Sunrise at RV Park

When I walk our little cocker puppy early in the mornings, I am lucky enough to see some gorgeous sunrises. The most interesting ones are when the clouds are still lingering in the east, and some of the smoke and haze from the wildfires are in the air. I'm posting a couple I took last week. This morning when I walked Pepper, there was a full moon and it was bright as daylight, almost. I love the summer mornings and the warm air with the gentle breezes in the early morning just before daybreak.

RV Park Living

It's been awhile since I've taken the time to post. Today I'll add a few pictures of the Hi-Valley RV Park where we are staying until the middle of Sept. It has been triple digits weather-wise, and I'm staying very close to the AC. When I gardened at our old home, I suffered heat exhaustion a few times, and now I don't tolerate the heat at all. My old body doesn't cool itself down like it used to and I get very sick. We added an outside sunscreen to the motorhome front windows and that helps immensely in keeping the rig cool. Plus our awing over the patio/lawn area is huge and it blocks out the heat. The pictures will show our humble home. The most important thing that we really love about living in THIS rv park, is the fact that it is very clean, the staff are very friendly and helpful, and we feel very safe. Not all rv parks offer those qualities.

Owyhee Desert Wild Flower

While driving through the picturesque Owyhee Mountain Front, on July 4th, I took a picture of a gorgeous wild flower that lined the dusty dirt roads. I picked one bloom and was amazed at how soft and different it was. The center was filled with long brush-like filaments, and the long lance-like petals radiated out from the center. However, the leaves were a total surprise. They were pale sage-brush colored, harsh to touch, and tended to curl into the middle vein. What a fantastic flower to find on a gorgeous summer drive.

ArrowRock Dam Drive July 9

We are really old, but we have a nice car and we still enjoy a pleasant drive into the desert or mountains or the farmland in Idaho. July 9 we drove up into the towering mountains that make up the east ridge of Boise City. We traveled about 70 miles on one-lane dirt roads to get to the tiny run-down mountain town of Atlanta. It is a treasure of a little town with lots of Idaho history. Some of our friends have summer homes there, but we didn't visit them. We just stopped at a little pole-lodge restaurant and bought some pepsi to drink on the way home. I'm posting a few pictures of our little drive. First we passed Lucky Peak Dam that was built to store irrigation water for the Boise Valley and Treasure Valley farms. Then we followed that reservoir to the next dam, Arrowrock. There were lots of boats and skiiers and jet skis on the water. After leaving the beautiful structure of the Arrowrock Dam, the road hugged the sides of that reservoir until it petered out and became the North Fork of the Boise River, a tributary that feeds into the two dams. The first part of the drive was landscape filled with sage brush, the second part was shady from the old tall evergreens. We stopped and picnicked beside the river and let our little cocker puppy stretch his legs.

Lighthouse in Pastels

Last week we attended the graduation ceremony of our precious granddaughter, Jessica. She had asked me to do a picture of a lighthouse in a storm at night, for her. I did one in pastels. She framed it in a beautiful frame while I was there and is displaying it in her lovely livingroom in Orem, Utah.

I am going to do another lighthouse and this time I'll use my favorites - graphites. Did you realize that each lighthouse in the world has a personality of its own, and has saved many lives? I think that is why we like them.

Today in Boise it is about 100 degrees and the sky is blue and it is a lovely spring.

More Vines

I took pictures of vines that I had sketched. These are the bitterroot vine that grows wild in Idaho and Montana, and the Virginia Creeper vine that is seen on a lot of fences and houses. We had VC growing on the north side of our clinker home here in Boise for over 40 years. It was a fast growing vine and covered the whole side, growing in the shade, and finding easy anchorage on the bricks and clinkers. In the spring it was green, in the summer the huge leaves would pull the vine away from the wall a little, and in the fall the foilage turned amber, purple, and orange. Such a beautiful vine.

The bitterroot has tiny red berries on it and is seen along the highways as it climbs on fences and electrical-line posts.

Today is HOT in Boise. Hot and dry with a mild breeze.

Pastels on Black

I finished the morning glories. It was really fun working with the pastel pencils on the black paper. I used Strathmore 400 series black paper in the Field Sketch. I used General's Pastel Chalk pencils. Pastels are so much fun to work with. They lay down color on the papers so easily, are a dream to rub around on the paper with a brush, and can take layers easily.

Today I'm working on a morning glory graphite sketch. It is my first sketch with the new mechanical pencils I bought a couple days ago. So far, I really, really like them. I'll post that sketch when it is done.

