Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: All Colors of Red, White and Blue

Welcome back to the Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge! Having just celebrated America’s 249th birthday, I thought using the colors of red, white, and blue would be a fun photo challenge this week.

red white blue bouquet

For those participating in the challenge, feel free to use shades of red, white, and blue combined or separately.

The Red, White, and Blues of Water Safety

The month of July also inspired me to write more about water safety, since summer activities around the water hit their peak in the northern hemisphere.

Back at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center, students gear up sporting red and blue life jackets.

putting on life vests

A watchful lifeguard ensures the safety of students on the obstacle course.

college students wearing life vests

When I was the aquatic director in Sacramento, we campaigned to keep our public swimming pools open with private and corporate donations. Here, one of my Pool Managers graciously took her turn modeling good lifeguard behavior in front of City Hall.

Lifeguard in blue and red
Save Public Pools campaign

Speaking of Safety…

There are restrictions on the use of professional-grade fireworks in nearby Spokane County. However, here in Stevens County (considered a rural county with 46,000 residents), people buy the illegal ones. Then, they set them off all over the various neighborhoods. We “enjoyed” the light show several years in a row.

Fireworks
Over Our House!

Summer in the City

Our small towns also get into the swing of the season with street flags and signage on Main Street. The town of Chewelah is a 30-minute drive north of where we live.

In larger cities like San Diego, California, the colors of red, white, and blue are found everywhere, all year round.

Red Topped boats
Colorful boats in San Diego Harbor

My daughter never forgets her sweet dog, Gideon, who passed away in June 2022.

Patriotic Gideon

“Love has no age, no limit, and no death.” – John Galsworthy

A Hint of Feathers

My nesting Western Flycatchers, AKA Say’s Phoebes, FINALLY fledged on Friday. Wow, say that fast three times, sorry. 😉 I’m saving most of the photos for next week, but I’m satisfying my red, white, and blue theme with these:

Bird pics taken with Lumix FZ300 camera.

Flycatcher near table
Fledgling likes red and white

“Freedom is that spark where every fledgling gets to grow its wings to flap on cheeping.” ~ Unknown

Fledgling Flycatcher
Fledgling Phoebe

Sharing for Becky’s Simply Red and Johnbo’s Cellpic Sunday.

red white blue swatch

Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders

The Sunday Stills weekly-themed photo challenge is easy to join. You have all week to share and link your post. Please use your own original images, whether new or from your archives.

  • Please create a new post for the theme or link a recent one.
  • Entries for this theme can be posted all week.
  • Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
  • Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post.
  • I also recommend adding your post’s URL to the comments.

If you are participating in the photo challenge, I’m excited to see how you will interpret the various shades of red, white, and blue this week! Creativity is encouraged, so please share your own photographs (old or new), poems, original short stories, and music inspired by the theme. Join me next week as we explore the theme FEATHERS.

I’ll leave you with this winter image to help virtually cool those who are dealing with summer heat!

Winter fun with dog and 4WD
Bitmoji Birding

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92 responses to “Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: All Colors of Red, White and Blue”

  1. […] John’s Cell Pic Sunday challenge is fun. I use my cell phone most of the time because it is easy and convenient. Then I process them on my computer using Lightroom. Terri is still out birding, but she left us with a month long red, white & blue color challenge. […]

    Liked by 1 person

  2. You had no trouble finding red, white, and blue, it seems. Great photos, Terri. All look so joyful – especially the water fun. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Diana! You must be playing catch-up! Hope we get to see you in Portland next month.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Yes! I’ll be there.

