Geranium....

58-365

'Geranium'

Taking a gamble, and doing some planting.

Textured with Kim Klassen's 'Simple'.

Frame from PhotoScape.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Sheltered...

56-365

'Sheltered'

This little bird, sits on our porch, between two decorative birdhouses.

The spider web stretched above him, looks like a canopy,

giving him some shelter.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Visit of the Raccoon...

55-365

'Visit of the Raccoon'

We live on a golf course, in a small town.  

There are lots of 'wild animals' around here...

mostly deer, but other things, too.

This little guy came into our yard, during the day.  Mostly, they just come around at 

night....tearing up bird feeders and things.

He was acting strange...not aggressive...just like he was feeling really bad.

He wandered around a while, then wandered off.  We thought he was feeling better.

Later, the Animal Control came. (I didn't know we HAD Animal Control here).

They headed down to the creek, with a cage, and came back up with this 

guy.  They took him away.  

Maybe they helped him.

Nature isn't always pretty.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Say What?....

54-365

'Say What?'

One of our many deer.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Painted Churches...

St. Mary's, Praha, TX

We visited some of the 

Painted Churches of Texas

a couple years ago,

and I posted about them, on my garden blog,

Patchwork Garden.

St. Mary's, Praha, TX

We had good friends in town, and knew they'd like seeing these.

St. Mary's, Praha, TX

These are all Catholic churches, built in the late19th and early 20th centuries, 

by German and Czech immigrants.  All are still in use.

The outsides are like many country churches.

But, the insides are works of art.

These small communities didn't have the means to build their

churches with fancy stone or ornate carvings.

So, they hired artists, to paint them.

St. Mary's, Praha, TX

The altars are ornate, with many statues.

The ceilings and posts are painted to look like fancy woods,

or marble and granite.  Many stenciled and freehand paintings.

St. Mary's, Praha, TX

There are beautiful windows...

...with great details.

St. Mary's, Praha, TX

They each have their own cemetery.

Stones that have stood the test of time.

St. Mary's, Praha, TX

Some have stone or brick exteriors, some are wooden.

St. Cyril & Methodius, Dubina, TX

Most are open, and you can go inside.

This one at Dubina was not.  We stood at a rail, just inside.

But, I could get a photo.

St. John the Baptist, Ammansville, TX

Our last time here, we didn't visit Ammansville.

And, this time, for some reason I didn't get an exterior photo.

St. John the Baptist, Ammansville, TX

The inside is beautiful.

Soft colors, and brightness.

St. John the Baptist, Ammansville, TX

We were lucky enough to be there, when a tour was going on.

The docent told us that the artist painted 'plain wallpaper', with these stencils,

and installed it on the ceilings and walls.

This is the third church, on this site.  The first was destroyed by a 

hurricane (this is close to the coast), and the second burned.

St. John the Baptist, Ammansville, TX

St. John the Baptist, Ammansville, TX

Beautiful, detailed statues.  Note the little sandal, falling from the foot of

Little Jesus.

St. John the Baptist, Ammansville, TX

A painted relief of the Last Supper, adorns the altar.

Nativity of Mary, High Hill, TX

The Crown Jewel, though, is the church at High Hill.

We made it the grand finale.

Nativity of Mary, High Hill, TX

The painting here is amazing.

The altar is more ornate.

Nativity of Mary, High Hill, TX

53-365-Project 365

The ceiling paintings are detailed,

and, gorgeous.

Nativity of Mary, High Hill, TX

Nativity of Mary, High Hill, TX

Beautiful windows.

Nativity of Mary, High Hill, TX

And, statues.

If you want to see these beautiful churches, make sure to go by the

visitor center in Schulenberg, and get a map and information.

They're scattered around the countryside.

If you want to read about our last trip to the Painted Churches, visit my blog,

Patchwork Garden.(click on the name)

And, there is also information,

here.

It's worth the trip.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Agave...

52-365

'Agave'

A close up photo of one of our agaves.

I played with color curves, then 'over sharpened'.

Added a grunge border from Pixlr.

Modern art....

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

King of the Hill....

51-365

'King of the Hill'

Willow seems to be getting into the act, a lot lately.

We have these huge boulders in back of he house.

He likes to sit out there and let the other neighborhood cats know

HE'S the

'King of the Hill'.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

To those who have mentioned the frames I'm using...

most are from Photoscape.

Cathedral Cactus

50-365

'Cathedral Cactus'

Our neighbor, Elli, gave us some cuttings of this last fall.

It rooted quite easily, and is now twice as big.

I need to cut it again, and have lots more limbs.

It's really not a cactus.

It's a euphorbia...

Euphorbia trigona.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Heart Lines...

49-365

'Heart Lines'

I love it, when I find a heart-shaped rock.

I laid it on a worn, wooden bench, on the deck. 

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Red-Shouldered Hawk

48-365

'Red-Shouldered Hawk'

Another pretty day.

Another day, working in the garden, getting ready for Spring.

Sitting on the porch, with the sun going down.

 This guy flew across

the Deer Grove, and up into a tree.

