Peachy Keen

 

Peachy Keen, an adjective meaning extremely good or exactly right.

My blog break was good but not exactly 'peachy keen'. We are still working on that! lol

But the term came to mind when I saw this Mourning Dove.

I was convinced it was something special because of it's soft peachy colors.

It was just gorgeous.

We took this hike at Halpata Tastanaki Preserve from the Pruitt trailhead on a very windy day. 

It was around 70 degrees so it wasn't cold but it was extremely blustery.

One good thing about it was we walked into the wind so that when we turned around, the wind blew us back to our vehicle. 

That's a good thing when you are tired!

We saw several American Kestrels that day.

They have such rich colors with the soft light of a cloudy day.

And one of my favorite photos to take are the 'winter trees'. 

The grasses were all a burnt orange too.

I hope your holiday week has been good. 

What did I miss? 🚘

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE ! 

December JOY!

 I have to admit to having so much fun this month that I need to take a break! I'm going to wish you all a Very Merry Season of JOY and step away from my computer for a couple of weeks.

Of course I want to share some of the sightings from my hikes this week.

Several people got to enjoy seeing this young deer! There's a lady sitting at the picnic table and 2 people on bikes and I'm at the top of the hill with my camera!

But of course, he really wants to cross the trail right now!

WHEW! He made it just in time!

I sure love watching scenes like this along the Marjorie Carr Cross Florida Greenway. 

It really is a glorious time of the year to live in Florida. The weather is beautiful and I'm spending more and more time outdoors in nature. 

Enjoy December and everything that means the most to you.

Happy Holidays from Florida!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE ! 

Florida Flannel and Fleece

 

We had cold air come down and stay for a few days but we're back into the 70s now! We took a drive on Christmas day and a hike on the day after Christmas when it was in the 50s! We put on our long sleeve flannel shirts and fleece vests and braved the elements to hike at Halpata Tastanaki Preserve. lol But we didn't get photos of the best sightings. We saw a coyote. The same one we saw a month or so ago. It's bigger than usual and darker so it's easy to remember. We also saw deer...but no photos.

Northern Cardinal at HTP

So let's take a drive to the Gulf Coast when it's in the 60s and nicer to get out and walk.

This is a view of the Gulf of Mexico from the end of the Withlacoochee Bay Trail at low tide.

It was the lowest tide we had ever seen and the exposed mud was popping and snapping and making all kinds of crackly noises. I laughed out loud! 

And here are some of the birds we saw there.

He's blending in!

Dipping for something to eat!

Willet

Great Blue Heron

Great White Egret

Belted Kingfisher

Another Kingfisher with belt showing

Birds all along the exposed sandbars!

Oystercatcher

Cormorant

I hope you've had a lovely holiday and I'm wishing you a Happy New Year!

Enjoy each and every day! 

And get out in nature whenever you have a chance!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

and I’d Rather B Birdin’.   

I'm joining Mosaic Monday HERE 

and I like Thursdays HERE !  

***Merry Christmas***

 

We drove over to Sholom Park one day for a nice peaceful walk.

It's beautiful in the park, year round!

And there are always flowers blooming!

I like the imprint of the leaves in the sidewalk.

And the beautiful Koi fish in the pond.

I'm going to take a little blog break but I'll be back after Christmas. Hopefully with more joy and enthusiasm. Thanks to everyone who leaves me sweet comments and boosts my spirits! 

Happy Holidays to you all! 

Holiday hugs, Diane 🎄

I'm joining Mosaic Monday HERE .

Happy Independence Day!

 I hope you are all having a wonderful holiday!

I didn't have a post planned for today but when we went out into the courtyard this morning we heard the Oak Run golf cart 4th of July parade coming down the street!

So I rushed in and grabbed my sunglasses and camera and walked over to the street to stand under a shade tree and enjoy the parade!

It was the best one ever! 

I loved seeing all of the golf carts decorated with red white and blue!

And some of my favorites were the dogs that were along for the ride!

I didn't count how many golf carts there were but it was a LOT!

Of course it's not every parade that has Abraham Lincoln riding in a golf cart! lol

And I appreciate the Sheriff's department for keeping our parade SAFE and FUN!

Here they come!

The firetruck was awesome too and we thank all of the first responders for helping us every day here in our community!

I better duck behind the tree now!

"God Bless America"