Seventy-something mother of 3, grandmother of 5 and great-grandmother of 1 (so far.) I like gardening, photography, writing, reading and life in general. I’m also into genealogy and scrapbooking.
I was born in London and moved to the USA in 1973. I still miss home but will probably never go back. Past interests included dancing, fencing, painting and floral arranging. 
Exploring the twists and turns of Marie's mind and travels since 2013
Some of my public photos
Inquire, Inspire, Aspire
This WordPress.com site is the bee's knees
Support for Writers • Inspiration • Book Reviews Poetry Fiction
Hiking adventures and photography
The World According to Siri and Selma
Exploring the countryside and lanes of Dorset
Photo ⋅ Pictures ⋅ Poetry
immersed in nature
Getting the Picture 
I imagine butterflies have a field day in your garden. 🙂 Lovely.
Yes, that’s one of the benefits of having a flower garden, all those beautiful butterflies and other interesting bugs!
Thanks for stopping by my blog. I love yours – your work is incredible!
Thanks Cindy, and thank you so much for visiting!
A little something for you here:
http://dstecca.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/an-award-to-brighten-my-day/ 🙂
Thank you so much! I really appreciate your kind thought.
You are very welcome! Your pictures and words are a consistent bright spot in my day and sharing you with others will hopefully brighten theirs as well.
You have taken such wonderful pictures!
Thank you, Kimberly! And thanks for stopping by.
How do you find the time to do so many interesting things? Love your photos.
Thanks for stopping by! I guess I never spend too long on any one thing and flit from one interest to another.
Thanks for liking my pic of the day today. Much appreciated. Your work is very good.
Thank you, John! And thanks for stopping by.
Beautiful!
Thank you, June!
Thanks for stopping by and liking my weekly photo challenge post. I shall enjoy exploring your blog as well!
Thanks for visiting, John!
Thanks for liking my post Carefree. I lived in London for 8 years and still miss it. We seem to have a lot of interest in common, and nice to meet you in blogsphere. I’ll be back, and do drop by again.
Thank you for stopping by! I look forward to reading more on your blog, Opalla.
Beautiful pic!
Thanks!
Thanks for the nice comment and stopping by.
My husband and I just spent an enjoyable time wandering through your lovely photos. Will make it a priority to get back to the beginning – soon! Do you mind saying what camera you use? We are in the process of deciding on a new one, and your photos are so stunning, we are curious. My husband does mostly landscape; I am more “eclectic”, but favor flowers. We live in the desert, but travel some in our motorhome to more photographically pleasing areas.
Thank you for stopping by, Judilyn, and for your very kind comments! Back in the day when we only had film cameras I used a Minolta X-370 then when digital cameras came along (thank goodness!) I switched to a Canon EOS Rebel Xti. Unfortunately cameras become obsolete almost as soon as you buy them and getting additional lenses etc becomes difficult. There are so many awesome cameras out there now but I would recommend that you research them thoroughly before making a choice.
My husband shoots a Canon Xsi – similar to yours – as his first digital camera, but was a Nikon/Hasselblad/medium format man back in the day. I’ve always been a Canon girl – film camera was an F1. My current camera is a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ150, with which I have been very pleased; mostly Canon digitals up until now, with a Nikon 990 when digital was in its infancy.
He is considering upgrading just the lens to a Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS on his Xsi, and then deciding if that gives enough of an improvement, or if he needs to have more pixels. What lens do you use?
Thank you for showing us the pretty Chicago flowers and other sights, as well as the other areas in your part of the country. It is much appreciated.
I have three lenses that I use with the Rebel; Canon 18-55mm, Canon 55-200mm and Canon 75-300mm. I’d also like to add a wide angle lens.
Your photos are lovely (and so’s the blog!). Thanks for dropping by mine. I’m looking forward to more of yours. Have a wonderful weekend! ~ Mary
Thank you, Mary! And thanks for visiting. Looking forward to reading more of your blog.
Like your photos and topics..oh, and thank you for stopping by my blog…all the best to you!
Thank you! And thanks for visiting.
Thanks for stopping by my blog. Look forward to more of your posts.
DJ
Thanks for visiting, Danny!
