It Snowed Last Night!

We woke up to a white world, but it won’t last. The temperature is 0ºC and forecast to go up to 3ºC today, which means it will all start to melt away.

I Went For A Walk

This past Sunday, John went to work for a few hours and I went for a walk along the greenway, not very far from where we live. The weather was perfect, sunny, almost cloudless, warm… perfect!

So was the scenery.

More pictures will follow.

Golf Course + Rain + Sun =

How great was our timing? This was taken at the Okanagan Golf Club (aka Bear & Quail). We took our chances that the weather was going to clear and it certainly did.

You Know It’s Autumn When…

Here in Kelowna, you know it’s autumn when you see scenes like this all over the Valley.

Taken for a photography assignment (work-related), at Camelot Winery, a new and up and coming winery. These are Riesling grapes, we were told, some of the last to be harvested.

I Love Autumn

There’s just something about a damp, autumn morning walk. The air has that “tang” to it and everything just feels so fresh.

And then there’s the dew…

What is it about Sunflowers?

Nothing else to add.

Out for a Walk

The weather was perfect, not too hot, not at all cold. I was home and decided to take advantage of the opportunity. This was taken at a marsh not too far from where we live. Notice the carp?

Edible!

Shaggy Mane mushrooms. These are edible. Because it’s been very wet here this summer, there are a lot of mushrooms around. Not all of them are edible, but I know these are.

One Organized Teacher

Taken through the local school’s windows. This teacher had one of these gift bags for each of her students. Looking through the door, we could see into her classroom; there was a box of crayons, a pencil and paper on each desk.

And, yes, I said “her”; I can only assume that a teacher that organized simply has to be a woman.

Dilly Dally

Such a delicate looking plant. This, again, was taken in a neighbour’s yard.

Back to the Farm

There is, on our street, one property that is all that remains of an old orchard. John and our landlord (who knows the family from way back) helped the elderly man pick pears yesterday while I explored with my camera.

This tractor was in his neighbour’s yard and, rather obviously, no longer runs. It does, however, make a unique trellis for the vines (pumpkin?).

From Our Museum

A month or so ago, a friend left a box of old bottles on our doorstep. Last week, they were cleaned, a shelf put up outside and the bottles were displayed on the shelf… just in time for my birthday. Thank you, Mike!

In A Little Boy’s World

 

A little boy lives in the suite upstairs. There are times the front “sandbox” (an area that won’t sustain grass so John filled it with a nice thick layer of sand) looks like a parking lot.

Incidentally, in an earlier post, I posted a picture of a bug grasping a pebble. In a comment on that post, Tee suggested that it might be a pine beetle. That started me on a search. I have discovered that it isn’t a pine beetle, but a White Spotted Pine Sawyer beetle. It feeds on dying, dead or decaying pine trees and is indigenous to our area (Washington, British Columbia, Alberta). And yes, as Tee wrote, it has the capability of inflicting a good chomp!

Autumn’s Promise

The grapes are heavy on the vines here in the yard. If this is any indication, it should be a good year for the wine industry here in the Okanagan.

Simple Minds, Simple Pleasures?

There was just something about the way the water swirled on it’s way to the drain that struck me. It’s just water, but I had to take a picture.

Old Meadows Farm

Just up the road from us is a great little organic produce farm. They grow herbs, flowers, vegetables and fruit. We visited there on the weekend, John to get some lettuce and me to take pictures.

So Many Peaches, Peaches for Me

There’s an organic produce farm just up the road from where we live. Everything is so fragrant, so green, so tempting. Right now, peaches are in season and they’re amazing!

Gone Buggy

 

John threw this at me yesterday. I almost freaked when I realized what it was. Then, he picked it (and the pebble it was on) up and handed it to me, then got the camera for me. I have  no idea what it is, but it is not pretty!

No wonder creatures such as this are often used as the basis for scary movies. (Click on the picture to see a larger image.)

Where We Were Yesterday

Close to home, and refreshing. Does it get much better?

It’s Cherry Time!

The Okanagan is, and has been for many years, orchard country. Cherries, apricots, peaches, apples, grapes, they all grow very well here. Right now, it’s cherry season with apricots hot on their heels.

It’s the Little Things

Found in our little backdoor garden. It was barely visible and I just saw it out of the corner of my eye. The little boy upstairs thought it was pretty cool. So did I.

A Day at the Museum

The one at our house, that is. Here are a few random shots of what is displayed at the front of our home, our museum

 

  More next time.

Ladybug, Ladybug

I’ve been playing (taking pictures) in the garden again. Click on the picture to see a larger size. I do like ladybugs!

Stuff

Part of our little “museum”, John’s way of decorating the outside of our suite. It’s a fun way of using some of our collected “stuff”.

I’ll Give You a Daisy A Day, Dear

More flowery goodness in our yard. These daisies will be blooming all summer long; they’re absolutely loaded with buds!

Sunflowers Again

This is the same sunflower as yesterday’s picture. When I took the camera outside in the afternoon, I happened to notic the bee on the flower and decided to experiment a little with the camera. It is, after all, just a point and click small camera. I’m impressed and this picture is now the background image on my desktop.

Happy

That’s how sunflowers make me feel… happy! This one’s blooming in one of the flower beds here in the yard. There are many more to come!

Poppies

J has some gorgeous poppies growing in the garden. They look almost like paper flowers, so delicate, so pretty! And if you look carefully, you can even see a little bug.

Back to Pictures

We're finally in a place where the camera(s) will again be put to use. There are growing things all around us. This is but one of a host of sunflowers J (the upstairs J, not John) planted this year, all over the property. It will be fun to see how many of them reach maturity.