Saturday was spent in Georgetown, Texas as I photographed the 2014 Red Poppy Festival for the Williamson County Sun.   The event included a parade, vintage cars and trucks, food, drink and plenty of music, including Off the Record, a Pflugerville-based group of guys who kept things rolling.   Among the group members was Kyle McBride, who does a really good Elvis impersonation.  During the parade, 8-year-old Jasmine Maxwell, shown in the opening photo, got the opportunity to wave her American flag.   Sisters Abigail and Naomi Kurtz came dressed for the day in their red poppy-themed dresses.   The music was a little loud at times for Naomi, but she finally got into the swing of things.    I really enjoyed looking at the vintage motor vehicles, too.   A light dusting of rain only added to the sparkle of a bright red 1932 Ford pickup truck.   What a great truck!  In the final photo, 3-year-old triplets, including (left to right) Bear, Malachi and Charley Turner brought their own special wheeled vehicle, a good way for mom to keep things moving on a hectic day.

As Georgetown, Texas approaches their Red Poppy Festival this weekend, it seemed like a good time to visit the flower the city honors each year, the red poppy.   The bright red flowers are all over the place this spring, in public places like Edwards Park, and front yards, where Mark Moss has a good crop this year, too.   Red poppies, like our Texas bluebonnets, are essentially weeds, but they’re weeds we like in these parts.   Enjoy them while they’re here.

The City of Cedar Park held their inaugural Cedar Bark Festival  over the weekend at Veterans Memorial Park.   Hundreds of dogs and their owners showed up for this free event to elicit donations for the Williamson  County Regional Animal Shelter, a very good cause.   Among the delightful pooches was Daisy Rage The Velvet Underhound, the cute Basset in the opening photo.   Visitors to the festival got to watch some cool disc dog demonstrations and also enter their dogs in competitions for best costume, ugliest dog, fastest dog, etc.   The dogs came in all sizes, too.  Bentley, a 2-pound, 4-month old miniature Yorkie, got to know Rev, a Great Pyrenees.  They played well together, too!   These were among the photos I took for the Austin American-Statesman.

People who have known me for a while are probably aware of my affection for the Native American culture.  Thus, it’s always a pleasure and honor to cover the annual Spring Powwow held at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas.   This year marked their 8th year.   They continue to attract tribal groups from all over the United States.   It’s a celebratory event that showcases the art of dance that goes back literally thousands of years.   This year’s Head Gourd Dancer was Kenneth Begay (in the opening photo), a Navajo who traveled here from his Arizona home “near the Grand Canyon” says Mr. Begay.   Here is a selection of photos I took for a package in the Williamson County Sun.

It’s interesting to see how Easter Egg hunts have morphed.   These days, they’re called egg hunts, but it’s usually candy-filled eggs.   It’s a new world and I suppose it’s best to go along with these new traditions, right?   Over the past weekend, I covered two Easter Egg events.  On Saturday, it was the city of Georgetown’s, for the Williamson County Sun, followed by a big one on Sunday in Leander for the Austin American-Statesman.    Whatever the prize, it was still great fun to watch the little folks go after the loot.   I’m betting a lot of them had a big sugar high going by evening!   The last 4 four photos are from Sunday’s event in Leander, all showing two-and–half year old Channing Washington.   This young man was fantastic, really into it big time!

Georgetown’s Palace Theatre has once again come up with a winner with their current offering, “Moon Over Buffalo,” playing weekends through May 4 on the Springer Memorial Stage.   The scene is Buffalo, New York, circa 1953.   It’s one of those funny and fast-paced productions, this time under the direction of Mary Ellen Butler.   I’m posting a bunch of photos from their dress rehearsal.   If you need something to brighten your weekend, this is it!

Baseball, a sport many  associate with Spring, is one of those games where age is no barrier to having fun.  For instance, in Sun City, Texas, there’s a league where the players don’t qualify until they’re in their 60s.   Some, like Jerry Schaffer (the second and third photos in this post) have graduated into their 80s.   Mr. Schaffer and his pals are still going strong in their Sun City softball league.  On the other end of the scale, there’s T-Ball, as played in the Georgetown Youth Baseball Association’s 4 and Under division.  I had a chance to photograph both recently.   Both groups were having a great time.  This post also reinforces my belief that the best subjects in the human world are at the far reaches of the age spectrum.   It’s all fun though.    Both these sets of photos were taken for the Williamson County Sun

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Two favorite images, Texas Longhorns and Texas Bluebonnets, somehow ended up in the same pasture over the weekend.  For this collection of photos I didn’t have to leave Williamson County.   These babies converged in a field on Ronald Reagan Parkway in Leander, Texas.   A lady who lives near here said there was hardly a bloom this time last year.   A lot of people were stopping by to take photos and admire the scene, including Joyce Hopkins, taking a self-portraits (selfies?) with her daughter, Cynthia Turner, visiting from Tulsa.   And there was cowboy hat-wearing 4-year-old Miguel Fajardo  who stopped to play among the flowers with this family.   It’s a good thing I’m a persistent person.   I waited for almost three hours before the dang cows actually decided to get up and mosey around.   These bovines didn’t realize I have the patience of Job, did they?

It’s such a good season for wildflowers, I tend to get focused (no pun intended) on that type of imagery at this time of year.   However, on a features troll for my friends at the Williamson County Sun the other day, I stopped by Berry Springs Park & Preserve, a favorite spot that’s filled with a grove of stately pecan trees.   There, I happened on Alice Barragan as she celebrated her first birthday under the trees with mom and dad, Karissa and Mike Barragan.   This day was marked another first, too:  her first taste of cake.   With some  help from mom, dad got some photos to mark the occasion.   Karissa, knowing Alice likes to admire herself in the mirror, brought one along to spark a smile in little Alice.   In the end, everyone had a good time.   Alice ended up wearing as much of the cake as anything.   Mom said this was called a “cake smash.”    After the last photo in this post, Alice enjoyed a good wash-off and the rest of her special day, sans cake!

The last post was a result of specifically seeking out images of wildflowers.   This one I just happened on today as I returned from another assignment in Schwertner, Texas for the Williamson County Sun.    For the last 18 years, David and Laura Van Soest have been fortunate indeed, their extensive front yard north of Walburg, Texas filling up with a sea of Texas bluebonnets.   The bluebonnets sprout in many spots, but particularly around an antique hay rake that once belonged to Laura’s great-grandparents, who lived near Lockhart, Texas.    Laura was gracious enough to let me wander around a bit to check out her life-affirming scene.