Tag Archives: Photography

Capturing the Splendid Fall

Although the weather has turned cooler the past few days, the month of October has been a series of one lovely fall day after another here in Minnesota.  The temperatures were above normal, the sun was almost always shining, and the fall colors seemed more vibrant than usual.  Like many, the weather drew me outdoors and I often found myself reaching for my phone to capture some of the beauty just outside my front door.  All the photos below were taken with my iPhone 5s and edited in Instagram.

This first photo was taken in the evening and features a small border garden along our granary with Sedum and ornamental grasses.  All of the red hues captured my eye.

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Outside in the garden one morning, I stopped to take a picture after noticing the rays of sunshine highlighting the yellow maple, contrasted with the still-blooming shrub roses and Russian sage in my garden.  The barn in the background was the perfect backdrop.

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The lovely morning sunlight caught my eye once again a week or so later, as it lit up the Autumn Blaze Maple outside my bedroom window.

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And finally, this picture is from the woods that surround our home, spilling down the hillside to the river and to our field.  In the evening, as the sun would start to set, the warm light would shine through the yellow canopy of leaves and the scene felt so magical.  For about a week, I made sure to step outside each evening to take in the spectacle of light.

IMG_2989Wherever you might live, I hope your fall has been equally as splendid.  While the leaves have all fallen off the trees now, perhaps we will still be blessed with a few more days of warm temperatures and abundant sunshine. Once can always hope! 🙂

Lynell

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Filed under Barn, Flower, Gardens, Photography

Tulip Time

Despite the continuing cold temperatures, spring has sprung around here and my tulips are ready to delight me with color.  It is just the start of the spring flower show and I could not be more ready.

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I just snapped this picture with my iPhone 5s as I was strolling around the yard this evening, all bundled up.  Temperatures were only in the high 40’s today.  Things are looking up for the weekend though.

I hope you are enjoying some spring color in your neck of the woods!

Lynell

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Snowy Sunrise

We received another 10 inches or so of snow yesterday through this morning.  The wind is howling and the snow is drifting quickly.  School was canceled, yet again.  I was unsuccessful in making it out of our driveway this morning for work and got stuck in a three-foot snow drift.  There really is no point in complaining about the long winter any more though.  It is old news.

So, since I cannot think of anything very positive to say about Minnesota, our winters, the weather, etc., I thought I would just post this picture I took this morning.  I took it with my iPhone 5s and did a quick edit in Instagram.

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Hope you are staying warm and out of the howling winds.  Spring will come eventually, right?

Lynell

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Filed under Barn, Daily life, Outbuildings

O Christmas Tree!

Time has slipped away from me again and I have not posted for some time, but here I am today!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend here on the farm with our family all under one roof.  There is nothing better for a mother’s heart.  Our older kids flew home from West Point for the long weekend and to join us for our annual sausage-making event with extended family.  I will post more on this later, but you can click here now to see a post from 2010 about this event.

After putting the kids back on the plane Sunday morning (time flies too fast), the rest of us headed out to find the perfect Christmas tree.  We are quite picky about our tree and we search until we can all agree on one.  We have been buying Balsam firs for quite a few years.  They have to be at least 10 feet tall and with a slim shape so they do not fill the entryway too much.  It took about 15 minutes of wandering through the tree farm and considering several options, but we finally agreed on this beauty!

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We finally finished decorating the tree last night.  I am feeling more ready for Christmas all the time.
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O Christmas tree,
O Christmas tree
Your leaves are so unchanging
O Christmas tree,
O Christmas tree
Your leaves are so unchanging
Not only green when
Summer’s here
But also when it’s cold and drear
O Christmas tree, 
O Christmas tree
Your leaves are so unchanging

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving and that your Christmas preparations are coming along, as well.

Lynell

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Seeing RED

The thing that I like least about blogging is the writing part.  Sometimes I just do not have anything particularly interesting to say.

The thing that I love about blogging is the pictures.  I love to take pictures. I love to see other people’s pictures.  And I love to share my pictures.

So, that’s exactly what I am going to do in this post – just share a few of my pictures.  As I looked at the latest collection of my shots, I noticed a lot featuring various shades of red. Below are just a few.

Our prairie-fire crabapple tree outside the kitchen window is full of red fruit and reddish leaves.

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A closer-up view of the fruit.  And notice the red granary is in the background.DSC_0036

My Autumn Joy Sedum plants have turned a very dark pinkish-red.  Even after several hard frosts, they are still looking good. DSC_0050

Some leaves from one of our many Autumn Blaze Maple trees around here.  While many other trees have shed their leaves, these are hanging on to theirs for now.

