Stone Lantern at Japanese Gardens

While visiting Japanese Gardens in Portland, Oregon you will not only walk through lovely landscaped areas, you will see stone pieces, waterfalls, a tea house, and you can learn about the Japanese history in the Pacific Northwest.

 The peaceful beauty of the Portland Japanese Gardens is wonderful to enjoy in the spring and summer. Flowers will be in bloom as you walk through the garden along the paved or stone paths. There are benches throughout the gardens where you can sit and rest every so often during your exploration of the gardens.

Make sure to take a look at all the pathways. This stone lantern was tucked away on a little short path that I saw some visitors pass by. Take your time and enjoy the fresh air, sound of flowing water, the greenery surrounding you. It's almost as if you have been transported to a different environment, tucked away in the big city.

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White Spring Blossoms

Spring blossoms have come to the trees and they are so lovely to look at. Delicate white and pink flowers dot the trees and remind us of the beauty that can be found in the beautiful world around us.

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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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Fresh Spring Blooming Daffodils

Depending on where you live, daffodils are one of the first flowers that break through the dirt during the spring. Their yellow or white faces open up toward the sun as they sit atop their green stalks.



When we lived in South Carolina, daffodils popped up through the ground and bloomed in early March during the same week of my oldest's birthday. She thought is was so exciting that they came up just in time to celebrate with her. While they come up later here in Utah, we still enjoy seeing them just as much.

What are your favorite flowers?

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Tulips in Provo Utah

I love the early spring flowers that come up. The first green sprouts that break through the dirt make me excited for warmer weather and the anticipation of the beautiful blossoms that will arrive.

Tulips come in so many varieties and colors. When I was saw these lovely flowers at the LDS Provo Temple, I knew I had to take a photograph of them. The yellows remind me of the sunshine and warmth.

What are your favorite flowers?

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Early Spring Pink Cherry Blossoms

Spring has arrived in Utah. The morning of the first day of Spring, the cherry blossom trees seemed to bloom overnight with their beautiful pink and white blossoms. It's been lovely to see them opening up this week and brightening the dreary winter landscape with their colors.

Seeing the new green shoots as they come up and the buds of the tulips and daffodils waiting to make their entrance on the spring landscape provides a reminder of the beauty of this wonderful Earth that we live on.

You can see more of my photography on my Pinterest Board

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