Tiny Purple Flowers

While on an evening walk by myself, I passed by a field full of these tiny purple flowers. They were so delicate and I thought how neat it was they were leaning toward the setting sun, trying to soak up as much of the golden warmth that they could.

The path I took for my walk that evening was a street I usually walk along and I am very familiar with the trees and bushes on my side of the street. That evening I looked across the street to the vacant field and it was dotted with specks of purple. I crossed the street to get a better look and found these 2 inch high flowers.

Keeping my eyes open to the loveliness of the everyday world enriches and beautifies my day. I hope it does the same for you!

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Bee Sitting on Lavender

This year, the lavender bush by my front porch has exploded with blossoms. The purple flowers are beautiful to look at and smell so wonderful and inviting too. I'm not the only one to think so. Little fuzzy bumblebees and white delicate butterflies have been flitting around the flowers all week. Who can blame them though - the days are warm, the flowers are fragrant, and the sprigs of lavender are the perfect place for them to rest and collect pollen.

Our winter lasted quite long this year - we had snow into May, which was a big surprise. My lavender plants looked quite sad and I worried that they wouldn't bloom. I'm not the best gardener and didn't prune back the dead flowers when my lavender plant bloomed last fall. While that made an interesting subject for winter photography, it worried me for the health of the plant this spring. The week after our last snow of the year, I removed the dried stems from the plant. I'm happy to say that my lavender plant has more than doubled it's size from last year.

While I water my plants on my porch, I always make time to watch the bees as they go from stem to stem looking for the perfect pollen to take back to their hive. I imagine that honey would taste wonderful!

I've picked a few sprigs to add to the hanging welcome basket by my front door and I love how it looks! I think this year I will have enough flowers to collect to make delightful and fragrant sachets.

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Pathway Lined with Trees

I love pathways that are lined with trees and create a shady arch to walk under. In the spring and summer you can enjoy the bright green leaves as you walk, and in the autumn you can shuffle through the brown fallen leaves.

This photo is a perfect example of always having your camera ready. My family went to St George, Utah for a short visit. As we were walking around the houses near downtown, I decided to bring my camera with us. Not too surprising if you know me! We walked to the winter home of Brigham Young and this view was along the side of the house. I snapped my picture and just a moment later groups of people started walking around the house and all over the beautiful grounds. If I had waited just a bit to take my photo, it would have been another 10 minutes before I got a chance to have a picture without groups of people in it.

If you are a budding photographer, one of the best ways to improve your photography is to practice. Have your camera with you (either your point and shoot, DSLR, or even your phone) and ready to take photos. For other photography tips, you can visit my blog post on Home Crafts by Ali by clicking here.

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Sunset Rays Through the Clouds

Sunset is one of my favorite times of day. You never know what colors will be in the sky or what light will be like reflecting on the clouds. Every once in a while I drive to nearby farms to be able to have a clear view of the sunset. This day it was cloudy and I happened to capture the last rays of the sun breaking through the clouds.

Sunsets have always been special to me. I remember going to my grandma's house as a child and looking through her many photo albums, over and over again. They were filled with family memories, photos of Mt Raineir, and many sunsets. I guess it's not too much of a surprise that I have a love of taking the same type of photos.

During the summer, I am usually outside at sunset. Watering my garden, going on a walk with the family, visiting the local shaved ice shack for a nice cool treat, or driving around looking for the perfect spot to look at the sky change colors. If I happen to be inside, my children pop inside to let me know I'm missing a pretty pink and orange sky. It's nice to see that my love for sunsets has been passed down to a new generation.

Do you love the colors of the sky at sunset or sunrise better? You can share your favorite sunset photo on my Facebook page so we can see!

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