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While walking through the woods behind the house to mark small maple trees for transplanting next spring, I came across this red fence post.  It is a remnant from the previous owners who once had cattle in the woods around the house.
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Our singular Amur Maple tree is showing off some nice shades of red.
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And one of my favorite sites around here…our red barn.  red2

A view of two of the brilliant-colored Autumn Blaze Maples.
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And last, but not least, here come the guys across the field on our Razor – Jesse on the left and our youngest behind the wheel.  Ok, this picture does not really fit into my “red” theme, but I like it anyhow.  And there are some red trees in the background. 🙂
red4We have spent today starting our preparations for winter.  Jesse started his first round of the leaf battle and I stayed inside to remove screens and wash the windows.  I want to make sure I have clear and unobstructed views when the snow starts to fall.  😦

Lynell

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Filed under Barn, Daily life, Granary, Outbuildings, Photography

A Snowy Sunday

We woke up Sunday morning to a dreary sky, cool temperatures and giant snowflakes streaming down.  After a trip to church, we hunkered down for a relaxing day around home. All three kids were under one roof, with our older two home on a long weekend break from West Point.  We had our usual Sunday brunch of crepes and homemade sausage and Jesse fired up the smokehouse in the afternoon to do some cold-smoking.
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As the day went on, the snow eventually turned to a slushy mix that coated the ground.
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Jesse cold-smoked some cheese and almonds for snacking and some pork chops for dinner.  (You can see my earlier post on cold-smoking almonds and cheese here.)  As usual, everything turned out delicious. Yum!!

fallsnow2With temperatures only reaching into the 40’s, we had the fireplace going to cozy up the house.  We did not go anywhere all day.  What a treat for all of us.

And just like that…the weekend was over and we had to return the kids to the airport early this morning for their trip back to New York and West Point.  Winter is definitely on its way though…and although it is my least favorite season, the silver lining is that it also means that more breaks from school are on the way… along with some more cozy family time.  I sure can’t complain about that. 🙂

Lynell

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Filed under Daily life, Smoking

Morning Light

We left town last Friday morning for a long weekend out at West Point to visit our two cadets and to attend the Homecoming football game. As we were heading out the door on our way to the airport, the sun was coming up and it was just one of those sunrises…the pink, orange and yellow kind.

Jesse encouraged me to snap a few pictures with my iPhone.  The barn against the sky was just too pretty to go undocumented. I did a quick edit in Instagram to lighten it up.

barnskyThe weekend went by in a flash and we are back at home again on the farm.  Our cadets are coming home this upcoming weekend for a visit over a long weekend for them.  It will be nice to have everyone at home, even if it is only briefly.

Lynell

Where we love is home – home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.

-Oliver Wendell Holmes



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Filed under Barn, Photography

Harvest Sky

On my way back from a walk last week, I noticed some amazing clouds in the sky.  Never without a camera thanks to my iPhone, I took a picture.

Harvest time is upon us and in the distance to the left you can see the remaining stand of corn in our neighbor’s field.  In the forefront is the soybean crop he has planted in our field.fallsky

I took this photo on my iPhone 4s and did a quick edit in Instagram. Technology today makes  photography so easy and accessible.  I absolutely love it!

Lynell

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Filed under Daily life, Photography

Pretty Peonies

Almost every day I pick up my camera and go outside to take a picture of something that is blooming around here.  It is hard to keep up with posting the pictures because after all, it is summer and who wants to be inside and in front of the computer?

Last week I snapped these photos of my many peonies.  I have moved these plants from house to house as we moved through the years.  I could never bear the thought of leaving them behind.  This collection is out in my front yard.
peony1The only peony that I have actually purchased is this white one.  Although it is pretty, it just does not have the same strong fragrance as the old-fashioned pink ones that I have transplanted and taken with me all these years.
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I do love the white flowers mixed in with all the other varieties though.

I picked a huge bouquet of these beauties one afternoon to bring in the house to enjoy. I love to bury my nose into the flowers and inhale deeply.  What a magnificent smell!

peony3It turns out it was a good thing that I did pick some flowers that afternoon because we had a big rain and wind storm the following evening that really did a number on the peony plants, pounding and shredding the big blossoms that had already opened.

In addition to the large grouping out in the front yard, I also have peonies planted along the picket fence surrounding the vegetable garden.  These plants are from my first division of the peonies…maybe about six years ago?
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All of my peony plants are overdue for another division.

They do seem perfectly happy however, so I am in no big hurry to create the extra work for myself.  🙂peony6I still have some peonies blooming, although they are starting to wind down now.  The heat and humidity of the last few days definitely hinder the longevity of the blossoms.

I have never taken the time to identify the variety of peonies that I have.  Any ideas?

Lynell

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Garden Art

Life has been very busy here.  Our middle child graduated from high school a week or so ago and we had her open house a few days later.  Because of our late spring I was frantically trying to get my gardens in order for the party.  During one of my trips to buy annuals and a few other miscellaneous plants, I came across this funky little bird at the garden center.  I do not have a lot of garden art, but this silly piece caught my eye and I bought it.
gardenartAnd I am happy that I did.  Two weeks later and it still makes me smile…so I would say it was definitely worth it.

Lynell

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