Before the Deer

 

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For the first ten years or so we lived here in the Glade, we had beautiful roses in our front yard.  We had a rose bed along the street in from of our house and other rose beds on each side of the driveway.  The roses did very well and bloomed beautifully. People would often stop at the house to admire them.

Then the deer moved in.

Now the only roses that bloom are in containers on the deck.  Most of the roses in the from yard were replaced by iris, which deer don’t like.  The front yard looks very dull during much of the year, but at least we have pictures to remember what it used to look like.

 

 

Azalea Blossoms

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My Beautiful Bride and I went to Biltmore for our annual Spring visit.  Unfortunately many of the azaleas at Biltmore had already bloomed out.  Fortunately we still have azalea in our yard that are still putting on a show.

 

Christmastime is Near

 

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One of the houses here in the Glade decorated to celebrate the Christmas season.

 

 

 

 

 

Color Around the Lake

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This hasn’t been a great autumn for color this year in the Glade.  But I did manage to find some color (admittedly on the dull side) along the shore of one of the lakes here.  Hopefully things will be more vibrant next year.

 

Full Moon in the Glade

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Several years ago I took a picture of the full moon rsising here in Fairfield Glade.  I decided to do some experimenting with the image and used software to make it appear more like a paInting.  This is what I came up with.

 

 

 

 

 

Pink Dogwood Blossoms

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We know that Spring has arrived in the Glade when the pink dogwood tree in our front yard blooms.  My Beautiful Bride and I have been celebrating Spring’s arrival for the past week or so.  This picture was taken a couple of years ago, but the blossoms were just as beautiful this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Snowy Scene

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We don’t often get much snow here in the Glade, but when we do get snow the result can be a beautiful landscape.  I got this picture from the front of our house several years ago.

 

 

 

Blue Sky and Icy Brances

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We haven’t gotten a lot of snow here in the Glade for the past few years, so I haven’t gotten many snowy inter wonderland pictures.  But we do ave beauty during the winter months.  A few years ago we had an ice storm that left the tree branches coated in ice.  Those icy branches against a beautiful blue sky made a wonderful winter picture.

Autumn Burning Bush

 

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A few years ago I got a pictures of a burning bush in our neighbor’s yard.  It always puts on am awesome display in the fall with its bright red leaves.  I used software to give the photo a more “painterly” look.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flamenco Rose

 

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One of the newer roses in our yard is Flamenco.   It’s a bright beautiful rose which is always a joy to see in bloom.  This picture was actually taken last year, but I like it so much that I couldn’t resist using it.

Daddys Creek

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In early November of last year Betsy and I took a hike along Daddys Creek here in Fairfield Glade with Betsy’s son Mark and Robin.  It was a beautiful afternoon, and I was able to capture this scene of some of the remaining autumn colors and reflections in the water of the creek.

A Beautiful November Sky

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In early November My Beautiful Bride and I took a hike along Daddys Creek here in the Glade with Betsy’s son Mark and Robin.  It was in the afternoon when we started our hike, and I got this picture of the moon in a beautiful blue sky at the trailhead on the bluff above the creek.

Sempervivum Flower

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We have sempervivum (hen and chickens) in several places around our yard.  We like them because they are always green, regardless of the weather or season (‘sempervivum’ means ‘always alive’).  One thing we didn’t know was that the hens, just before they die out and are replaced by chickens, flower.  The flowers are small and delicate, but still beautiful.  I got this photo of a flowering hen in out front yard.

Morning in the Glade

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Betsy and I are constantly amazed at what a beautiful place we live.  In June the beauty shows up early in the morning, as this picture from the golf course behind our house shows.  What a way to start the day!!

Crescendo Rose

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After some unusual weather in February (warm) and April (cold) our roses are recovering and starting to bloom.  This beauty is Crescendo and I got this photo last month in May.

Summer of Love Rose

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I know it’s Spring --although it has seemed like winter the past couple of weeks -- but our roses are starting to show new growth and promise lots of color in the days ahead.  Last year our roses were blooming in April; I don't think that will happen this year.  I got this picture of Summer of Love after an April shower last year.

Star Struck

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The Star Struck day lily in our yard has one of the largest (and prettiest) blossoms of all our day lilies.  It is always a welcome sight.

I Found a Diamond Ring in the Sky

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Fairfield Glade was in the path of totality during the eclipse on August 21, 2017, and Betsy and I were really looking forward to experiencing a total eclipse from our own yard.  The only potential problem was that cloudy skies were expected to move in at about the time the eclipse was to reach totality.

One of the things we were told to look for was the ‘diamond ring’ that occurs when the sun starts to reappear from behind the moon.  The clouds came as expected as you can see in the photo above, but if you use your imagination you can also see a diamond ring.

Preparing for the Eclipse

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Fairfield Glade is in the zone of totality for the solar eclipse on August 21, so we’re all hoping for clear weather on that day.  I’ve been practicing getting photos of the sun in preparation for the big day.  I don’t have a lens long enough to get any details on the surface of the sun, but I’m hoping I’ll be able to get some sharp pictures as the moon passes between earth and the sun.  The picture above is my latest attempt to get a clear picture of the sun.

A Rose About Betsy

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I like it when the roses — and other flowers in our yard — have some connection with Betsy.  This pretty rose is called Something Special, when does a great job of describing my Beautiful Bride.