on the wings of spring

Spring is definitely here. The fruit trees are blooming and the birds and the butterflies are all around. I mention, with a whisper, that there are five little quail eggs in the planter. Our rose bushes are starting to bloom and I planted a few pretty flowers in pots over the weekend. The yard is starting to have color once again. It is plain to see, however, that numerous trees and bushes did not survive the hardy freeze. The days are warming up to summer like temperatures. (summer for us, spring for Arizona) Isn't a 90 degree temperature that they say we are to reach today a summer temperature?

Here is a little sampling of springtime in our yard.

His underwings have orange on them and his back is mostly blue.
Be sure to have your volume on because you won't want to miss the background "music".

Our yard is alive with the sights and sounds of spring!

credit: photos and video by Leah. movie editing by Rachel. everything else...I humbly take the credit.

breakin' the rules

While the basketball girl was in surgery for two hours, we took a little walk outside to get a bit of fresh air. There is a nice walking path, in front of the hospital, that meanders through a pretty meditation garden. It was designed for people to do just what we were doing, taking a little time away from the inside of the hospital. It is very quiet and relaxing. The cactus were all starting to bloom and I had my camera out to take a few pictures of the colorful blossoms.

We noticed something unusual about the cactus in the background behind this sign.

Here, let me focus on the cactus, not the sign... can you see it?

That's right. A cactus breaking the rules, right in the middle of a smoke-free zone in front of a hospital.
Renegade cactus.

earth hour guitars

Saturday night we observed Earth Hour. Did you? Click on the highlighted words if you want to read more. Actually, I hadn't really heard too much about it until the youngest daughter informed us that we would be participating. For one hour, between 8:30 pm and 9:30 pm, we shut off all the lights and found an alternative to watching TV, or using any other electronic entertainment, on a quiet Saturday night. We lit a few candles and then the girl with the big arm cast and myself were treated to an hour of father daughter guitar picking. The young one in the photo has been playing for less than a year. Her dad is teaching her what he knows and she is teaching herself the rest. She has gotten pretty good.

They played for longer than the Earth Hour designated time frame because we were all enjoying it so much. It was a good, relaxing hour and we decided it was the highlight of our spring break week. Here you go....

Me thinks we should participate in a few more Earth Hour hours... don't you?

another mama

Well I said that I would be "light on posting" here on the blog while taking care of my youngin', but when I saw that another mother is busy too, I decided I needed to share. I noticed two days ago that the rocks that usually cover the dirt in this pot were once again scattered on the ground. I knew that it could only mean one thing and sure enough, yesterday afternoon I spotted a pair of quail being kind of busy.

The male stood sentry, while the female was down behind him in the little dirt indention that they had carved out.

You can barely see her head right down below his foot. They stayed like this for awhile and then they traded spots for a bit. He went into the "nesting" area and she came out on the edge. Then they both flew away.
I went out and peeked inside and found this little egg. Well, I wonder if they are the same pair from last year. They say quail mate for life. But after all the excitement last year and the anticipation that I had waiting for the little eggs to hatch, I'm not going to get too attached to the whole idea. If you don't remember how it turned out last year, you can read about it here.
So, as this mama is taking care of her birdie with the wounded wing... let's just hope the mama outside can protect hers from the evil predators.

kaleidoscope thursday

It is thursday already. When I started kaleidoscope thursday I didn't realize it would mark how quickly a week can go by.

Here is the kaleidoscoped image:

Here it is before:
The cactus are all starting to bloom. I will say it again...how do these prickly, sometimes weird looking plants produce such beautiful flowers?

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Surgery went well, although a bit more involved than first thought. The day was a rough one and she has had a lot of pain. So, this mom will be light on blog posting while taking care of her.

sunset ride

The sunset friday night was a nice one. Remember this sneak peek photo that I put up earlier?

No, the picture above that I posted the other day (as a sneak peek) is not my unruly hair.

In fact, it is this guys wild bangs!
We went on a sunset horseback ride. I was reminded of the proper way to handle the reigns before we set out on our ride.
The scenery was very nice. We saw a few interesting things like a big pack rat den, lots of saguaro, a coyote, and even a far off view of Julio Iglesias' home.
Also, an old entrance to a mining cave.
Here we are at the top of the mountain. The sun was just about to set. Notice the horse in the middle. People who knew our old guy Racer should see a resemblance. From left to right, the horses names were; Tux, Paint, Destiny, Tiana (or Big Girl as our guide called her) and Jester.
Here they were getting a little run up the hill. Hold on nnnn...
A nice view.
As we were coming down the mountain the moon was already up. Now that is a pretty site to see.

