Happily married 55 years, retired baby boomer, mother of 2, grandmother of 4, traveler, Georgia Bulldog fan, Air Force Brat, avid reader, amateur photographer, gardener, ovarian cancer survivor, blogger. Every day is a gift!
This week, Amy has chosen Under the Sun as our challenge.
When we were younger, my husband and I used to spend most of the summer out in the sun and heat of coastal Georgia. These days, we have to protect our skin and we can’t take the heat like we once could. Now when we want to get out and enjoy a beautiful sunny day we go for a boat ride. There’s a top for shade and we make our own breeze as we ride through the coastal waters.
This Sunday was a beautiful sunny day, perfect for a boat ride.
Boaters under the sun on a sand bar only accessible by boatWe cruised by one of Georgia’s many uninhabited barrier islands.
Of all the birds of prey I’ve seen in the wild, the Bald Eagle is by far my favorite. These magnificent birds mate for life and return to the same nest year after year. Alaska is a Bald Eagle lovers paradise.
Bale Eagle at Ninilchik BeachBald Eagle at Chilcoot Lake State Park, Haines, AKMama and baby eagles across from the Homer Post OfficeEagle soaring overhead in Homer
There are Bald Eagles on some of the Georgia barrier islands near our home but it isn’t every day that one decides to perch on top of our neighbor’s dock house. I was able to get a photo of this Bald Eagle on a foggy December afternoon.
Bald Eagle
Sometimes I can hear the owls in the trees in our neighborhood but they are hard to see. One morning this juvenile horned owl perched on our dock for a while.
Juvenile Horned Owl
Hawks are birds of prey I’ve often seen in Georgia and Florida.
Red Shouldered Hawk, Everglades National Park, Florida
An occasional hawk will fly over our back yard in search of a tasty morsel. One day one stopped for a break on a fence post.
Hawk in coastal Georgia
I often see ospreys soaring overhead as they search for food. I have managed to capture some on their nests.
Osprey on nest, Everglades National Park, FloridaPair of Ospreys on the nature trail, Gulf Islands National Seashore at Ft. Pickens, Florida
Although my backyard bird feeder in coastal Georgia attracts many varieties of birds, my favorites are the Painted Buntings. I keep the feeder filled with their favorite seeds all year round.
Male Painted BuntingFemale Painted Bunting at the feeder
I enjoy watching the Ruby Throated hummingbirds as they dart between the three hummingbird feeders and the flowers in the butterfly garden.
This week, our guest host Xenia of Tranature has chosen Sanctuary for our challenge. She reminds us that “Sanctuary can be found and created in a garden, a park, a field of wild flowers and by the sea …… watching wildlife, listening to birdsong …… along the forest trails and in the mountains.” She has asked us to show where we find it or how we create our calm and healing.
America’s National Parks and Wildlife Refuges are national treasures and wonderful places to find sanctuary.
Pa-Hay-Otee Overlook in Everglades National ParkCypress Trees in the Okefenokee National Wildlife RefugePolychrome Overlook, Denali National Park, Alaska
Closer to home, I can find my sanctuary watching the sun rise over the Atlantic Ocean on one of Georgia’s barrier islands (image at the top of the page), walking on the beach, or watching the birds and butterflies in my backyard butterfly garden.
This July “Seasons” will be the theme for the entire month with a different season featured each week. “Winter” is the last challenge of the series..
In coastal Georgia, a day below freezing is rare and we only get snow or ice every few years. Still, we enjoy sitting by the fireplace when the temperature drops outside.
Staying warm by the fireplace
Occasionally there are snow flurries but the snow usually melts as soon as it hits the warm ground. The last time the snow stuck and accumulated a few inches was in 2018. Our neighborhood was like a winter wonderland for a few days.
Icy morningSnow and ice in JanuaryIce covered salt marshSnow covered walkway over the marsh
Wandering Dawgs 