Someone dumped these three beautiful black kittens in the
cemetary behind our house. Me and T seem to attract stray
cats, so naturally they ended up at our house. We took them
in yesterday and fed them and gave them water. We were
hoping to find good homes for them. We made them a comfy,
safe spot on our garden deck for the night. When we went out
this morning before heading to church, they weren't anywhere
to be found. We figured they would show up again after having
fed them. As of tonight, they still haven't shown up. We're not
sure what happened to them. I can only hope the mama cat
came back and led them somewhere else and that they're safe.

Summer Flowers

I "heart" Zinnias :0)

T on the swinging bridge above Piney Creek.


Me on swinging bridge.


View of Piney Creek from the swinging bridge.

Piney Falls

A view of Piney Falls taken with my long lens.


Piney Falls is the most remote of the Fall Creek Falls State Park
waterfalls. It's 2 miles from Fall Creek Falls and was impossible to
get a good look at. Thank goodness for my trusty long lens :0)
That's the only way I could get a closeup of this particular waterfall.

Cedar tree growing in the rocks.




I would love to have this view from my back porch!

The rugged beauty of Fall Creek Falls. Enjoy!








This is my favorite view!

Congratulations to my niece, Kelly, and her hubby Kerry.
They're expecting a baby in December and found out
today that it's going to be a boy :0) Can't wait to welcome
my great nephew into the world!

Closeup of top of the falls. Got these pictures
with my trusty long lens.


Hot summer day at the bottom of the falls.


Sun shining through the falls.


Rock bluff near the falls.

Fall Creek Falls

Fall Creek Falls near Spencer, Tennessee is
one of the highest waterfalls east of the Rocky
Mountains. Me and Terry took a road trip to
Fall Creek Falls yesterday afternoon.


A small group of people swimming and wading.
It was a sweltering hot day yesterday and I couldn't
imagine the hike to the bottom of the falls. It's all
we could do to hike the trail to the overlook :0)

As my sister Kay says, "Stay tuned!" :0)

Our cat, Libby, napping on the deck. I feel for our furry little
babies during this scorching hot weather, but they seem to
cope pretty well.

The Zinnias are blooming in our garden. They seem to love this
extremely hot weather.

I cleaned out the birdhouse that our Tree Swallows had nested
in this year. This is what their nest looked like. Not much to it.
Tree Swallows use lots of feathers in their nest to keep their
babies warm.


It's funny how the nest takes the shape of the birdhouse :0)

Mantis

I found this brown praying mantis on our back door threshold.

The insects range in color, usually looking pea green or brown,
but there are also mantises in various shades of green and even
pink.

The most interesting fact about the praying mantis is that a
female will occasionally eat a male to provide nutrition to their
developing young.

Lone Sunflower

This lone little sunflower grew beneath our bird feeder. The
goldfinches have already been pecking on it. I plan on having
a sunflower garden next year.

Until Next Year!

Waiting for food.


Watching mama circle around the bird box.




Daddy's turn.


This is the last picture I took of our Tree Swallows.
We hope to see them next year :0)

Hungry baby. Looks like he or she is about to eat mama's face :0)


Daddy keeps a watchful eye from above the bird house.


Mama and baby.




How cute is that little face? The day I took these pictures, all
the baby Tree Swallows left the nest. I believe this little one
was the last to leave.

Proud daddy all puffed up.


Very first glimpse of baby Tree Swallow :0) Up until this
point we could just hear them peeping inside the box.

A Peck on the Beak :0)

A sweet welcome home.

Tree Swallows are perfect birds for close-up, hands-on learning:
they are active, attractive, and super-tolerant of people. Best of
all, they live right out in the open so you can really see what
they're doing. They will let you into their lives like no other
songbird.

Double jointed? You be the judge :0)

Mama Swallow

Female tree swallow.


She has no head :0)


These little birds are so approachable. I walked right up to
her while she was perched on the shepherds hook.


Strike a pose!

Even the sparrow has found a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may have her young—
a place near your altar,
LORD Almighty, my King and my God.
Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
they are ever praising you.

Psalm 84:3-4