mill was not yet open for the season, but it was still really pretty to see it from the outer perimiter.

I hope you enjoyed the "Sandwich tour". It was a lot of fun for me.

On another note, Happy Father's Day to all of the Dad's who read my blog. I hope you enjoyed your day!! Today is a rather emotional day for my Dad (and Mom), They are going to be moving out of their house tomorrow. We have already moved the bulk of their belongings into their new home. Tomorrow morning, the movers will come and move the big stuff and furniture. It was sad for me to leave their house this evening, knowing they will not be living there again. HOWEVER.......there is also very happy news and very good news. Miss J and her fiance Steve are buying their house!!! They will be passing papers within the next week and a half. My parents are thrilled that the house will remain in the family. I am so proud of Miss J and Steve and I am looking forward to seeing the house that I spent so much of my life living in, become the house where they will be starting their new life together.

Green Briar Nature Center

Day 87/Year 2

After we left the beach in Sandwich, we visited the Green Briar Nature Center.

http://www.thorntonburgess.org/GreenBriarNatureCenter.htm

It was wonderful to walk through the trails among the beautiful gardens.

There is a lovely pond out back. This swan was taking an afternoon nap!

This one was very happy and was jumping for joy! :-)

Here are the two of them after nap time and exercise time. This was feeding time:

We also saw several of these little chipmunks running around:

This place is known for their famous homemade jams and jellies. Here is an image of some berries soaking in alcohol in a window enclosure. The heat from the sun "gets things going".

The jam kitchen is open for tours, and it's adorable. I loved all of the antique bowls, utensils, jelly jars and mason jars that are displayed on the shelves and hung on the walls. I gave these next two photos a different look using the Poster Edges Filter in Photoshop CS3. I like the feel it gives to these images:

Tomorrow I will show you the final place we visited in Sandwich.

Life's Still A Beach

Day 86/Year 2

More from the beach. I *think* this is a Laughing Gull. I have been searching an ID on this bird and it's pretty confusing.....there are so many different species of gulls and terns.

However, I *think* this next one is a Herring Gull.....but it's pretty ironic. Just take a look at him.......he surely looks like he's "laughing", huh? :-)

Here's Diane taking a shot from the Sandwich Boardwalk:

And a white Beach Rose:

Life's A Beach

Day 85/Year 2

This is the boardwalk leading to the beach in Sandwich MA. What a beautiful spot, huh?

The shorebirds you saw yesterday were nesting just a bit further up the beach on the sand below the dunes.

The skies were clearing from East to West and it turned out to be a beautiful day!! (Finally) :-)

This photo above is of a boardwalk leading to Sagamore Beach. We stopped here later in the day to see the nesting Piping Plovers.

The red buoy in this photo is where the Cape Cod Canal begins.

Time to head home.........

Cape Cod Shorebirds

Day 84/Year 2

I made another one of my goals for year 2 of the blog. My good friend and photo buddy Diane and I took a ride down to Sandwich, a lovely little town on the upper part of Cape Cod. Our co-worker Nancy D lives in Sandwich, and she took us on a photography tour.

My favorite part of today was seeing the shorebirds. The image above is of a Least Tern, which was nesting in the sand on the beach. The nesting area is scantily roped off, and it amazes me that there really isn't a nest. The eggs are just sitting in the sand. Here they are:

I was able to catch this one bringing dinner home:

We also took a walk along Sagamore Beach, and there was another nesting area roped off. The Piping Plovers were nesting here. Here's a shot of this adorable Piping Plover who posed for us for quite some time!

I had SUCH A GOOD DAY! There are many more photos to share from today, so I will be posting them here on the blog over the next few days. Stay tuned.........

Fields of Lupine in Sugar Hill NH

Day 83/Year 2

We stopped off in Sugar Hill NH today on our way home from VT. Each June, the hillsides in Sugar Hill and Franconia become alive with beautiful lupines. This is a must see for photographers. There are photo ops around every turn. The beauty is not only in the flowers, but the backdrop of the mountains which make for some stunning images. It was overcast with low clouds today and I was very limited with my time, so I only took a few photos. (The husband, 2 dogs, and 18 yr old son who was anxious to get home to see his girlfriend were all waiting for me in the car........not conducive for a relaxing photography session.........more or less hurry up and take a few shots then jump back in the car but I'm not complaining)...........I was pleased that I at least had some time to get this church scene I have been dreaming of getting:

The sky.......ugh! This is more or less a "record" shot and I want to go back next June if the sun ever comes out by then (as I say very sarcastically!) But, even though I didn't have a decent sky, I was happy to set up my tripod and take a few shots nonetheless.

The colors......oh the colors are just so beautiful. Even these white ones are just lovely and I love the way they contrast against the purples, blues, and pinks:

If you remember, one of my goals for year 2 of this blog was to take more photographs in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Although it was a quick stop, I was glad to at least partially make that goal today.