Snowy Tuesday morning

Thank goodness for the time change. Finally I am able to get up and out the door in time to catch the sunrise! 

Since the sky was cloudy when I awoke I didn't really rush, thinking there would be no sun anyway. Thankfully I arrived at the waters edge just in time.

What a great way to start the day! The air was pretty mild compared to what it has been. Eventually reaching the low 50's. 

 A total sweetheart. All she wanted to do was love on me.

After a few pictures at Jenness Beach and Rye Harbor I thought it would be nice to check in on the local resident Snowy Owl. Uh yeah, I think she's still here ...

Sometimes I wonder who's watching who. She seems quite oblivious to all the local paparazzi that visit on a daily basis. Every time I stop by people seem to be giving her a wide berth so as not to cause any stress. 

After shooting for a while then taking a few minutes in my car to warm up I decided to walk back over and see what she was up to. It was quite a sight to see, she was feasting on a bird she'd caught either earlier in the day or the night before. And though I shot some rather graphic images of her eating I felt it might be best to keep them out of this post. 

It's not difficult to tell she has quite a bit of blood on her front feathers, around her beak and eyes. This is all good because it means she isn't going hungry. Something that was of concern for some of the snowy owls along the east coast.

Once breakfast was consumed she started walking around and eating snow, which I didn't expect. A girl has got to get a drink somehow.

Finally, when the snowy was through pruning, snow eating, and scratching she decided to catch a little shut eye. All the while I looked on at how glorious she is, thinking how fleeting her time here will be. Any day could be her last before she heads back up north to Canada.

nap time = time to go home 

Beach stroll

Last Friday I enjoyed a beautiful late morning walk with a friend along the beach. Although I wasn't going to bring my camera along for the walk, my friend Karen encouraged me to grab it. I know how anxious she is to see a few of the shots I took, so Karen, here you go!

There's nothing like salty air, the rush of the waves, and a good friend to make everything else seem a million miles away.

One of my favorite things to photograph at the shore ... dogs. They always exude such joy. This very happy Golden Retriever had found a shell to call his own and was not going to give it up no matter what.

Brodie, above, was so darn sweet I wanted to bring him home! His mom and I were talking and it turns out her son and my daughter go to the same high school. It really is a small world here along the seacoast.

This little lady is a service dog who puts in time on a regular basis at a local retirement home. Jeff, her owner, spoke in such a loving way about his dog.  You could visibly see the bond between the two of them. 

While walking around Rye Harbor we came across this saying engraved into a large rock

Also in Rye Harbor ... a male merganser enjoying the warm sun. In all the time I've photographed mergansers I don't think I've ever seen one sitting on the beach.

Although I posted this in part for Karen I hope some of my regular readers enjoy it as well. It's been far to long since I've posted. Thank you for stopping by!

New neighbors!

For the past couple months I've been feeding Bluebirds with Zick Dough, never dreaming we'd actually have a pair nest right in our own yard! What a thrill!

The Mrs. is a very busy and dedicated lady! Mostly he just watches and guards the next site while she flies back and forth on a serious mission. 


Already a pair of House Sparrows thought they might be moving in. I don't think so! My husband and I will do everything in our power to keep that from happening. House Sparrows will actually trap the female in the house and kill her, or destroy the eggs. Or worse yet, kill the babies and throw them on the ground. Horrid birds they are.

My biggest concern right now is that they are nesting early. About 2 weeks early. We still have cold nights on the way so I'm hoping if she lays eggs they won't freeze.

I took this picture 2 days ago with my cell phone. This afternoon she was still bringing pine needles in and had the nest built all the way up to the hinge on the door. I didn't see any eggs yet but I'll keep a watchful eye out for them.

These are some of the best kind of neighbors you can have : )

Snow, birds, and bit of drama

Yesterday afternoon the snow began to fall. Something we haven't seen much of this winter, and I'd kind of hoped we wouldn't see again! But, it's New England and there's no telling what's next.

Although it doesn't really look big enough, this is actually a Hairy Woodpecker. Photographing them can be tricky since they are much more timid than the Downy Woodpeckers.  Such a pretty lady she is.

Gotta love the Bluebirds! They've been eating up the Zick Dough for a the past month. Lately they've also been fighting like cats and dogs but once the snow arrived, so did harmony.

As for the drama portion of this post ... Tuesday my husband and daughter, Elise, went skiing. While on a black diamond my husband stopped to see where my daughter was. Turns out she was right behind him going almost 40 mph (we know this from the Ski Tracks app my daughter has on her phone). All my husband remembers after that is seeing pink before my daughter hit him full force, causing her to go flying through the air and land on her head (with a helmet) and shoulders we believe. Instantly my husband ran to her and took her down to see the medics who determined she was okay, but they still rested for a bit in the lodge and had something to eat before continuing to ski for a few more hours. Ya, I know : /

By Tuesday night Elise felt sick to her stomach and had a terrible headache but no vomiting or other concussion symptoms. Finally she ate a little yogurt and some toast and which calmed her stomach but yesterday morning when she awoke her neck was really hurting ... bad. Unfortunately I had to go to work so I called the doctor from my cell and they said go straight to the ER. Since I wasn't home my husband took her where they x-rayed Elise's neck only to have it come back with what appeared to be a line through the 3rd vertebrae. The doctor assumed it was a shadow from the trachea but he couldn't be certain so a CT Scan was ordered. Long story short (and maybe it's a bit late for that) Elise is okay. Nothing is broken but she has to wear a neck brace as there is plenty of swelling, soreness, and stiffness. Needless to say my husband is quite sore too. All will be well in the next few days though. Phew!

