
“Time to Reflect”

We are rarely in Colorado in June. But this year, we were able to see so many flowers during our trip. We were told it was an extra pretty year too. These might be my favorite of the cactus flowers, but all were beautiful.
I think that this is a purple pincushion cactus.
We can not see the sun set at home. We see the sky change colors, but that is it. While in Colorado, one of our favorite ways to end our day is to walk to the cattle guards and watch the sun set. Most evenings, you will find us hanging around, enjoying the scenery and being family.
The younger two were invited to spend an evening with their cousins. So Audrey, Allan and I went hiking around the Garden of the Gods. We hoped to go again with Adrian and Megan, but the rest of our time filled up with Allan’s business trip, super hot days, visiting family and remembering Grandma.
The hike was so pretty. There were a few people on the trails, but it was mostly just us. We took time to relax and enjoy the beauty of God’s creation and to enjoy a special morning with just Audrey.
A view from the drive way at Aunt Bonnie’s and Uncle Bill’s house. That is Pikes Peak in the background.
A few months ago, Audrey found a praying mantis case while working in the garden. She brought it in and for the last few weeks we have been watching for the babies to emerge. On Saturday, Megan pointed and said “Look!”
We had missed most of the mantises emerging, but we were able to watch a few. We then released them onto flowers and the back porch area. Hopefully, most will survive and live to eat all the mosquitoes and other pests in the area. We would prefer them to remember that Monarch butterflies and caterpillars are off limits.
One of my favorite of Audrey’s senior pictures.
It was a beautiful night for blowing dandelions!
Enjoyed playing at Oxbow for awhile yesterday. The kids were hoping to find tadpoles and I enjoyed practicing on my new camera.
I discovered my camera takes panoramic pictures, and just had to play with the idea 🙂