Friday Reflections

It was a chilly 32 degrees this morning when I put out the flag. The sun was just coming up and the wind was blowing. I didn't dilly dally on the porch for long...

After putting out the flag, I heard the Sand Hill Cranes making their morning noises as they flew over the house from their nesting spot in Still Waters Pond to go wherever they go for the day.  If you look just above the head of the rooster on the weathervane in this picture, you can see one of the cranes flying in the sky.  There were only two of them! I've noticed in the past week that Mom and Dad Crane no longer have young Abe following them around. That means it's time for them to start building their nest for this spring's nesting time. (and I have proof that they are doing that...so stay tuned and follow along in these pictures as I am trying to keep them in chronological order for how this day went).  About a week ago I witnessed Daddy crane literally charging after young Abe to push him away...it seemed cruel to me, but it is their nature. It's time for Abe to "leave the nest" and strike out on his own.  He will most likely join up with some other emancipated youthful cranes and eventually will find his own mate for the future.  

Next I noticed that Mr. and Mrs. Canada Goose were paddling around close to shore, having a nice peaceful breakfast...

But suddenly there were these two ducks racing in and around them, back and forth, diving under the water and scooting by really quickly.  They weren't our usual Ring Necked Ducks, because they are black and white, and these appeared to be more brown with a reddish brown head, the best I could tell, but they were definitely diving ducks. I haven't figured out what they are yet. If anyone has any ideas, let me know!

Even though they were quick and hard to keep track of, I managed to get some interesting photos of them as they raced back and forth in front of us...the reflections on the pond were amazingly beautiful today, and so you will see a lot of that in the pictures below...

I won't attempt to describe everything, but just let you enjoy the views...

Even though it was still early morning and the sun wasn't fully up so there was a kind of low light,  making it hard to get really clear pictures, these turned out rather interesting anyway:

The little ducks seemed to like being near Mr. and Mrs. Goose, but I'm not sure the geese were all that happy to have them buzzing around them while they were trying to have their peaceful breakfast.  It wasn't long before the geese sailed across to the other side of the pond, and the ducks swam away to who knows where...but I'm glad I was able to enjoy them for a while.

My title today is "Friday Reflections", because that is what was so apparent in these pictures today...when the sun did start coming up, the reflections of the trees upon the pond were just beautiful!  Even hubby noticed it and commented about how beautiful they were. I actually took these photos from inside the house  looking out through the glass doors. It was still too cold to go stand out on the porch, so I think they turned out pretty good considering I haven't washed that window in a while! LOL. And again, I am thankful that my camera is working. It seems to have a little short in the on/off switch, making it difficult to turn on and stay on, but I figured out if I press on the button a little harder and hold it in place for a second, it will stay on and work just fine! So as long as that works, I'm happy.  It's too old of a camera to send anywhere for repairs.

Anyway, let's just enjoy the beauty of God's artistry on Still Waters Pond, shall we?

As a matter of fact, the reflections were so good today, I wonder if you can tell anything different about this picture?

If you guessed that it was upside down, you would be right. What was the giveaway?  The birdfeeder and teapot hanging upside down? Yep, I figured that would give it away, but still I think this picture is amazing!

Oh, just so you know, it was so cold this morning that the bird baths were frozen over with ice:

I thought this was interesting with the leaf frozen under the water

Just for some added colorful beauty today...we took a little ride to the church because I had something to drop off, and the camellia bushes were blooming!  This is a once a year event well worth documenting, don't you agree?

I was so happy to see them blooming, because last year they installed some new air conditioning units nearby and they had to remove several camellia bushes.  Sadly I think they just threw them away. If I'd known, I would've rescued some and brought them home. But at least there are some still blooming there for everyone to enjoy.

Later in the day I took a walk around the shore of the pond (across the next door new house shoreline, which by the way, is still for sale and the price has been reduced considerably, if anyone is interested); if you look below, where I walked from would be about the center of this photo, following the shore line around the bend on the left of the picture to where I took this picture from, but I didn't walk all the way along the shore as the recent rains made it too wet, so I kind of went up and around, but anyway, the island that I call "goose island" is on the right...

And when I got around to where I could see on the other side of that island I wanted to see if I could tell whether or not Mother and Dad Sand Hill Crane have started building their new nest.

First, I noticed that little Phoebe Fly Catcher bird sitting on that old dock post in the middle:

It was very busily catching flies:

The pictures weren't as clear because the sun was shining toward me and I had to keep fighting to find some shade

Anyway, look below and just behind that post you will see a little stretch of marshy land with some straw looking material being built up...Ah Ha!  The new Sand Hill Crane Nest!

