A Full-time Life

OREGON ON FIRE

 We are safe at home, but the State of Oregon is burning up.  Government authorities have reported over a million acres have burned.   It is hard to believe that a week ago today (Sunday) my weekly blog post talked about how dry and hot it was, but we had spent that last week doing our usual things.  Usual in the age of Covid anyway -- we took walks, we visited outdoors with family,  went to the grocery store and Farm Market.... just the normal.   

 

 

 But that was last Sunday and I was blogging about the previous week.   On Monday night (September 7), the Holiday Farm Fire started up the McKenzie River -- in an area about  50 miles east of  us.  It has now burned to about 15 miles from us, as well as further north and south.  Conditions were hot and dry and there was a strong 40 mph wind (very unusual for here) -- it fanned the fire out of control very suddenly.   People who lived up the river  got no warning  -- some of them  awoke to flames against their house.  Several small communities were destroyed.   It is not yet known how many lives have been lost.  People have been evacuated to high schools in Springfield, the twin city to Eugene where we live.  Fire fighting conditions improved Friday, and the fire has slowed, though still is not controlled.

 These two pictures were taken from  our front door on Tuesday morning, September 8 -- the  only time all week I've stepped out of the house.   We, and our Oregon family, are not near the flames and in no danger of having to evacuate, but air quality is at a dangerous level.   

 

 

 The Holiday Farm Fire is just one of several climate fires that are burning out of control in our State, all caused by the same conditions. But it is the closest one to us. The Upper McKenzie River has been our mountain playground for years. I made the collage below from the last time we camped there.

 

Memory of Blue River -- from last April.

We stayed at the Blue River RV Park on the last night of our trip home from Florida.  It is practically certain that this beautiful little RV park has been destroyed.   We have so many memories of staying along the River in years back.  This was just the latest time.  We used to go  camping with our kids up there, we often took carloads of Boy Scouts and supplies to camp, and every summer we have taken at least a day trip  up the river to walk or hike.  It will be a while before anyone is able to do that again -- and it will never be the same.   

 

 

 

Sun on Tuesday morning  

Climate change has come home.    It is heartbreaking to think of the people who have lost everything in these fires.       We hope for happier times and better days to come... and soon.

 

LINKING this week to:  MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; and  SKYWATCH FRIDAY .   

Thank you to the hosts.

HOT WEATHER OREGON

It was HOT last week!  Oregonians aren't used to 90 degree temperatures --  It's really not even fun to go for a walk when it's that warm.  One morning we took a drive up into the hills East of us just to get away.   It was a little bit cooler and a  whole lot greener.  We drove rather aimlessly around the back roads, sometimes on  logging roads, stopping now and then to admire the views.  And to take pictures  or to figure out where we were  (depending on which half of us we're talking about.)

  

 

Layered hills are my favorite.  This view was on Bill's side and he stopped the car before I even saw it.  He knew I'd want this picture and I'm actually glad he can read my mind.    

 

 

Views nearer to the roads. 

The green really was refreshing -- it really is dry and hot in the valley and sometimes smoky.  Several wildfires are burning in Western Oregon -- one in our county, on the way to the Coast.  We need rain.

Saturday was the coolest day of the week -- still in the 80s (F) but more manageable.  We went out to the country to say hi to whoever was home. And to work on a project  or to take pictures (once again, depending which half ....).

 

One 

I wandered out to the back-of-beyond part of their property.   This little guy caught my eye.  His perch on a  blackberry cane did not look real comfortable.  I took the picture mostly so I could try to identify what it was ... it didn't look like the small birds I usually see in their  yard.

 

 

Two 

 

Before I even moved there were suddenly two birds on the same bushes.   -- I'm not sure if they're even the same kind of bird as the first one I saw -- but they were also enjoying whatever was left on those dead branches.   

 

Three 

 

And then there were three.  One definitely showing off athletic skill.

 

 Four 

 

 Five!  

 

By the time the whole flock flew away all at once,  it was feeling as if  I were in the middle of a children's counting book.   One, two, three..... how many little birds do you see?        I'm wondering if these are some kind of recent fledglings.  (ID help is always welcome.)  

