Beautiful places in the country: Natural beauty

Lake views and flowers

Seven Lakes, North Carolina

When your home is on a lake, you wake up to this. Michelle Bolton calls the view from her property on Seven Lakes, North Carolina, "God's wake-up call," and says, "I feel so blessed to live on a lake to witness God's artwork. He's so creative!"

Blue Ridge Mountains, Virginia

Leslie Gregg and her family live on 21-acre Phoenix Nest Farm in the lovely Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, a few miles from Virginia Tech University. Leslie is a portrait artist who works out of a barn studio on the property. Their place sits along one of the original wagon routes from Blacksburg to Roanoke. The house faces hayfields where the horses graze in winter, and behind them towers Pearis Mountain.

Onalaska, Wisconsin

Nestled in 4 acres of oak and hickory trees are the hosta gardens of Tim and Sue Carrier, Onalaska, Wisconsin. "We try to grow deer-resistant plants. But as we have found out, they will eat anything when they get hungry," says Tim. "There are 15 to 25 deer that pass through our property every day."

Fredericksburg, Texas

Kerry Fisher works at a wildflower company called Wildseed Farms in Fredericksburg, Texas. "My office sits in the middle of the production fields, so my view is always colorful," she says. "It didn't take me long to become a photographer with all these photo opportunities!" See more pictures at www.wildseedfarms.com.