Aww…some Monday

The butterfly bush is still blooming and Monarchs are still being attracted. The process makes for some awesome photo opportunities. Weather is beginning to cool down, so this can’t last much longer so I will just have to enjoy the show while I can.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

I failed to post last week when the theme was about bounty, plentiful and blessings so I am going to back the bus up and post a little Praise & Worship music that blesses my soul as I recall all of the ways our Creator has blessed me and my family over the years.

A song that has been a part of my life for over thirty-five years and blessed me in a very special way when I was without work early in my career. Regardless of the circumstances in my life I just have to keep in mind that I am a child of the King of Kings and I march to the beat of a different drum.

Every encounter with the Lord is a blessing to my soul. When my spirit is weary and my soul is troubled by the events of this world, a little time spent in praise and worship is like a refreshing drink from a mountain stream. Bless the Lord!

I can start my day reading a love letter from the Creator of the universe. At the end of our time together, I can raise a helleujah!

In a world filled with animosity and discord it is good for each of us to have a happy place that centers our thoughts and settles our soul. My happy place is in God’s Word, in God’s House, and in Praise and Worship music. Regardless of the chaos around me, I have A Reason to Praise! Have a blessed week.

Aww…some Monday

Our butterfly bush continues to draw visitors, including the elusive Monarch. Monarchs have not been coming in large numbers this year. In fact none of the larger butterflies, like the swallow tails, have been common sights this summer. Photo opportunities have been few, so I got pretty excited when this Monarch made an appearance earlier this week.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

The theme this week at 4M is freedom of choice. A few weeks back I featured several male country artists that were not what most fans would consider A-list recording artists. I mentioned that I might feature one of them in a later post. Today is the day and Clay Walker is the artist. Clay came on the scene in the 90’s. He has a great voice and I love the lyrics to some of his songs. Here are a few tunes from an under-appreciated country singer. Enjoy.

Aww…some Mondays

Monday’s Music Moves Me

The theme at 4M this week is to honor Better Breakfast Month by selecting song titles that spell Breakfast! I can’t remember the last time I posted nine songs. There might be a little ADD kicking in because I’m not sure I want to research nine song titles that spell Breakfast. I’m not sure you want to listen to nine song titles that spell breakfast. Maybe I’ll just spell a breakfast food, like Egg or Toast. I might just pick a few letters from Breakfast and go with that. I believe that most American adults don’t consider their breakfast complete without a good cup of “Joe”. With that in mind I will pick songs that spell “COFFEE”. Time to wake up y’all!

Have a blessed week.

We have a winner! There is a photography website, http://www.pixoto.com that you can submit your photos to and they will be placed in one on one competition with other images in a similar category. People come to the site and pick which photo they like best. During the day your image may have 25 or 30 head to head competitions. Each win earns points. It’s fun just to see how your skills may be improving. Two weeks ago I entered this image and it finished as the 6th highest rated image for the day in its category and in the top 20% for the week. So far this is my fourth best entry ever. I haven’t done this is several years. My highest rating was a sports photo that finished first for the day and the week and in the top 5% for the year. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good and catching a butterfly in flight with wings spread certainly has a “lucky” component to it.

Well high school football is just around the corner so sport photography is about to blossom. The first game is Friday night, but I think I’ll just go as a spectator to the season opener. Have a blessed week all.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

The theme this week at 4M is there is no theme. We get to pick whatever music we prefer. I am going to go back to the underappreciated ladies of the 60’s & 70’s. Every time I pick up an Emmy Lou Harris album, I am amazed at just how talented she is. Perhaps my favorite effort was her collaboration with Linda Ronstadt and Dolly Parton that produced the Grammy winning Trio album. If you have never listened to this album, you musical experience is just not complete.

Moving right along, I’m going to close this post with a little Southern Gospel from Jason Crabb. Be blessed.

Best Large Scale Mural In Town

Aww…some Mondays

The blooms of spring are long gone and the blossoms of summer are fading fast. Soon, the leaves will be changing, mums will be the flower of choice and autumn will be in the air. Last week I visited the local farmers market on the town square. The square has several planters with ever-changing displays of flowers. The images here may be the final burst of summer color for the season.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

September has arrived and that means that the kids are back in school. Our middle grand daughter has started graduate school in sports therapy. The youngest grand daughter is a junior this year and pursuing the same degree as her older sibling. The grandson has decided that trade school is much more to his liking so he is training to be an electrical lineman. The theme this week at 4M is school/education oriented songs. I decided to do a bit of a search for lesser known songs.

The first song speaks to education in general and the need to recognize the fact that every child is different and sees the world in a different light. One of the problems with public education is that the system wants everyone to be the same. This goes all the way through college. A student can attend a liberal college where any conservative viewpoint is shunned and grades will suffer. Likewise, a student may attend a conservative institution of higher learning and any hint of a liberal mindset is penalized. Students are not taught to think for themselves, they are taught to think like their instructors.

During early childhood education, parents must realize that they are the most important factor in the quality of education their child obtains. Reading to the child and encouraging the child to read, even through the summer, will pay untold benefits for a lifetime. Setting schedules for study, play, and rest are vital to the full development of a young mind and body. Every child is a flower and they need proper care to bloom. Not all flowers are red. Okay, I’m through preachin’ now. On with the music.

Aww Mondays

Friday was National Dog Day so I thought I would post a photo of our House Princess for the occasion. Saturday I got up and went to the local farmers market on the town square. There are always lots of people with canines wandering the vendor booths. I sat down on a bench, pulled out my camera and captured a few other furry friends.

One of the most popular breeds today are “Doodles”. A doodle is almost any breed that has been crossbred with a poodle to produce a curly, soft coated, hypo-allergenic, non shedding designer dog. There are labra doodles, golden doodles, irish doodles, and cockapoo(dle). One surprise is that not all doodles are non shedding. If the native breed sheds, chances are the doodle will shed as well. That should be a caution to prospective labra doodle owners, because labs shed twice a year and you can fill a pillow a day with what they shed. Anyway, doodles generally are easy going, friendly critters and make excellent pets. As for me…well, once a cocker spaniel lover, always a cocker spaniel lover.

Monday’s Music Moves Me

The theme this week at 4M is NO theme. We can post whatever music we like. I think I will dig into the archives and feature a few male country vocalists that may have been a little under appreciated when they were recording and touring. What most people consider classic or pure country music is filled with songs about broken hearts, broken dreams, and broken cowboys. So get your boot scootn’ shoes on and lets two-step into the way-back machine. Here we go.

Let’s wrap this post up with a country gospel tune from Josh Turner. Have a blessed week.