 

 

I'm still surprised that those birds chose the bare branches when there was this colorful tangle of ripe berries and rose-hips nearby.   I picked a cup or two of blackberries for our cereal the next day.   Before we went home we also picked a big basket of those wonderful cherry tomatoes and our daughter gave us a dozen of those green and brown eggs. (see here).    Good company, good food, fresh air  -- can't be beat.  

 

LINKING this week to the following:  Thank you to the hosts of these sharing opportunities.

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; WILD BIRD Wednesday; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;  FRIDAY  BLISS; SATURDAY CRITTERS; and RATHER B' BIRDING

 

 

LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL?

 

Is there light at the end of the tunnel?  

 

 

 

  It all depends on which way you're going.  Let's pretend we're all coming out of the dark into the sunshine. It could happen that way.  

 

 

 

The best walk of the  week was at Eugene's Delta Ponds.  This bit of nature in the middle of the City is a peaceful -- and hopeful -- place.  It's a City Park reclaimed from gravel pits.   Gravel extraction during the 1950s and 60s  provided much of the material for construction of local roadways, including Interstate 105.  

 

 

The City purchased the land from the gravel company in the late 1970s, but it remained wild and unclaimed until 2003.      

 

 

 

Work to restore the Delta Pond System and reconnect it to the River  has been ongoing since then.   It's a wonderful resource for the community and one for which I'm grateful!  

 

 

More usual suspects -- the white duck must be an escapee who decided to join his wild cousins.   The female Mallard at the top left has a feather on her beak.  I kept expecting her to sneeze.   Also seen, but not photographed (even badly) were a few darting songbirds and a Kingfisher.

The next two pictures are from last week's visit to our daughter and son-in-law's.  

 

 

 A few mid-summer flowers are still hanging in there. 

 

 

The Black Walnut tree is magnificent in all its fully leafed out glory.   It is too bad that it couldn't stay at this stage for longer!   The leaves will probably start to fall just about the time the rainy season arrives, which (according to our children) makes a big messy job.     I've taken so many spring and summer pictures of this beautiful tree this year, the least I can probably do is pick up a rake in the fall.   Or not.  (Maybe I will just take some more tree-watch pictures instead. )  

 

LINKING this week to the following sharing opportunities.  Thank you to all of the hosts:

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; SIGNS SIGNS;    THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;  FRIDAY  BLISS; and  SATURDAY CRITTERS; 

 

 

A TRIP TO THE OREGON COAST

 

We stayed at the coast for a couple of nights last week.  It was our first out-of-town trip since we arrived back home in early April.  We have always loved the fact that  the Eugene-Springfield area is so close to the ocean.    We can be in Florence, the closest town on the coast  in about an hour.  On this trip however, we headed south from Florence to Winchester Bay, one of our old favorite places to camp.

 

The Pacific Ocean at Yachats 

It was a perfect getaway.   The kind of short trip we used to take almost regularly.    We're thankful it felt safe to go again.    We took the RoadTrek (camper van).    On the second day we drove along the coast south to Coos Bay and the next we went north to Waldport before heading inland and home.    The pictures in this post are not necessarily in chronological order, but they are all from this trip.  

 

 

Windy Bay Campground, Winchester Bay

This white-crowned sparrow welcomed us to   our Winchester Bay camp site.

 

Highway 101  -- just South of Winchester Bay 

Driving between Winchester Bay and Coos Bay we pass rolling sand dunes and five minutes or less later our road takes us past green evergreen forest and rhododendron undergrowth.   It is an interesting contrast.  Driving along this part of the Coast Highway, you don't really see the ocean until nearly Coos Bay.  I didn't take pictures of the ocean then because we knew we'd have better views later.   Just outside of Coos Bay we visited Shore Acres State Park, one of our favorite places to walk.

 

 

 The  gardens at Shore Acres are beautiful in any season.

 

 

This time of year, dahlias are the star of the show.   It's hard to believe Autumn flowers are already blooming when this was our first summer trip.  It's been a different sort of year.  