        Liked by 1 person

  3. […] Join Terri’s Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: All Colors of Red, White and Blue […]

    Liked by 1 person

  4. […] Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: All Colors of Red, White and Blue […]

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Beautiful pictures, Terri. I needed the snow shot…100 degree heat index here (ouch). Hope your summer is going well. Joe

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Joe! Wow, that’s hot, especially with the humidity. Hot winds are whipping up wildfires, but they’re far away. 🤞

      Like

  6. […] The French flag flying in front of the Hôtel de Ville (City Hall) in Reims, France.Poster at the Musée de la Biere (Museum of Beer) showing a triumphant woman enveloped in the red, white and blue flag of France and hoisting a French beer. A mural on the corner of a building showing a masked woman wrapped in the red, white and blue flag of France (Lille).Fridge magnets for sale in a Parisian market, in the red, white and blue colours of the French flag. At the flea market in Paris I found these notebooks with Fabrication Français (made in France) on a tiny French flag. More of Terri’s Sunday Stills in Red, White and Blue. […]

    Liked by 1 person

  7. […] Thanks for visiting our Retired Life & Travel blog and I hope you enjoyed finding the #SundayStills Challenge. You can join the weekly challenge by visiting our hosts blog Second Wind Leisure. and checking out Terri’s post for this week, All Colors of Red, White and Blue. […]

    Liked by 1 person

  8. https://lightwords.blog/2025/07/15/catching-up-on-red-and-other-challenges/ Finally I’m catching up on blogging. Love all your refreshing water images. Happy mid summer!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Carol! I hope your summer is going well!

      Like

  9. […] Catching up with Becky’s July Simply Red and Sunday Stills Red, White and Blue Challenges […]

    Liked by 1 person

  10. these are such fun – and have reminded me of going to a public outdoor pool in Sacramento in 1979!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. What? I wonder if you went to Clunie Pool? There are a lot of pools and 10 public recreation districts. It was a journey, glad I’m retired from it all! Thanks Becky!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I’ve got no idea, and sadly the person who would know is no longer with us.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Well, its fun to know you visited a public swimming pool in my former city.

        Liked by 1 person

  11. LOL for the cooling red,white and blue closing Terri! When we lived in a small town July 4 was THE event of the year. Parade, fireworks, bbq’s you name it we had it. Here on Kiawah it is also a major event but somehow because we have so many out-of-towners for the event it loses something for me (although our visitors absolutely love it!) I watch the fireworks from my bedroom window LOL. Terrific, fun post.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Tina! Glad you liked the snow! I love the small town atmosphere when it can be done successfully. The L-A theme “quiet moments” didn’t really fit my theme this week ❤️🤍💙

      Like

  12. Such lovely photos of the summer red, white and blue!
    From Gideon to the little birds, I loved them all!
    Stay cool my friend!
    We are getting a brand new AC/Furnace today! Woo Hoo!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Nancy! When one looks for colors it’s amazing how many we find. Congrats on your new AC! Good thing you’re not in AZ at the moment! It’s hot here in Eastern Washington too!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. It’s muggy here.

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Lisa. The small town flags are fun to see.

      Like

  13. Beautiful displays of red, white, and blue. I love the photo of the San Diego Harbor, and the birds against the red and white checker cloth. Such a sweet picture of Angel Gideon. 💖

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Eugi! We’ll always remember Gideon ❤️

      Liked by 1 person

      1. You’re welcome, Terri.

        Liked by 1 person

  14. All your photos brought a smile. (Well except hearing of the loss of your daughter’s Gideon)

    https://dailymusing57.com/2025/07/14/sunday-stills-calling-all-red-white-blues/

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Lisa! Gideon held on after the coyote attack, but my daughter had to let him go.😞 The fledglings have flown the coop!

      Like

  15. Terri, what a great collection of Red, White and Blue!

    Liked by 1 person

  16. Hi Terri, it must be sad that the Western Flycatchers have fled the nest, but I’m sure they will be back next year.

    I hope you enjoyed the July 4th celebrations. The photo of the fireworks over your house is spectacular.

    Seeing the photo of the colourful boats in San Diego harbour and all that refreshing, cool, blue water helped me cool down. We’ve had a 3-day heatwave. The highest temperature was only 86°F, but anything over 75°F for three days is classed as a heatwave in Wales. The heatwave finally broke today – hooray.

    Enjoy the rest of your week.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Hugh! Yes, it is a bit sad to see the empty nest, but thrilling to see the babies flying strong in the trees. They were around here since April, longer than usual because of the second clutch. Soon they’ll migrate south.
      As pretty as the fireworks are, we always breathe a sigh of relief when they’re over! Glad the SD views can cool you down. We hit 100F yesterday. A cool down to mid 80s is coming, which is nice here due to low humidity. It helps that our overnight temps stay in 50sF. Enjoy your cooler days!

