Fall has arrived in Mississippi.  Now, for you folks who don't live in the sun belt the word "fall" probably conjures up images of beautiful tree foliage, frosty mornings, and crips breezes.  In Mississippi try morning temperatures of 65 (at least you don't break into a sweat the minute you walk out the door), beautiful green trees and grass (the brilliant leaves will come, but probably when the rest of you have snow on the ground), and breezes cool enough to send my girls into jackets (because anything that won't bake a cake is cool around here.)  In Mississippi, when the high is no longer in the 90's, fall has arrived. 

Now that the temperatures are nicer, my lantana is blooming beautifully.  I'm so pleased! 

(A jacket, shorts, and bare feet...what's with that????)

but this:

Can  you guess why they call it a diamond back rattler????

I'm sorry to inform any animal rights activists who may be reading, but we weren't about to let this rattlesnake live in my mom and dad's flower bed or anywhere else for that matter.

I thought it looked pretty big to have only one rattle and a button.  Needless to say, we treaded quite carefully for the rest of our Memorial Day visit.

I know I was too busy last Saturday to be out in the flower bed taking pictures, but it was the first time all summer I've seen a Monarch in it.  It was as if God said, "Hey, Drewe Llyn, come see what I made!"  How could I not go out and enjoy it.  Isn't it beautiful!

This verse came to mind when I saw these pictures I took in my flower bed.

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created." James 1:17-18

"Mom! Come here! Come here quick! You've got to see this!" DD15 screamed from the kitchen.  "Hurry!!!!"   I covered the distance from the living room to the kitchen in record time.  (Not that it's really that far.)

"What is it?" I exclaimed.  "What's wrong?!?!?!"

"Over there!" she points with near hysteria. "A bug fell off the ceiling over there!"  I peared over at the scrapbooking table where she was pointing.  Sure enough, there was a gi-normous (pronounced "jigh-nor-mus" a combo of giant and enormous) beatle bug trying to regain his (her?) senses.  The teacher in me jumped into action.  "Where's the camera!" I yelled.  I wanted a picture of this UO (Unidentified Object).  I got one good picture before the UO turned into a UFO.  Once he (she?) took flight DD15, DD11, and I were all screaming.  This flying aspect threw the teacher back letting Mom take over.  Mom wanted the bug O-U-T.  (Where were our guys when we needed them?!?!?!?) DD15 flung the door open while I reached for the broom.  I brought it down on top of the UFO.  Fortunately its prickly legs stuck to the end of the broom and I wisked it out the door.  Whew!  That was a close one.  Surely an invasion of Martians wouldn't be that scary.

Let me assure everyone that in the four years we've lived in this house we've never had an invader like this one.  Take a look:

I've received a couple of questions about my hummingbird at the top of the page, so here are my answers...

Yes, I took the picture using a friend's very, very nice camera.  We had gone to north Mississippi to visit with our friends the Rice's, and my friend Penny had this really neat digital camera she let me "play" with.  I don't know how many hours off and on I spent near the lantana trying to capture that hummingbird.  I know I took nearly 500 pictures (of everything) during the three days we were there.  (Ahh, the beauty of digital!).  I got some really good shots of this little fellow and a black swallowtail and a mocking bird trying to build a nest above my head. (I even got some great shots of my girls.LOL!)  I hope to post some more pictures later.  I cropped and enlarged this one at the top and added writing using a basic Paint program.

I've always loved photography, but have never been able to afford a really nice camera.  I so enjoyed using this one.  (It is a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ30.)  I now have lots to scrap book! (So many pictures and so little time *sigh*.)

I hope everyone is having a blessed day.

~ Drewe Llyn

P.S.  Thanks again, Penny!

My husband (a baptist minister) was asked to perform a wedding for some friends of ours.............on the beach in Destin, Florida!!!!!! 

Guess who got to go too!!! It was so beautiful! 

(Congratulations Brent and Cheramie!)

While there we watched the weather channel trying to figure out if Katrina would affect us in Destin.  When we went to bed Friday night she was headed to Florida.  When we turned the radio on Saturday morning she was headed toward Louisiana.  Guess which direction we were headed?!?!?  Mississippi!!!  Yesterday and today we've made preparations for Katrina as we are expecting some hurricane force wind gusts here in central Mississippi.  Last night the very first cloud bands of Katrina made their way to our area.  This is what they looked like:

(Toni, if you're reading this, that last one is for you.  I hope and pray you're safe.)

I'll have my camera ready to take some after shots.

Take care everyone!

What a treat to see this little fellow enjoying my flowers!  I actually prayed God would let me sneak up on him and take his picture.  "Ain't" God good!!!!

So, I had my lesson plans in place for yesterday, but when we began discussing penguins and Antarctica, my little scholar had a question whose answer required a globe and make-shift sun...we had a geography lesson instead. 

While she took a break I prepared for our next activity. Suddenly she burst back in the house with, "Mom! You'll want to see this! Bring your camera!" Reluctanly I followed with camera in hand.  A dirt dauber (mud dauber or mud wasp) was building a nest on a column of our carport.  The rest of the day was spent periodically watching her at work, much like a potter works his craft.  (They do look like little pots, don't they?)  It took Miss Dauber over 24 hours to complete her magnum opus, but it sure was interesting to watch.  So, even though "Dirt Daubers" weren't on my lesson plan, they were on God's.  What a treat! Watch out National Geographic!

Crafting her "pot".       Laying her eggs.            Preparing baby's      All done, for now.

                                                                             first meal.

Today my youngest daughter and I went to pick figs at a friend's house.  We arrived only to discover the figs had already been picked and were waiting in bags for us.  (Hey, wait a minute!  They've added some new smilies!  Check them out !) We brought the figs home, washed and cut them in half, and now they are cooking on the stove.

While I was washing dishes  I noticed some butterflies flittering in my flower bed.  I couldn't resist the urge to capture them on (I can't say "film" since my camera is digital) computer chip .  I thought I'd share them today.

I love butterflies!

Have a great day, everyone! SMILE!