 

Shore Acres State Park

 

Still a bit between seasons  --  we  enjoyed seeing both the last of the summer roses and the earliest Fall flowers.   And  as always the lovely ponds and greenery.

 

Perfection!  

 

 

Fuschia plants made  lovely reflections in this pond.

 

 

Almost all the while we walked in Shore Acres we could hear sea lions barking on the reefs below, but the day was (blessedly) a bit overcast and we couldn't really see them from there.  After we walked around the park for a while we drove south a little ways to Simpson Reef where we watched hundreds of them enjoying the warm rocks.    

 

Back to blue skies (and heat)  when driving inland from Waldport

The next morning we checked out of  our campsite and drove north to the pretty little coastal town of Yachats where I walked along the rocky beach (and where I took the first picture in this post.)  That first  picture looks as if it was taken in black and white but it is straight out of the camera.  Although it looks misty and overcast in the picture, it really was a perfect two days at the coast -- in the mid- 70s F.     But that coastal weather seldom makes for beautiful sky pictures.  We had to wait until we were well inland  before we saw brilliant blue sky and fluffy white clouds.   Beautiful.  But we were grateful to have enjoyed two days of perfectly comfortable cooler temperatures.   The Oregon Coast is the place to go for that!  

 

LINKING this week to the following with thanks to all of the hosts:

NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;  TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS; OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY  BLISS; and  SATURDAY CRITTERS

 

LATE SUMMER IN THE CITY and COUNTRY

It's been hot -- for here in western Oregon -- reaching the high 90s on a couple of days last week.  It doesn't even reach those temperatures until mid-afternoon; mornings have only been in the mid-70s at the highest.   That's not bad compared to most other places in the country.    It's all relative.  Still, I'm grateful for our air-conditioner.    A/C isn't necessarily a given around here.    

 

 

 I walked the path along the top of Fern Ridge Dam one morning.   You can tell we haven't had rain for a while.  It's dry out there.   Bill is working on a project at "the barn" (our daughter and son-in-law's).  The dam road is in walking distance of their house, so he let me out at the far end and I got a nice morning walk with different scenery before spending a few hours visiting.

 

We never seem to leave their house without something from the garden.   On this day, it was a huge bucket of cherry tomatoes -- as sweet as candy.    It would be more than enough just to have the time to visit, but these were a lovely bonus.  Nothing tastes as good as a homegrown tomato!  

 

 

 

Their young hens have started to produce.  Cyndi says the first few times the eggs they lay are small.  I guess they have to practice.  I'm  fascinated by the natural  Easter Egg colors.

 

This is from the normal, every-day walk in our neighborhood. Apparently Eugene has gypsy moths again -- There are insect traps in a few yards and along the river paths.    Summer flowers are just about gone and I didn't see many of the Autumn ones  yet -- it's kind of an in-between season.    The tree with the sign is on the parking strip in a residential neighborhood.  

 

 

It's a notice that the City is going to remove the tree because it is diseased.  It says they are going to replace it.   Interesting to know that they won't just come in and chop down trees  -- they will let you know first and, apparently, in plenty of time.    (It says it will be removed after July 28 -- I took this picture earlier, but the sign was still there yesterday.)  

 

 

The birds were just the usual suspects.    I see mallards every time I walk in the neighborhood.  The Western Grebes, the scruffy scrub jay, and the ever-present Canada geese were on the dam walk.

 

 

This was on a different day out at the farm.   It was an informal family gathering and a gender reveal party -- these three (our great-grandsons)  now know they are expecting a sister!  The "smoke" (some kind of powder) in the middle picture came out of a baseball hit by one of the big boys.  It looked pinker in real life -- that's how the announcement was made to all of us.    The family is excited and we are happy for them.  (Our family leans toward boys.  We have three sons and one daughter; four grandsons and two granddaughters, and  five great-grandsons (two others are cousins to this bunch!)  So pink was kind of exciting.)   

