August 1st. Theme "Night"

I took this picture last month and since I seem to have a hard time taking night shots I was overjoyed with this one.

to see what the night looks like all around the world click here:

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

True colors for Sky Watch

I cannot see the true sunset from my house because I live up too high and there are trees all around. So the night before last night the clouds and sky above my house were turning pink tinged so I knew it would be a great sunset. So Bingo and I jumped into the car and drove down the hill to a spot I like to watch the sunset and the sight was beautiful. Glorious and breathtaking. Awesome colors. So here ya go!

If you would like to see sky shots from all around the world or you would like to participate go to www.skyley.blogspot.com. thank you

BTW: Don't forget theme day on August 1st. NIGHT!

Too Hot

It has ween triple digit hot here in Western Washington. Something we have never had before. Record setting time. We do have AC but our power was out most of the day yesterday---never did find out why. So the inside temp was near the outside temp. So I guess I can say we DON'T have AC. I am doing a rain dance. MB

Sanderlings on Camano

More Sanderlings taken at Driftwood Shores on Camano Island. I like 'em.

Photo update............................

I chose Silvana Sunset and Sanderlings. I will find out Friday how they were voted. I will let you know if you are interested.
Last year I won 2 blues. So...............................MB

Choices, choices

I am entering some photos I have taken the past year, in the Stanwood Fair. I can only enter two Photos. So out of the close to jillion photos I have taken this year I had a heck of a time. So here are 3 I framed. What do you think. HELP!!!!!
I framed them myself with frames I found here or even there. Nothing professional.

1. The Skagit Valley with Mt. Baker and Snow Geese
2. Sunset in Silvana I took this past Saturday
3. A flock of Sanderling taking off from a beach on Camano Island

Cucumber Harvest

Cucumber harvesting is fun to watch. I do wish i had better pictures. So bear with me. the huge red machines suck up the cucumber vines and separate the cukes from the vines. The vines shoot out the sides and the cucumber goes up into the hopper. When the hopper is full the white truck pulls along side the red machine and it tips the hopper and all the cucumbers transfer from hopper to truck on a conveyer belt and when the wite truck is full off it goes to the plant and the cycle continues until the field is bare. See the cucumbers shooting into the hopper in the second picture.
The tiny pickling cukes are still hand picked.


Who could of thought of how to separate the cucumber from the vine without mangling it. Amazing. MB

Scenes from Silvana Country Fair

Silvana, Population 97, is a small farming town just south of Stanwood. They have their one day country fair every year and it is jam packed. It is mainly a 4-H and FFA event. There are cow, pigs, goats, chickens etc--just what you would find on a farm. Everything else is there too--the dunk tank, the food and even helicopter rides.
The first pictures shows the Wall that was painted when Jason Hebert, the first from this area died in Iraq. 2003 It is a memorial. A picture of town before fair and during fair. Lotsa cars and people.
I took bunches of pictures but of course can't show all of them.

Football

Bradley aged 9 is going out for football this school year. It starts in the summer. He went yesterday to get his pads and helmet. So I went down to his house to take some pictures. He looked up at me slyly and said," and look Gramma, they even gave me a cup". what a little guy. I sure hope he doesn't get tackled too much. His slightly older brother said he would help him by tackling him. Probably continuously. BOYS!!!

Ritzville Ranch Afterglow*******Sky Watch

To see skies from all over the world or to participate please go to
http://www.skyley.blogspot.com/ thank you.

Over the river and through the wood.....................

........to Great-GrandMother's house we go.
I took all my grandkids over to whidbey Island to visit their Great-GrandMother. We went to Honeymoon Lake Community Club. Mother owns a small lot there. Besides having a small lake for fishing and all of Holmes Harbor to hunt for shells, play in the sand or to freeze your toes in salt water there is a swimming pool. So we had a picnic and a splashing party.
Firts picture is Great Grand Mother (93 yrs young)
Bradley age 9--spaceman
Mike (18)
Birthday boy Brett aged 11 (July 16) Everytime I took his picture all I saw was a splash or he was already underwater. I didn't get a pic of him.
Big splash Brett







The running jumping silly water babies. these pics are Kylee (15) and Mike (18)
Mike will be off to Eastern Washington U. this September

Sail boat on sparkling blue Holmes Harbor

Today was a just perfect day

And this little spotted guy was glad to be enjoying the day. MB

On to Fort Ebey

After visiting Fort Casey and playing on the beach we went on up ther island to Fort EbeyAgain all is underground and very dark. The guns have been removed and the emplacements remain.

1. Info
2. Entrance to the fort with the trees and shrubs as Camouflage.
3. This is what it looks like inside with no flash on the camers.
4. Same time, same place but with a flash. Look at all the rooms. There are 12
rooms used for stores, shell room, powder room (the kind you put inside shells) Plotting room, spotting room, latrine etc.
5. Gun emplacements. The guns have been removed. There were two, six inch guns. They could fire a projectile weighing 108 lbs. at moving targets up to 15 miles away every 12 seconds.
6. This is what the guns looked like This is a park photo because the guns are gone, they were cut up and melted for scrap. The gunners were inside those pods.
7. boys in the spooky dark.

It is interesting that two pics posted twice. How does that happen?

Fort Casey on Whidbey Island

Well the boys and I went to visit Fort Casey on Whidbey Island, It is a fun and interesting place to go and the beach is fun too.
1. A little info
2. Fort Casey is mostly underground--this is just a part of it.
3. the underground part is made up of many, many rooms. This was a shell room.
4. The guns were at rest underground so as not to be seen by the enemy.
5. They could be raised above ground when needed.
6. Here is the sweeping view they would see. Over admirality Strait up to the San Juans and the enemy would come from the Pacific Ocean.
7. Looking down the barrel
8. The boys are building their own fort on the beach
9. Container ship heading towards Seattle