Little River in the Smokies

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River Road between Townsend and Gatlinburg in the Great Smoky Mountains is one of our favorite drives. Little River is always fascinating in any season, and we often stop just to enjoy the water rushing over and around the boulders in the stream. This picture was taken in March, 2010.

From the Archives: Flowers in Our Yard

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Glowing Peace is a rose that we've had in our yard for three years. I think the name is very appropriate for it does seem to glow in the morning light.

Icy Trees and Blue Skies

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We had a very cold and snowy Christmas weekend here in the Glade. This picture of ice-coated trees in our yard was taken last year, but I needed the reminder that even wintry weather can be beautiful.

Carousel at Night

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On Tuesday evening while we were at the beach, we stopped by Barefoot Landing in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, after dinner. Barefoot Landing is a shopping-restaurant-entertainment complex. Most of the shops were closed, which was fine since we stopped by to see the lights. Walking around the complex we found this brightly-lit deserted carousel, and I couldn't resist taking a picture.

Santa Paid Us A Visit

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I took this picture on Christmas morning for several reasons. First of all you can see the Betsy and I were good enough for Santa to pay us a visit. Secondly, you can see some of the ornaments we've collected since we've been married. And finally, if you look through the window, you can see that we actually had a White Christmas here in Tennessee.

Cataloochee Valley Fog

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In October Betsy and I went to Cataloochee Valley in North Carolina to see the elk. The elk were there, but so was fog. There are no elk in this field, but I like the fog trying to hide the mountains at the end of the valley.

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Betsy and I will be taking a blogging break for the next few days. But we hope you will all have a very Merry and Blessed Christmas.

From the Archives: Flowers in Our Yard

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Sempervivum (Hens and Chicks) are beautiful succulents which we use in various places around our yard. What we didn't know when we started using them is that the hens bloom just before they die. The blossoms are small, but delicate and pretty. I got this picture back in July.

Glade Sunrise

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I captured this Glade sunrise on the golf course behind our house last month. I like both the clouds and contrails as well as the color.

Orchids at the Biltmore Estate

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We saw these beautiful blossoms while touring the Conservatory on the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, last month. We could have spent hours just enjoying the hundreds of blossoms in the Orchid Room alone.

Rutledge Falls 500 posts later

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When I started this photo blog not quite two years ago, I thought I would be posting only sporadically. It's hard for me to believe that this is my 500th post. The bad news for you is that I may have 500 more that I would like to post.

That first post was a picture of Rutledge Falls near Tullahoma, Tennessee. This is another picture of that same waterfall.

A Day Care Outing

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I got this photo of a day care outing in Beijing during the summer of 1990. The children have spotted some foreigners getting off a bus, and I think they were as interested in us as we were in them.

The picture above was scanned from a slide.

From the Archives: Flowers in Our Yard

Our Floor Show Iris is a re-blooming iris; it blooms in the Spring and then again in the Fall. This picture was taken on November 4 of this year.

It's Beginning to Look Like Christmas

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'The weather outside is frightful,
But the fire is so delightful'.

We often have a fire in the fireplace on cold evenings, but it seems doubly warm and colorful during the Christmas season. Our tree goes very nicely with a roaring fireplace. This picture was taken this past Sunday evening.

Bald River Falls

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One of our favorite waterfalls is Bald River Falls near Tellico Plains, Tennessee. Getting to the falls involves a very pleasant drive along the Tellico River. This picture, from my archives, was taken in July.

Shadows and Light

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Betsy and I visited Mount Mitchell in North Carolina a couple of weeks ago. The day was cloudy (and chilly), but the clouds broke up enough to let blue sky be seen and to create patterns of shadow and light on the mountains below.

A Country House

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Biltmore House was the country home built by George Vanderbilt between 1889 and 1895 near Asheville, North Carolina. I left Betsy near the fountain on the Esplanade to go to a higher vantage point to get this picture of the house and the mountains under a blue sky with clouds moving in. (That's Betsy taking pictures near the driveway on the left.)

Flowers From Our Yard: About Face Rose

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Over the past few weeks I've gotten into the habit of posting flowers from our yard on Thursdays. I'd like to continue doing that, although for now the pictures are going to have to come from the archives. This picture of About Face Rose was taken May 15, 2010.

Evening on the Blue Ridge Parkway

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I mentioned a couple of days ago that Betsy and I visited the Blue Ridge Parkway last week. We headed back to Asheville in the late afternoon, but stopped at the Craggy Dome Overlook to take in the view. Craggy Dome is off to the right, but I liked this view of the mountains, sky and shadows in the evening light.