Welcome to JOYFUL REFLECTIONS. Also welcome to MARCH!!!! My header picture this month is a photo I took of the pretty Crocus blooms in our yard... The Crocuses and Daffodils are the first signs of spring here in Tennessee. I am definitely ready for SPRING...

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Spring in Georgia and in Tennessee

Hyacinth in our yard
We finally bit the bullet and bought a new iPhone 5s.  It will take me a long time to get it learned --but so far,  I am THRILLED.  My first photos taken on March 23, 2014 using the iPhone camera were of some of the Spring Flowers in our yard.   I will share these little spring flowers with you today. 



Breck's Colossal Daffodil (Jonquil) in our yard



Another Hyacinth in our yard



Crocus blooms in our yard




Bradford Pear in Georgia
On our way home from Amicalola Falls State Park in Georgia on March 26,  we noticed lots and lots of Bradford Pears blooming in Georgia... We also saw Forsythia in bloom,  other fruit trees,   Daffodils and even some Phlox. Spring has sprung down there... We are quite a bit behind Georgia with our spring blooms here on the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee.



Lodge at Amicalola Falls State Park,  Georgia
While in Georgia, we loved staying at the Amicalola Lodge on top of the mountain.  The view from our room was awesome...  Here is a photo of the lodge entrance area.



I posted this photo in another blog post--but wanted to show you again a close-up photo of the lodge using the long lens, from a distance.



Here's another photo of the lodge from a distance (NOT using the long lens).



Beautiful CLOUDS
We had interesting weather while we were there (sunshine, clouds, snow).  AND--since we had such a great view from our room at the lodge,  we both took several photos from our room... SO---I'll show you some of them now.



An early morning in Georgia



Blowing Snow in Georgia




Sunset in Georgia
Can you believe that we saw all of this beauty from the big window in our room at the lodge?????  Neat,  don't you think?

Please click HERE  to go to my Photo Blog to check out another gorgeous photo from our room while at the lodge in Georgia!!!!!

Welcome to April... Be sure to check out my new quotes on my sidebar. 

Have a great day!
Hugs,

43 comments:

Ercotravels said...

Hyacinth and blue crocus are extremely beautiful.Great Post!!!

Fun60 said...

Not sure if you would have got me to leave that room!

diane b said...

Nice to see the spring flowers blooming. We still have hot summer weather. The lodge looks a great place to stay with fabulous views.

Ms. A said...

Brave you, getting a new, fancy phone. I can't make myself do it, afraid I don't have enough brain cells to learn.

That lodge is awesome and the views are spectacular!

Ann said...

Love all the spring flowers. Hyacinth are my favorite, I love their heavenly scent.
That is one awesome view you had from your window

Tanna said...

WOW! What a view. That sunset was gorgeous!

Your flowers are beautiful!! Our azaleas are just beginning to open after that last brutal ice storm. I am loving the warmer weather... and so are they!

blessings ~ tanna

linda m said...

Your flowers are so pretty. Nothing has come up yet here in WI. After seeing your Amicalola Falls pictures I definitely will have my son take us there on one of our visits. Love your new side bar quotes.

Neal said...

Our daffodils have finally started blooming. :) The smart phones take pretty decent pictures but are not a substitute for a good camera. I put a 64gb MicroSD in my phone so I have lots of room for pictures and music. :)

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

Beautiful flowers. Congrats on your new iphone!

Shug said...

Aw sweet lady....I do love that new header!! Aren't we Blessed? Such beauty surrounds us everywhere. A long Winter reaps gorgeous blooms which brings us such joy. I know your yard is a eye catcher for sure..
Enjoy the rest of this day...
Hugs
shug

DeniseinVA said...

Your new iPhone takes wonderful photos. I love mine. Took me forever to agree to get one but Gregg persisted and I am happy he did :)

Out on the prairie said...

Crocus bloomed here yesterday

Hootin Anni said...

That close up of the purple crocus is dazzling Betsy!!!

Sylvia K said...

Gorgeous, colorful flowers and your captures are terrific as always, Betsy!! Looks like a great place to stay! Hope your week is going well! Enjoy!!

LV said...

Looks like you and your "new toy" are working well together. The photos are great.

Betsy said...

Those pictures made me gasp with awe! What a beautiful place to have views like that from the windows. I might just never leave once I saw it.
We still have nothing flowering here in Spokane, but with the warm temperatures this week I have high hopes that will change soon.
Blessings,
Betsy

Terry and Linda said...

Lucky, lucky you!

We are still cold!
❤⊱彡 Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

happyone said...

Spring looking great by you.
My daffodils are sticking out of the ground about 2 inches. Looking forward to seeing them bloom some day. : )

Anonymous said...

Hi Betsy, Glad to know that your bulbs are in bloom! I know the new buyers of my former lake house will be happy to see pink tulips and lots of jonquils in bloom there! This would be the fourth year for the bulbs I left in place so I think they would be very pretty. I do miss bulbs. They do not grow well here to naturalize. Have a wonderful day and enjoy your beautiful yards!

Peaches McGinty said...

Hi Betsy!
I just knew the view from your room was going to be spectacular! the Sunset in particular is just stunning! what a treat it must have been! the Bradford Pear is a beautiful tree and your garden blooms are lovely, Spring is a wonderful time! the iPhone camera is phenomenal, such clarity - I love your quotes, they always articulate so well how I feel about things and I always believe in miracles, I say it a lot to mine! x x x

Ginny Hartzler said...

