Willy Nilly Friday, July 31, 2020

Willy Nilly Friday 5, Sky Watch Friday, Floral Friday Fotos,
and on Saturday, Saturday's Critters, and I'd Rather B Birdin'

Click on the photos to see them at their best.

1. Hot Summer Days (Sky Watch Friday)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 30, 2020

On hot Summer days we have two choices: stay inside near the air conditioner, or find a shady place near a lake with a cool breeze blowing!

2. Phlox (Floral Friday Fotos)

Black Swallowtail Butterfly, Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 30, 2020

Phlox blooms are a magnet for Butterflies!

3. What I am Reading

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 31, 2020

I read the first of Jill Churchill's Grace and Favor Mystery series, 'Anything Goes,' several months ago. On a recent trip to the library I picked up more of them. The setting is New York during the early 1930's. You should read 'Anything Goes' first to get the background info, and then the others can be read in any order.

4. Deer (Saturday's Critters)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 21, 2020

a White-tailed Deer at the edge of my neighbor's yard, just seconds before it bounded back into the woods

5. Towhee (I'd Rather B Birdin')

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, June 13, 2020

I see Towhees feeding on dropped seed under my feeders, but they are so camera-shy I rarely get a photo. And I almost didn't get this one!

Have a blessed day!

For more weather-related photos, visit Sky Watch Friday: Click Here!

For more flower photos, visit Floral Friday Fotos: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Willy Nilly Friday 5: Click Here!

And on Saturday,
For more animal photos, visit Saturday's Critters: Click Here!

For more bird photos, visit I'd Rather B Birdin': Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use y photos without my permission.

Bluebird, July 29, 2020

Wild Bird Wednesday and My Corner of the World

Click on the photo to see it at its best.

male Eastern Bluebird, Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 28, 2020

Eastern Bluebirds, Sialia sialis, can be found in the eastern half of North America and as far south as Nicaragua in Central America. They are cavity-nesting birds that have been greatly helped by the popularity of bluebird houses with small entrance holes that larger birds cannot enter.

Have a wonderful day!

For more bird photos, visit Wild Bird Wednesday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit My Corner of the World: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Our World Tuesday, July 28, 2020

Our World Tuesday and All Seasons

Click on the photo to see it at its best.

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 26, 2020

Red Admiral Butterflies, Vanessa atalanta, are widespread across temperate regions of the world, but I do not remember ever seeing one before. Have you seen one where you live?

I hope you are having a great week!

I am linking in today with Our World Tuesday and All Seasons

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Willy Nilly Friday, July 24, 2020

Willy Nilly Friday 5, Sky Watch Friday, Floral Friday Fotos,
and on Saturday, Saturday's Critters, and I'd Rather B Birdin'

Click on the photos to see them at their best.

1. Sunset (Sky Watch Friday)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 23, 2020

We have had hot, humid days with evening thunderstorms, but only a light sprinkle of rain this week.

2. Azalea (Floral Friday Fotos)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 21, 2020

Even though we are in the hottest part of Summer, my Encore Azalea 'Autumn Royalty' is blooming!

3. The Most Interesting Thing I Have Seen this Week

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 21, 2020

I did not touch it, but this fungus growing on a dead tree limb on the ground is about as big as my hand.

4. Turtle (Saturday's Critters)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 8, 2020

Eastern Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina carolina.

5. Northern Mockingbirds (I'd Rather B Birdin')

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 24, 2020

This light pole is a favorite perch for the Mockingbirds, Mimus polyglottos, at my neighbor's house.

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 22, 2020

a juvenile Northern Mockingbird

Have a wonderful weekend!

For more weather-related photos, visit Sky Watch Friday: Click Here!

For more photos of flowers, visit Floral Friday Fotos: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Willy Nilly Friday 5: Click Here!

And on Saturday,
For more animal photos, visit Saturday's Critters: Click Here!

For more bird photos, visit I'd Rather B Birdin': Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Thankful Thursday, July 23, 2020

Thankful Thursday and Little Things Thursday

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 23, 2020

I am thankful that our library is offering curbside service!

I login to the library website using my library card number and reserve the books I want to read. When they are ready for pickup, the librarian calls me. When I drive up to the library, I call her, put the passenger side window down, and she sets my books on the front seat.

This week I got four murder mysteries by Katherine Hall Page, and another mystery by Jill Churchill.

Books are returned through the book drop slot and kept in quarantine for a week before they are available for checkout again.

Have a blessed day!

Let us know what you are thankful for, visit Thankful Thursday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Little Things Thursday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Pigeon, July 22, 2020

Wild Bird Wednesday and My Corner of the World

Click on the photo to see it at its best.

Tupelo, Mississippi, USA, June 15, 2020

Rock Doves (aka Rock Pigeons), Columba livia, are usually just called Pigeons. There may be variations in plumage color and pattern even within the same flock.