 

 

Even if it's hot, Fall is definitely in the air!  The smell of apples ripening on the trees always makes me think of back to school and canning and making jam -- all the Autumn stuff we don't do any more. (I'm not actually sure if anybody is going to do the back-to-school thing here this Fall.)    In any case, all those things are fun to remember.    And I like seeing the seasons change.   It's a different world and a new normal, but life is still  good!

 

Thank you to the hosts  of the following sharing opportunities:

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  SIGNS SIGNS;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;  FRIDAY  BLISS;  and  SATURDAY CRITTERS;

 

 

 

AT-HOME DISTRACTIONS

 

We stayed pretty close to home most of last week.   There was a (socially-distant) visit with our middle son who rode his bike to our house one afternoon; some time spent with family in the country;  a few groceries from the farm store on the way home; ordinary neighborhood walks; and the usual distractions of which there are many, but mostly not blog-worthy.  This one might be:  

 

 

Probably I should save this collection  to brighten up a future rainy week.  We still have sunshine and blue skies mostly, but there was one rainy day last week -- a reminder of days to come.   We need the rain so I will try to remember to be grateful for it when it comes.

 

 

 

This is near the place where I began a walk on the West Bank Path.  Eugene has an extensive trail system.  From behind the shopping mall where the trails started I turned the opposite direction from the walk to the Rose Gardens that I blogged about last month.    

 

 

 

This section is less-used and  much of it was "wilder" looking.    The river was only visible in glimpses because of heavy foliage, but I appreciated the partial shade.

 

 

On the other side of this trail there are acres of undeveloped land.   Several years ago , someone wanted to build a resort-style hotel here.  It was controversial.  People in the neighborhood bordering the land either wanted to keep it undeveloped or else build what they described as low-income, low-impact housing.   As far as we could learn, all those plans have been put on hold if not abandoned, although the signs that were posted seemed to show that the neighborhood people don't want their hopes forgotten.  

 

 

 There is no sign of any building, but there were a couple of fairly large homeless camps along the path.  Sadly, there are many un-homed people in our area.       

 

Can't imagine who could argue with this one.

 

  

 

This is what people  who haven't taken enough new pictures do when they have lots of extra time.  (Because they weren't out taking new pictures.) I’m thankful for new experiences and old memories, and a home where we can enjoy them.

 

LINKING THIS WEEK to the following sharing opportunities:  Thank you to all of the hosts.

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  SIGNS SIGNS;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; and  FRIDAY  BLISS; 

BIRDS AND BEES ....

... AND other interesting things.  It's a bit of a potpourri because that's the kind of week it was.

 

 

Here's a view of the Willamette from the West Bank Trail on a perfect walking day.  Some days last week were  too hot.  I've been enjoying slow mornings because until very recently we've had all-day-long pleasant summer weather.  It's time to re-adjust and take a walk earlier before the temperatures get uncomfortable.  I don't want to waste the rest of summer by staying indoors!

 

The pictures above are Camas Plants  -- taken in April on a walk to the Lake with our daughter.  I had a lot of Spring flowers to post back then and I wanted to do so some research before writing about this interesting plant.  Then I kind of forgot about them until our visit to Finley Wildlife Refuge a couple of weeks ago (last week's post).   How lucky  ...  the  sign shown below not only reminded me of my spring pictures but also did the research for me:  

 

 

You can click the sign picture to enlarge, but here's a summary of the interesting information: 

Kalapuya people occupied the Willamette Valley over 4500 years ago.  They hunted deer and elk and gathered camas and hazelnuts.   Tools used for grinding have been found in excavations in this area, as well as pit ovens used for roasting .    They harvested camas in the Spring.  This bright blue lily flourishes along streams and in seasonally flooded marshes.  Slow roasting transforms the starchy bulbs into sweet delicacies.   

The seasonal marsh near this sign was of course completely dry when we viewed it a couple of weeks ago.   The Kalapuya would have completed their camas harvest months ago both here and at the seasonal marsh where I took the pictures.  

It's very dry now at that seasonal marsh and in the fields that are also near our "kids" country home.   But there's water in their backyard and look who was enjoying it last week:

 

 

Never in my life have I seen so many honey bees gathered in one spot  (outside of hives we've seen in exhibits).  They love this bird-bath.  

