Addict

I am addicted to taking flower pictures (I know, no big surprise to you). Our birthday trip (the first of many) to the Missouri Botanical Garden didn't help any. Oh if only I could live there! It is the oldest botanical garden in the world and it is huge! We spent a blissful three hours there and only explored a fraction of it. My pictures don't do it justice (at all) but cutting my collection down to fit on a blog was still painful for me.

Totally awesome flower.

It is one of my life goals to learn more about nature photography. I fiddle around with the manual settings at times in hopes that one day I will get a big girl camera and learn how to use it. I have a long way to go, but I do enjoy it.

The flowers were amazing! We spent most of the time in the Climatron (that just sounds cool) which is a huge glass dome housing a piece of tropical paradise. The variety was astounding.

This is a pitcher plant. Keith and I both think they are one of the coolest plants ever (does that make us nerds?).

One of the things I love about Keith is that he enjoys botanizing (my computer doesn't think that is a word). When we go to places like this (or hiking for that matter) we stop frequently at plants that catch our eye and marvel at the design of the petals, the unique placement of a stamen, or the pattern on the leaves. Most people would get impatient, but Keith enjoys it as much as I do.

Do you see the snakes?

We spent a long time at the above flower.

It is not just the showy flowers that I find fascinating and beautiful either.

I love moss.

I don't know what this one is but I love the checkered pattern.

My fellow botanist and love of my life.

Sweet hollow tree trunk.

Charlie just couldn't keep up with our enthusiasm.