Hawk sighting

My family often sees juvenile hawks in the fall and winter flying around and preying on the feeder birds or snakes in our yard or when we're out on our  morning walks.  I saw this one early this morning sitting on the electric line by our street.  I am no hawk-identifying expert, but I am almost sure this is a juvenile Cooper's Hawk, Accipiter cooperii.  Anyone know for sure? Isn't it a beautiful bird?  It looked RIGHT at us as we walked by.  

Dewy Orchid

I know I just took a picture of an orchid yesterday, but when I saw this dew-covered orchid late this morning, I couldn't resist taking another photo. I couldn't leave out the close-up, beautiful details of the bloom!  I find it amazing how these plants have adapted such gorgeous, showy flowers to aid in pollination.  Check out the stripes and spots in the middle of the flower that act like a "runway" and a bulls-eye to guide pollinators in.  It is especially cool to think that bees see in ultraviolet light so these are very bright targets to them.  Isn't biology fascinating? 

Backlit beauty

"Give yourself a gift of five minutes of contemplation in awe of everything you see around you. Go outside and turn your attention to the many miracles around you. This five-minute-a-day regimen of appreciation and gratitude will help you to focus your life in awe." Dr. Wayne Dyer

My favorite flowers in the world are orchids.  I can't get enough of them.  I have many different orchids on my porch and just love when they bloom each year!  They make me so happy.  Each one is slightly different in "personality" - color, size, shape, etc.  My sweet husband knows I love them and that I'd much prefer a "live" plant than a bunch of dead flowers which only last a week....  he keeps me supplied.  :)  I saw one of my purple orchids shining backlit in the sun this afternoon and had to take a picture.  It's admittedly a different view of a flower, from behind the blossom, but I thought it was beautiful how it was transparent and glowing in the sunlight. 

Florida Box Turtles

Today, as my son was gathering sticks and rocks in our yard, he discovered a Florida Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina bauri) - a subspecies of box turtles found in the United States.  He always gets so excited when he finds a turtle and can sit and watch it for a long time while the poor turtle hides in its shell (as you can see in this picture).  These little turtles are all over the place in the pine rocklands of the Key Deer National Wildlife Refuge. There have been many babies roaming around our yard this year too!  It's really great to see them (along with the Key Deer) on a regular basis.   My son sometimes likes to feed them his unfinished bananas and/or banana peels; they will stick their long necks out really far and devour those bananas, making very loud breathing and slapping sounds with their mouths as they eat the sticky fruit and then try to wipe off their faces on the mulch.  Very funny!  

Sunrise Paddleboard

We got up early today to go to the beach at sunrise so I could take some pictures for one of my photo assignments in my Wedding course (thanks for lending me the extra camera, Ginny!), and so we could do some paddleboarding. It was a gorgeous morning! Here are my husband and youngest son silhouetted as they paddleboard. The kids took turns going out with Daddy and riding the little waves back into shore; they had a blast! 

Hole in one!

HOLE IN ONE!  Well, ok, not really....but this is the face that my son makes when he hits the golf ball into the hole......1 stroke or........... 30 strokes.... it doesn't matter - there is pure glee and astonishment when that ball finally sinks into the hole!  hee hee!  I managed to catch his priceless reaction tonight when we went out for mini-golf and dinner.  

The Circus Came to Town

The circus came to Key West this week so we decided to go with some great friends tonight.  It was really a blast!  It was completely different than last year, which was a surprise.  There was a pretty decent tightrope act, a scary fire-eating act, a trapeze act, a springboard/acrobatic act, and a cute stint with these huge trained pigs.  I have to admit, though, that the best part for me was staring at my kids' and our friends' kids' faces as they watched the show!  I love the awe and wonder I saw in their reactions.  Priceless.  

During intermission, we bought them all tickets to go on the bouncy house slide, and it's a miracle they all survived without breaking their necks!  At the end of the show, my older son got to ride on a pony (his first time riding a horse) and was thrilled!  The highlight was when my younger son, who was in my arms watching him go 'round and 'round the circular ring, asked me if he could pet the horsey. I said "We'll have to ask him" (meaning the man in the ring who was in charge of the animals). My sweet baby, very politely, leaned over and asked one of the ponies: "Horsey, can I please pet you?" and then got to pet his soft head. Very sweet moment. I wish we could all see life through the eyes of children because they are so innocent and pure and joyful and GOOD.