Day 30 - Spring

In the end....spring is new life and new beginnings.

Day 29 - Botanical Garden

Our local Botanical Garden showing what it has. I was hoping to get a spectacular display of flowers for a photo here, but it is still early for us.

Day 28 - Ferns Unveiling

I just wanted to record these ferns unfurling. They remind me of swan heads. I would love to see the entire growth in slow motion as all the fronds unfold.

Day 27 - The Lowly Dandelion

This is one of the main signposts to tell us of spring's arrival. It is beautiful but hated because it's a "weed". I have spent many an hour eradicating them from the golf course landscape. In my home lawn they are welcome in small numbers. :)

Day 26 - Mr. Majestic

I went to the Zoo today to record families enjoying the zoo. It was a nice day today to be out, but not too many were there. :(
The shots I did get I was not happy with. So, I guess you can't miss with a shot of a Peacock. He was sitting between some shrubs facing me. His tail is in the background trailing behind him.

(This is an edited shot per K's request.)

Day 25 - National Day of Prayer

I was asked again this year to help usher at the local National Day of Prayer Breakfast. It is held each year here at the Riverside Ballroom built in 1936. It is such a neat room that I thought it and the Day would be a good entrant for the Challenge.

In 1952, a joint resolution by Congress signed by President Truman declared an annual National Day of Prayer. In 1988, the law was amended and signed by President Reagen permanently setting National Day of Prayer as the first Thursday of every May.

I had a challenge with this shot. The chandeliers are overexposed a bit but I had to expose for the room and the people. I really wanted to emphasize the room as it is very unique. This place has a history also. On February 1 1959, Buddy Holly, J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson and Ritchie Valens played here to the Green Bay audience. It was their second to last concert before the plane crash that took their lives in Iowa the following night.

Day 24 - Cherry Blossoms

I was driving in the country and I spotted this tree along a fence row between fields. I took several shots, but I chose this one. It's like the branches are reaching up toward the sky in exultation of spring.

Day 23 - Greenhouses Open

We still have a chance of frost here through May. But, the greenhouses are all stocked up and ready for the season.

Day 22 - Breaking Up the Fallow Ground

This is the first time out this season, getting the soil ready to plant. I saw many tractors out today and a few fields all ready planted.

Day 21 - The Bikers Are Back

Always at this time of the year the bikers migrate back. I'm not sure where they go for the winter, but they come back every year and more in number. There is also a certain breed of bike that can tend to be very loud as it passes, disturbing hearth and home. We always wish that kind would stop migrating back. It's kind of like the mosquito. You wonder why it has to be here.
It's not a bother when they pass occasionally, but we seem to be on one of their main trails. :)

(My apologies to all of the bikers out there. But, I prefer the quiet ones.)

Day 20 - Robins' Return

I've been trying for weeks to get a decent shot of a Robin. This is my favorite bird. It is the first to come back after winter and the last to leave in the fall. This is our true "barometer" for spring's return. It is actually a thrush and has a very pleasant melodic song that you can most often hear in very early morning and around sunset. When there is still snow on the ground and everything looking dead, they will be singing out the promise of spring. They are very protective of their young and are great parents. In the fall when all the other birds have left, you can still hear that song on a quiet, cold evening.

Day 19 - An Ant's Life

First time this year I saw them outdoors. He wouldn't pose for me though. :(

Day 18 - Prom Time!

I actually had a portrait session with the girl on the right and the rest got in on it. It was fun.

Day 17 - Forsythia Bloom

This is the earliest blooming shrub around here. Most of the time in bloom before any other leaves are out. Often, during severe winters, the flower buds will be killed and only survive where there was snow covering the lower branches.

Day 16 - Wildflowers

I saw these blooming in the woods next to us a few days ago. I've been trying to stay away from the obvious photos of new plant growth for this spring series, but these flowers kept begging me to be included.

Day 15 - Wildlife Sanctuary

It's nice for families to get out again to the Wildlife Sanctuary. This little guy was in the middle of throwing some corn to the geese.

Day 14 - Mussel Beach

These are Zebra Mussels that came into this area about 10 years ago from the ballast of ocean going ships. They have spread into most of the great lakes and a have become an invasive pest that are costing billions of dollars in damage. Every Spring there is a new batch of Zebra Mussels shells that are washed onto shore. The east side of Green Bay used to have sandy beaches but now has Zebra Mussel beaches.

The bottom picture shows drifts of the shells built up over several years.

Day 13 - The First Mowing

The smell of fresh mowed grass again.

Day 12 - Running Again

The trails are open again.

Day 11 - Spring Croaking

This is the best angle I could get on this guy sitting in a nearby pond. He is in the middle of a croak, calling for his honey. :) (Notice the expanded cheeks.)

Day 10 - Spring Vacation

This is my niece and nephew on their way back home to New York state. They were here on their Easter Break staying at my parents. They are in the airport waiting for their flight.

Day 9 - April Showers

I saw there was a narrow line of rain coming through this morning so I decided to try and capture the spring showers. This is a landscape light in our front flower bed.

Day 8 - Outside Again

Day 7 - Fishing on the Bay

You can see one of those pelicans on the right.

Day 6 - Getting Ready

Getting ready to open. (There is still snow on the ground here.) This amusement park won't be open for some weeks yet....but they have started to remount the rides. Until a few years ago, every ride only cost a dime to get on. It is a really popular destination during the summer and is adjacent to the Bay and the Wildlife Sanctuary.

Day 5- Dogwood Buds

Dogwood buds swollen with leaves and flowers.

Day 4 - Warming the Eggs

As I was taking shots she was pulling down out of her side and lining the nest. I like the contrast here of her softness against the textures surrounding her.

Day 3 - Let's Go Golfing!

Day 2 - White Pelican Return

This is an American White Pelican returning to Green Bay. I have been trying for years to get a good shot of these birds which I only first saw here about 6 years ago. Yesterday I went down by the bay in hopes of getting a shot for the challenge. There were only two birds there and both came near! This was shot yesterday 4/9/07. They migrate every year and are nesting on some small islands in the Bay. When I first saw them some years ago, I couldn't believe my eyes. They are huge and a bright white with that black fringe on the back. What a treat to have them here.

Day 1 - New Life

Life out of death.