Springtime!

We've waited a long time for warmer weather and I couldn't be happier that the sun is coming out occasionally now! Welcome springtime and hurry up summer.

This morning I looked down and to my amazement, my thumb was starting to turn a very light shade of green. Thanks to those of you who have helped me figure out this growing business . My deck garden is actually looking decent. If sun continues, we are in luck.

And speaking of decks, I got out the Simple Green and got to work cleaning and tidying up the deck for an enjoyable evening of sitting outside. One wonderfully warm night down, many more to go!

Lastly, my neighbor Lisa has almost 40 chickens in the valley and she generously gives me farm fresh eggs. They come in all colors, but my favorites are the ones with tints of teal. Aren't they eggcellent?

Rough Skinned Newt

Yesterday as I was hiking, I came across this little newt in the middle of the trail. He was moving pretty slow and I was worried he'd get stepped on, or worse, eaten by someone's unsuspecting labrador. Rough Skinned Newts are highly toxic if ingested and would kill a dog in no time. They say that one of these divided has enough toxins to kill up to 17 people. In fact, snakes that eat them, often fatally convulse within 80 hours spitting the newt back out- alive! What a defense mechanism!

I went about picking him up and moving him to an adjacent hillside. When I grabbed him, he completely stopped moving and his underside turned a vibrant orange, like a little 'danger' flag. He became stiff as a board and his upper body was like a statue as I held his tail. When I set him down on the hillside and he realized the danger had passed, he started to wiggle again. Fascinating creature! I found a stream to wash my hands, since occasionally, but very rarely, touching them can cause a rash.

Yakima Skyline Trail

It was a sunny Easter day and instead of the normal activities, we decided to spend the holiday with a jaunt to the eastern side of the mountains to a trail called the Yakima Skyline. It was warm, but windy, and the desert was alive with birds, flowers and views. We soaked in about 8 miles, then turned back. After it all, the three tired hikers headed back across the mountains for an easter dinner to celebrate a great day.

Below: Female California Quail

Below: Male California Quail

Below: What a treat! A flock of Sandhill Cranes did a fly-by, complaining loudly overhead at the challenging headwinds.

Below: Horned lark with a fantastic song

Below: Desert Parsley in bloom

Below: Arrowroot is just starting

BFF

You know when you are little and you have a sidekick and you think that nothing in the world will separate you? Somehow you grow up and life slowly and gently puts distance and time between you. Years later, you are still the same little girls, only now in adult bodies with complicated things such as mortgages and families. This is Angie, my very best childhood friend. I got to see her again this past weekend and it brought a smile to my soul and tears to my eyes. She's still the same hilarious person and we had a blast going through old pictures and laughing about hairdos and fantastic 80's outfits. We are both cheesy as you can see by the glamour shots...just dorks. When we used to write notes back and forth as kids we'd sign every single letter BFF, which...as you know...stands for Best Friends Forever (we were ahead of the texting acronym curve and didn't even know it!). Forever is right- it's been a long, time, but I still consider her one of my besties. Awesome weekend.

A visit from Mama & twins!

Remember last spring, when Mama came around and brought her adorable twins (see picture above)? I'm so happy to see that they survived the winter and predation and have returned to graze on our grass and meadow. They are nearly full grown now and it's hard to tell which one is Mama! The first one here..is Mama.

Little ones...

Mama and one of the twins...

Both twins...

The three musketeers!