Of Poppies and Peacocks

I've got a few poppies in the gardens here.
These are bright, happy California poppies.

Here are some photos of other poppies.

I think this one below looks like a crepe paper flower.

Here's one I call 'big red'. Can you see why?

This is 'big red's' seed pod.

Here's one seemingly looking at an unfamiliar bird on the lawn...

This beautiful male peacock arrived in the yard 3 days ago.
He disappears at night,
returning in the morning after we hear his wake-up call.
(Click on any of the pictures to see more detail.)

Here is 'Mr Pea-C' on our deck, having captured the cats' rapt attention.

'Are you lookin' at me?'

He yawned. The boredom, the runway walk,
I couldn't help but think of the Right Said Fred song.

Oh, yeah.

Peace! Out!

Till next time ~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - Eryngium

More Wordless Wednesday

~Aerie-el

Above and Below - Wordless Wednesday

More Wordless Wednesday

Blazing hot sun for a Skywatch Friday

It's been blazing hot in the Seattle area this past week.

What better way to cool off than go kayaking
and take pictures as a respite from the heat!
So off I went...


Along the water's edge is a stand of trees and snags where the eagles like to sit
and scope out the water below. Often there are ducks or geese nestled below, and of course plenty of fish as well.
It is a rich hunting spot for our resident eagle family.

While paddling about, I heard a crow loudly complaining and an eagle's cry. I spotted the two in a nearby tree. At one point, they were sitting there and appeared to be ignoring one another.

Then, off hopped the crow, diving at the eagle.
I thought the eagle looked like it was flinching in this photo.
(Please click on any of the photos to see them bigger.)

Finally, the crow gave up pestering this eagle,
and flew off to amuse itself otherwise.

As my kayak photo journey was coming to an end,
I caught these other sky shots...

A slice of the moon in the crystal clear blue sky ended
that delicious slice of a day.

To see other 'slices' of the sky, check out Skywatch Friday.

~Aerie-el

Embothrium coccineum - Chilean Fire Bush

Please click on any of the pictures for closer viewing.)

The weather here in the Puget Sound area of Washington State has been so beautiful that it has been incredibly difficult to stay inside for any reason, for any amount of time.

Today I went with one of the groups I belong to on an informative and relaxing private garden tour. I wish I could share more shots of the variety of plants there, but unfortunately, I only got a couple photos before my camera batteries quit. (I know, I know, I almost always bring extras but today was an exception...for many reasons, which I won't go into here. Needless to say, for the next garden tour, I will have double the extra batteries required!)

The good thing was that the couple shots were of the Embothrium coccineum (Chilean Fire Tree/Bush) that was in full bloom. There are a couple of these wonderful 'shrubs', which are really trees, growing on the property, and they are just gorgeous now. The timing of our visit was so that we could see them in full bloom, and they sure were!

Not only are the plants feeling the heat of summer coming on, but the growth of the critters around and about seems to be exponential. The eaglet is flexing its wings now, the baby juncos are flying about, and the goslings are quickly looking more like their parents.

How sweet is this, with the eaglet peaking over the shoulder of the adult?

Fluffy baby junco waiting its turn at the suet feeder.

Honk! Honk! = Run away! Run away!

But soon, they're be flying...

~Aerie-el