Monday, April 12, 2010

My Favorite Spring Tree



Every spring I look forward to seeing one particular tree in bloom. It is a flowering crabapple tree that is on a street in our neighborhood. For some reason this tree blooms like none of the other crabapple trees I've ever seen.



I'm sure the neighbors must think I'm crazy because I stand there with my camera every spring , day after day, trying to capture the beauty of this tree in full bloom.




It is on the street of our entrance so there is a good bit of traffic. I do feel a little silly standing there with my camera in front of my neighbor's house trying to catch the light just right. Or especially if there are bees, I walk all around the tree trying to capture them in action. I'm kind of shy and don't really like drawing attention to myself...



but I'll risk a little embarrassment to get pictures of this gorgeous tree.



Have you ever seen so many blooms before? It is just covered with these gorgeous pink blooms. I love it!





A couple of years ago I purchased four lilac shrubs and all but one died. Today I found some for $5.97 and I bought two of them.



One of them had a few blooms and I cut them off to enjoy them inside the house. I love lilac blooms!



They smell wonderful!




I hope these will survive. I'd love to have large lilac shrubs full of blooms so that I could have lilac arrangements all over the house each spring, (not to mention all of the photo ops I could have).



A few days ago I mentioned that we were having Internet trouble. Every night, for nine straight nights, right about eight o'clock our Internet would go out. It would stay off until about eight o'clock the next morning. I called AT&T and they checked some things on their end but it still didn't correct our problem. They sent out a technician. I had been trying to figure out what the problem could be, and right before he arrived I remembered that my husband had added a new sensor to our outside light. Feeling rather silly I thought I'd mention this fact to him. At first he didn't think that was the problem and checked some other things. It was cold that day and he decided to put his stocking cap over the light post just to see what would happen. Sure enough, the Internet went down. He took the cap off and it came back on. We had dusk to dawn Internet service! We took the new sensor off and now our problem is solved. The outside light never turns off, (which is why we replaced the sensor), but at least we have Internet at night now.


It is even crazier, because my husband's work computer was never affected by this. Just our three home computers.



I'm linking this to Mosaic Monday at Little Red House.

32 comments:

Cloudia said...

Love your flowers & blossoms...and thanks for the internet story.

Aloha from Waikiki


Comfort Spiral

Patricia said...

STUNNING photos, Robin. All of them. I cannot choose a favorite.

I sooooooo relate to your wondering what the neighbors think. We do have a little bit of acreage, but still I am sure that my neighbors must wonder about me.

Kay said...

I love your photos. I see a lovely shaped big flowering crabapple down the road every year..it is a fabulous tree. We had an overgrown irrigation ditch along the north side of our property and about 8 yrs. ago my hubby cut back the russian olive and the next year I found a lovely tree full of peaches!! what a find. Then the water co. came 3 yrs. ago and really cleaned up and I found an apricot tree and a queen anne cherry tree!!

Vicki's Bit-o-earth said...

I would definitely be standing under that tree taking pictures too! Its gorgeous Robin! Thanks for sharing.

I love lilacs... but alas, they don't grow well here. They need a good chill in winter, and we don't get enough of it.

LOL on the internet issue! We had the same thing ... shared wiring!
Vicki

Lisa at Greenbow said...

That crabapple tree is worthy of getting the moniker of Crazy Lady with the Camera. I bet they are happy someone likes their tree as much as they do. Our Lilacs are blooming like crazy too. What a wonderful spring for them. I hope your new lilacs live.

Catherine said...

I bet all those flowers smell so good! They are sure beautiful. I can hardly wait until our spring starts!

Kerri Farley said...

LOVE the tree and lilac blooms!!
Glad you got the internet situation straightened out :)
I once had someone come out for a Heat Pump issue ~ and it was just a blown fuse :)

F Cameron said...

Stunning! It's hard to come up with enough adjectives!

The sensor light thing is interesting. We have so many wireless devices in our house that they sometimes collide--cellphones, wireless house phone handsets, computers, security system, etc.

Janet, The Queen of Seaford said...

You are in good company with that wonderful crabapple. I think everyone of us out here in blogland would also be under that tree trying to capture the essense of its beauty.
I envy your lilacs. Lilacs do not do well in our area, soil is too acidic. There are a few shrubs, few and far between. I love the fragrance of its blooms. There is one variety that does better here in VA, Miss Kim, but it doesn't have the same wonderful scent.

Unknown said...

Hi Robin - it's so nice to have treasures throughout your own neighbourhood. There's a wisteria that I adore on my neighbour's arbour. Can't wait for it to bloom so that I can sneak some photos for my blog. The crabapple is gorgeous. I also like the photo of the lilacs with the sunhat. Simple elegance.

Kate said...

Thank you for overcoming your shy nature for those pictures. Stunning!

Ruth's Photo Blog said...

What can I say?These pictures are soo gorgeous.I can almost smell the Lilacs.
I know how you feel about taking pictures,some people just don't get it.On someones blog,sorry I can't remember the name,I read that,a birth certificate shows you were born,a death certificate shows you died,but pictures show that you have lived.I like that.
Blessings,Ruth

Anonymous said...