A few weeks ago I was looking at this same spot, and all that was on that little bit of ground was some old junk that apparently had washed up on this spot. It's very weird, but these little scraps of "land" in the pond are constantly on the move.  They are not attached to the ground, but are floating "barges" of dirt and grasses,...and this may have actually been the same piece of ground the cranes nested on last year, but it has shifted to around behind the island now so I can't see it from our house, but only from when I come around the edge of the pond to see it from the other side.

This is a closer view of how it looked a few weeks ago. It looks like some old pipes or car parts  or something on there. People throw things in the pond from the highway on the other side, so no telling what's in there. Also, that stretch of vegetation just beyond that one is no longer out there. It has gotten covered over with water from the recent rains. So the landscape of the pond just keeps changing all the time.

So here it is again today...and it looks like the Cranes have started covering the land with nesting material, so I guess I'll have to keep a close watch on this to see what develops! 

Meanwhile, the Ring necked ducks were swimming around in the background...Never a dull moment on Still Waters Pond. Maybe it isn't so "STILL" after all! LOL.

All the while I was taking pictures of the water and the nesting ground, etc., that little Phoeble Fly Catcher bird was flying back and forth, catching bugs and then landing on a different post. He didn't mind me watching and kept taking care of business! Fine with me! You can catch as many bugs as you wish, Mr. Phoebe Flycatcher!

Okay, just a moment for something a little different...have you ever seen a $66.00 light bulb?  Well you have now:    

This is the replacement LED bulb for our refrigerator!! Yes, you heard that right!  No more can you just put a little appliance bulb in the fridge...oh no! It must be this fancy LED light bulb that costs actually over $66.00 plus shipping (of course they wouldn't have it at any local store!) By the time I paid shipping and tax, it was over $84.00!!!  For a tiny little LIGHT BULB!!!   And, it was so complicated to install, I had to ask Rose to do it for me last night when they came over for supper. She's very good with things like that since she's worked for Home Depot for so many years in just about every department and she's just smart.  It needed a special kind of socket wrench to undo the cover for the bulb in the fridge. Thank the Lord Rose knew just what to do! It "pays" to have a smart daughter in law!   I sure hope this bulb lasts a long time. The refrigerator is only a few years old! (and no longer under warranty, but this wouldn't be covered under warranty anyway).   On the positive side, I do like how bright it is inside the refrigerator.  LOL.

Meanwhile, on a happier note, hubby said he'd like a custard pie tonight, and I just so happened to have one pie crust left  that needed to be used, (those Pillsbury roll out kind in a box), and so here it is...It was so good...we couldn't wait for it to totally cool so we ate some while it was warm.  

No, that's not my hubby...LOL.  But I saw this on Facebook this morning, and since Wisdom is my One Word for the year, I saved it...

And this one too!  

Okay, it's almost time for bed...so I'd better wrap this up.  The "reflections" from today continued all the way through sunset:

Just couldn't resist taking these last photos.  What a "picture perfect day" this was!!

Here's some more words of wisdom from God's Word about "Reflections":

Proverbs 27:19 NKJV

19 As in water face reflects face,

So a man’s heart reveals the man.

James 1:22-25 NKJV

22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.

1 Corinthians 13:12  NKJV

12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

I pray that as we reflect on these words and on this day, we will see God working in our own hearts and lives in ways beyond what we ever imagined.

Good Night dear friends!  

Friday Foto Friends...Hailstones and Barbie...

Good Friday morning! I am sure you are wondering what this picture is all about:

Have you figured it out yet?  Well, that round marble looking thing in the middle is a hailstone on our back porch! Yes, we had hail a couple of nights ago during a fierce thunderstorm that blew through here with many flashes of lightning and loud thunder and high winds and rain, and hail! Thankfully no damage was done here or anywhere around that I've heard of, but it was scary for a few minutes until it worked its way across the county. We could still see the frequent flashes of lightning in the distance for quite a while.  So, I would like to say "thank you" to the Lord for protecting us during that storm. It could have done some serious damage!

I really don't have any new pictures to share with you this week.  Seems like we've been busy with stuff and also just trying to stay inside where it's cool.  No exciting bird activity beyond what I've already shared earlier.  I'll show you this picture again of Mr. Bluebird on top of his house, looking rather angry about something! I posted this on Facebook yesterday and asked for people to come up with a caption.  There were a few good ones.  Actually, this is the last time I've seen this fella or his mate this week. They came back and checked out the house again, and then flew away and haven't been back since. I think they finally gave up on nesting this time.  It's just too doggone hot out there for man or beast! Maybe that's why he looks so angry! His wife was refusing to settled down on the nest and make new babies! LOL.

