A tangle of dry branches. Each branch has a little snow or ice on top. There is one yellow leaf hanging from one branch.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: the last leaf

A clump of daffodil leaves with a few buds that beginning to open and one fully open flower.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: the first daffs of the year in my garden

A folding screen made of woven slats and string with a red silk scarf draped over the top. Bright sunlight illuminates the screen and scarf from behind.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: an improvised sun shade

This time of year, for about a half hour in the afternoons, the sun comes screaming in the window, apparently trying to blind me at my desk. I hide behind this wooden screen and scarf.

Leaves, flowering stems, and swelling buds of daffodils are all green. In the background are dry brown leaves.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: daffodil buds

A dry plant stem with many tiny spiky dry seeds attached to the ends of small branches

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: goldenrod seeds

A large bird clinging to the side of a tree. The bird has a large sturdy beak, a large red crest, a white face and neck with a black and a red stripe, and black back and wings.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a pileated woodpecker

#birdphotography #pileatedwoodpecker

A pink flower with many petals. Emerging from among the almost closed petals are purple stamens and pint anthers.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: Scarlet Passion Flower in bloom in the Brookside Gardens conservatory

Branches with tulip-shaped seed heads against the sky.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: tulip poplar seeds

an image of a creek (small stream) surrounded by bare trees, the whole scene softened by fog

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a small creek on a foggy afternoon

A tree with no leaves of needles; the trunk and many branches show against a plain blue sky.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a Bald Cypress in winter

Detail of the stem and part of the leaf frond of a Bismarck Palm. Long, narrow leaves with pointed tips fan out from the end of the stem.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a Bismarck Palm frond

A dry tube with distinct veins, some of the reddish. There is a curled lip at the top of the tube and a flap that partly covers the opening. The edges of that flap are ruffled and there are tiny hairs on the edge.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a dry pitcher plant tube

Last summer this tube was bright green with red and white markings. Now it is beige and yellow with a few red lines. It was beautiful then, it is beautiful now.

One small yellow flower and some long thin green leaves emerging from ground covered with large brown and dark purple leaves.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a yellow crocus

small ice crystals cover small leaves

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: frost on tiny sage leaves

Part of a black stool. The seat and leg are covered in ice, there are 8 icicles hanging down from the seat.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: icicles hanging from a metal stool

A small bird perched on the edge of a bird feeder tray. There is seed in the tray and a seed in the bird's beak. The bird has a red-ish head and breast the rest is shades of brown.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a house finch

A weathervane in the shape of a flying great blue heron above an arrow.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a weathervane

Bird footprints in a thin layer of sleet. Most show the imprint of three toes pointing forwards and one pointing back.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: bird tracks near the back door

Small light purple and white flowers with prominent yellow stamens and style. The flowers are surrounded by small linear green leaves, dead oak tree leaves, and wood chips.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a few crocus are up already. I hope the freezing slop we expect this afternoon and evening doesn't do them in.

Small white flowers, nodding on tiny stems, surrounded by pointed green leaves, emerging through ground covered with wood chips.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: snowdrops are the first flowers of the season in my garden

A vase of cut flowers on a table made from a tree stump.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: Alstroemeria

On this grey February day it is nice to have flowers in the house

A cluster of yellow-orange crystals.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a lump of citrine crystals

A small brown bird, back to the camera, looking over it's shoulder.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a house sparrow

#birdphotography #housesparrow #englishsparrow

Photo of a squirrel looking at the camera

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a squirrel

A woodpecker with black and white feathers and 2 red spots on the back of the head is clinging to a wire birdfeeder that contains a suet block.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a hairy woodpecker

#birdphotography #hairywoodpecker #woodpecker

Leaves and a few buds of snowdrop flowers coming up through a gap in frozen sleet.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: snowdrop buds through a gap in the ice-cover

Close view of the edge of some ice. There is a small icicle and the edges of the ice are wavy with frozen drops that might become icicles.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: melting ice

The ice from the storm last week is starting melt, re-freeze, and melt again.

A starling on a small branch. The body and legs are clear, the head is moving so quickly the photo shows a blur.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: a starling shaking off water after a bath.

#birdphotography #starling

Bare oak trees, snow on the ground, a haze softening the lines of the trees in the background.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: oak trees

A bush with dry leaves poking out of snow. The shadow of the bush is very clear and shows the lines of the branches and the leaves.

It's time to slow down and admire some pretty things. Today: the shadow of a Baptisia bush on snow