Winter Wonderland at Kates Cabin Bird Sanctuary in Texas

Hi Everybody!
Come on in to the warmth and get out of the cold. We do not have too many freezes in my corner of Texas during winter. December was a mild winter month to close out the year. The first week of January brought banner days full of blue skies and sunshine. One of my red Maple trees began to bloom thinking it is Spring!
They say about Texas, if you do not like the weather, wait a minute and it will change. It changed last night and got very cold-brrrrrrrrrr. Temperatures plummeted to 25 degrees. I turned my sprinkler on last night around midnight, so I woke to Ice Gardens at Kates! Cloudy skies hid the sun for awhile, but the rise in temperature set the melting in process. I snapped a few pics and got hit in the head by a falling icicle!

A hard freeze needs to occur at least once in winter to benefit the yard. Fruit trees actually need a certain number of chilled hours or they will not produce fruit.  The freeze also lowers the number of pest insects like flies, fleas and mosquitoes.  The main thing for me is the snakes are in hibernation. This is the only time of year I work in the flower beds, never in the summer!  Enjoy the images of my little Ice Gardens as the ice is long gone. Stay Warm!

...this is brendasue signing off from Rainbow Creek






O+O

To See or not to See

Hi Everybody:
I want to share with you an experience I have here in the woods. To become an explorer in our modern days you need only to walk outside. It is not necessary to go to outer space via Hubble or even the depths of the ocean. There are amazing things right outside your door. I began photodocumenting the birds and trees in my area for my Grandchildren. In this process, I was exposed to many other live things besides the birds. The more I got photos of, the more I found to be documented and photographed. Five years now and I have not begun  to finish documenting just the species that are here! The more I see, the more there is to see. I believe that things are placed in front of me to be seen and photographed. I have seen so many amazing thins in Nature. I encourage you to take time for yourself and your earth and just go out exploring for yourself. The things I show you, no one else on earth sees. Only me here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carolina_anole


Today's photostudy is of Mating Anoles (see above link for more info). I have seen these little green guys all my life. Yet I had never seen them mating. On this day, I walked out  on my back deck with the dogs and looked up the tree and noticed this pair. I went in to get the camera off the desk, then back out to shoot. They did not run away, in fact, they did not seem to notice me at all. So here for You today is something it took me 60 years to see!

....this is brendasue signing off from Rainbow Creek. Looking forward to seeing what is around Your Place!!!!

And Now for Something Different: My New Digital Blended Art!

Hi Everybody!
I have changed the blog template back to regular blog template for easier viewing. Today I want to share some of the new work I have been doing: blending my digital Nature Photos with creative editing options in Online software to present a new look for digital images. Some people really like these and some absolutely do not! I like focusing attention on my subjects at the Bird Sanctuary!! I encourage everyone to try some new things. See what you think and let me know! I put a new follow button in blog.

I can promise you that you will not see anything like these out on web yet!!  What do you think??

.......this is brendasue signing off from Rainbow Creek.  See You Tomorrow!!!

O+O

Welcome To All My New Friends Around The World!!

Hi Everybody!

Outside the little (great) town of Hempstead, Texas is a tiny one acre place where extraordinary things happen. I know this because I am here as witness to some of these unprecedented events in Nature. Most people in Hempstead knew me as the Chef of Liendo's. Just a normal country person that happened to be a very good cook! I did not know anything digital like a camera or computer. My Granddaughter's birth 5 years ago put the desire for a camera in me, for what is a Grandmother without photos of the Grandchildren?  But it was my dear friend, Brenda Sue Gunter that lit the flame of passion in me.  When I saw some of her lovely work with flowers, I was so amazed it was possible to make such beautiful photos. She and her husband taught me the computer (very difficult for them)! I bought a little camera, but was afraid to use it. My Son set it and put it in my hands and said just start shooting! I haven't stopped since. I began documenting the wonderful things around me in a little photostudy.  Several shots of same subject.

I wanted to share all this with You so that I might encourage you to begin to take photos of your world. My blog and digital images have shown many people what things in my yard look like. Some people do not have trees or flowers. Some do not have many birds. By sharing mine with the world, I have met people from all around the globe and get to see their places. We have a great opportunity on the Internet to share knowledge and fun and just enjoy each other from a distance. This is only the beginning! So start where you are and grow! I am not a professional photographer and I do not want to be one! I do not want to shoot indoors, or weddings, or even people! I do not want to travel  or carry around a bunch of stuff. It is great for all of those who want to pursue a career in Photography. For me, I am happy to walk out on my front porch in my nightgown and look up and shoot pics of the birds. I have learned how to enhance the digital images from my Canon point and shoot.  I make (some) beautiful images from available tools online. I have achieved my first goal. If this old lady can do this, so can You. Show me Your World!

Today's photostudy is of the Winter Trees at Kates Cabin Bird Sanctuary. Habitat Construction  was my specialty in this project! This is a truth I have witnessed: if you want many birds, it is good to have many trees!
All of these trees in the photostudy are on the grounds of the Sanctuary.  Enjoy!

Hope You enjoyed my trees!  A special hello to all my Hempstead Friends and Facebook friends. Good to see you all again. This is my new blog. Please comment and let me know if it is easy to understand or too difficult to move around!!!!!!  Please sign on to follow my blog to keep up with the adventures around here!

See You Later!

.......this is brendasue signing off from Rainbow Creek,  Happy Trails to You!

O+O