So, since I don't have any REAL pictures to talk about or share this week, how about this?

Did you know there was going to be a movie about Barbie? And Ken too, of course?

I've been hearing bits and pieces here and there from other Barbie fans. I am not really in the loop nor do I keep up with the latest Barbie trends.  But I was a huge Barbie fan way back in the beginning of her life.

***News flash***  Update: I did not know about the concerns regarding this movie when I posted this today.  I have been made aware that there are some issues that might make you want to think twice before taking your daughter or granddaughter to see this movie, or even watching it yourself! I apologize for not doing my homework first. Thank you, friends, who have shared this information with me.

https://www.christianheadlines.com/contributors/michael-foust/movieguide-warns-parents-dont-take-your-daughter-to-see-barbie.html

This is when I got my first (and only) Barbie doll...for my 10th birthday, yes, that's me in the middle with my special friends who came to my party, and there's my Barbie doll down in front of me. She was a gift from my grandparents.  My cousin Becky, standing on my left as you look at the picture (but on my right in reality), also received a Barbie doll that year from our grandparents. And so the saga began.

Here's that same Barbie today, standing in her crystal palace (in my china cabinet), where she is being preserved for all time...

When one of my blogging and Facebook friends, Susie Klein, a.k.a. Walking Butterfly, showed a picture of her Barbie doll on FB the other day and mentioned this new movie, I had to go tell my Barbie the news, and she immediately wanted to get out of the crystal palace and come see the world around her...so I managed to find her old bathing suit (and amazingly at age almost 63 she can still fit into it!), because she said she was so pale and needed some sunshine before she gets ready to go see the "real world"...and she sat out in the sunshine for a little while, soaking up the sun and enjoying hearing the birds singing.

But that's as far as we got. No, I am not going to start a new blog about my Barbie. She is retired now and enjoying a quiet life out of the limelight.  But back in the day, when she was brand new, my cousin Becky and I spent many hours in the summertime together with our Barbies.  We created a wonderful little world for them. This was before Mattel went all out with all of the new fancy stuff they have for Barbie these days. We had to create our own Barbie houses and furniture, sew their own clothes, and make up their dialogue as we pretended where they were going and what they were doing. We didn't have any Ken dolls either.  We were still too young at age 10 to be pretending all that boy-girl stuff. LOL.  I wish I had pictures to show you how marvelous our houses were that we built out of pieces of cut wood paneling that we could tape together and make different rooms. We hung curtains on the walls, made furniture out of boxes and plastic dish detergent bottles, complete with upholstery, we found little dishes and things to make a kitchen and made appliances out of boxes. 

Sadly, all I have left of my amazing creation is this box of some old Barbie clothes, mostly homemade by me, using scraps of material from what we had at home from making our own clothes.

The only remnant of our creative talents in making furniture and other items is this "radio", shown below:

I used an old Kodak black and white film box from the 60's to make that radio! That is a relic in itself!

(and look at that fabric on that skirt...definitely from the 60's!)

You may ask whatever happened to the Barbie house, etc.? Well, after I was married, my then 5 year old niece Debbie saw my Barbie doll and house stored at my parents' home,  and asked if she could "please, please, please play with it"? And so I cleaned it all up and did some necessary repairs and "refurnishing" after it had been packed away for quite a few years, and I gave it to her for her 5th birthday. She was beyond thrilled!! 

I know she loved it and played with it for a long time, but then, like what happened to me, my niece grew up and put away her dolls and the Barbie house went someplace in their attic or who knows where. I was thrilled when my sister found this little box of clothes and my Barbie doll and they gave it back to me a few years ago.  I promised my niece that I will make sure her name is on it in my "will", but for now Barbie is in a safe place where she can live out her years in peace and quiet.

1 Corinthians 13:11-12

11 "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, (or woman!) I put away childish things. 

12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known."

So tell me, how many of you played with Barbies when you were young? Do any of you still have your dolls? I also had a "Midge" doll, but she disappeared somewhere along the way.  Do any of you plan to see the new Barbie movie? *** I am sure I won't, unless I can find it on TV someday,*** (see my update above) but it was still fun to walk  down memory lane and remember the happy days I spent so many years ago in the land of make believe with my Barbie doll and my cousin Becky.

Okay,  that's it for this Friday Foto Friends.  If I find something else more newsworthy to write about later, I will, but hopefully this will bring back some fun memories from your childhood days too...