photography – Page 2

February 2024

February Snaps

February 26, 2024February 26, 2024by amysaxonsLeave a Comment

Cardinal and House Finch

Tufted Titmouse

Eastern Bluebird

Male ⬆️ and female ⬇️ Red-bellied Woodpecker

Clemmy Clementine 🖤🤍

Wally Cornwall 🤍🖤

May God be with you. ❤️, Amy

July 2023

Summer and MS: 😂

July 18, 2023July 18, 2023by amysaxons2 Comments

Hello, Friend! Yes, it’s been a while. I’ve been under the thumb of 5Gs of MS fatigue lately. I’ve been mostly home enjoying my usual favs: cats, hubby, birds, and flowers in our garden.

I’ve not been able to sew much because of fatigue this past month, but Pip supervised when I did.

Laudy is my sweet, little, blue snuggle buddy 💙

I’ve switched to safflower only seeds in the larger feeder. Neither grackles nor squirrels can or will eat it 🎉.

I also invested in a caged feeder for the premium seed mix, only small songbirds can get in. It’s been a win-win solution for both me and the birds. Only the birds I want can get the food and the bully birds now have no interest in hanging around because they can’t access it.

Doves (and Cardinals) love safflowers and can still eat spillage from under the larger feeder.

Of course, I still have a suet feeder up for woodpeckers, like this beautiful male Downy.

My Mom and Grandma always called these tickseed 💛❤️.

May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

June 2023

Loving the Ozarks

June 3, 2023June 3, 2023by amysaxons2 Comments

Hi, Friend!

Hubby has been on break between semesters at the college where he teaches. It’s been so wonderful to have him home with me every day. We took a day trip to Bentonville, Arkansas Thursday and enjoyed the beauty of the Ozarks as well as our time together. If you didn’t know, Sam Walton opened his first Walmart on the square in Bentonville in 1962. The Walton family has greatly and richly (😉) invested in the town turning it into one of the coolest and most happening places in the Midwest.

Ice cream options abound. Hubby got me Milky Chocolate and Strawberry Buttermilk.

Hubby got himself a vanilla cone from this Walmart sponsored truck.

Hubby is a cycling enthusiast and has ridden a couple of the trails. They are building and adding mountain bike trails at the rate of a mile a week! Northwest Arkansas now draws hundreds of national and international cyclists every year.

You can walk all the way up and around the outside of this building on the zigzag walkways.

Compton Gardens had lovely trails for walking and cycling.

Hubby got his exercise pushing me up and down the walkway at Compton Gardens (as shown here) and around downtown Bentonville. It was a hot and sweaty job. It’s a lot easier to get my wheelchair in and out of the car than it is to take apart and reassemble my scooter. However, we agreed it would be worth the effort to take my scooter on all future trips – I’m a bit of a handful 😜.

I wore a new dress I made this week from this beautiful floral and strawberry print jersey 🍓.

It’s starting to get warm and I’ve not been able to sit outside on the patio as much the past couple of weeks.

Our River Birches have fully leafed out. Almost all of the fuzzy seeds have finally fallen, which is a good thing because they are pretty messy.

This Mama dove has been sitting on her nest in our guttering for a solid three weeks. I don’t know if her babies are ever going to hatch.

Sadly, the following bird photos are the last at our feeders that I’ll be able to get for a while. I’ve had so many squirrels and grackles eating the seed that I’ve decided to stop for a while, it’s just too expensive. 😢. I am researching some other options and hope to get something else in place soon. I’ve really missed my feathered friends.

House Finches (male and female pair) and Downy Woodpecker, male

Best snuggle buddies ever, Laudy and Pip

Until next time, may God be with you! ❤️, Amy

May 2023

A Day (or Three) In My Life

May 9, 2023May 9, 2023by amysaxons2 Comments

Hello, Friend! I hope you are well wherever you are when this post finds you.

I’m currently sitting on the back patio watching the birds on a gorgeous May afternoon. I can hear cardinals, house finches, titmice, and blue jays calling, singing, squeaking, and buzzing from the canopy overhead and behind us. Though it’s a warm, sunny day, there’s a lovely light breeze in the shade keeping me cool and bringing the last scent of quickly fading lilac across the yard to me. It is a springtime feast for the senses!

