Misty

Yesterday was sunny and back in the 60's.  After the weekends rain it was all fresh and clean and shiny outside.  We took a two mile hike in the rec area and the fun thing about hiking after rain is the animal tracks you find in the mud.  We saw the usual; horse, deer, dog/coyote and then we saw mountain lion tracks....ooh.  Hey we thought it was fun.

I re-pruned my hedge roses taking out the crossing branches or weak looking ones now that all the leaves have fallen or blown off and I could see the canes.  It was woodpecker bathing day.  They were having a lovely time using the bird bath, one seemed to be doing its best duck imitation and then a sissy one would come along and just flip water with its beak and looked like a scared kid testing the water.

Today was cloudy and then later became drippy and misty.  The fog and mist is a nice change, it fills everything in and we seem all alone.  I had another enlightening day at Pilates class.  I learn something new about my body and get a great workout.  Today's was a bit painful, not because of what I was doing but because of my ouchy leg, but every day results in positive changes.

Oh, when you have leftover home made butternut squash soup it makes a wonderful sauce over mushroom/cheese ravioli...yummy.

So that's the latest!  Have a lovely day and weekend! :)

Good Rain

We didn't blow away but we did get a lot of good rain.  That first wave that hit Friday night was over 4 inches and then Sunday nights storm gave us 7 1/4 inches total of rain for the weekend.  Our little creek even ran for a bit and the frogs have been singing every night since the rains started.  Now we get to dry out.

I had my second Pilates class today.  I am doing 10 private classes so I can get the proper form and get my body healed.  I have been out of whack since November with my hip and limping started a whole cascade of misalignment.  I have tried a lot of different things the last 10 years and it all seems to result in something hurting...I have heard so much good about Pilates and I am wildly impressed.  It works at such subtle deep levels that I am getting a great workout without the pain and exhaustion.  I can't seem to just let myself go to seed, believe me I've tried, but with Larry as a mate and a friend in her 70's going to the gym three times a week and getting in wonderful shape I realize that it will be my choice if I am feeling 80 in my 50's and sooo here I go.

This morning I spotted a new to me bird outside the kitchen window, it is the robin's cousin and is a varied thrush.

First Winter Storm

Ian's color picks.

Not much going on with us.  Today was our first rainy blustery day since back in October and the first since the beginning of winter.  We are getting slammed with wind and rain as I type.  I have been working on yarn projects and have started taking Pilates classes.  My orientation was yesterday and I think I am going to LOVE Pilates...dang it...now I am going to get fit, but it is long over due.

Winter dropped in 1-16

Brrrr, it was in the low 20's this morning.  The birdbath was frozen solid and still had ice in it at noon and the sun was shining.  I sat in the sun with my spiffy lens and spied on the birds.

A bluebird family having a meeting on the birdbath, Dad, Mom and kids.

Freakishly Warm Day 1-14

Today was a wonderful day to NOT be a sports fan.  It was another gorgeous wind-free, sunny, warm day.  We were in t-shirts and sweating in the sun, I was looking for shade...weird for here this time of the year.  It is supposed to start getting cooler tomorrow, so we enjoyed the heck out of today.  Larry, with my directorial assistance pruned the asian pear tree, I pruned the last two rose bushes and ripped out some more dead annuals and then we sat on the deck perusing our wild kingdom.  Late afternoon the deer and 24 turkeys came through...it was a little crowded out here for awhile.

This finch was keeping an eye on me.

Shopping day

Another gorgeous day here in wild kingdom...noisy though...the house across the street is getting a new roof.  We headed to Costco and for once it wasn't crazy busy there, we finally timed it right and it wasn't the first or the fifteenth.  Then it was back up the hill and then getting everything into the house, separated into portions, repackaged and put away.  The rest of the day we spent in recovery and soaking up some vitamin D out on the porch.

Beautiful sky 1-10

We are up and running in computer world, it was the right sized drive this time and Larry has the basic stuff back and now it will be tweaking and fine tuning and figuring out what is missing.


We are still having oddly nice weather and we are enjoying every minute of it.  Tonight's sky had potential for stunning but was mostly just pretty.

Post Invasion 1-8

Larry's of the kids on the hike...Ian is a dot below the trees in the middle.

One of Ian's pics using Gramps camera.

We survived the invasion...they swarmed in, Friday and swarmed back out today.  Andrea, Connor (Ian was already here), her man Scott and his two oldest Destiny 12 and Isiaih 15.  Larry took them all on a five mile hike yesterday while I stayed home with Connor the Terrible Two Year Old Terrorist.  He and I had a lovely time together,  we walked all over the place, he listened well and then at nap time went down with a minimum of fuss and slept for over 2 hours.  Everyone except Larry was worn out from the walk.  Last night everyone learned and played Zonk.