      Liked by 1 person

  17. Love those flowers and you in your academic gown, Terri x

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Those flowers were part of the bouquet for my dad’s service. Thank you, Toni! ❤️🤍💙

      Like

  18. Absolutely beautiful, as usual!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Many thanks, Donna! I always appreciate your comments!

      Liked by 1 person

  19. […] I am joining Terri’s Monthly Color Challenge this week which is Red, White, & Blue (Single, or a combinatio… […]

    Liked by 1 person

  20. Fun images Terri…hard to pick a fave. I love the boats and the bird in front of the checkered table cloth.
    https://troyerslovinglife.blogspot.com/2025/07/this-sundaystills-challenge-is-hosted.html

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, Kirstin, no favorites are needed 😆 We’ve enjoyed the nesting birds and fledglings, but off they flew!

      Like

  21. Thank you for that last snow-filled image Terri. It did cool me down a little … we’re still in the 80s after another sultry day. The boats in the harbor are very colorful. The Phoebe fledglings are so cute, especially that last one which you captured up so close. How lucky for you that your tablecloth was in the background and could give you one more image with red and white for this Red-White-and-Blue Challege.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I’m glad the faux snow helped, Linda. 100 right now…ugh. I had the plastic tablecloth up for the 4th and the two fledglings posed so nicely with it on Friday. The red can be used all month, of course, for Becky’s red challenge.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Faux snow – really! It looked realistic to me Terri. I must have forgotten how snow looked. That’s awfully hot … we are 90 tomorrow and will see severe weather again on Wednesday. I am so done with Summer’s heat and stormy weather. We have wildfire haze out there as well the last few days through Wednesday morning. The gingham tablecloth made it two fun shots with the fledglings. I know I have seen a lot of red posts by Brian the last week or so.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Oh that was real snow…I used “faux” in the virtual sense 😉 I
        have more red posts to share.
        Hope your weather makes up its mind. We’ll be in red flag warnings through September the way things are looking. Wildfires everywhere, small, but needing to be put out before the winds whip them into bigger ones. 😞

        Liked by 1 person

      3. I thought it looked like legitimate snow. 🙂 I had saved the majority of my red barn posts from last year, intending to use them for a red theme at Christmas or Valentine’s Day. I went there on 4th of July as I saw the painting group (which I follow on FB) had been there the week before and one woman painted the barn and showed the bunting on the fence in the painting. I also went because they posted “come see and smell the lavender before it’s gone!” The weather is not to my liking, but I can’t complain when I see what is going on everywhere across the U.S. July has been bad for natural disasters, that’s for sure. We have not had high winds for a while, something that plagued us all Spring and early Summer. I think I’d like the winds that I whined about back and maybe trade them for less heat, humidity and storms.

        Liked by 1 person

      4. Last time we had a hot, extreme summer, we also had a crazy snowy winter. I think we’re staying home this winter instead of traveling. Hang in there, Linda.

        Liked by 1 person

      5. We didn’t get much snow, just brutal cold this Winter of 2024-2025. You hang in there too Terri.

        Liked by 1 person

  22. Beautiful red, white and blues, Terri! The rose is gorgeous, and the picture of Gideon, is so real, I can almost pet that sweet pooch! What a wonderful picture to remember him by. I found red, white and blue at my favorite local park this week. Red, White and Blue at Coulon Park – Cats and Trails and Garden Tales

    Like

    1. Thank you so much, Susanne! It took 3 years for my daughter to get another dog, but she will always remember Gideon. He was the blueprint for me and my dot’s friend to get his brothers from the next litter. Of course, my Aero died of cancer a few months after Gideon, but Woody just turned 15 this month!

      Liked by 1 person

  23. […] making them fit for this week’s Sunday Stills challenge, Red, White and Blue. […]

    Liked by 2 people

  24. Cute avatar of you scoping out birds from the bushes!!

    Isn’t it heartwarming to see flag-lined streets this time of year? We visited the National Cemetery and I expected to see flags on all the headstones. But Paul reminded me the the only time they do that is Veteran’s Day and Memorial Day. Would have been a good place to capture some red, white and blue.