Yesterday and today have been absolutely joyful days as my typically excessive MS fatigue has lessened and allowed me to be up and about more than usual. So, naturally, I rode my scooter over to the lake in our neighborhood yesterday and soaked in some Vitamin D and the beauty of God’s creation around me.

Baby starlings waiting for Mom to come back with a meal.

… this is the reality. I walked down to the water’s edge and, of course, MS gal lost her balance and stepped in the water 😜.

After I rode back home from the lake, I decided to sit under the birches in the backyard.

Isn’t this a delicious view through the treetops?

One of my favorite corners of the garden.

My Mother-in-law came for a visit last weekend and was watching the birds at the feeders when she suddenly exclaimed, “Turkey!”. My Hubby caught this pic with his phone before it flew away. I’ve seen several turkeys in the woods around our neighborhood, but this is the first one who’s ever flown over the fence for a visit. It was quite exciting 🦃!

My tripod broke last week and as I was waiting for the new one to be delivered, some of my favorite springtime visitors dropped by for a snack. Rose-breasted Grosbeaks only stay in the Ozarks for a small window of time as they migrate north each year. If I would have had a tripod the picture would have been sharper. There’s always next year.

Laudy’s turn to help me with my Bible study 😻

I think I had three PDF patterns that needed to be put together. It took several days last week to get the job done, but Pip and I persevered.

My sister asked me to make a dress for her from a pattern company I had never used before. Experience has taught me to try out a pattern before using precious fabric. I traced off my size onto butcher paper and am in the middle of making the dress for myself from fabric in my stash to check the fit. So far so good.

I used some of my energy yesterday to clean the kitchen sink with Soft Scrub. Aren’t the patterns pretty?

My Mom gave me this Chicago Metallic meatloaf pan several years ago. The raised insert allows the fat to drip through the holes, keeping the meat from getting soggy.

Hubby loves ketchup drizzled over meatloaf before it’s baked.

Dinner is served! Meatloaf, scalloped potatoes, salad, and homemade Rice Krispie Treat.

Thanks for stopping by. May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

April 2023

Whew, What A Week!

April 27, 2023April 27, 2023by amysaxonsLeave a Comment

When it rains it pours! Our dishwasher gave up the ghost Saturday morning (my birthday) and flooded the kitchen.

Thankfully, Hubby is a pretty smart cookie and got the water shut off.

He wrangled the dishwasher out of it’s nest and discovered the water lines from it were bad and the tub on the bottom had a crack.

Though we had to look for dishwashers on my birthday, we managed to squeeze in a yummy lunch at a delicious cafe/bakery. My favorite there is an almond croissant 🥐😋!

We found a replacement the same day and my Dad helped us get it home and supervised Hubby’s installation.

It was a lot of work, but Hubby got the job done and it was sealed with Pip’s approval. 😻

Speaking of Pip, we have been dealing with a bit of a scare with him. Last month during his regular, annual check-up we learned he had a grade 2 heart murmur. Our vet referred us to the University of Missouri Vet Clinic to see a cardiologist to investigate the issue further.

It’s a three hour drive from Springfield to Columbia one way… it’s been a long day for us all.

She gave us some good news today that it looks benign and we are scheduled to go back next year to keep an eye on things.

Pip was still kinda stoned from the sedation on the way home. He curled up on my lap and insisted, by way of nudging my hand, that I rub his head the whole way ❤️😻.

Here’s a random picture of the lunch I made myself Monday.

In this month’s Universal Yums box they included a recipe for Belgian Meatballs, Hubby wanted to try them so I made them on Wednesday for dinner. I served them with baked new potatoes. Verdict? 😋😍👍

Our lilac tree is now bursting with blooms and filling our backyard with the most wonderful scent ever smelled. I took this picture last week just as one of the bunches was starting to open up.

The weather has been nice enough each afternoon this week and, despite pretty lousy MS fatigue, I’ve been able to make it onto the patio to watch the birds. They fill my heart with joy and gratitude to God for the wonder of His creation.

