My lavender is in full bloom with lots of pollinators. This bumblebee and skipper are super cute 🙂
in seeking sweetness
you find each little blossom
lavender lovers
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Bright Bee and Butterfly blessings, Namu Amida Butsu, Namaste
~ Raven
More wind today that made it a bit challenging to get a portrait of my neighbors’ daylilies. I persevered and was able to capture these 🙂
blowing in the wind
these delightful daylilies
bow so gracefully
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Namaste, Namu Amida Butsu, Bright Blessings
~ Raven
It has been a super windy day and I’m excited to report my first sighting of my beloved red milkweed beetle. I’ve been eagerly awaiting my friends.
This bright damselfly made an appearance, too.
pretty dragonfly
holding on to lavender
you ride the breezes
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
it’s early summer
one of my favorite beetles
makes an appearance
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Namaste, Namu Amida Butsu, Bright Blessings,
Our hearts give thanks for the Grace in the Universe!
~ Raven
I am enjoying a full moon. Earlier I visited damselfly, ladybug and wasp, all considered “beneficial insects”.
wasp and ladybug
great hunters in the garden
seeking their dinner
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
awesome damselfly
you are settled and resting
then you’ll be hunting
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
breaking through the clouds
the light of the moon shines bright
illuminating
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Bright Blessings, Namaste, Namu Amida Butsu
Our hearts give thanks for the Grace in the Universe!
~ Raven
Little grasshoppers of different sizes hopped away when I tried to take their portraits.They seemed grateful that I didn’t pursue them. It was early in the morning and the light was dim. I felt grateful to get a couple of photos that weren’t blurred.
sitting on lemon
balm and mint you flee swiftly
grateful grasshopper
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Bright Blessings, Namu Amida Butsu, Namaste
Our hearts give thanks for the Grace in the Universe!
~ Raven
The days are heating up and my neighbors’ peony is almost finished blooming.
with full nodding heads
graceful in the wind and sun
pretty peony
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Bright Blessings, Namu Amida Butsu, Namaste
Our hearts give thanks for the Grace in the Universe!
~ Raven
I heard a neat interview today about beetles found in the La Brea tar-pits that still survive today called La Brea Beetles Revisited. Check it out here. Our friends today are the cool customer I used to call a teddy bear fly that I found out is a type of bee fly, the bishop’s weed blossom that it was hanging out in, and a white clover blossom that turned out to be a wowza portrait. Enjoy 🙂
sit snowy blossoms
while I land upon your leaves
I am a bee fly
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
insects sip from me
I help to fix the soil
I am a clover
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Bright Bee Fly Blessings, Namaste, Namu Amida Butsu
Our hearts give thanks for the Grace in the Universe!
~ Raven
A hot and windy day so far with ladybugs making new ladybugs 😉 Also aphids in the first photo and another lone ladybug cruising along.
we are so grateful
for ladybugs and others
who help us garden
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Lovely Ladybug Blessings, Namaste, Namu Amida Butsu
Our hearts give thanks for the Grace in the Universe!
~ Raven
This morning was beautiful. It got hot, though not bad, later in the afternoon. I was able to get the little native bee that protects the milkweed. These are a megachiles (leafcutting) type of bee and chase other insects away as well as grapple with honeybees to try and drive them off of their beloved milkweed. The skipper is a different type than yesterday’s.
hi, little skipper
do you love scabiosa,
the purple flower?
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Bright Bee and Butterfly Blessings, Namaste, Namu Amida Butsu
Our hearts give thanks for the Grace in the Universe!
~ Raven
Today was overcast. I was able to get some photos of my milkweed with a honeybee, a couple of different native bees, and you can even see an ant here and there if you look closely. The stripey bee we saw in the Cranefly and Native Bee 5/31 post. As I mentioned then, this bee loves milkweed and was seen today trying to chase off the dark honeybee seen below. The honeybee was not deterred. The teeny tiny bee was awesome.
every spring I wait
and look forward to milkweed
with visiting friends
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
nectar for many
home to a few exclusives
marvelous milkweed
~ Raven Ariana Simons ©2017
Bright Milkweed and Bee Blessings, Namu Amida Butsu, Namaste
Our hearts give thanks for the Grace in the Universe!
~ Raven
Grace and Mystery 