    Love the pup picture and the blue water at the San Diego pier. Looking pictures of the new bird family.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you, Leslie! That’s a good point about the cemetery flags. I suppose there are 4 holidays where we display the US flag. ❤️🤍💙

      Liked by 1 person

  25. A lovely selection, Terri.

    Liked by 2 people

  26. A beautiful photo collection, Terri. I like all the photos with water in them. The colours look cheerful in your photos. I am having trouble including a link to my entry in the comment while using a mini ipad. If you could add mine to your list, that would be great.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you, Natalie! I’ll see what I can do to add yours.

      Liked by 1 person

  27. Nice photos for a wonderful monthly theme.

    Liked by 2 people

  28. Great fun, Terri. I love the photo of the fireworks over your house! ❤️

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you, Colleen! Last 4th, there were more high-flying fireworks. Not as much this year which could be a good thing!

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Same here for us. I heard the tariffs affected the fireworks imported from China. That makes sense. Yet, it was so nice to not lose sleep this year. My cats were terrified by the fireworks that went off in my neighborhood. I’m sure your dogs were uneasy too. 💜

        Liked by 1 person

  29. […] Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: red – white – blue […]

    Liked by 2 people

    1. What a great collection of red, white and blue images! Love the gate and the beach cabana!! ❤️🤍💙

      Liked by 1 person

  30. […] Sunday Stills  July Color Challenge: Red, White and Blue Challenge. […]

    Liked by 2 people

  31. Thanks for the boats and the snow to cool me off, Terri. Naturally, Gideon’s a stealer. Have a wonderful week. Soon we’ll be only in the 90’s. Woo, hoo!!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thanks, Janet! The temps are in the upper 90s here…too hot! I’ll take some snow 😆

      Liked by 2 people

      1. You and I are in the minority, but quality, not quantity. 😁

        Liked by 2 people

  32. My favorite was the guy in the red life jacket surrounded by more life jackets. Then I saw the dog. And then I saw the bird with the red checked background..so now I don’t know which one is really my favorite.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you, Dawn, I’m so glad you liked them all! ❤️🤍💙

      Liked by 1 person

  33. Nice post. Your bird pics are awesome and your life guard is adorable!

    Liked by 2 people

  34. An excellent and varied selection, Terri. Glad to hear the second batch of Phoebes is doing well. Lovely portrait of Gideon. I was hoping to take fireworks photos on the 4th here, but there weren’t any! Don’t know why that was. Here’s mine this week: https://grahamsisland.com/2025/07/13/sacred-heart-catholic-church/

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you, Graham! It was sad to see them go, but they are still hanging around the properties next to ours. I think they start migration in August.
      We had enough fireworks here for ya!

      Liked by 2 people

      1. I bet you did!

        Liked by 1 person

  35. […] This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Red, White, & Blue.’ See more responses here. […]

    Liked by 2 people

  36. […] Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: All Colors of Red, White and Blue […]

    Liked by 2 people

  37. A great selection of red, white and blues, Terri. Lovely to see the fledgling and the snow! It’s been sweltering here the last week, unusually.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you, Cathy! We’ll be wishing for snow, too, a hot week ahead.

      Liked by 2 people

  38. What a wonderful post Terri! From dear Gideon to the fledging Phoebes, the circle of life goes on.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Very well said, Anne, thank you!

      Liked by 2 people

  39. Thanks for the celebration stories. It means a lot.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. I’m glad you like them, Jacqui! Thank you!

      Liked by 2 people

  40. Wow! Colorful! My favorite is the portrait of Gideon. It must be a great memory for your daughter!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you, John! My daughter is quite the artist and photographer. Gideon’s unexpected death nearly broke her. I love that shot too, Happy Sunday!

      Liked by 2 people

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About Me

I’m a former university adjunct Professor and retired recreation & parks practitioner living in North-Eastern Washington State near the Idaho border. Second Wind Leisure Perspectives is my blog about living a leisure lifestyle, including photography, friends, fitness, and fun.

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