Not sure whether this is best called Japonica, Pieris, or Andromeda, this big shrub with tiny bells is actually fragrant! The white-flowered one is, too. Lean your nose in and inhale. Very sweet. I had no idea until someone told me last year. This pink one is blooming at my driveway and I caught it on our rare burst of sunshine on Saturday.

The red stems count for Ruby Tuesday, I think. Visit Macro Monday, Outdoor Wednesday and Pink Saturday, and if you have a minute, do click on Free Photos “next door” for an additional selection of pretty flower and scenic photos.

This weekend is finally sunny! Yay! The garden is basking. These daffodil buds in my front yard are trying so hard to become flowers. Happy Spring, everyone!

Visit Shadow Shot Sunday, Today’s Flowers, SOOC Sunday, Outdoor Wednesday and Macro Monday for more photos with a theme. Check out Free Photos next door to see what’s new, and do click on Sara’s Fave Photos here if there is only one below.

From a couple of weeks ago, driving north on the Viaduct, the skyline of Seattle in blessed sunshine. See the little Space Needle over on the left?

Visit Skywatch Friday for more interesting skies seen round the world, SOOC Sunday for more straight-out-of-the-camera shots, Blue Monday and Scenic Sunday. Post an image and join the fun yourself, why don’t you?

If only one image below, click Sara’s Fave Photos.

That brief trip to Northern California last month is still yielding some neat images. Who doesn’t like reflections on a still lake in the sunshine? Spring Lake is in Santa Rosa, California, about an hour north of San Francisco. Seems like it was roughly the same hiking distance around as Green Lake in Seattle, about an hour or so. I love being outdoors near water!

Take a look at Outdoor Wednesday, Watery Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, Blue Monday and Weekend Reflections for more interesting images on a theme. And if you like scenic landscape photos, there are a number of new ones taken in Arizona on Free Photos that you might check out.

Gray and rainy out today (nothing new there) so a dip into the archives yields this pretty blue urn, setting off the hydrangeas so nicely. And of course the shadow is what caught my eye first, being the shadow junkie that I am. Thanks for that, Tracy!

Visit Shadow Shot Sunday for more intriguing shadows, Today’s Flower for flowers around the planet, Scenic Sunday, and Blue Monday for photos with blue in them. And you might try a tag of Blue or Shadows here (lower right) for some fun, first.

There’s nothing like a flower close up, or macro, to focus your attention. Let’s take a dip into the archives for some sun and color! I crave the July sunshine and the shadows it makes—also the subject of this photo. These hybrid zinnias like a rich soil and lots of sun and heat, and maybe need a little staking to stay up well, and don’t even have a fragrance, but they are so exciting in the garden. I’d say this one was about 4 inches across, or maybe 10 cm. Showy!

Visit Mellow Yellow Monday , Today’s Flower and Macro Monday, as well as Color Carnival and Thursday Challenge (textures). And if there is only one photo below, click on Sara’s Fave Photos to see them all.

Last month I went to Northern California Wine Country, and I am still enjoying the photos I took there and hope you are, too. This was taken at the square in little-but-so-artsy Healdsburg, about an hour and a half north of San Francisco. I love the way some branches are bare, some leaves are green, some still seem to be in autumn mode, and the palm trees wave over all. But it’s all about the blue sky, isn’t it?

Visit Skywatch Friday, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, SOOC (straight out of the camera) and Blue Monday for more photos on a theme. And check out Free Photos next door for more scenic and flower photos to browse, too.

On a trip up to Camano Island yesterday, just loving that sunshine, there was the Stillaguamish River (the “Stilly”) and the magnificent snow-capped Cascade Mountains as a backdrop. Today all is cloudy again, but it was so nice while it lasted.

Speaking of sunshine, I am headed south to the San Francisco area (Wine Country, here I come!) to visit and take in the Impressionist show at the de Young Museum, as the show is soon to head back to Paris. Paintings just look so different in person, and it’s much easier to get to San Francisco than Paris. I can’t wait, as great weather is predicted and it will be so good to hang with the peeps again. It will mean time off from this blog and Free Photos, but just for a week. I’ll be back before you know it with lots of new photos.

In the meantime, be sure to visit Watery Wednesday and Outdoor Wednesday, and do browse around here and Free Photos while you’re here. Ta-ta!

A bit of sunshine perks up everything in the house. These days in Seattle’s northern lattitude when the sun is so low in the sky, the our rare sunshine reaches far into the room. This was taken at my south-facing kitchen table a week or two ago. But now the days lengthen and eventually the sun’s rays will not enter the window at all.

Visit Shadow Shot Sunday for more interesting shadows of all types, and Blue Monday. Such creativity!

Remember, only one photo below means more will show if you click on Sara’s Fave Photos. And do see what’s new in Free Photos “next door.” Rate your favorites!

On last week’s trip to Las Vegas for that conference held at the Flamingo Hotel, mid strip, like most conferences we were stuck inside for long hours, but there was a short break that included a walk through the Habitat section of the hotel’s grounds, with real flamingoes, by the way. I’ll post them later, but today wanted to share how the hotel looked reflected in one of the pools for the abundant birdlife. Do you see the fish?

Visit Weekend Reflections, Shadow Shot Sunday, Scenic Sunday, SOOC (straight out of the camera), Window Views and Blue Monday if you’ve a yen for more variations on a theme, or the home blog of some great photo memes. And if there’s only one measly photo showing here, click on Sara’s Fave Photos for lots more.