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Tuesday, March 1, 2011

A Walk Through The Neighborhood (The Winter Walk Off Challenge)

A day or two ago Les challenged us to talk a walk through our neighborhood and take some photos of the last days of winter.  I love the long shadows that the morning sun casts on the front walk.  This was taken before the walk....the dogs like to get up early, I keep telling them  we are retired!


 In the back garden the new trellis that holds the Carolina Jessamine, Gelsemium sempervirens.  This morning it held water droplets from the big storm that blew through last night.

 The rising sun plays with the trees in the woods along our side yard. 
As we began our walk  I wanted to make sure to get a good photo of the tiny green leaves emerging from the brambles along the road. 

 The sky was so blue after a wild storm last night that produced a tornado or two in the area.  We saw some trees down, one on a house in Abbeville.  I love the white bark of the Sycamore against the clear blue sky.

 You may have noticed I have been saying 'we'.  I take the dogs for a walk every day, all three of them. 


 These last few days I have had my friend Linda visiting from Seaford.  Yes, one of my loyal subjects.  She agreed to take Skyler's leash.  You can see the red in the maples starting to bud and the clean green of the stand of pines.


We have a lot of native grasses that are a beautiful shade of tan/russet/beige, standing tall through the winter.  I like these grasses.


Down in one of the swales there is a tree blooming that stands out against all the others.  Not sure what it is, YET.  Might be a pear or plum -- I will figure it out.
 The birds are building their nests, this one was really low, about 3 or 4 feet high in a small sapling.   Not sure whose nest it is... could be from last year.

The high winds from the thunderstorm blew some of the spent blooms from the Tulip Poplars into the street.

Once home from our walk we checked out some of the plants in the yard.  Jane is starting to bloom!!!  What a treat.  I love her buds.


Thanks for joining me and Linda on our morning walk with the doggies.  How is the winter winding down in your neck of the woods?? (Be sure to visit Les and participate in this challenge)




words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.

25 comments:

  1. I was catching up on my blog list and you popped up. Thanks so much for participating. Skyler's shadow looks more like a unicorn's than a dog's. Maybe in a former life?

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  2. Jane is lovely! Looks like a wonderful walk. Your 3rd photo of the trees and sunshine is very nice! So fun to have a friend visiting you;-) I will have to check out Les' challenge.

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  3. It looks like a sunshiney and relaxing walk. That bud (Jane)is such a delight to see. We are being fooled by a faux spring. It is getting warm but I know that we still have a few more months of snow and freezing.

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  4. A nice walk indeed & so good to have a good friend with you.

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  5. I like those grasses too. What a nice walk with the dogs.

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  6. I love the look of winter grasses too. The neighbors have a huge field full of broomstraw that glows golden for at least an hour every fine day in winter until the sun sets.

    Those new green leaves are a beautiful sight aren't they? We got some needed rain last night too, thankfully no severe weather.

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  7. Oh good, I was hoping you would take part! I love the elongated shadows. If we had some sun, I would be enjoying them here too :-( Beautiful sycamore.

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  8. Janet,

    Jane looks great! Meg told me she saw a magnolia in full bloom on Monday.

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  9. This is a great idea, Janet. Your photos are beautiful and show that even at this time of year there is beauty and interest around us if we only take the time to really look.

    I've found that dogs and young grandkids don't understand the meaning of "sleeping in":)

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  10. You have a wonderful place to walk! It looks so quiet and peaceful.

    It has been alternating 70 degree days with 50 degree days and lots of sunshine. We got the rain, but it wasn't sufficient to break our drought (already).

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  11. Wow, 'Jane' is blooming already?? I would say spring is doing more than lurking around your neck of the woods ~ it's actually arriving! Those new leaves are another sure sign.
    Hope you had fun with your friend. You have such a great setting for walks.

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  12. Looks like a beautiful area for a walk Janet. I enjoyed getting to go along. Who/what is Jane? I love the bloom too - just my color!