It may be a little bit before the next entry...take two on the computers hard drive.  The "right" one arrived and now Larry will see if it fits and then start the ugly process of getting it all set up and running.

Andrea and Connor

Brotherly Love

Our full moon last night had a thick ring around it.

Action photos...UP.....

and going DOWN.

Ian & Destiny in the middle, Isiaih and Scott on the left and Andrea and Connor on the right...Larry in the back

Miss Vickie...LOOK!  My first blooming baby of the year, all the rest are sending up flower stalks too.

Andrea's family has invaded so we'll be busy until Sunday...just so you know in case we don't survive...haha.

I don't know what goes on in the big cities on Friday's but Roseville was crazy with traffic today and we didn't even try Costco....it was like before Christmas everywhere.  I gave up until next week.

Today's weather was yet again...warm and balmy...at least compared to what it should be...we wonder how long it will last.

Infrared ruckus 1-5

These trail cam pictures are from night before last and it appears to us that a small, maybe juvenile coyote might have threatened a baby deer because this doe is going after the coyote.  Then a larger coyote shows up and you can see the eyes of the chastised coyote glowing from the brush.  Then two of the last few pictures are yesterdays of a couple of turkeys and a close-up of a passing deer from last night...crazy.

We have multiple shots of this pose...it was puzzled by the flashing red light and was keeping an eye on it.

A guest 1-4

A busy day today so I don't have the photos from last nights trail cam ready to go...maybe tomorrow.
Today is another gorgeous weather day.  We met Ian's Dad in Kingvale to pick up Ian, he is staying with us for a few days.  There is no snow...teeny patches is all in the Sierra's, it is just not what they are supposed to look like this time of year.  Coming back down the mountains we saw 71 degrees, amazing.  I sat in the garden this afternoon and these beauties were shining for me.

Ah ha! 1-3

Our first "sighting" of a raccoon.  We had seen their foot prints in the frost on the deck one morning, but have yet to see one in person...we figured they were here somewhere and this one practically smiled.

Today was weirdly warm, sunny, and springlike...nothing we can do about it except enjoy it!  Larry went on his hike in a short sleeved shirt and I was out in the garden getting a little "dewy" while pulling up dead plants...it was just a gorgeous wonderful day and after the last few cold, cold winters we are loving it.  I opened windows and let the fresh air waft through the house for a few hours.  On the news today I saw the winter snow pack check for water content and the guy was walking through dry grasses to a patch of snow....not a good sign, but they aren't worried yet.   Larry was looking at a picture of Google earth from last June and there was more snow on the mountains then than there is now.

A Cloudy Day 1-2

We started the day watching the Rose Parade.  Larry saw you Cliff, I blinked or was looking in the wrong place because I missed you, but I saw the rest and you all looked and sounded great.

Through the window...the bucks are skittish.

This lens brings everything super close!

It was mostly cloudy today so I deemed it a casual day and got dressed in my comfies, sans make-up...even foundation which only happens maybe a handful of times all year.  Yesterday I had started pruning the rose bushes and I went out and finished up today.  I left the two bushes that still had roses on them alone for another week or so and picked about 5 blooms and brought them in...my own Rose Parade...haha.

Snaps

 

As you know we love nature and find it entertaining in some way or another most everyday.  We have a new toy to make it even more fun...an infrared trail camera...it detects motion and we can set it however we want as to how many pictures and how frequently etc.  We have often wondered what wanders through at night and this summer maybe we'll catch the cantaloupe muncher in the garden on camera.  As expected there have been deer most every day...we've had it out three days now, but already we have a coyote and a jack rabbit.  They were on two different mornings just before sun up.  We have it near the top of the hill above our house where a few trails come together and ours and two neighbors property lines come together.  I'm sure we'll have it all over the place as time goes on to see where the most activity is.

Ha Ha!

Oh all right!  Happy 2012!  I could claim a typo, but as Michelle pointed out when she called me to see if I was sloshed, I typed 2013 twice.  As if time doesn't pass fast enough already I am jumping an entire year.

Happy New Year! 1-1-2013

Happy 2013 and the nicest weather ever!  It is strange how nice the weather was today.  Still, sunny, warm, and hard to believe it was the first day in January.  I am still picking roses.  With this nice weather not much is getting done inside...no pajama days yet either.  Nice to take a walk and not wear a coat...we feel guilty enjoying it because we would like to have winter in winter and not get snow/cold on our spring flowering trees...time will tell.