Lots of Pictures and Stories

(Please see my last post for information about our old house.)  

I mentioned I had had a fun weekend taking pictures, 

so I am going to share some with you. 

This picture is worth double-clicking to biggify it.  It's the red-shouldered hawk, I thought he was gone.  Gorgeous!  An absolutely gorgeous bird. 

Saturday morning, another group of young professionals from Cerner Corporation and 

another company came to the Ag Hall to help get ready for the season.  This was 

our second Saturday "work" day.  I can't praise these young folks enough. 

They are not afraid to get their hands dirty. 

They weren't the only work crew.  The dam around the pond had to be re-constructed over the winter, and our main railroad man and his crew are working to try to get the train operational before we open in a week and a half. 

If the train is not running for our first event... Barnyard Babies.... we will be giving 

hayrack rides. 

I can't praise these guys enough, either.  It was cold that day! 

I went by the teal on the little pond on the way to church that night, and on the way home, too. 

We saw the sheep on Sunday, but the lambs were all down in the creek bed behind these two ewes. 

I saw two of the three elk yesterday morning.  

So. hard. to. get. pictures. of. black. birds. 

If I had just lifted the camera up another inch or so! 

This girl was out in a pasture this morning, alone.  She was not sure what I was doing, so after I took a couple of pictures, I moved on so she would go where ever she was off to. 

On our way home from the park, we saw these four turkeys in

  a big field. 

They looked like they were having a kaffee klatch. 

They were back tonight... 

Two of them were calling plaintively. 

They would call, and then stop and listen intently. 

Calling again. 

I hope he was hearing an answer!  

I saw only 4 single hens today, each one by themselves. 

These tulips are just going by, but still so beautiful in the sunlight tonight at the foot of our street. 

More pictures tomorrow! 

Sunny Monday

We had a beautiful, if chilly day here, and are going down possibly into the 30's tonight! 

The ponds at the foot of the hill were shining in the sunlight. 

What a beautiful view I've had for the last 10 years! 

The three lone chickens are loving their huge outdoor space.  I'm starting to feel so 

guilty for the other 9... they have the henspa yard, without a piece of green in it now. 

The tulips are slowly going by now. 

How I have enjoyed them! 

A lady goldfinch had to fight our strong wind as she flew away from the feeder. 

Lilly was on a mole trail in the pasture, and dug the whole thing up.  No moles! 

This beautiful young red-tailed hawk flew directly in front of us on the way home.  I grabbed the camera, and even though he was up pretty high, I took some pictures. 

Biggify these to see what a beaut he was. 

He was far, far up when I took the last one, but biggify it... it is a little blurry because of the distance, but you can see a real hawk there! 

We saw these two, too.... they were waiting for us to leave so they could finish their breakfast. 

You see that turkey vultures are not ALL black. 

We saw this tom turkey alone tonight on the way home.  He was near a home... for protection, I'm sure. 

Since these guys are still everywhere. 

The drainage ditch was empty, and the teal were back on the pond on the way home... that little bird you see flying through the picture was a swallow, and I kept trying to take pictures as they dove in and out and in and out. 

The dogs and I have discovered a few new roads in the last few days, so hopefully, we

will have some exciting pictures this week! 

Beautiful Spring

Spring has definitely come to the neighborhood. 

I completely forgot about these tulips at the old house. 

I thought I had hyacinths there! 

You can see how big the lilac has grown in five years... but... here's something funny. 

My white lilac is pale purple! 

Oh, well.   It's still a lilac! 

The highways and byways are beautiful. 

Just down the street from us! 

I love this driveway planting. 

They love their suet! 

It's been hot enough (80's) to make our girl pant hard. 

And Jes was glad to have a rest on the cool cement of the porch. 

See these three in the old henhouse?  I had to have someplace to 

put the spare rooster, and I was not going to make him live alone. 

I've opened both popholes daily.  I've even put a cement block there for a step. 

They have YET to go outside.  Tomorrow, if it is not storming... I'm going to set them out one by one.  I may have to chase them with the net tomorrow night, unless they can figure out where they live. 

That means water outside, too. 

The hens were so desperate to scratch they were trying to scratch in the dirt on the henhouse floor. 

That's why I can't bear to see chickens in cages. 

Scratching is just so much a part of their lives. 

I cannot get a good picture of this tree.  About 8 years ago, Keith bought 

me a weeping cherry tree for our anniversary.  You can see the weeping part clearly.  Can you see the branches going straight up?  That is the same tree.. it was the graft on which that weeping cherry was set.  Keith was not given instructions to keep trimming to keep the weeping part trained... and the grafted tree is blooming white... and growing tall and strong.  I can't tell what it is, but if you biggify this picture by clicking on it, you will be able to see the white blooms.  Maybe a Bradford Pear, but I don't think so, from the shape.  

The house is being worked on, and I need to take a picture tomorrow and show you what is being done. 

Here is the apple tree next to it.  I trimmed this up a month ago, it had too many criss-crossing branches. 

And last... the beautiful tulips friends Georgie and Tweedles sent me for my birthday: 

I love tulips and spring! 

Happy Easter!

Our red tulip, from my friend Georgie, 

welcoming Easter on our patio.  Perfect timing! 

What a wonderful service this morning, so peaceful and 

the culmination of the Triddeum, the 3 day celebrations working up to 

the gift that is Easter.  To be fair, I was in church on Thursday and Friday, 

but not Saturday night for the Vigil.  Instead, I was with these two: 

The two without teeth. 

Son Jim took daughter in law Amy out for her 

birthday, and Jax and Paiton and I colored eggs, and then 

went to see "Home", a new animated movie.  It was 

pretty moving... Jax admitted that he cried. 

We recommend it for all grandmas and 

kids! 

The old maple over the deck of the old house is leafing out again.  

It's such a beautiful, but fragile old tree. 

Two squirrels ran across the yard yesterday afternoon, and up the big maple tree. 

This girl barreled out of the car and went straight to the tree. 

She laid there for a long time. 

I'm going to give her GREAT credit... a vulture flew low over the yard on Friday, and dove at Jester.  

Lilly jumped into the air, scaring it, and then circled, keeping it above ground. I saw it with my own eyes, but did not have the camera in my hand.  Yayyy for Lilly! 

In Kansas, this is not an air-raid siren. 

It is, plain and simple, a tornado siren.  See those leaden skies? 

We are in tornado season. 

We expect bad weather this coming week, in fact, so these 

sirens are very necessary. 

Thank heavens, this house has a storm shelter. 

I'm glad the vulture didn't get our little guy. 

And that our big girl is so vigilant. 

Today, Keith and I celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary. 

We played miniature golf on our wedding night with 

grandson Chris, and son Brandon.  We had a great laugh about it this morning, as we went to eat brunch after church.  On one hand, it seems so long ago... but again, it seems like yesterday. 

I forgot to have our waitress take our picture at the table, but, as she was really hopping,  it would have been an imposition.  

I'll try to get a picture of the two of us, soon! 

I hope everyone had a blessed Easter! 

I just realized... I never took pictures of any of the Easter baskets this year. 

Keith had fun delivering them to the four little ones on his side yesterday, and 

Jax and Paiton (and bigger sibs Jacob and Madison) got theirs when 

they came over in the afternoon.  It's a good old custom, and one 

we intend to keep up.  It's not a toy opportunity, either... I don't believe 

in baskets full of toys for a religious holyday.