THE DUST WILL WAIT

 Swallowtail  Snake River Sky Snake River - Fishhook Park with Grands (Interloper on far left.. ha ha) Snake River - Leaving the dock Life is Grand (five of them) Fish Pond at night Can you see me? Sparrow Food looking at the camera   Bees with Garlic breath Such is life

Last week I supervised my 14-year old grand daughter as she baked a beautiful apple-blueberry pie.  It was not only a pleasure to the taste buds, but it was beautifully crafted as well.  Almost six-year old Z-bub was all about that pie the rest of the morning.   "Where is the pie?" He worried at lunch. I told him we would serve it at dinner. When our evening meal arrived he took one look on the patio table and declared, "I don't see the pie!" "We need to eat our dinner first," I told him and we began serving up our barbecue chicken and corn on the cob. Z-bub took several bites and declared that he had eaten and was ready for dessert. "Z-bub, the rest of us are still eating our dinner," Grandpa reprimanded him quietly.  "You are going to have to be patient and wait.  Maybe you could even eat a few more bites off that plate while you wait?" We went on with the meal and he began to chow down with his normal appetite in command. ...

It can't already be July -- and time for the  First of the Month, the photo meme hosted by Jan @ Murrieta 365. The goal is to capture one thing repeatedly on the first of each month. It can be a landscape, a person, an animal, a project; whatever your focus is, is fine. It can even be a record of where you are each First of the Month. My theme is my three grandchildren, Zbub, Mizelle, and Dinkum. It is called: Watch them grow! These kids love watermelon and grandpa knows how to cut it just the right size for little fingers.  These three sliced through that watermelon in "spittin" speed. *In my over 5 years of blogging this is the first time I have ever "lost" a post.  I have recreated this this July 1st post after losing it when I pulled it back to Windows Live Writer to use as a draft for the next month. ) (Archives - previous months posts) ...

There was a lot of activity and vocalizations coming from the owl box just before noon on May 31.  I marked "hatched" on my calendar.  I check late every night and hear the squeaking noises growing stronger.  Karmyn came to visit on June 4.  She could hear the "Owl business" through the open window at the head of her bed. Two nights ago one baby Western Screech Owl peeked through the opening of the owl box.  The photograph is about as fuzzy as the little creature itself!  I believe it's an only child. The father must be hanging out, but I have not been able to confirm the existence of a second owl coming from and going to the box. The female will often sit and look out the hole as we go about our daily business.  She must not feel threatened by the human interaction.  I appreciate that! **** And this is the surviving sparrow in the nesting house in the back yard after Mr. Magpie ordered up lunch for his own muster of chicks. ...

Can it already be JUNE?  It is time for First of the Month, hosted by Jan @ Murrieta 365. The goal is to capture one thing repeatedly on the first of each month. It can be a landscape, a person, an animal, a project; whatever your focus is, is fine. It can even be a record of where you are each First of the Month. My theme is my three grandchildren, Zbub, Mizelle, and Dinkum. It is called: Watch them grow! This is the same route (through the neighbors yard) that my three daughters walked from the bus stop so many years ago.  After Z-bub jumped off the bus, the three grands rushed ahead to beat grandma to the gate.  The sweet scene had me pulling out my cell phone and capturing the moment. Mizelle, just turning 2,  is at the age where potty training is all the rage...which lead to an interesting conversation with grand children one morning last week. Grandpa and Grandma followed a trail of water that lead all the way from the powder room to the ...

A flash photo of a Calliope at dusk.  The color on his neck is lavender when in the sunlight.  I love their tiny feet!

Our roses died. Our neighbors to the east planted trees a few years back that have not blessed our small rose garden, so we had been contemplating moving the flowers to another area with more sunshine. But that isn't the reason for their demise.  Nor was it caused by an "extreme"  winter.   Apparently it was just the timing of an early frost in the winter and a late frost in the spring. The honeysuckle on the north fence also succumbed, as did many small perennials that I will tally once I compare the survivors to a panorama photograph from last summer. The loss of one particular apricot colored rose, with the delicate crimson edged bud, is painful.  My friend Judy gave it to me for mother's day in 1977.  She was killed in an automobile accident later that summer.   The following year we moved across town and WR dug the rose and transplanted it for me.   It has bloomed and bloomed these many years.  Yesterday he stopped in the midd...