
Some new flowers are blooming around our property, and since we have a new puppy, I figured today would be a good day to walk around and check out the area. It brings such joy to walk with the dogs, since they jump in the pond and swim, run around in the tall grass and find dead things, and of course, roll in hog poop.

My mission was to take some pictures to upload to iNaturalist (I am sunasak there) to get some volunteer hours, and add to my collection of plants and animals here at the Hermits’ Rest. I was able to get photos of a great egret and barn swallows, which was good, since I still don’t have a camera with a birding lens.
As for plants, I got some nice shots of Indian blanket (gaillardia), Texas thistle, wild garlic, white clover, hedge parsley (ugh), and the pretty curly dock we have with the bright pink seed heads. Sure, these aren’t real exciting, but I do want to record all, not just the showy ones. (There is lots of grass, but I need to get better at grass identification.)

I do love walking around here, but I equally love just sitting on the front or back porch and watching the wildlife, dogs, and weather. Spring is pretty awesome at the Hermits’ Rest.
PS: Don’t forget these blog posts always appear on the Hermits’ Rest Facebook page, along with more photos and goofy things. Please “like” us there, too!