Thursday Challenge; Happy

The Thursday Challenge of this week is: HAPPY (Smiles, Faces, Laughter, Humorous Things,...)

Well this happy face always makes me smile: She's almost 13 years old (next Thursday is her birthday) and although a bit stiff in her bones now and then still a happy dog. :)

© KH

Butterflies

Today I was lucky to see this rare butterfly. It must be an Atalanta but with totaly different colours than a normal one. I've read that it's possible sometimes but now I've seen it with my own eyes. And it was gorgeous! His friend was sitting right next to him with the 'normal' Atalanta colours.

Speckled Wood butterflies are all over the place here even in October;

© KH

Thursday Challenge; Shiny

It's Thursday again and the Thursday Challenge today is:
"SHINY" (Mirrors, Reflections, Glass, Jewellery, Metal,...)

© KH

October morning

I love autumn and I love poems so I used to combine those two but somehow I forgot it. Today I walked outside and it was a lovely autumn morning, my kind of weather; drizzle, dark and the leaves are starting to change colour and fall. I took this photo for a dear friend in India who doesn't know autumn and found this poem to go along with it and thought: I want to start that kind of blogging again. A picture and a poem that goes along with it. So here it is I hope you like it. I took it with my phone so the quality isn't that good but still a nice picture of autumn.

Have a lovely Sunday.

October

By Robert Frost
 

O hushed October morning mild,

Thy leaves have ripened to the fall;

Tomorrow’s wind, if it be wild,

Should waste them all.

The crows above the forest call;

Tomorrow they may form and go.

O hushed October morning mild,

Begin the hours of this day slow.

Make the day seem to us less brief.

Hearts not averse to being beguiled,

Beguile us in the way you know.

Release one leaf at break of day;

At noon release another leaf;

One from our trees, one far away.

Retard the sun with gentle mist;

Enchant the land with amethyst.

Slow, slow!

For the grapes’ sake, if they were all,

Whose leaves already are burnt with frost,

Whose clustered fruit must else be lost—

For the grapes’ sake along the wall.

 © KH

Thursday Challenge; Together

This Thursday Challenge it's about:
"TOGETHER" (Bacon and Eggs, Things that go together,...)

Honey and bees go together I think:

© KH

Heather

A few weeks ago while walking in the forest I took these pics (among others the header which I edited)

© KH

Thursday Challenge; Blue

This Thursday's Challenge is about:
"BLUE" (Anything with the colour blue in it,...)

On this very important day for Scotland (the country I love and miss so much) it can only be one picture for me:

© KH

Thursday Challenge; Garden

This Thursday's Challenge is all about; GARDEN (Flowers, Vegetables, Rocks, Orchards,...)

And it so happens I made some new ones;

 Spider

 snail on a dead yellow flower (would snails eat flowers as well I wonder?)

Hydrangea

© KH

Highlands

After watching the new series Outlander (I also read the wonderful books by Diana Gabaldon) I am homesick for Scotland more than ever! So I thought it was time again for some photos even though it's been a while since I've been there. Just to lift my spirits up;

 Loch Rannoch

 Culloden Battlefield

 Clava Cairns

Loch Leven

© KH

Thursday Challenge; Sky

I'm a day late but better late than never;

Thursday Challenge: "SKY" (Birds, Winged insects, Kites, Frisbees, Balloons, Cloud,...)

Taken in the Black Forrest (Schwarzwald) in 2009

© KH

Thursday Challenge; Yellow

This Thursday the challenge is Yellow (Anything with the colour yellow in it,...)

My Yellow flowers are quite popular with the bee and bumble bee population. Not only for the nectar, but they also die in them:

© KH