Grandma Barb’s This and That

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Signs of Spring

It's finally looking like spring around here.  I went out yesterday  to take some pictures in my  yard.
The Maple trees are beginning to bud. This Maple is in my front yard. The leaves are a burgundy in the spring, then  turn green and finally yellow in the fall. I had to call the local nursery to find out what kind of Maple it is and was told it is a Schwedler Maple.




 I have put out my bird bath and the birds have really been  enjoying it.  But of course I can never capture any of them using it.



 The daylilies are beginning to grow around the birdbath.



The sun was shining through this Japanese Maple that will turn red in the fall.



I played around with these photos in PicMonkey.  It is really easy to use, much like Picknik.  I used the resize, sharpen, soften, and rounded corners features.  I didn't use the cross process.  I'll save that for another time.  I used Olive's instructions to use PicMonkey.  You can see her photos here at Olive Out.


Blessing to you at Easter and Passover


Sharing with Sunlit Sunday at My Little Home and Garden

Thanks for stopping by!
Until next time.

Barb

21 comments:

Diana LaMarre said...

Hi Barb,
You seem to be quite a bit ahead of us. I just got up to look out the window to see if any of my trees were budding out...not yet.

It has been very cold here at night - below freezing. I am ready for warmer weather!

Dee ⚜️⚜️⚜️⚜️⚜️ said...

Beautiful pictures Barb!

Happy Easter!

Dee

A Colorful World said...

Some really lovely photos of your yard, Barb! I love the treatment you added to some of them! Thanks so much for visiting me and for your kind comments! I have added you to my list as well! I hope you and your family are also having a very blessed Easter weekend!

La Vie Quotidienne said...

Oh...your pictures turned out great! I have been using Pixlar but the other day I tried Picmonkey and as you said it has some great features too.

Wishing you and your family a joyous Easter.

outjunking said...

I can't wait for the day-lilies they are my favorites. I have got to get to playing around with a new Photoshop before time runs out with Picnik!
Happy Easter,
Lisa

Carole M. said...

delightful intro' to spring in your garden Barb; make the most of it. Good luck with the birding photos at bathtime!

Vores have said...

Beautiful spring pictures you show.
Wishing you a happy Easter Sunday.
Hugs Hanne Bente

SImple and Serene Living said...

Love your photos, Barb. I am really liking picmonkey. It is very user friendly. It looks like summer here in Kentucky. Everything is out and very green, but the weather is going to be a bit cooler here this week.
Happy Easter.
Laura

Nancy said...

Love the birdbath! Very pretty with the lilies around it. :)

My Little Home and Garden said...

Don't you love it when the signs of spring start appearing! It would be fun to see the birds taking a bath even if they are camera shy.
-Karen

Vagabonde said...

Yes, it really is looking like spring is here. I used Picnic once in a while and will go and find out about PicMonkey – it sounds interesting. Thanks for coming to my blog.

Judith @ Lavender Cottage said...

Hello Barb
You have to be sneaky and lie in wait close to the birdbath. I'm lucky a bedroom window faces the one in our backyard. :-)
Your spring photos are pretty, I hope it's here to stay.
Happy Easter.
Judith

Olive said...

Happy Easter Barb. So glad you like PicMonkey, I think it is fabulously easy and fun. I do not have time for hard and difficult editing programs.

momto8 said...

The birds will be there soon!! and you will get some great pics too!
Happy Easter!

Liz said...

Great shots Barb! I love the first!!
Hope you had a lovely Easter.

CameraCruise said...

Beautiful photos.
Love your birdbath.

lisa Moran, Bilancia Designs said...

Hi Barb! I received both emails! Thank you so much...
I hope you had a lovely Easter.
I can't wait to see MORE photos of the barns and I will send you some of mine shortly. We're working so hard to get "The Loft" ready for its debut in May (a gorgeous venue for beautiful events). The downstairs will continue to be an antique shop and my business, but we have 9000 square feet to "play with"! Maybe one day in your travels you could come out for a visit! How wonderful would that be???
Looking forward to your giveaway!!!
Lisa xo

Terriea Kwong said...

Spring is in the air. Your garden is thriving with the sprouts and birds . Maple leaves are wonderful for eco prints. If I have tree like it is fantastic.

Brian King said...

Beautiful shots, Barb!

Pondside said...

Lovely signs of spring!
I've never heard of that type of Maple tree - I hope you'll post photos of it in high summer.
My birdbath is ringed in moss from our damp winter. I'd better get out there and get busy cleaning up!

Tomoko said...

Hi,Barb.
I am so happy that you have a Japanese maple tree in your garden.They are beautiful to see in autumn.Now,cherry blossoms are being at peak in Japan.I am busy walking ,seeing the flowers this week.
Tomoko