It was good of him to pose so nicely for me.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Viola....

47-365

'Viola'

A pretty little Viola.

Played with filters, on Photoscape.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~

Nandina...

46-365

'Nandina'

Another pretty day.

More work in the garden.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Rosemary...

45-365

'Rosemary'

Beautiful day.

Outside working in the garden.

Love it...

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Flag Over Gruene....

44-365

'Flag Over Gruene, TX'

We took a drive down to Gruene, for an early

Valentine's Day dinner.

There was a nice sunset.  Made this old building,

and the flag above, glow.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Sunny Day...

Sweeping the clouds away.

43-365

A sunny day.

Warm temperatures.

I got a lot done in the garden.

We had 25F this morning.

But, it's supposed to warm up to 70F this afternoon,

then get warmer for the weekend.

We haven't had as bad a winter, as some parts of the country.

But, I am SO ready for Winter to go away.

Hope you're warm and safe.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Love...

42-365

'Love'

Love is in the air.

I set this up, for my daily 365 shot.

I textured it with 

Kim Klassen's 

'Isobel'.

Linking to Kim's

Texture Tuesday

***********
Thanks for dropping by...
~~Linda~~

"Neighbor, How Long Has It Been....

"..since you had a big, thick, steaming bowl of Wolf Brand Chili?"

41-365

"Well, that's too long."

If you're from Texas, you'll probably remember that commercial.

And, you'll probably know the chili.

We've been having 'Chili' weather, 

the last couple days.

Well, that's too long.

I'm ready for Spring to come and

STAY!

Oh...this is NOT a paid endorsement. 
We just like it....and, it's RED.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Textured with Kim Klassen's

'Traverse'.

Sunset Cardinal...

40-365

'Sunset Cardinal'

Another beautiful day.

Another day, working in the garden.

The birds were really enjoying it.

Back on the porch, at sunset.

It was nice.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

End of Day

39-365

'End of Day'

Still in the throes of this yo-yo weather.

After a few days of cold and damp, we were sunny and warm.

We spent the day outside, working in the garden.

Lots of work to do out there.

And, the weather was perfect.

We finished the day on the porch, 

watching the sunset through the trees.

Another day today of that weather, 

then we're forecast another round of cold and damp.

Crazy weather.....

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

76 Degrees...

38-365

'76 Degrees'

This is a Galileo Thermometer.

The little 'bubbles', filled with colored liquid,

have different numbers on their little gold tags.

Each one represents a different temperature,

and floats to the top.

You add up the numbers, and divide by the number of bulbs.

It's pretty, sitting in the window.

  And, it works!

But, it's easier just to read the digital thermometer.

We have sun here today.  And, we're warming up.

Time to get outside in the garden.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

True Love...

37-365

'True Love'

The month for Valentines.

This little dancing couple, was a gift from my Father-in-Law,

to my Mother-in-Law, before they married.

It was taken very good care of, and now lives with us.

This pretty little couple, have been dancing together for 

70 years.

I played around with a Photoshop watercolor technique...no textures.

Fun, on a chilly winter day.

Stay warm...

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Red...

36-365

Red

Makes me want to make some cupcakes.

Textured with Kim Klassen's 'Laura'.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Willow Again...

35-365

Willow Again

Our neighbor's kitty, Willow.

He's hers...but, he lives on our porch.

Willow loves the grill cover....

whether it's off the grill and folded up...

or, still on the grill.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Dusty Miller

34-365

I trimmed some 

Dusty Miller

so it would bush out.

Makes a nice little bouquet.

It will root, too.

I textured it with 

Kim Klassen's textures...

Cherish Scripted and Isobel.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

I'm joining Kim, for
Texture Tuesday.

I Got Sunshine...

...on a cloudy day.

Yep...that old cold front came in.

Right on time.

33-365

We went to our son's, to watch the Super Bowl.

Our daughter-in-law has a bowl of grapefruit.

Sunshine in a bowl.

The game....what can I say?

There were some good commercials.

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

Sunny and Warm....

Can you believe?

It's the 1st of February, already!

32-365

We're sunny, and almost 80 today.

Tomorrow, we're having ANOTHER cold front.

The yo-yo weather continues.

************

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~

One More For January...365....

I'm finishing up my catch-up on my

365.

25-365

Icicle at the Rain Barrel

26-365

Tree Carver

Some trees died, in back of one of our favorite local restaurants.

Instead of taking the trees down, they're having them carved....

by a Chain Saw Artist.

Amazing what can be done with a chain saw.

27-365

Sweet Gift

Our neighbor gave us this sweet little guy, for Christmas.

28-365

Ice Again

We had that gorgeous day, watching the Chain Saw Artist.

Then....freezing rain again.

This yo-yo weather is annoying.

29-365

Sunshine and Low Winds

Still cold...but, sunny.

30-365

Another One Bites the Dust

We have an on-going battle, with the squirrels and especially raccoons.

I've lost count of how many feeders the raccoon have destroyed.

This is the latest.

31-365

Washday Still Life

OK...that's January!!

***********

Thanks for dropping by...

~~Linda~~