Princess Alexandra of Kent

I had hoped to share something else with you on my blog today, but the weather is having other ideas and it's been raining off and on.  We have 5 new visitors here in the form of little baby bluebird hatchlings, and I'm so excited I can hardly stand it.

We tried taking pictures of them yesterday, but it was too dark and too rainy, with more of the same today.  Even with the ISO cranked way up in the photo above it was hard to get a decent shot, so you will have to wait for a bright sunny day before I can properly introduce you to my new (apparently very hungry) babies.

Yes, I feel like a proud grandparent or something, and I have become a bit obsessed with these bluebirds, even going so far as to worry if another bird will harm them...stay away you mean house sparrows or you'll be introduced to my nasty side! 

After yesterday's rose post several of you emailed me or wrote on my FB page about how pretty they were and how much you loved the color.  The images in that post had had actions and textures applied to them which gave them a purple hue, so I thought I would show you their "true" color in this post.

They are Princess Alexandra of Kent roses from David Austin...which has become another obsession of mine!  I went from never owning a rose to craving WAY too many roses thanks in part to the internet and my friend Connie, who has a much larger obsession than I do with these beautiful plants.

In the two images above, you can see the varying shades displayed by these gorgeous blossoms as they open to peony like show stoppers.  They range from orangey pink to lavender, and some of the petals at the base of each bloom even have a touch of yellow.  And don't even get me started on the fragrance...it's yummy and I find myself burying my face in them every chance I get...it's embarrassing really!

Of course I'm never content to leave well enough alone, so here is a shot I messed with by adding a texture and a few actions to.  As you can see, it does alter the true color of each blossom, but I'm ok with playing mother nature from time to time...heck, why not?!

Enjoy your day, and stay tuned for the baby blue bird extravaganza soon...can you stand the wait?! ;-)