This photo collage of my sister and I popped up on my memories this week. I love my sister, she is one of my greatest blessings and my best friend ❤️.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a wonderful day! May God be with you. ❤️, Amy

April 2023

It’s Blooming Spring!

April 13, 2023April 14, 2023by amysaxons2 Comments

I love how the colors came out in this photo of a Common Grackle.

19 of Hubby’s cycling friends stopped by halfway through one of their rides for a cookie and water break.

Our sweet blue “Laudy” Laudanum Cornish Rex 💙

It’s always a toss-up of who will be first in the sling to help me with my Bible study each morning. Pip won this day.

Behind the scenes when I’m birdwatching on the back patio.

Have a lovely day! God be with you. ❤️, Amy

March 2023

A Week In My Life

March 10, 2023March 10, 2023by amysaxons2 Comments

Hello! I bet you didn’t expect to hear from me again so soon, did you? It’s been a while since I did a “week in my life” sort of blog, so…I did. Let’s see, when I last wrote I believe I told you I had finally tested negative for Covid 🎉. I was still sick, though. I started some antibiotics for a bacterial sinus infection 5 days ago and am happy to report that I am doing much better. I still have a cough, but I’m hoping it will continue to dissipate with time (and another 5 days of antibiotics 😉).

Surprisingly, my MS hasn’t been too bad this week and I was able to putter around the house with reasonable rest breaks between activities. This has been a HUGE blessing to me ☺️!

Anywho, I’ve been sewing up a storm and enjoying myself thoroughly this week! As a matter of fact, in the pictures you’re about to see I think I’m wearing four different things I either finished up or made this week. (There’s more sewing stuff a bit further down too 🙂.)

Covid wore me out and I hadn’t cooked for over two weeks, we survived on freezer meals I had squirrelled away. I finally found the energy to get in the kitchen again on Tuesday. I made a huge pot of beef barley soup, enough to last us several days. I also decided to get out my Mom’s high school Home Ec. cookbook and made a couple loaves of our favorite bread. Mom’s book has seen better days, but it is very special to me and has some great recipes.

Oh, and I made some chocolate chip bars on Thursday from the King Arthur Flour Cookie Cookbook. 😋. I love lots of chocolate chips but Hubby only wants a few, and the itty-bitty ones. So, I compromised and put half the normal amount of my chips and some of his tiny chips into the batter and they actually managed to please both of us.

I hadn’t cleaned my sewing room for several weeks, it was really bad. I cleared the decks on Monday and gave it a good going over. I don’t know how I didn’t end up at urgent care with 23 pins stuck in my feet! YIKES 😬! I also gave both my sewing machine and my serger a good service and cleaning.

I spent a couple hours cutting patterns out last Saturday, here are a couple.

Today (Friday), I cut out the Moire Blouse by Wardrobe by Me from this lovely double gauze from Beyond the Pink Door. I’ve had this in my stash for a while trying to decide what to do with it. I ❤️ double gauze, it’s so comfy.

I wear special gloves when I use my rotary cutter so I don’t cut myself. Rotary cutters and MS don’t jive, precautions must be taken.

Every Sunday afternoon at 1:00 I always try to catch the Live Sewing Chat with Andrea at Beyond the Pink Door. She has some of the best fabrics I’ve ever sewn and, despite having to ship it from Ireland, it’s quite reasonably priced. And I really like Andrea ❤️

I’ve started keeping a bullet journal, mostly for sewing projects. I was having a hard time keeping straight what patterns I had made and the alterations, if any, for each. Oh, and I kinda like stickers. Yes, I’m seven years old.

The next few photos are random.

Every morning I enjoy solving a couple of cryptograms while having breakfast.

Laudy is my constant shadow. She sat on my shoulder Wednesday as I ate lunch.

This has been pretty typical of the last few weeks – a cup of hot tea, cough drops, Vaseline lip balm, and iced tea close at hand. I’ll save you the visual of snotty hankies.

I really enjoy watching Horse Plus Humane Society YouTube videos. They rescue horses from the slaughter pipeline as well as any and all animals surrendered to them as the Humane Society in Tennessee. I’ve learned a lot about horsemanship and horse care.