You took all of the flower photos with your iPhone? Wow, I am impressed. I love the fuchsia hyacinth, but even more, the little purple crocus. I got my first smart phone last summer, a Samsung Galaxy. I bought a refurbished one and it is as good as new. By buying and paying a little bit of a heftier price for a used phone, we could then go on the prepaid plan with no contract and are only paying about $50.00 a month for unlimited everything.

Sweet Posy Dreams said...

Isn't it amazing how well iphone photos turn out? Your flowers are so pretty. I only have a couple of very early crocus thus far. The Georgia photos are also wonderful. We drove through Georgia a couple of times this past year and I just love the hills of north Georgia.

Arkansas Patti said...

I am really impressed with the quality of those photos from a phone. If I had service here, I'd consider biting the bullet also.
That blue Crocus was stunning. Wow.
Enjoy your new toy Betsy.

KathyA said...

I can just about smell those hyacinths!!! Spring is particularly welcome this year. Soon all of the trees around that lodge will be in full leaf. Something grand to wait for.

Lynda said...

Isn't it amazing what great pics the phones take? Some are better than my camera - - - but my camera is getting older. When you look at your vacation photos, they just transport you back there emotionally, don't they?!!! It's wonderful you both have the time and opportunity to do the traveling. God does pile on the blessings abundantly at times!!! We still have at least a couple or three years before Bill is done work.

White Lace and Promises said...

Bradford pear trees are everywhere in Georgia and beautiful. On my stroll around the block today, I picked some wisteria. I walked past and smelled this magnificent aroma. I backed up and looked for honeysuckle. I didn't know wisteria (I found out this grows wild. I didn't know) smelled so wonderful. Awww! Blessings from your GA friend.

White Lace and Promises said...

Bradford pear trees are everywhere in Georgia and beautiful. On my stroll around the block today, I picked some wisteria. I walked past and smelled this magnificent aroma. I backed up and looked for honeysuckle. I didn't know wisteria (I found out this grows wild. I didn't know) smelled so wonderful. Awww! Blessings from your GA friend.

eileeninmd said...

I love the gorgeous flowers and the last beautiful sunset shot. Gorgeous images, Betsy!

The Furry Gnome said...

Absolutely beautiful pictures Betsy! Such a big seasonal difference at this time of year! Great new header too.

Connie said...

I love your beautiful spring flower photos, Betsy. You're a little ahead of us, but I'm so glad spring is finally here.

Gardener on Sherlock Street said...

Beautiful landscape and flowers.
Those new phones do so many wonderful things. Have you tried the free app "pic collage?" It's fun. You can add text and stickers to photo collages or a single photo and do all kinds of stuff with them.

Miss Debbie said...

Amicalola is a lovely place and the lodge is very nice. We were there a few years ago. Yes, we have millions of Bradford pear trees here in the "Peach State"! They are one of my favorites!

Ruth Hiebert said...

Beautiful images. Betsy,you will soon be taking lots of pictures with your phone. Mine is always with me and so it is used often for pictures.

Small Kucing said...

Betsy, you have just made my day. I love the lovely flowers up there. So cheerful.

David said...

Betsy, You two certainly do get out and about! You never seem to be home too long before you're on another little trip... Nice photos... My better half has a new smart phone, an S4 I think. She loves it and it takes great photos too. I'm now 4th in her list of favorites. The cat is #1, her phone is #2, her friend's horses rank 3rd! Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Anonymous said...

Love those flower shots - the crocuses are exquisite!

Judy said...

Congratulations on your new phone! It takes great photos. Thanks for sharing them with us. What an awesome view from the lodge! That looks like a relaxing place to stay.

Cheqna said...

Hi Betsy,

Congrats on the new iPhone 5s..here and there been hearing relatives and friends having it..hehe..beautiful photos I was told could be captured from it..and yes, yours look good.

Secondly...you must have really love the lodge! :-D

Love the sunset photo.

Have a nice day and enjoy spring.

:-)

Grandma Bonnie said...

Oh Betsy, Your Daffodils are making me ache for spring. We are patiently waiting for this freezing rain to pass and the soil to warm up for planting time. I enjoyed all your photos! Hope you have a great day.

BB said...

Hello Miss Betsy! I hope you forgive my absence to your blog. I've just been a bit busy and now dealing with a head cold. Your photos are absolutely beautiful. Hyacinth were my grandma's favorite! I often gave her potted hyacinth for Mother's Day or Easter when I was little girl and to this day when I close my eyes I can smell them. Spring is definitely in bloom in your yard! I love the view you and George had from your lodge. Wow. Hope you two lovebirds are just doing great!! Hugs XX

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

The iPhone does an amazing job. The detail in that crocus is fantastic. Great photos of and from the lodge, too. Looks like a marvelous place.

Chatty Crone said...

Isn't Georgia beautiful - I have to say that because I live here. We have Bradford Pears all over the place - just looks beautiful. Actually they are almost gone now, but they were gorgeous!

A Colorful World said...

Stunning shots...what great views from the Lodge windows! And your spring flowers are beautiful. Love the pictures you got with your new phone!