Lovely flowers!
Thank you!
Your blogs are very interesting. Thank you for deciding to follow me.
Thank you! I look forward to seeing your future posts.
Your past interests include fencing?! That’s just awesome! I can honestly say I have never attempted it – but it looks so intriguing!
Thank you so much for joining me on my journey! It’s a joy to have you follow along!
Blessings to you as you go on this adventure called life! 🙂
Becky
Thank you for visiting, Becky! I look forward to reading more of your posts in the future.
Thanks for visiting my little blog. Hope you return!
DJ
Feels strange Sue, like I already knew you as a Follower, hehe. Anyway, so you decided after all to join the small clan of Uncle Spike followers…. That makes me a happy blogger now – I really appreciate you making that special mouse click.
Hope you like my upcoming posts and if you get bored one day, maybe you’ll enjoy trawling through some of my older stuff too.
If you have any likes, dislikes or suggestions about my blog, just let me know, either through ‘comments’ or via email. Always welcome reader input 🙂
Have a great old day…
UNCLE SPIKE
uncle.spikes.adventures1@gmail.com
Thanks, Uncle Spike. I always enjoy reading your posts and thought it was about time that I signed on. I’m not a great one for making spontaneous comments but if I hit the ‘like’ button, you can be sure it’s a genuine thumbs up.
Thats more than I can ask 🙂
I love your responses to Cee’s Photo Challenges!
Thank you!
Sue, I just had to tell you how much I LOVE your (gr)avatar picture. So creative and beautiful. Thank you for visiting my blog and liking some of my posts. 🙂 Happy New Year!!
Thanks, Debbie! A very Happy New Year to you too!
Hi,
Thanks for dropping by at my blogsite and for liking some of my photos. Great photos you have here especially on your so-called “Challenges”…keep it up.
Happy New Year !
regards,
Mel
Thank you, Mel! And thanks for visiting. A very Happy New Year to you too!
Love your photos and look forward to read more from you. Thank you for visiting and liking my posts.
Thank you, and thanks for stopping by! I look forward to seeing more of your posts.
Pingback: Seed of Light Award | rambling ratz
Hope you don’t mind, I have nominated you for a Seed of Light Award http://wp.me/p3DjAB-c0
Thank you very much. That was a most kind thought.
You post such lovely photos 🙂
Thank you! That made my day!
You haven a great lot of interests and the garden photos are superb both for the subject and the photography.
Thanks, Jack! I try to keep busy, mostly with photography and gardening these days.
Two wonderful things to keep busy with.
Thanks for calling in to my blog – love your photographs! Look forward to seeing more.
Thanks, Gail! And thanks for stopping by. I look forward to visiting your blog again.
I really like your avatar!! Butterflies galore. Thanks for following OMBH… I hope you come away with a smile when you visit! 😉
Thanks! I look forward to seeing more of your blog.
Thank you for reading some of my blogs and for liking them. I appreciate that. It’s so nice to know that things that fascinate me and encourage me to write are being read out there. I look forward to reading more of your blogs. Like you I am a keen gardener but with age comes difficulty and on some days I wish I didn’t have quite so many flowers and fruits to look after.
It was my pleasure. I enjoyed reading your posts. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts on gardening.
Thank for following Storyteller. — Ray
My pleasure!
Thank you for following my blog!
Thanks so much for following Oh, the Places We See. Your photography and overall appearance of your blog are wonderful! Best wishes for always seeing the world through your eyes and in your own way. — Rusha
Thank you, Rusha! I’ve really enjoyed reading your posts and seeing all your lovely pictures.
Your blog is beautiful, Sue. Thanks for visiting mine. Cheers 🙂 Irina
Thank you, Irina. It was my pleasure.
HI
Great photos . You posted a photo on your site a while ago and I was wondering if you minded if I used it for reference in a painting . The photo was of two koi from the Anderson Japanese Gardens posted in November 2013 .
Thanks
john
johnspaintings.co.uk
Thanks for visiting, John. Yes, I would be happy to know the koi picture is being put to good use. Perhaps you could post a picture of your painting on WP when you’re finished. I’d love to see it.