With riding, comes camping

With riding, camping is almost a given. Something about freedom. Now, I get the concept, but those who know me know that I like my comforts. I'm getting a tad nervous, because apparently Chris is serious about the camping.

We made a trip to Wal-Mart, and he found the tent he wanted. I walked over to the air mattresses. He asked me if I was serious. I said, yes, if I'm going to camp, then there will be an air mattress involved.

I asked about the handy dandy pump that they were selling so conveniently next to the mattresses, and I was told that the Ural came with a bicycle pump. I asked how long it would take to get it pumped up with that. I received a vague answer, but okay - he knows what's what.

So, after we get back from the ride, he decides to pitch the tent. An hour and a half later, he comes back inside. He said "Tent, 10 minutes, air mattress an hour, plus". He was planning to camp in the backyard. He asked if I was going to join him. I told him, nope, it still wasn't warm enough in my book for camping.

This morning, he was grateful for the air mattress, is planning on buying that pump we discussed and thoroughly enjoyed sleeping outside.

He's been researching state parks and campgrounds. Did my life just change?

Cherry Blossoms

I almost waited too long to get a picture of the cherry blossoms in the front yard.

The pollen is as bad as I can remember seeing it in a long, long time. Last weekend, I heard the wind really pick up and Chris came in off the back porch and shut the door behind him. We'd had it open all morning to enjoy the beautiful day. I asked him why he closed the door and he said there was a yellow cloud coming. Boy, was he right. In just a few minutes, everything was coated with pollen.

After taking this photo, I had to wipe my shoes off and throw my pants in the washing machine because they were dusted with pollen from just walking in the yard. They say it's going to be like this most of the summer.

Luckily, it doesn't bother either of us too badly.

We been gaggled!

Several months ago, some of our neighbors got the bright idea of asking for speed breakers to be installed on our road.

I was not, and still am not happy about this.

Every time I leave the house, and everytime I come home, I have to go over two sets of speed breakers. Not only that, but they are ugly. Bright yellow. Thank goodness I can't see them from my house.

Recently a whole gaggle of ducks appeared in the neighborhood, they were hanging out at the houses that line the pond.

I was glad they were staying down the hill. I wasn't crazy about duck poop in the yard.

Now, they've taken to spending time in the road, so you have to stop at speed breakers AND when the ducks are crossing. Yesterday, I had to stop while they chased each other back and forth across the road.

Today, we had the back door open to listen to the rain.

We heard what we thought were ducks. Guess what, we'd been gaggled!

12, count em, 12.

They were having a blast in our yard. They made themselves at home.

They stayed a while.

Willy came to investigate, and didn't quite know what to make of them. I guess this was the first time he'd ever seen ducks.

He watched them for a few minutes...

And then, he retreated to just inside the back door, and watched from afar.

These two guys are strutting because they had just taken advantage of a girl duck. Like I said, they made themselves at home. I'm not posting *those* pictures.

Eventually, they all left in search of whatever it is ducks look for.

Beautiful Sunday Morning

When we got up this morning, we knew the plan for the day was to work in the garage some more. It was still early, Chris was on the back porch and called me out to see some woodpeckers. I grabbed my camera, but when I got there, they had flown away. However, I did manage to see some bluebirds ...


and a squirrel...


Then, in just a little while, the woodpeckers came back. I was able to get some good shots of them I thought. Here are a few of my favorites.

Rainbow

We had some rain, and in a little while the sky behind the house turned an odd color. I went to look out the front door and saw the neighbors pointing up toward the sky. So, I stepped out on the porch and saw what they were pointing at. It has to be one of the most beautiful rainbows I've ever seen. I wasn't able to get it a shot of it all in one frame.

January Morning

The morning is quiet, serene even. I sat on the sofa looking out the window and decided to step out onto the porch to enjoy the morning a little. It's 52 degrees F, and foggy. I heard the birds chirping and saw the squirrels playing. I went inside to get my camera to capture a few images. This obviously is a shot of the fog through the trees.


One of the four or five squirrels running around in the back yard. Recently, one of them got brave and came closer to the porch and drove Willy bonkers. Willy was running the length of the porch "chasing" the squirrel. I know he wished he could get his paws on him. Willy is quite the hunter.

Fall leaves

Just a couple of shots of the leaves in my backyard.

Doves

We stopped at a rest area on the drive home from Florida and Chris was able to get several shots of some doves. This one was my favorite.

Mushrooms

Some mushrooms sprouted up in the yard, so Chris and I went out to take some photos, I took the top one, and Chris took the bottom one. After I took my photo and handed the camera over to Chris, I went and put my McCain sign in the yard. As I was walking back, I looked up and Chris was taking my picture.

The deer visited again

This afternoon the deer were visiting again. Chris said the buck was with them, but as soon as I opened the door to step out into the garage, he heard the noise and moved into the woods. The mother deer watched me as I took the photographs, but she didn't make any move towards leaving. Maybe one day I'll get a photo of the buck.

Deer

They might be a tad hard to see, but yesterday in the evening, we had a couple of visitors in the yard. I couldn't get a really good shot of them because they are skiddish. They are young, part of the family of deer that lives in the woods behind my house. (Also the ones that we are sure have been snacking on Chris's herb garden).

Random Summer Photos

Just a few shots I took at my parents house this afternoon.

Brown Thrasher

I heard an odd chirping, so I went out onto the porch and found Willy watching a Brown Thrasher who was sitting on the banister. The bird flitted around to several perches. I got my camera and headed outside. She let me get pretty close, and I was able to get several good photos of her.

I'm enjoying watching the different wildlife that wanders through our yard.

Surprise!

Last night, we went out to dinner, and when we came home, this big guy was in our driveway. He moved over to the grass and stayed there for a long time. Our neighbors came outside, and since no one was seriously freaked by having him around, we just prodded him into the woods to go on about his business. He was not in any hurry. It was kinda cool to get to watch him and see how he reacted, and moved.

New blooms

This is just a random shot of one of the new blooms in the yard. The previous owner of the house did some wonderful landscaping, so in the spring time, something new is always blooming.

Lizard

One of the lizards wasn't so lucky today. Willy stalked him, and we thought he'd gotten away and that Willy had given up after the lizard made it to safety underneath the freezer. A while later, the poor lizard was a goner. Chris was rather impressed with Willy's tenacity.

Deer

There is a family of deer that live in the woods behind our house. We hadn't seen them in a while and I had never been successful in my attempts at getting a photo of them. Chris called me out on the porch this evening, so I tiptoed back in the house to get my camera. Shot a few through the screen, then remembered the garage door was open, so I quietly went out and managed to snap a few decent shots.

Patience pays off

Patience pays off, I got a bunch of photos of the bluebird, this one is my favorite.

Bluebird

We have some Bluebirds that hang out around the house. I've been trying to catch a photo of one of them for a while now. I was sneaking outside to snap one on the birdhouse, but by the time I got out there, it was flying away. I managed to get this one when it landed on a nearby tree. I'll keep trying.