 

Our son-in-law  fills the bowl every morning and by every evening he says the bees have emptied it.   

 

 

 I know about planting certain flowers to encourage bees, but had never really thought about how necessary a water source was for them.   Just like for backyard birds.     And here's one of those:   

 

This birdhouse is where the swallows live.  The other birdhouse that I showed a few weeks ago has house sparrows.   Our daughter and I watched this one for quite a while as we chatted -- the mother swallow flew in and out at least ten  times.  On each visit, she made a quick drop into the baby's beak -- each visit lasting approximately two and a half seconds.  Way faster than my camera would snap.   Baby looks he's eating well (and from the looks of the birdhouse, all bodily functions working perfectly as well.)  

It was a good week.    We are not yet bored with our Covid life.   When we are home indoors, we do the things we've always done at home -- just maybe more of them.   We cook and we read (we are grateful for Kindle books from the Library), and we play on our computers.  Time goes by much faster than I would have thought possible had I known in advance that we would be spending this much time at home.

Below are some rosy memories from this Spring and early summer (a result of my computer play):  

 

 

 

LINKING THIS WEEK to the following sharing opportunities:  Thank you to all of the hosts.

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;   SIGNS SIGNS;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD;  THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;  FRIDAY  BLISS; and  SATURDAY CRITTERS;

 

FINLEY WILDLIFE REFUGE

 

We took a "not-a-Sunday Drive"  to Finley Wildlife Refuge one day last week.   I think it was Tuesday -- or Wednesday --- who knows these days?   They do all tend to blend together.

 

 

The Finley is a diverse natural area originally created to provide winter habitat for Dusky Canada Geese.  The refuge also protects habitats of the Willamette Valley, including wet prairie, white oak savannah, bottomland creeks, old growth forest, and native prairie.

 

(click to enlarge)

 We've visited Finley in other years, but never really paid attention to this sign.  Who knew that there were so many subspecies of Canada Geese?  Unlike the rest, Duskies have limited ranges.  They nest in Alaska on the Copper River and winter almost exclusively here in Oregon's Willamette Valley.   

 

 

 We saw this  old shed along the back country road we drove to get to the Refuge.

 

 

 This modern version of a barn sign was just a little further along River Road.  At this point we were still in Lane County, where we live.  The Wildlife Refuge is near the town of Corvallis in Benton County, Oregon.      

 

(Addendum:  It's a Juvenile  Western (probably)  Grebe.  Thank you to all the *real* birders who helped.)

I can't identify this guy that we saw in a river channel.     But at this point in my life, I  take a picture of pretty much any bird I see.   And blog them, even if they aren't very good.   Especially if it is the bird in the pictures below:

 

 

I could not believe I spotted a Kingfisher out in the middle of this prairie area.   Nor that it sat still long enough for me to take a bunch of pictures.  They never do that for me!  Usually if I spot one, it will fly the minute I point the binoculars or camera.     

 

 

It was a good day-trip on a beautiful blue-sky day.   We learned something new, got some fresh air and a little outdoor exercise,  and a few pictures.  For all of that, I am grateful.  

 

LINKING this week to the following sharing opportunities.  Thank you to the hosts.  

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  TUESDAY TREASURES; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD;  SIGNS SIGNS;  WILD BIRD Wednesday;  THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;  FRIDAY  BLISS;  SATURDAY CRITTERS;  and RATHER B' BIRDING

A FOUR-GENERATION VISIT IN THE COUNTRY

 

Bill keeps a shop out in the country at our daughter and son-in-law's and our  travel vehicles are stored there, so sometimes when we go from our city apartment out to the country, it is because  one of us has a goal in mind, besides the chance to say hello.    There is always something involving vehicles and/or tools that needs to be done .

 

 

In other years, I've said that I've said facetiously that I only go along to take pictures.   But of course the main reason was always the chance to say hello.  I still take lots of pictures out in the country.   This year, we both agree that "saying hello" to family is no longer to be taken for granted.  

