Old Man Winter finally lost his hard fought battle to stay forever, against the soft, warm sunshine of spring.   Everything is just exploding in color.  How I love this time of year.

I decided to take my new little pocket camera out for a stroll today.  I need to learn how to use it.   After over 25 years of wearing a big SLR camera around my neck, I decided that a small purse-size camera could come in handy for more casual shooting situations.  Although I could never abandon my wonderful SLR , this little hummer is just the ticket when I’m not after “professional” results.

This pond below is on my regular walking path that the dogs and I take every day that we can.  The red bud trees are so beautiful in it’s reflection…

One of the surest signs of spring here is the arrival of cute little Yellow-rumped warblers.  They pass through eastern Kansas on their way to Canada, staying on for a few days to beef  up on tiny insect larvae.  They arrive like clockwork each year in mid April.

This is Little Mill Creek (below).  We have had a great deal of water this year, between the massive snow melt-off and heavy rains.  I love how the creek looks when sparkling in the warm sunshine.

I decided to use the macro setting on my little camera to photograph this tiny frog.   Believe it or not,  this fellow is about the size of a DIME!  A natural spring oozes out of the hillside and trickles across our driveway, attracting these tiny frogs.  One must be very careful where they step!

The view off our bedroom deck…

Bradford pear trees line the streets of this industrial park.  They all bloom at once, creating a white tunnel down the roadways.