WOW, that is a lovely crabappale and your photos are lovely too. Love the photo with the hat on the table, I feel calm just looking at it. Have you considered submitting freelance photography to magazines or greeting card companies, etc.,? Great work.

A Garden of Threads said...

The tree is beautiful, I can see why you are trying to capture just the right light to show off the blooms. Good luck! We have had internet problems for sometime as well. Hope they get it fixed soon. Have a wonderful day.

Anonymous said...

Lucky me, there are three crabapple trees in my easement, courtesy of our city! I am sure my neighbors think me quite crazy, always out snapping away with my camera. Your photos are gorgeous, as usual!

RURAL said...

Robin, what a gorgeous tree, and no matter what the neighbors think keep taking those photos.

Hey, funny thing about the internet. When we finally got a computer, our free time all evaporated. We find out when we turn it on, nothing else gets done. Weird hey?

Jen

Linda/patchwork said...

I'm glad you risked embarrassment, to share this beautiful tree with us. Great photos...as usual.
~~Linda...

Gardening in a Sandbox said...

So funny. We live and learn. Great photos of the lilacs. I love them. Valerie

GardenerX said...

Glad you plucked up the nerve to take these photos - those pictures are amazing. thanks for sharing. I wont look at a crab apple in the same light again

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...

Your pictures are just beautiful! I love lilacs too. I just bought one and planted it. The nursery man told me that unlike most flowering shrubs (like azaleas and Rhododendrens), lilacs don't like acidic soil. He said to sprinkle some lime into the hole when planted and sprinkle more on top in the fall and spring. Hope that helps...
Penny

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Sherri said...

Robin, when I lived in NJ we had a crabapple tree that bloomed just like the one in your picture-I miss that as well as my wonderful lilac bushes we had! Thanks for the memories!! Enjoy yours!

beckie said...

Robin, these photos are fantastic! I am so glad you made the effort to take these. And I love that the bees have found the blooms as well. Some springs are just perfect to let the trees show off their beauty. This is one of those springs. All the blooming trees here have been gorgeous this year.

Yolanda Elizabet Heuzen said...

Your neighbours may think you are crazy but I don't. Those crab apple blooms are gorgeous. Now I can't wait for mine to flower.

Lilacs are the best, aren't they? lovely blooms and a gorgeous scent.

Robin how wonderful that you've managed to lose that much weight, I'm proud of you grrl!

One of my cats was diagnosed with diabetes and is on a low/no carb diet now and is doing much better. You are right though, insuline is expensive. Hopefully Merlin will get into remission, that's what I'm working hard for anyway.

Haven't been to visit your blog in awhile, not because i didn't want to, but simply because of lack of time. The quality of your pics bowled me over, you were always a great photographer but you are reaching new heights!

Rose said...

Robin, it's funny but I was walking around my yard taking some photos of our redbuds and the crapapples that have just a few blossoms on them ... in my bathrobe:) I'm hoping the cars driving by were going too fast to notice me out there in my ratty blue robe:)

It's hard for me to pick a favorite tree in the spring--first it's the redbud because it opens early, then it's the crabapples, then the magnolias...I'm in love with anything blooming. These are such beautiful photos--I'm glad you risked embarrassment to take them!

Joanne Olivieri said...

What a beautiful expression of Spring.

Jan said...

Robin, your photos of the crabapple tree are gorgeous! I remember having one in our yard when I was a child. I still miss seeing them. I don't see them as frequently in this area. Terrific shots...worth a little embarrassment! I purchased 3 lilac bushes last summer and 2 of them just started putting out a few buds yesterday. I can't believe yours are already in bloom in the midwest, as ours are just now beginning to bud, here in VA! Climates and gardens vary so much! Glad you got your internet situation cleared up...that's frustrating. Good thing it wasn't anything more serious. Jan

Carolyn said...

Hi Robin,
The photos you got are beautiful! The tree is certainly loaded with blossoms.
I love your lilac photos too-my are starting to bud but it has been cooler the last few days but I am really looking forward to their beauty and fragrance.
Congratulations on your weight loss-good for you!
Take care,
Carolyn

rosebudn6 said...

that's so funny about your internet...well now that you figured it out it's funny, right?
cograts on doing so well with your diet...you are well on your way.
i love lilacs too...this is the first house i have had them and i adore them.
happy springtime.

chasity said...

this makes me miss my crabapple....
remind me that they are messy in the fall so that i don't feel so sad. :)

i love lilacs too~ one of nature's most heavenly scents.

Tammy@Simple Southern Happiness said...

The beauty is so magnificent it took my breath away, you captured is perfectly.

Carla said...

I love lilacs! We live in So. CA but I grew up in Wisconsin and we had one many lilac bushes. One outside the window of our playhouse. Oh I wish I could grow these here, but it is just too hot in the spring. We do have lots of people that grow them in the local mountains so when I get a chance I drive up and buy several bunches to put in my house. Oh if I could just smell these looking at your photos! You have a beautiful blog. Thank you for sharing it.