Taking a Break....

This is not a post I have ever wanted to make, but unfortunately, I am making it. I will be absent from the photo challenges, and my blog for awhile. My beloved Maddux has taken a turn for the worse, His kidneys are completely shutting down. For those of you that have been following me for some time, you know the struggles we have had with this beautiful boy. He is 7 years old and has suffered with FSF/SHS since he was 10 months old. This is a breed specific illness and in a nutshell it involves extremely high fevers (his have gone as high as 107) and an inflammatory process. It has taken a toll on his kidneys and in the last week or so he has crashed and stopped eating and drinking. I am giving him IV fluids at home and syringing baby food into him in the hopes that he will rally. Sometimes they do. I am going to spend as much time with him as I can for as long as he has left. I am sorry for the depressing tone of this post, but I wanted everyone to know. Please say a prayer for him, and for me. I pray that I will know when the time comes to let him go. Its not going to be easy.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday 4-8-12

Welcome back! I can't believe its already time for another Scavenger Hunt! This week flew by for me. It was a good one, I got to spend time with Kim, Jess and Ethan this week, since everyone is pretty healthy now. We have had it all from colds, to fevers and the flu. Not fun and no one wanted to trade illnesses, so we didn't see each other for a few days.
This weeks hunt has some fun prompts that can be interpreted many ways. I always like that, because I can bend the meaning to reflect something to do with nature. I am definitely a nature photographer. Here are this weeks prompts, followed by my pictures. Thanks for stopping in, I really appreciate it! the prompts are: New, Life, Fragrant, Pink and Obvious.

NEW

Kim and I decided to go out before dawn one day this week to see what we could see. We snuck back to the woods at 6 and sat and waited. This is the sunrise of a "NEW" day.

LIFE

Kim and I happened upon these Bluebirds with babies in this birdhouse. New life.

FRAGRANT

Wildflowers are everywhere right now.

PINK

If you look closely at this pink gazing ball, you will see me at the base of the tree.

OBVIOUS

The breeding color of this Eastern Meadowlark couldn't make him more obvious, could it?

I Heart Macro 4-8-12

Hello again! I am posting my photos of this weeks "I Heart Macro". I am having a blast going out into nature to see what I can find to shoot with my camera.I have not been disappointed at all, there is so much to see and experience right now. This week Kim and I decided to sneak into the woods before dawn to see what we could see a different time of day. It was so worth it, be saw a weasel, a beaver and a Bald Eagle! Even though our pictures didn't turn out too well, we have the memories of a good time, lots of laughs and some real excitement. Anyway, here are the shots that did turn out!

Red Admiral Butterfly

 Mystery Plant

 Crabapple Blossom

 Wildflower

 Buds in the morning light

 Wildflower

World Bird Wednesday

It was a great week for finding new (to me) species of birds. I have always had a great love for birds, but never spent a lot of time out in nature looking for them until the past year. It is always so exciting to spot an unfamiliar species, snap a shot then head home to try to identify what I saw. This week I was lucky enough to spot quite a few Yellow-rumped Warblers, a bunch of Eastern Bluebirds, and a Kestrel. I saw a couple more unidentifed species, but was unable to get close enough to get a decent shot. Maybe tomorrow! Wish me luck. Until next week, here are the shots:

Female Eastern Bluebird

Male Eastern Bluebird

Kestrel

Yellow Rumped Warbler