Have a wonderful day!

For more bird photos, visit Wild Bird Wednesday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit My Corner of the World: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Figs, July 21, 2020

Our World Tuesday and All Seasons

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 21, 2020

It is almost Fig Season! Another week or two and we will be enjoying fresh figs! I do not know what variety they are, but they are delicious. Last year we picked the first ripe figs on the first day of August.

Have a wonderful day!

Today I am linking in with Our World Tuesday and All Seasons

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Willy Nilly Friday, July 17, 2020

Willy Nilly Friday 5, Thankful Thursday, Sky Watch Friday,
and on Saturday, Saturday's Critters, and I'd Rather B Birdin'

Click on the photos to see them at their best.

1. Hot and Humid (Sky Watch Friday)

Tupelo, Mississippi, USA, July 17, 2020

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2. Garden Update (Thankful Thursday)

'Burpless Beauty' cucumber, Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 15, 2020

I am thankful for home-grown cucumbers, and...

... an easy refrigerator pickle recipe!

Sweet Refrigerator Pickles

5 cups thin-sliced cucumbers
2 cups thin-sliced onion (I use Sweet Vidalia Onions)
1  and 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 and 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon mustard seed

Mix cucumbers and onions together in a large glass bowl. Mix vinegar, sugar, salt and the spices together in a pan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Pour hot liquid over cucumbers and onions. I put a small plate on top and press down so the cucumber/onion mixture is submerged. Allow to cool slightly, and then spoon into jars (use a wide-mouth funnel). Cover with tight fitting lids. Allow to cool a bit more, then put in refrigerator. Wait 3 days for the flavors to mix well before tasting them. Keep refrigerated; makes 3 pints.

Thanks to Taste of Home for the recipe!
Taste of Home website

3. The Most Interesting Thing I have Seen This Week

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 15, 2020

The highway department is using this excavator with a brush-cutter attachment to cut small trees and shrubs that are too close to the road.

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4. Insects (Saturday's Critters)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 15, 2020

Cicada

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 13, 2020

Dragonfly

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 16, 2020

Ailanthus Webworm Moth, Atteva aurea

5. Need some help from my bird-watching friends (I'd Rather B Birdin')

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 16, 2020 (Click on the photo to see it at its best)

I would think that this is a juvenile Eastern Bluebird, but I have not seen any adults here at my house.  Can anyone give me a positive ID?

Have a wonderful weekend!

For more weather-related photos, visit Sky Watch Friday: Click Here!

Let us know what you are thankful for, visit Thankful Thursday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Willy Nilly Friday 5: Click Here!

And on Saturday,
For more animal photos, visit Saturday's Critters: Click Here!

For more bird photos, visit I'd Rather B Birdin': Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day July 2020

The northeast corner of Mississippi, USA zone 7b
Today's weather forecast: partly cloudy, high 94 F (34C), low tonight 76 F (24 C).
It's the 15th of the month - time for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day!

Click on the photos to see them at their best.

Silver-spotted Skipper, Epargyreus clarus, on Butterfly Bush, Buddleia

Althea aka Rose of Sharon, Hibiscus syraicus, is a tall shrub, or it may be considered to be a small tree.

Burr Rose, Roxburghii.

This is the last one of my Gladioli to bloom, but they will be back next year!

This Hibiscus is a very reliable perennial that grows just a bit taller than knee-high.

The Tiger Lilies are at the end or their bloom time. A lot of the petals have already fallen to the ground.

Last but not least, my Butterfly Weed is putting on a second flush of blooms!

Happy Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day!

To see gardens all around the world, visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit New Zealand for My Corner of the World: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Harvest Monday, July 13, 2020

Harvest Monday, All Seasons, and Our World Tuesday

Prentiss County, Mississippi, July 11, 2020

It is Tomato Sandwich Season again! My 'Better Boy' tomatoes are beginning to ripen. An excellent slicing tomato, the 'Better Boy' is one of the most popular tomato varieties grown here in the United States.

I hope you have a great week!

I am linking up today with:
Harvest Monday: Click Here!
All Seasons: Click Here!
Our World Tuesday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Willy Nilly Friday, July 10, 2020

Willy Nilly Friday 5, Sky Watch Friday, Floral Friday Fotos, Signs 2,
and on Saturday, Saturday's Critters, and I'd Rather B Birdin'

Click on the photos to see them at their best.

1. Cloudy Days (Sky Watch Friday)

Lee County, Mississippi, USA, July 9, 2020

We have had big, beautiful clouds this week, but only one rainy day.

2. Love is Not Quarantined (Signs 2)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 7, 2020

Faith not cancelled!

Hope not closed!

Love not quarantined!

3. Butterfly Bush, Buddleia (Floral Friday Fotos)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 9, 2020

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Papilio glaucus, on Butterfly Bush, Buddleia.