The saguaro's standing tall as the sun was going down.
And the sun was setting just perfectly. Notice a faint silhouette of our cowboy guide in the left hand corner. You know, sometimes it is just amazing the coincidences in life. He spends his winters here and then heads to Ouray,Ridgway, Silverton and Durango, Colorado for the summers. He dines at a couple of our favorite restaurants, in our home town, when he is in the area. So, friends back there in Colorado, he is a cowboy with our names and plans to say he took us on a trail ride. Don't be surprised if someone hears about it!
Just another nice view of the setting sun and the tall saguaro's.
And back at the corral, we were all able to feed these guys a few carrots. They knew they get a treat after a big ride.
All smiles back at the livery stable.
See, it was a beautiful evening in the neigh borhood!

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Note: The basketball girl is having surgery on her wrist tomorrow (tuesday). She will turn in her brace that she has been wearing for a cast. It will be on for 6 weeks. Then therapy. Her accessory for prom will be a little out of the ordinary this year. Ughh.

the moon

Did you see it?

We had to wait for the clouds to clear before we could catch a glimpse.

It looks pretty bright.
I think I will go to bed now.

Goodnight moon.

a sunset

We experienced a unique sunset last night. It was a beautiful evening and all five of us (yep, that college boy is home for his spring break) had a fun time together. This is just a sneak peak of the view. I do not have time to load all the photos and add them here, as the electric company is shutting off our electricity in the neighborhood this morning. It is suppose to be out for at least 1/2 the day. So, other things are a priority this morning.

As Mr. Rogers used to say though... it's a beautiful day in the neigh borhood.

kaleidoscope thursday

Before:

After:
Oh so green. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

sliver of light

The moon.

A little sliver of light in an otherwise darkening sky.

I'm glad it is always there.

I love the moon.

time-out

It's that time again.

Arizona does not go on daylight savings time.

We didn't spring forward.

It is the same time this morning as it was yesterday morning, at this time.

So what does that really mean?

It means that yesterday we were on mountain standard time and this morning we are on pacific standard time.

It means that yesterday my friends and family in Colorado were living their day on the same time as us.

It means that yesterday my family in Texas were one hour ahead of us.

But now today and until fall, my family and friends in Colorado are one hour later than us and those in Texas are now two hours later. California? We are now the same time.

Everyone else? You figure it out.

So, what is important here is this:

If you are in Colorado and it is 8 am there...it is 7 am here.

If you are in Texas and it is 8am there...it is 6 am here.

So, don't try to call me when it is only 6 am here. And I will try to remember not to call you when it is 9 pm here.

That's all.

It's about time.

it's spring....

Animal count:

2 cute rabbits in the backyard for the last two weeks.

8 ugly javelina walking up the hill, around the garage and through the side yard yesterday.

2 fully grown baby bobcats in the backyard this morning.

This picture was just taken out the kitchen window at 6:30 a.m this morning. I have not seen the bobcats for several months. But, as my sister just replied when I texted her that they were back... "It's spring... and the natives are restless."

Oh boyyyyy.

kaleidoscope thursday

It is already thursday which means it is kaleidoscope day.

Here is the kaleidoscoped image. Any guesses?

Here it is!
Lovely lavender on a sunny morning.

The bees are loving it too.

A little color coming back to our frozen yard.

after the snow

After our recent snowfall and our snowmen making fun ( click here to read about it)...

the dark and beautiful clouds lifted and the sky was a crisp clean blue. Even better than a fresh rain, a snowfall will leave the sky clear and fresh. So, Leah and I decided it would be a great day for a walk. We pulled on our coats and some rarely used gloves and headed out the door.

She decided long boarding was the way to go. I decided to keep my feet firmly planted on the ground. The hills in our neighborhood are perfect for the long board. A beginner she is, but she has skills. Cautious skills.

We traveled through roads we have been on before, but were keeping our eyes open "to see new things". That is the motto... see something you haven't seen before. Here was the first thing we saw that we hadn't noticed before. This big saguaro that looked as if it was a hand reaching up towards the sky. See, the thumb on the left and the other fingers on the right as if it is reaching up to grab the sunlight.
Speaking of sunlight, cue the singing long board angels, how pretty are the rays streaming down from the sky?
And then we saw this. I hadn't seen one of these before. It is a

Joshua Tree. (Click it if you want to learn more.)

I thought it was so interesting that the bottom of the tree actually looks like a real tree trunk. But the top, or "leafy" part definitely looks like a yucca plant. There really are a lot of fascinating, bordering on strange, plants(and animals) in this state. I keep remembering the advice I got when we were moving here. "Embrace the desert beauty." So, you know what? I am. I think the Joshua tree is quite unique and beautiful with its puff-like spikes on top of a tree trunk.

Also beautiful, is the longboard girl standing in the rays of the sun on a cool morning after a rare snowfall in the desert.

surprise

The dad or I usually take turns making the lunches for the school girls. One particular morning, Leah said she had made them already. Later, when I opened the fridge, there was a little surprise for us. Our very own personalized sack lunches. When it was lunchtime, we carried them outside and had a little picnic.