And if that wasn't enough, in the midst of the ER drama my older daughter texted me and said her boyfriend messed with her fish tank and killed all her fish. And she doesn't buy cheap fish! *sigh*

Despite everything going on in the teenage world the Bluebirds seem quite content to have a little something to eat on a cold day. As was I when we went out for dinner at Petey's last night ; )

Into the blue

If you've been around my blogging long enough then you know I love time spent by the ocean. It always brings me a great sense of calm. The waves, the gulls, the endless views ... for a moment in time I can feel completely weightless of all the daily burdens. 

Maybe just for a moment you can feel that way too

This has been such a delightful February, weather wise. And though snow was predicted yesterday it didn't materialize. Instead, last night as I lie in bed, for the first time in months I fell asleep to the sound of rain beating on the windows. It was a welcome sound making me think of peepers. But the peepers song is at least a month away.

I know I'm not supposed to love the gulls ... but I do

And the dogs, because no beach is truly complete without a dog

Do anything, but let it produce joy

~ Walt Whitman

I thought I'd add a little mosaic of a few Instagram images from the past couple weeks. I'll be linking up with Mary for Mosaic Monday. 

Are you doing anything special this Sunday?

A gray day, because we all have them

A lot of times when you see my photos what you don't see is the way I was feeling when I shot them. And I usually don't say, but today, since this is my personal blog, not about places I've been in New England, I'll tell you.

The past several years have been a struggle with my older daughter. Photography has been a huge saving grace for me because on the darkest days I would frequently pick up my camera and head to the waters edge. Looking through the viewfinder calms me and helps bring my focus to one thing; what's on the other side of the camera instead of what's going on at home.

I shot these images (and several others I plan on posting) a year ago on a particularly grey morning. Often times it's nice to go out and shoot a pretty sunrise but that was not the case. I just needed to get out. Gray or not, there had to be something out there to capture.

There were days, for months on end, I could barely get out of bed because who knew what was going to happen that day. Little did I realize shortly after I took these photos all hell would break lose once again.

Unfortunately when you are in the throws of the daily ups and downs of dealing with a troubled teen it can be a very isolating time. Reaching out to friends feels embarrassing and bothersome. It's generally just the way it is because you don't want to be judged. I leaned on my husband as much as I could, took long hot showers, walked, cried, and slept. All the while my New England Life blog was slowly dying and I couldn't say why.

Thankfully a year later I can finally say life seems to have stabilized. The pressure has lessened. And even though I still worry something will shake me to the core, that the phone will ring with the worst news, for the most part I think most parent's kind of feel that way on any given day.

As for the lesson I learned, well, I will say I learned life goes on and things do get better. Give your teen all you have, love, discipline, and support. Though my daughter still has hurdles to overcome she is doing well and I'd like to think it's because we have worked so hard at instilling how much we care about her on a daily basis. Not to mention she had some great support through counseling in school and outside of school.

For anyone else out there struggling, know you are not alone. Even though it feels like it.


On that depressing note ... I hope you like the photos! LOL!

Swans

This morning my husband commented that it feels like a Thanksgiving morning. I guess it sort of  does, except for the fact that the temps are in the low 50's and a wee bit humid. Wouldn't that be perfect for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade!

I adore the Swans. 

They may not be the sweetest of birds but what they lack in personality they more than make up for in beauty.

No joke!

If you follow any other New England blogs then you know we had a snow storm yesterday. A pretty good one too! About 6" of wet, sticky snow.

It's funny how the Bluebirds only show up when they are really hungry, and I knew yesterday morning they would be here like clockwork. Sure enough . . .

At this point it had started to rain and sleet. Then back to snow, and finally rain in the end.

They appear a bit flummoxed about the situation, like they were hoping for meal worms at the very least!

There were so many birds coming in to eat, including a Song Sparrow. What a delight to listen to him sing! He was here first thing this morning, but the Bluebirds have disappeared once again.

A small, local pond and shed I've photographed in the past

And swimming in that pond, as fast as they could to get away from me, a pair of Hooded Mergansers. Something you don't see every day!

Sorry about the obscene post on April 2nd ; )

Beach blues

I've been working (interior painting) at a house on the beach for the past 2 weeks. I'm telling you, there is almost nothing better. Every day the view is dreamy. The water and sky never stop changing, meshing, and amazing me. Even the bad days are a work of art to behold.

Low tide, high tide, seaweed, deep blue waters, turquoise waters, white gulls diving back and forth, black rocks jutting out for the seals to bask upon. Yes, yesterday I actually saw Harbor seals sunning themselves! It's always an adventure at the beach.

One thing I love about the beach is people watching. This couple was so cute. They stood there for quite a while, snuggling. Most people are walking dogs though. It always makes me wish I could bring Lily to work with me, but that definitely isn't an option at this house.

a long gone-by beach rose berry/the most gorgeous turquoise waters with gulls, and dark seaweed lying just below the surface

Looking out towards the Isles of Shoals with a billion diamonds/an almost petrified dead rose berry

I've noticed these rocks seem to be a favorite place for gulls to hang out, probably because there are plenty of crabs and other shell fish hanging about. Star Island looms large in the background

And though this really has nothing to do with the beach ... the other day I came home to Turkey Vultures circling our house and the surrounding vicinity. Turns out there was something dead in the field behind our yard.

Lily does NOT like TV's and let's them know in no uncertain terms. When they get this low she chases them and barks like a mad woman. The bird looks terrified doesn't it? I mean just look at those eyes! Ha ha! More than likely it's wondering where the Pug is ; )