enjoying butterflies and moths

the tiger swallowtail

spring azure

wood nymph

virginia ctenucha

Butterflies and moths have been a big hit this season.....watching, wondering, and whimsical wanderings have led us to many discoveries!

not ready for fall yet

oh dear.....I took this photo from the sun roof of the car the other day as we were driving north. Could fall be just around the corner so soon?

 

As much as I wasn't ready to see these geese heading south (many love it when they head south!), it was a good chance to explain energy conservation, wind resistance, and team spirit to the kidlets. 

We are still enjoying the bounty of summer though....

 and a few favourite past times.........

today's fairy house

We have been thinking of making a fairy house for while and just haven't taken the time to do it. So today, with the garden full of flowers and the sunshine beaming, we took the plunge. I think this is something we will return to quite often and perhaps change with the seasons.

quiet places

I often have to remind myself how lucky I am to live in a place where it is so easy to find quiet places not far from my house. I live for these sorts of places.

always learning

A change in the weather had us exploring new places and visiting some old stomping grounds. My Mom lives on a farm built in 1830 and she still manages a fairly big vegetable garden. We often go down to visit her and help her with the chores and harvesting. I helped her remove and treat this year's pest!

Potato beetles!!! We've been so lucky to meet new friends to teach us all they know about insects. As a result, we've been inspired to do some research ourselves. We took a keen interest in learning more about these beetles and looked at their life cycle:

Another little critter I found in my boot:

With the chores done, we were able to go on a nice hike and we found a series of waterfalls

 

 and a patch of burdock

used by many for medicinal purposes and their taproots as root vegetables. We wrapped up our visit  exploring new things dotting the landscape in many places.

Twenty years ago, I wouldn't have enjoyed seeing these wind turbines blocking my pristine views and now I welcome them with open arms. 

out the front door

We haven't ventured very far this week and hopefully this will change tomorrow with the weather. We have been baking lots of bread and watching the wildlife right outside our front door:

We are thankful we live so close to woodlands. It brings us entertainment while we wait patiently for more warm sunny days of summer.

coastal exploration

We have been exploring many sections of coast this summer and can't believe how the summer is flying by! The great thing about our coast is that it is pretty diverse from one end to the other. Sometimes we take in the Jurassic volcanic coast to the north:

Sometimes we run down over the Devonian granites to see and listen to the seals howling

play in the sea coves

and stop to make some rock snakes!

Sometimes we find folded up rocks

and places to climb and scramble far better than any school playground

There is always something to find and we are never disappointed.

Carboniferous lepidodendron tree branches

Hope everyone is enjoying their lovely summer!