 

 

 

It is a joy that many people in our age demographic are not able to experience at this time.     Last week, our visit to the country was a planned one -- we got to meet our youngest great-grandson and see his parents in person for the first time this season.    It was a socially distant visit for four generations.  (Social distance is easier to maintain when the weather is beautiful and where there is lots of outdoor  space.)

 

 

An even-more-joyful reason to visit.   

 

 

The  petunia pictures were taken on a stop at our favorite Farm Market after this visit.  The market isn't  exactly on the way home from our daughter's but we pretend it is.  Whatever produce we don't take home from our son-in-law's garden, we pick up there.   (I'll just say that the last couple of weeks we definitely didn't need to buy zuchinni.  Or blueberries!)  Kidding aside, we are grateful to have both sources of farm-fresh food.   

 

 

The above mosaic  is a left-over from last month.   This is one of the fields we drive past on our way to visit family.  In May and June, it looked like an ocean of white flowers.   In other years, these fields were  planted in grass (grass seed is major crop in this area)  but this year they are  in clover.   We wondered then whether it was being grown  as a ground cover or for seed.    Last week, the fields have almost all already gone to seed, so I guess that is the answer.  

 

 

So some summer crops are already at an end -- and there were already a couple of color spots like the above in the yard.   Just a couple of reminders to  make the most of the rest of the summer -- it never lasts as long as we think it will.   Grateful to be here to enjoy it.    

 

LINKING to the following this week:  Thank you to the hosts.

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; and  FRIDAY  BLISS; 

 

LOOPY ?

Actually, this post is really about walking the loop trails near our Eugene home.   It's one way of not going loopy during the time of Covid 19.  

 

 

We live on a Loop Street -- the above flowers are from yards on that half circle. This loop, all on city sidewalks, is about a two-mile walk.  Last week, the photo-ops were all about the lilies.

 

 

Sidewalk artists have been at work. 

 

 

About a quarter of the way around the big loop there's a path to one of the trails along the Willamette River Banks.  On another day last week I walked this trail to the Owosso Bridge.  Then I looped  through a different path back into our neighborhood for a slightly longer walk.  

  

 

I see songbirds and butterflies along the river often, but only the ducks cooperate for pictures.  Partly this is because I'm still not  comfortable stopping for very long.      People I see are almost all wearing masks and careful about distancing, but somehow it feels like staying still in one place would be risky.    I didn't  used to be so paranoid ... in fact, I quite miss chatting with perfect strangers.   But I don't want to invite that now.  Times have changed, at least for now.  

 

 

There's another loop walk that starts behind our apartment community.  It is a straight, shady paved path that ends directly at the river.   On the other side, this path is bordered by overgrown blackberry bushes and weeds  ...  dozens of squirrels and songbirds make their home in those tangles.  Beyond that a busy highway is visible (and audible).   Plans are for a noise barrier wall to be built eventually.    I suppose I'd  be glad for such a wall if our home bordered the path (we are on the other side of the complex) but right now I hope it takes a while for the plans to be completed.    At the river, I  walk as far along the trail as I feel like going before looping back through a neighborhood path.  

 

These young chalk artists had the right idea.

 

And then of course one of my favorite loop walks isn't in our neighborhood at all --  the one around our son-in-law's and daughter's backyard:

 

Suddenly Blueberries!

 

In one week, their blueberries went from not ripe to Ready! Right! Now!  Apples are ripening and tiny green grapes are just starting to peep out among the leaves.   

 

 

Grateful to be able to walk outside -- in the city or the country.

 

And grateful for the Zoom family reunion we had yesterday  -- all of our "kids" (including the ones who joined the family as grown-ups!) some of our grands, one great-grandson, four dogs, and one cat -- all  together right here on our IPAD screens.   Good to know that great-grandparents can still learn new tricks and so much fun to see everybody all at once.   Thanks to our youngest  who set it all up and to everyone who arranged their schedules.   

 

 

LINKING this week to the following:  Thank you to the hosts.

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  SIGNS SIGNS;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;  FRIDAY  BLISS; and SATURDAY CRITTERS