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  13. You have such a pretty setting for your daily walks with the dogs. Glad you are enjoying your visit with your friend. :)

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  14. I enjoyed your end of winter walk. Perhaps in a week or two that could happen here. Right now it's more snow for us!

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  15. Nice photos, Janet. Spring can't come quickly enough.

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  16. Love this idea, especially taking the dog with me. Great shots using the natural light in different ways. Fantastic and inspirational post.

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  17. Nothing says spring like a nice stroll with good friends and fur babies! Glad you were not in harms way during the icky storms. We got lucky with little wind and only rain fall from that band of mess. Wind enough to drop some tree branches though, Grrrrr…

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  18. Lovely walk.
    Wanted to let you know, one of the epiphyllum cuttings you sent me has sprouted. Thanks!

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  19. Les, He does look like a unicorn! Pretty funny.

    Jan, Hope you do Les' challenge too! I am thrilled to see Jane blooming already. Linda's visit was a lot of fun.

    Rosey, It was perfect weather and a great day....wonderful walk. Hope your spring comes soon!

    Lola, having my friend come down and go for walks with me AND work in the garden with me was a big treat!

    Tina, We do this walk every day...at least once a day. Just like toddlers-- the goal is to wear them out so they sleep through the night.

    Sweetbay, I am a new fan of these grasses, their golden colors in the winter are just wonderful. More rain is due tonight.

    Janet, Glad you did this challenge, love yours. I like the shadows too.

    Randy, Magnolias are popping like popcorn this week.

    Rose, You are right about the dogs --don't know about grandkids yet. I view my walks all year as a nature scavenger hunt...who knows what I will see/find.

    Cameron, thanks, I love it here. Spring is trying to be here, and I think it is winning. News tonight was talking about this impending rain as a drought breaker...hooray!

    Kathleen, yes, how aobut Jane? She is a winner! I did have a great time with my friend, super visit.

    Linda, thanks, I think it is a nice place for a walk. Jane is a Magnolia hybrid, cross with a Stellata and Liliflora.

    Racquel, thanks! We do have a great setting for our walks-- much better than Seaford.

    Becky, thanks for stopping by, glad you liked the walk. NY has had a lot of snow this winter.

    Grace, I agree!!! Come on spring!

    ONG, thanks for stopping by. Hope you take the challenge. (It is tricky taking photos with dogs on the leash...they will pull just as you are focusing)

    Skeeter, Spring is here!! The one storm last week had one lighting strike pretty close, but no worries.

    K & V, So glad to hear it!!!! Super.

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  20. A very lovely walk! I especially liked the little green bits starting to emerge and the sweet little nest. :)

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  21. Thanks Hanni, I will have to check back to see if there is anybody in the little nest.

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  22. Hi Janet, I enjoyed going on a walk with you,your friend and the dogs. Your part of the world is looking so much more spring-like than mine. We are experiencing a winter storm as I type these words. I would like to participate in Les's challenge ( the contest will be good fun) as well but all I have to show is snow!

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  23. I'd take my dog for regular walks too if I had such pretty scenery! You are a very good pet mom, I'm not that good. It's nice to see spring on it's way where you are. 'Jane' is beautiful.

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  24. Janet, what a lovely walk that is and right from your front door. You're very lucky. I can almost smell the crisp spring air as you walked along. I have a serious case of spring fever if you can't tell! Still buried in snow here up north but I can feel the weather beginning to turn and I'm itching to get back outdoors.

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  25. Jennifer, glad you came along! There is interest in a snowy walk. Hope you didn't have too much snow in the latest storm.

    Catherine, Mine want walks everyday -- when the kids were little and I would walk them to the busstop the dogs went along. They never could understand weekends. Jane is getting prettier every day.

    Marguerite, thanks! It was a perfect spring day the day I took those pictures. Sorry to hear you are still buried in snow. brrr

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