Grandma Barbara in Boise

White Pastel on Black

Yesterday I shopped at Quality Art and bought a sketch book that has black pages. Fun. I used a white pastel pencil to sketch a little critter. Really fun.

Today I'm organizing the RV. The underbed storage will be used for art storage and as a library and linen closet. Nice.

The weather is getting hot. Can't really complain. Better than the cold wind and rain we had a couple days ago.

RV Park

We are settled into our space at the HiValley RV Park, and we love it here. Our neighbors all seem nice, and we have our own patio and lawn area. Today I shopped at Quality Art Warehouse and bought some graphite mechanical pencils in sizes 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, and 0.9. I bought a new art book and several sketch books. One of the sketch books has black paper and I'm anxious to use my white pastels and CPs on it to see what I can do. This picture is one I took a couple years ago at the Midway, Utah RV resort in the Wasatch Mountains. Great place for photography and walking.

Today it is 63 and sunny. Yesterday it was 50 and windy and rainy. Typical June.

Link to old WebShots Garden Photography

While visiting my old WebShots albums, I copied this link that goes to a slide show of some of the flowers that graced my old gardens in Boise. We gardened in a half acre lawn and loved every inch of it. I miss that. My bones don't, but my mind does (grinning).

http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/slideshow/73208482aSWzWG

Tulips

It's been awhile since I've posted. Life seems kind of empty right now. I think losing two precious children within a two year span is taking its toll on my emotions. Things just don't seem right anymore. Thankgoodness I have my scriptures and prayers. I also have two very precious daughters ready to spend time with me, and a wonderfully understand granddaughter and great-granddaughter who talk to me often. I don't know what I'd do without them.

I've been sketching a lot. Right now I'm finishing up a gorgeous cactus dahlia. I'll post it when it is finished. Because of a friend in the botanical art group, I've found a renewed interest in my old tulip photography. I'm posting one of the lovely pictures today.

The temperature in Boise is sunny and almost cool. In the 60s. Perfect weather for gardening.

My recent rose photography

http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/559092473ZWJWMK

Pointillism

I did my first attempt at pointillism yesterday. Judging from the results, I'm going to leave that technique to the masters, whose works I admire so much.

More Mushrooms

You can never draw just one mushroom. They are so cute and it is fun. I'm posting a couple more done in graphite. Also, my beautiful container roses are starting to bloom and the first one to open slowly and gorgeously is Abraham Darby.

Boise is sunny and 83 degrees today. Nice.

May Challenge - Mushroon

This month's art challenge is to do a sketch or painting of a mushroom. I'm adding my graphite sketch of a mushroom. This is a broad-gilled collybia. The cap is thin and blackish-brown. Strong strands of white mycelium at the base is often pulled up with the mushroom. Growth habit: 3 - 6 inches across and 3 - 5 inches tall.

Last evening, while watching tv in bed, I sketched the little pumpkin pile. Getting the reflected light to show was a challenge and I think I need to do more work on it.

Sad

Today I'm very sad. On April 18th our son, an architect in Salt Lake City, was found dead at the job site of one of his projects. When the coroner in Boise arrived at my door and told me the horrible news, I couldn't believe it. Virgil and I have been planning, with our beloved son, to retire in Utah and he would spend most of his weekends with us in our new home. I guess our Father in Heaven had other plans for our precious son. I'm back in Boise and packing boxes, getting ready to move to Utah, but it is a lonely task.

There is a sweet story in a poem that somebody wrote once.... about standing at the dockside of a big a beautiful ship.... when it left it moorings I watched it until it disappeared. Some one announced... "it's gone..." But I knew that it was only gone from my old eyes..... on the other side of the water there was someone waiting and scanning the horizon.... then they suddenly exclaimed.... "I see it.... it's coming.... Nick is coming!" with joy in their hearts.

The days are sad and quieter now.... no more noontime phone calls to each other..... no surprise weekend visits to Utah.... no humor in our conversations.... just quietness and sadness.

While in Utah preparing for his funeral I sketched and sketched and sketched.... it was the only thing that kept my hurting heart and old mind from ruin.... I'm sharing a couple that I did. One is in colored pencil and is a WIP. The other is in graphite. There is another that I did and softly placed it in Nick's coffin.... for him only. It was a graphite of a journey through a quiet gate into a gorgeous mountain scene with a river and lots of trees and a beckoning path. At the bottom were the words of a favorite hymn... "Be Still My Soul."

