Beach roses are in bloom again...

and are already almost past their prime. They began blooming in my area just last week and yet most of the ones I saw yesterday are already fading and losing petals! That doesn't seem quite fair, does it? We wait all year for them and then, boom! Bloomed and gone....

Actually the beach rose, officially known as the Rosa rugosa, is not a native to our shores though it has certainly adapted to living here. It is also on almost every promotional piece related to Cape Cod so one could say we've certainly adopted it as well.

I hope you have a chance to walk by these wonderful bushes this week at a beach near you and take in the summery scent of these delicious smelling flowers that begin the days of summer even before the calendar says it's here.

And no, Rosa rugosa isn't the beach plum, even though the fat orange hips often get called beach plums. Here is a picture of a blooming beach plum shrub--beach plums were in bloom several weeks ago and as you can see in the picture, they have many tiny white blossoms....

It's baby plover time!

One of the simple joys of early morning beach walking is watching the little piping plovers learn to feed and run from danger. The adult plovers will often try to lead a predator in the opposite direction from where the babies are and even the babies will split up and run.

Piping plovers are very well camouflaged and in the next few pictures you might want to click on them to enlarge them to find the babies. I have a zoom on my camera but it isn't a big one and you sort of have to keep your distance from these little guys so you don't spook them.

Look carefully here to see the mom heading right and two little chicks heading left--these are very little ones. So cute!

This chick is a little bigger and belongs to a different family. Probably hatched a few days sooner than the others.

There are 2 chicks in the picture above--and this gives you a really good idea about how well camouflaged they are and how difficult to see if you are a driver on the beach....

The good news is that a good number of chicks have already hatched on area beaches so far and as long as the weather remains somewhat reasonable they should grow well and be ready to fledge in good time so that all can share the beaches without too much complaint.

Photos by me this morning from Kalmus Beach in Hyannis

Painting Outside...

One of the real pleasures of life, in my humble opinion, is painting outside. Sure it may get a bit breezy or buggy and some days it may be really hot or almost raining but painting outside is almost a meditation.

One's attention becomes totally absorbed into the landscape, in this case the wildflower garden at the Green Briar Nature Center in East Sandwich. Before long any minor annoyances fade away and all that remains is the beauty and the joy.

Finding the color patterns amidst all that green can be daunting but is always rewarding...even if the color patterns don't always make it all the way onto the paper. They are there in our minds, imprinted on our memories. Painting outdoors isn't just about the painting....a lot of it is about the observing, the appreciating, the being there in the moment and taking it all in.

Whether one is a beginner or more experienced, taking the time to commune with the world around you with a pencil or paintbrush in your hand may be one of the more sublime things we can do.

Every time one of these people opens their sketchbooks or looks at the paintings they did on this bright sunny day they will remember the sweet smell of the garden, the gentle buzzing of bees and the flights of dragonflies and butterflies as well as the general laughter and good time had by all.

It's a little piece of magic, I think.

I'll be taking people all over the Cape to paint this summer so if you'd like to join us please check out the schedule on the Cape Cod Art and Nature website.

Wildflowers everywhere!

Everywhere I turn the wildflowers are blooming- way too many of them to name here but if you go outside pretty much anywhere on Cape Cod this week you will find many flowers in bloom. Lady's slippers are blooming in pine woodlands, and yellow and blue flags, lupines, early vetches, red clovers and Jack-in-the-pulpits are blooming too.

Jack-in-the-pulpits are much more common than many people think. They like to be near soggy spots and are often intermixed with ferns and other lush pond side plants which helps them be overlooked. Watch for the triple leaf crown that stands like an umbrella above the actual flower.

Yellow and blue flag irises also like to have their feet in soggy places and are best looked for in freshwater wetlands like this one.

I don't know which I enjoy more, the yellow or the blue--they are both gorgeous.

And one of my very favorites is the wild geranium. They are a delicate flower but tend to grow in big bunches that aren't delicate at all. As far as I can tell wild geranium is one of those plants that is called locally common. It isn't everywhere but where you do find it, you'll usually find a lot of it.

Along with the flowers are arriving the butterflies so while we have this spot of sunny weather I hope you get a chance to get outside and enjoy the flowers, the birds and the butterflies.

Walking and Sketching in Sandwich

This morning looked sunny and inviting and I had plans to go to Sandwich and do some sketching. I packed my paints, my sketchbook, my good pen and my camera along with some water and my sweatshirt. It was pretty warm but one never knows. It is Cape Cod, after all.

I started at the newly reopened Thornton Burgess Museum on Water St., where my husband had been working hard to have everything spiffed up and ready for another summer season. The museum is right on Shawme Pond and has a great herb garden so there's plenty to draw. There are also plenty of these....

The parent Canada geese were a bit wary but as long as I kept my distance they didn't seem to mind me sketching their little ones. By this time the sky was getting really dark and I could hear thunder in the distance.

The geese didn't seem too impressed but the thunder got closer and closer and finally the sky began to light up with lightening and I headed inside....

The rain began but most of the storm seemed to pass north of us so before long I was able to go outside and finish sketching...

I stopped over at Green Briar and then headed to the Game Farm where I did more sketching and walking...

and as I often do, I kept a list of the birds, etc. that I saw or heard. i also fooled around with some ideas for kid's poems...

It wasn't the perfect sunny spring day I started out to paint in but it ended up quite a nice day to walk and sketch and sit and watch the red tailed hawk get harassed by smaller birds...

A fun book....

I don't have much time today but did want to put up this book I just finished, "The Dirty Life" by Kristin Kimball.

The book tells the tale of the author's adventures as she moves from New York City to an upstate farm to follow love and some dreams. The book chronicles the first year of this very ambitious, hard working and interesting couple as they decide to offer food year round to their community. They learn how to take care of and "harvest" animals of many kinds, how to grow wheat and more vegetables than my grandmother could've shaken a stick at. It's a great story so if you're in the mood to read about how some people walk the walk as well as talk the talk in the organic farming CSA movement, this is one to look for.

I could never do this but I am always interested in the people who do. It is quite humbling and inspiring at the same time.

From way up high....

We live in an almost urban area and our plot of land is less than a fifth of an acre. We sit on a corner so have streets on two sides and also houses to the back and the other side as well as across the street. It is an old neighborhood so there are lots of trees and flowers and lots of wonderful neighbors. There is a surprising amount of wildlife.

Behind the house is a stand of 3 Norway spruces that are quite tall. The one on the left suffered a blow from Hurricane Bob years ago and lost its top half. As you can see, it is now taller than the other two. The middle tree is the one I'd like you to look at. See that spikey point way up top? It is the favorite singing spot of all the birds in my neighborhood each spring. There are robins, cardinals, orioles, grackles, crows, blue jays and others that take turns singing away from here as loudly as they can. This morning we had a great crested flycatcher up there raising a ruckus for about half an hour before he left to chase a competitor.

No worries. Mr. Cardinal took right over. Who knew such a humble perch would play such an important role in local bird dynamics? Do you have a spot in your yard that the birds use to declare their intentions?

And yes, that is fog you see....we've been having foggy days while the north side and west have been enjoying lots of sunshine...ah, the joys of living up the street from Nantucket Sound. That's okay, later in the season that same proximity will keep us cooler with daily afternoon sea breezes....

Have a great holiday weekend, everyone!