Of course I watched the birds this week!

Carolina Chickadees and a female House Finch

Lastly, I’ll share some of my favorite moments of the week with Pip and Laudy, my constant companions.

Laudy helped me solve a cryptogram on Wednesday…

Pip and I watched the birds on Thursday.

Monday night snuggles with Pip while watching TV.

Laudy helped me during my Bible study Monday morning.

Thursday morning parrot imitation practice.

Laudy snuggled with Hubby Tuesday evening.

Thursday night snuggles. Are you seeing a pattern yet?😉

I was trapped under cats after lunch today, it took 2 hours to get free. 😻😻

Thanks for joining me this week. May God be with you. ❤️, Amy

March 2023

Covid – It Was A Long Time Coming

March 3, 2023March 3, 2023by amysaxons3 Comments

It probably came home with Hubby from work. It was friendly and visited me while in the vicinity. The first five days were a nasty business for both of us. Hubby is better, though he still has a bit of a cough and tires easily. I took Paxlovid, got better, then got Rebound Covid. I am definitely feeling better, though I can’t get rid of the cough. I’ve nearly polished off my third bottle of Robitussin in two weeks. I must not be the only one out there on the ‘Tussin ’cause Hubby is beating the streets after work tonight to try and score me a fourth bottle.

Laudy and Pip didn’t miss a beat while Hubby and I had Covid. As you can see, they snuggled in and laid low right along with us.

Though my body had just started making B-cells again and I only had a few (see my last post), I was able to fight the dreaded virus and live to tell the tale. I praise God for His timing and the fact He made our bodies to be such hardy machines. This experience has proven it’s safe for me to venture back out into the world again 🎉🥳.

Coming in for a landing – Carolina Chickadee

Not a flattering picture of me, but my parrot, Laudy, is adorable with her tail wrapped and tucked.

March’s Universal Yums arrived featuring treats from… BRAZIL!

I’ve been sewing during my convalescence. I made this flannel shirt using the Aria pattern by Love Notions (my favorite independent pattern company). I just need to get the buttonholes made and the buttons sewn on and it will be done just in time for St Patrick’s Day 💚!

I hope you have had a good start to March. May God be with you! ❤️, Amy

January 2023

MS Haiku

January 18, 2023January 18, 2023by amysaxonsLeave a Comment

Energy all gone,
Feels like I’m in a coma –
A puddle of goo.

I think I’ve melted into and become one with my recliner these last four days.

Thankfully, once again, my feathered friends have come to the rescue and filled the long hours with the joy of their songs and avian antics.

Cardinal at takeoff. I love how you can see the individual features of his right wing.

Though the image isn’t great, I was able to document my first ever sighting of a gorgeous Pileated Woodpecker across the road in our neighbor’s tree on Saturday!! This sighting was absolutely thrilling for me and I was on cloud nine for the rest of the day ☺️.

Another source of happiness filling my idle time has been the company of our cats, Laudy and Pip. They have no idea what a blessing and source of company they are to me, but I count them as one of God’s treasures gifted to my keeping. And they are experts at the art of resting 😻.

A person very dear to me gifted Hubby and I a fun surprise, a 6-month subscription to Universal Yums. It’s a monthly box featuring snack food from different countries around the world. This month’s box arrived yesterday with treats from… Austria 🇦🇹 😋!

Hubby’s favorite was the Waffelz and mine was the Auer Baumstamme.

I hope you are well.

God be with you! ❤️, Amy

January 2023

2023 Beginnings

January 5, 2023January 5, 2023by amysaxonsLeave a Comment

Watching the water flow at the lake in our neighborhood park.

Beauty in death and a promise of what will be again.

I decided to clean out the empty bird boxes for the season…

… and found the partial remains of a Carolina Wren egg 🧡.

Hubby and I celebrated 17 years of wedded bliss last week 💞. First thing he did that morning? Cleaned the windows so I had a better view of the birds. Love and happiness – just look at that smile – are found in the doing of little things.

May you find your greatest joy in Christ this year and always. God be with you! ❤️, Amy