I have been posting quite a few flower macros lately, but feel compelled to show you this one, taken just a couple of hours ago, showing my Double Delight rose incandescently reaching to the sun on the longest day of the year. Here in cloudy Seattle we appreciate the sun, perhaps more than other places. Happy Solstice and Happy Summer! I really love this image and I am calling it my weekly Top Shot.

Macro of Double Delight rose in the garden

Participating in Pink Saturday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Ruby Tuesday 2, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Our World Tuesday, I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Outdoor Wednesday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Garden Party Thursday, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. Thank you for visiting here and please return soon.

Another image from my recent visit to the South Seattle College Arboretum (see the posts below), taken near the Alki Cafe (surprisingly delicious food). Mountain laurel certainly seems related to rhododendron, no?

Red and pink mountain laurel

Linking to Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Reconnect With Nature Wednesday, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Garden Party Thursday, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, and Saturday Show Off. Thank you for your visit here, very, very much.

Today I went someplace new, the South Seattle College Arboretum, and the weather was perfection. Here is what their heavenly pink dogwood tree looked like, straight out of the camera. I think I’d like to see this as a fabric print, somehow.

Pink dogwood tree blooming against a deep blue sky

As usual, linking to NF Catching the Light Monday, Pink Saturday, I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Skywatch Friday, Scenic Weekends, Garden Party Thursday, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, and Saturday Show Off. I appreciate your visit here very much.

The peonies, the peonies . . .

Pink peony flower with yellow center and frilly petals, in sunlight

Linking with Pink Saturday, Monday Mellow Yellows, NF Catching the Light Monday, Reconnect With Nature Wednesday, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, I Heart Macro Saturday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Macro Monday, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday, Garden Party Thursday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. Thanks for visiting here, and do try a new tag or category. How about “peony” in the search field to the right?

This sky is from exactly one year ago. I really love this image and I am calling it my weekly Top Shot.

Clouds at sunset, with trees in silhouette

Joining Reconnect With Nature Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, Monday Mellow Yellows, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Wordless Wednesday, Scenic Weekends, Skywatch Friday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, and Saturday Show Off. Thanks for visiting and hope you have a great day.

This red rose bud (probably ‘Don Juan”) is my first rose of the season. This particular rosebush is grown from a cutting I took at our last house five years ago, and THAT rosebush was from a cutting that a friend rooted for me when I still lived in California. It’s intensely fragrant. Happy rose season to all my friends in the Northern Hemisphere!

Red ‘Don Juan’ rose on own roots blooms in Seattle in May

Joining up at  I Heart Macro Saturday, Macro Monday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Blue Monday, Skywatch Friday, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, NF Blo-Ma Tuesday,Garden Party Thursday, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, My Romantic Home, and Saturday Show Off. I appreciate your visit here, and come back soon!

Sometimes there’s a break in the clouds.

Sometimes the sun does break through the gray clouds.

Participating in Monday Mellow Yellows, Pink Saturday, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Weekends, Skywatch Friday, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Orange You Glad It’s Friday, NF Catching the Light Monday, and Saturday Show Off. Try clicking on a tag in the tag cloud in the sidebar at right for some interesting images on a theme.

We have some artistic knitters in Burien, Washington. This yarn-covered bike rack (and more, not shown) is what some creative person or persons did to decorate the bike rack at the Burien Community Center recently. Stuff like this really floats my boat.

Colorful yarn-bombing of a bike rack in Burien, WA

Joining this link with Good Fences Thursday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Blue Monday, Pink Saturday, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Weekends, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, Orange You Glad It’s Friday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, and Saturday Show Off. If one photo only shows on this page, please click on Sara’s Fave Photos above for some more. Thanks!

A walk through a lovely forest in the springtime in the Pacific Northwest, in my favorite kind of dappled sunshine…

Springtime in the woods

Joining with Monday Mellow Yellows, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, NF Catching the Light Monday, Scenic Weekends, Straight out of the Camera Sunday, and Saturday Show Off. If one photo only, please click on Sara’s Fave Photos above for a few more. Thanks!

The tulips are almost done, but here’s a scenic tulip field with a bit of reflection for your viewing pleasure:

Red tulips reflected in a puddle in the Skagit Valley April tulip festival

Joining up with Blue Monday, Skywatch Friday, Seasonal Sundays, Our World Tuesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Pink Saturday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Today’s Flowers, Floral Friday, Blooming Friday, Water World Wednesday, Weekend Reflections, and Saturday Show Off. Don’t forget to click on the Sara’s Fave Photos Blog curly letters above to see the latest pretty pictures here.