Grandma Barbara in Boise

Boise Sunset

Living on the second bench (plateau) in the metropolitan desert city of Boise has its perks. One of them is the grand view of the setting sun in the western part of the valley. One evening on a cloudy day, the sun was going down in the west and setting the under-bellies of the clouds on fire. From our backyard I snapped a few shots as the scene changed before my eyes. The rooftops of our neighbors gave the pictures more depth.

Boise, temps in the 30s this early morning at 6am..... supposed to rain later in the day.

Clouds with Silver Lining

While driving to the SLC airport on Easter Sunday, we noticed this HUGE cloud covering the airport. Snapping as fast as I could while we flew along the interstate and wove in and out of traffic, I captures a few shots of this magnificant sight.

Boise, Cloudy and windy, spring is here and the nights are in the 30s and the days in the high 50s

Powell Gardens Conservatory Exhibit

This link will take you to the Powell Gardens Conservatory Exhibit. This prestigious Conservatory is located in Kansas City, Missouri. Curator Cynthia Padilla has put together a stunning exhibit of art work done by various artists in a variety of mediums. Please note that I have the honor of being included. http://orchidsandhydrangeas.blogspot.com/
http://orchidsandhydrangeas.blogspot.com

Clowns - sock and harlequin

Well, we decided not to buy that little house in Utah that we had looked at. It needed a lot of work done on it, and we would be pumping a LOT of money into it after retirement; so we are still looking. Meanwhile, we will move out of this gorgeous rental and into our BIG motorhome for the next 5 months while we continue to look at real estate in Utah. And, I am sketching to my hearts content. I'm posting two little clowns that I sketched a couple days ago. One I did in the SLC airport while waiting for our flight home, and the other I did last week - and hope to exhibit it sometime.

The temperature this morning is in the 40s and there is a cool wind, cloudy and a chance of rain showers. Good weather for the lawn and flowers.

Hyacinths and Muscari

Just as the morning sun was gettting to the potted hyacinths and muscari, I grabbed my camera and got a few pictures. The early morning sun is the best lighting for photos. Evening sun is good, too, but the morning sun seems to have a magic element in it.

Pansy leaves

For Eibhlim...... I took macros of the pansies growing in containers on my front doorstep and noticed that some are different colors.... just slightly. All of the pansies I have are the macro-flora bloomers (they have BIG flowers). I also took a few pics of the little leaves on the container roses and am posting one.

71 degrees in sunny Boise.... Good day for being outside.

Snow On Fence Photography

Today I'm sketching a sock-doll clown in graphite on 13x16 drawing paper. It is going very well. I love sketching dolls and cloth dolls and animals. They give me a nice break from botanicals. This morning I took pictures of the muscari and hyacinths on my back patio, as the sun came up and the shadows on the flowers was lovely. I'll post some later. Today I'm posting a picture I took of the wooden fence in our backyard when it snowed last month. We don't get much snow here in this banana-belt valley, but when it does, I hurry to snap some pictures. The temperature is 71 and the sun is shinning brightly. The back patio is lovely to sit on.

April Botanical Art Challenge

This month, Jill has suggested we use something red and native as our art work for the monthly challenge. I sketch so my "red" isn't really red, but the subject matter is definitely red, in it's true nature form.

I sketched a clump of red delicious apples with leaves as it hangs on a branch. Then I sketched a red strawberry. Both of these grow naturally here in the Treasure Valley of Idaho. Boise sits in a high desert plateau surrounded by tall mountain ranges that protect it from extreme weather.

Grandma Barbara

Pansy, ruffled

Pansies are one of my favorite flowers. They are hardy in cold climates and never stop blooming, it seems. Photographing them is a pure joy because they come in so many different colors. I'm posting one of my most recent photos of pansies I had.

Crocus

Today I'm sketching more orchids. I bought a book with beautiful photographs of orchids and love to sketch from it. I'll post my sketching in a couple of days.

Meanwhile, I'll put up a sketch of crocus I did a few weeks ago. I don't have any in the yard, but I do love the perky flowers.... they are like magic to look at.

Orchids

Today I'm sketching a portrait of daffodils in graphite. I am using a mechanical #2 pencil. The lead is soft and very easy to work with. I will post a picture of it soon.

Today I'm posting a picture of an orchid portrait that I completed recently for C. Padilla's art exhibit at the Powell Gardens Conservatory in Kansas City, MO. I feel honored to be included in the exhibit.

Rose Photograph

March is a promising month. Even though the roses aren't looking very much like they are alive, I can see new growth, leaves, and greenish tinges on them. While waiting for them to finish their early spring growing, I work on last falls photos of the rose blooms.

Grandma Barbara in Boise
Temperature outside is 32 degrees and cloudy