Weekend Roundup

Well, not quite the whole weekend since it's a holiday. 

It's easy to lose track when you are retired. 

I spent Friday at the Ag Hall front desk... but I took the dogs out for a bit 

on Friday evening and saw this huge tree down on our daily route.  They had already topped it. 

It is still there today. 

The nest appeared to be empty that day... the young hawks are huge now.  

I really thought they had fledged.  

That faint line in the photo is the barbed wire I was shooting through. 

This big girl was in our front yard on Saturday morning.  

I did not want to help her... she is a snapper... because she was moving steadily along. (not because she was a snapper but because she was taking care of business!) 

Up the ditch she went... 

And off across the road.  She was actually moving quickly... and at the end of that cross street... is a large pasture with a pond.  She was very close, so I left her alone. 

I saw another just a little bigger than this today on a road, got out of the car to lift her over the curb there... and discovered that I had left my shovel out of my car when I went to the recycle station on Friday.  I could have screamed in frustration, she rounded on me and I had no way to help her over the curb... it was a paved street in farmland, and she was maybe four feet from a pasture that was perfect for babies.  She was too snappy to try to pick up. 

This boy crossed a gravel road ahead of me... and disappeared into the hay. 

That day I could make out maybe one hawklet through the treetops. 

I took this somewhat blurry picture to show you what the fields around parts of Tongie look like right now.  Stranger Creek is out of it's banks.  I did not have a way to take pictures on the levee... There are acres and acres under water.  

You know the beautiful bluffs I have showed you so often? 

These: 

If you look at the above picture and see where the water (the road) curves to the left... the bluffs are at the treeline in the distance.  It is ALL underwater, and of course, the road and bridge are closed.  (unless you are a duck). 

My favorite birds are going to have a feast when this all goes down. 

Today, we were to have a family Memorial Day breakfast. 

Jace and little Hayden were here... 

and middle brother Carson, who was not feeling so hot.  

Paiton and Jax had spent the night, but had already had breakfast and 

passed the boys coming in as they left. 

However, Grandpa was not feeling well and did not get to visit with 

his "boys"... but had to lay down, so we had a short visit and 

they promised to come back soon.  Amber and Jesse and the boys live 

50 miles from us, so we don't get together as often as we would like. 

I would show you Amber and Jesse but my pictures were HORRID. 

Jax had gone out to the deck early this morning... he loves to watch the hummingbirds come to the feeders.  Paiton loves them, too. 

He took this picture of his sister.  I know what I am getting him for Christmas now. (camera) 

I took the dogs to walk late this afternoon, but ... Lilly had a time getting back into the car. 

The time is coming when she is not going to be able to walk at the park. 

She loves to ride in the car, so maybe we will just do that. 

We saw this pretty little girl as we came around the corner for "home", and back to the car. 

She was in a large park with a running stream, near a deep creek.  She was in GOOD shape and I left her alone.  I say "little" but she was a decent size. 

The kids and I saw a big one there the other day, down in the water... we left her alone, she was doing great.   No picture of that one. 

Here's our buddy on our way home from the park tonight.  He no longer takes off when I stop the car... and he is so photogenic! 

Everyone please have a safe holiday! 

What Goes On in the NIght

Two days ago, when I worked in the garden at the old place, 

I put the Wildgame camera on the porch to see what I could catch for a couple of days. 

I know that a young raccoon,  a possum, and a squirrel are using the 

water fortex on the porch, along with Kathy's cat. 

However we had some windy weather in the last two days, and the camera fell over. 

When the camera fell, it pointed towards the swallow's nest over the door. 

See the tail? 

There is another, bigger bird's nest on the porch, but I have not see

the birds going in and out of it... yet. 

If you look hard here, both parents tails are showing... I'm sure they are feeding their babies for the last time of the evening, and getting ready to bed down for the night. 

I haven't seen the babies yet. 

There were branches down all around the ancient maple by the deck.  I'm going out on Monday with the truck to clean them up, as I can't get clear down to the brush pile in the pasture.  I'll have to haul them to the brush dump at the transfer station. 

The echinaceas at the shady end of the north garden bed are now blooming.  The ones in the sun are MUCH bigger. 

This is Echinacea "Magic Box" that I started from seed last year. 

I drove Keith to the Eisenhower VA hospital this morning for his weekly check-up... in the fog.  This is an idea of what it was like out as I drove SLOWLY the back roads to Leavenworth. 

I spent the bulk of the day getting four tires on my car... thanks HONEY. 

Tonight, we have a Jax-baseball-game, and tomorrow night, the Kansas City T Bones... so a fun weekend!