4. Blue-fronted Dancer (Saturday's Critters)

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, June 28, 2020

The Blue-fronted Dancer, Argia apicalis, is a small Damselfly about an inch and a half long, Actually, I was trying to photograph raindrops when I found it!

5. Canada Geese (I'd Rather B Birdin')

Tupelo, Mississippi, USA, July 2, 2020

The goslings are almost as big as their parents!

Have a wonderful weekend!

For more weather-related photos, visit Sky Watch Friday: Click Here!

For more photos of signs, visit Signs 2: Click Here!

For more photos of flowers, visit Floral Friday Fotos: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Willy Nilly Friday 5: Click Here!

And on Saturday,
For more animal photos, visit Saturday's Critters: Click Here!

For more bird photos, visit I'd Rather B Birdin': Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Thankful Thursday, July 9, 2020

Thankful Thursday and Little Things Thursday

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 9, 2020

I am thankful that our community center has re-opened, and our Senior Citizens Bingo Group was able to meet on Wednesday! We all wore masks and moved the tables farther apart so we did not sit too close together. And I won a game, receiving peanut butter snacks as my prize!

Have a blessed day!

Let us know what you are thankful for, visit Thankful Thursday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Little Things Thursday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Black Vultures, July 8, 2020

Wild Bird Wednesday and My Corner of the World

Click on the photo to see it at its best.

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 4, 2020

Black Vultures, Coragyps atratus, are common birds in the southeastern United States, and their range extends south through Central America and into South America.

I hope you are having a great week!

For more bird photos, visit Wild Bird Wednesday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit My Corner of the World: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Hummingbirds, July 7, 2020

Our World Tuesday and All Seasons

Click on the photo to see it at its best.

female Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 7, 2020

We enjoy feeding the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, Archilochus colubris, that visit us each Summer. They are very small migratory birds that spend the cold months in Mexico and Central America before coming north in the Spring to breed and raise their young. Pictured is a female; only the males have red throats. Their natural foods are flower nectar and insects. Feeders are filled with a mixture of sugar and water.

Have a wonderful day!

I am linking up today with Our World Tuesday and All Seasons

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Willy Nilly Friday, July 3, 2020

Willy Nilly Friday 5, Sky Watch Friday,
and on Saturday, Saturday's Critters, and I'd Rather B Birdin'

1. Cloudy Days (Sky Watch Friday)

Tupelo, Mississippi, USA, July 2, 2020

It has been a week of cloudy, rainy days.

Happy 4th of July! 

(Independence Day here in the United States).

2. A photo for Tom, The Backroads Traveller

Prentiss county, Mississippi, USA, June 10, 2020

Since you asked, "How is this feeder when it comes to squirrels?" Tom, this photo is for you!
As soon as the babies were ready to leave the nest, Mama Squirrel took them to the bird feeders.

3. Garden Update

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, July 2, 2020

I am picking a handful of 'Sweet 100' tomatoes each day, just the right amount for our salads.

And I have high hopes for my 'Better Boy' tomatoes!

4. Two for One (Saturday's Critters)

Lee County, Mississippi, USA, June 9, 2020

Mockingbird on a frog!

5. Killdeer (I'd Rather B Birdin')

Tupelo, Mississippi, USA, June 12, 2020

Killdeer, Charadrius vociferus.

Have a wonderful day!

For more weather-related photos, visit Sky Watch Friday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Willy Nilly Friday 5: Click Here!

And on Saturday,
For more animal photos, visit Saturday's Critters: Click Here!

For more bird photos, visit I'd Rather B Birdin': Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Thankful Thursday, July 2, 2020

Thankful Thursday and Little Things Thursday

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, June 30, 2020

I am thankful for fresh blueberries! We went to my husband's cousin's house Saturday to help her pick her blueberries. They are delicious on cereal, and...

... I made a blueberry tart. One pie crust, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, dash of nutmeg, 3 cups of blueberries. Mix dry ingredients together, stir in blueberries. Pour into pie crust, fold edges up around fruit mixture. Sprinkle a teaspoon of sugar on crust (optional). Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

I packed the rest of the blueberries in my freezer, three cups to a bag, for future blueberry tarts!

Have a blessed day!

Let us know what you are thankful for, visit Thankful Thursday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit Little Things Thursday: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.

Goldfinch, July 1, 2020

Wild Bird Wednesday and My Corner of the World

Click on the photo to see it at its best.

Prentiss County, Mississippi, USA, June 10, 2020

American Goldfinches, Spinus tristis, at the feeder in my front yard.
(female at the top of the feeder; male at the bottom)

Have a wonderful day!

For more bird photos, visit Wild Bird Wednesday: Click Here!

For an interesting variety of photos, visit My Corner of the World: Click Here!

NOTE: Please do not use my photos without my permission.