Spring!

I snuck away from the week o' Tommy festivities (yes, I am now married to a guy with a big fat M.D. after his name! Yay for him!) to capture this in my backyard. The trees are in bloom and are as vibrant as ever. I used the Photoshop technique of the "Gaussian Blur" to create this masterpiece. I am definitely going to miss my backyard. I am inheriting a gigantic oak tree, but somehow, Texas just wont be the same as the good 'ol Midwest.

Ahhh it's storm season...

Maybe it's because I didn't grow up in a place that had severe springtime storms, but they really do just scare the crap outta me! I am a weather nut to begin with, but throw storms into the mix and it becomes an all out obsession. I was lucky enough to be about 10 minutes ahead, and south of a sky full o' nastiness this week in South Dakota and the leading cloud was so impressive I just had to share!

[taken from 1-29 exit 26 outside of Vermillion, South Dakota]

[It was trying to catch me, but I out drove it! Left Sioux Falls just in time!]

[And this was a pretty neighborhood shot I took just a month ago in McKennan Park in Sioux Falls]

Who says IOWA isn't beautiful?!?

Today was one of very few days that I looked through my windshield and was thankful that my job required a 400 mile commute. I have been stuck within the metropolitan area the last couple of weeks due to unsettled weather. Finally, I was able to make my (usually) weekly jaunt up to Sioux Falls and after getting about 20 miles north of Omaha, I found the most breathtakingly beautiful landscape that I have ever seen. This part of rural Iowa is quite pretty in the fall, and fun to watch as the crops develop in the spring...but nothing compared to this. I have never seen a sight like the winter wonderland I was part of today.

There was an ice storm over the weekend that left the trees coated with a thick layer of white frost & ice. All I saw for miles and miles were the white flocked trees upon a blanket of untouched white snow meeting the bright blue sky. I couldn't believe my eyes. I didn't have my camera so I used my cell phone camera to catch the beauty. Sadly, by the time I made my return to Omaha, the ice had melted. With the ice storm warning over the same area again tonight, I am sure this will be the scene again tomorrow. How beautiful!

Thank you Photoshop, for giving me the ability to remove all of the bugs on my windshield.

Fall

Having grown up in a California climate that really shows no extremes, I never experienced Fall until I moved to the midwest. My first Fall here was met with uncertainty and dread for the coming cold...so much anticipation about driving in the snow that I think I missed all the beautiful colors that was the show before the blah grey.

Last year I remember perusing craft show to craft show (a common weekend activity for Nebraskans) window shopping all the homemade creations. I dont think I ever bought a single thing, but in my jeans and sweatshirt I watched the leaves blow across the parking lot as I witnessed the community gathering that is a craft fair. I am eagerly anticipating the start of the creative season...

This year, as I complain about having to drive so many miles for my job, I have forgotten what a blessing it is to be able to stare out my windshield and see the beautiful, colorful landscape that I am moving through. I made the trip from Omaha, NE to Watertown, SD (famous for RedlinArt) and back to Sioux Falls, SD for an overnight stay. I clocked a total of 398 miles on my odometer today alone. However, as I passed the cattle, the buffalo (and babies!!), the piggies, the dairy cows...all I could do was notice the amber, crimson and deep green landscape that now covers I-29 N. I wish I would have brought my camera, but it is never as beautiful on film as it is in person. You cant smell the start of burning wood stoves or the crisp air that makes you breathe just a little deeper. With a move to the balmy south seemingly inevitable, I can't express how much I will miss this time of year.

The fighter planes from the nearby Guard base are rumbling over my hotel and as I look outside I see them streaking over the dark sparkly sky. As much as I have dreaded it in the past, I will miss this weekly South Dakota adventure.

I had to be Sioux Falls for a 9am appt which, is three hours from home which is why I have pictures of this beautiful sunrise!

This time of year all of the little black birds fly from the trees & cornfields in big groups presumably, heading south for the winter.

My favorite billboard, just south of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It works everytime!