You gotta love a good pb&j once in awhile.

And I never knew our names rhyme with pepsi.

bugging me

I have a friend who had reached her 50’s when I was just about to enter my 40’s. I remember her telling me that the best thing about being in her 50’s, is that she really didn’t care what people thought of her anymore. I can’t really remember the specifics that she gave me, but I just remember something about being in the check stand at the grocery store and telling the checker just exactly what she thought. One of those ladies that gently points out people's errors. She told me a few other examples and I remember laughing and thinking, whew…can’t wait till I’m 50.

So, it was after a check stand encounter recently, that had me thinking about my friend and wondering, “oh my goodness, am I one of those ladies?” Or, because I am still annoyed by the whole event, “should I have been one of those ladies?” You decide.

I WAS in the check stand unloading my groceries. There was a person in front of me whose items were still on the little conveyer belt thing waiting for the checker to ring her up. As her things moved along, I started to unload my cart. As I was doing so, a man pulled up and parked his cart right behind mine. (I was in front of my cart with the handle of the cart even with the end of the conveyer belt thing). You’ve all been there. So, after parking his cart tight up against mine, the man stepped up to the end of the conveyer belt thing. I had stopped unloading, because the clerk was still checking and bagging groceries for the person in front of me. I was waiting for the conveyer belt thing to start moving again to allow more room for my stuff.

This is when I notice the man very emphatically looking down at my groceries on the CBT (conveyer belt thing) over to the stuff still in my cart, back to the CBT and back to the cart. He kept doing it all nosey like. The CBT moved up a little and I unloaded some more. When I ran out of room I paused. He kept up his lurking, looking back and forth, back and forth. CBT. Stuff still in my cart. CBT. You get the idea. It was becoming a bit awkward to say the least. I tried to kindly smile while my mind was… not smiling. Finally, to break the awkwardness, I said, “oh, are you here to help me unload my cart?” To which he looked at me and replied, “well, I’m not sure if I will be helping you or helping me”.

It was then that he brought up his arms and with his palms wide open he started shoving my groceries towards the checker. Willy-nilly, shove-shove, until things started piling up and tumbling around on top of each other. I couldn’t believe it. I started setting things upright and scooting stuff as forward as I could without encroaching on the lady in front of me. Then the CBT inched up a bit and before I could even reach in to my cart he grabbed one of the divider bars and placed it down on the CBT (say it out loud CBT!) and when he sat it down he actually took it and used it as a tool to reach out and shove, shove, shove, all my stuff even more. I said, “You know, I can only go as fast as the clerk can take care of the person in front of me.” That is when he started unloading HIS cart, putting in on the…CBT and still, kept shoving all of my stuff. As the checker begins my order, I actually have to unload my cart to the front as quickly as she is ringing stuff up. He was really bugging me by now. I looked at him and said, “Excuse me!” And then I notice, as I step forward a bit, he starts to push my cart along too. I tried to give him the “stink-eye” but guess what; he just kept unloading his stuff.

Ok, cut to the end here, I move my cart up so the bagger can put my bags into my cart. I run my credit card through and then step back to help the bagger place the bags in my cart. The clerk then tells me I didn’t push the “credit” button on the machine. So, as I turn I can’t even step back to the machine because he now has his cart right up against me. By this time I’ve had it. I put up my hands and I calmly say, “You know…you’ve been crowding me a little too much here and I’m tired of you being in my space.” He says nothing and backs up a tad. I see that the younger mom behind him was bug eyed, staring at ME and the checker gives me a little look too…like “whoa lady”. Obviously, no one had seen anything that had been going on until the crazy, newly 50 year old lady goes off on the man behind her in the checkout line.

Wow.

So, was I one of those ladies? Or, should I have been one of those ladies?

kaleidoscope thursday

The diving snowman's little sister.

She is very fashionable in her sweet lavender scarf.

Her stick arms are waving frantically at her brother as she is yelling, "noooo... don't go off the diving board... it's too dangerous!"

This is her after she had been kaleidoscoped.

And this is her ten minutes after the sun came out.

She should have worn some sunscreen.

fyi

For your information.

Although, I can think of a few other titles to give this post.

Here are some:

Three blind mice.

This is gross.

Mice can't swim.

Poor things?

Where are those bobcats when I need them?

How's the water?

More:

Should of used your water wings.

C.P.R?

Save money.

Don't buy mouse traps.

Get a pool.

Make my day.

Too late for a life preserver.

Backstroke!

Why is only one floating?

If you see a snowman jump off the diving board does that mean you should follow?

"Oh Reptile Rodent Wrangler...I have a little surprise for you!"