Mountain sunrise~SkyWatch Friday~053113

I missed one morning's sunrise because I was feeding the baby last weekend, so the next morning I made sure that Grandpa fed her and out I went with my camera to capture the sunrise.  It was so quiet and still, except for a nearby robin. Ahhh....so peaceful!  SkyWatch Friday for May 31, 2013.  We get to babysit the granddaughter tomorrow afternoon while her parents take a break and go to a movie!  (She's 7 weeks old now...)  To visit SWF, please go to:   http://skyley.blogspot.com/

Coyote fun!

Photo of three of the six coyote family members running and chasing each other through the meadow last weekend.  I stood on the deck of the house in Pine Cove and just watched their antics.  It was interesting to watch them.  First, they all rolled in SOMETHING on the far side of the meadow.  Then the two parents and two juvenile pups frolicked in the meadow.  The younger pups went back into some bushes.  I guess it was their outing for the day!

Tree trunk

I found this interesting tree during one of our morning walks last weekend.  It looks like somebody sure has been busy!  I have NO idea what made all these holes.  It was at the Riverside County building which houses the park service and the CHP up in Pine Cove.

Idyllwild weekend

We spent the weekend up in Pine Cove, which is a little mountain community near Idyllwild.  Our daughter's former middle school band teacher has a house up there and she offered it to us for the entire weekend!  Whoo, whoo...no 11:00 a.m. checkout!  We had three nights of mountain bliss~ temperatures down into the high 40's and daytime ones in the low 70's!~  What a relief from the desert.  The grandkids came, too and got to enjoy the beautiful meadow back behind the house.  In it were quail and a family of 6 coyotes!  It was fun to watch them in the late afternoons. We drove into town on Saturday and we also hit some terrific garage sales and found baby shoes for 50 cents each!  I bought 7 books at the local library, so I now have my summer reading all planned.  It was a quiet, restful weekend~~one that we ALL needed!  :-)

Vulture~Nature Notes~052313

As I was getting ready to leave the horse ranch Sunday, a large shadow crossed right below me.  Of course, my camera was packed in the car, so I grabbed it and ran to take a look.  It was a single vulture.  I have seen these birds before up at the ranch, but this one was very close.  He rode a thermal for quite some time, then moved down the valley.  I always enjoy seeing these birds.  The valley also is host to several bald eagles which I occasionally see sitting on top of a telephone pole.  Lake Hemet, which is on the other side of the valley, does an annual bald eagle count.  Just look at that wingspan!  Nature Notes for May 23, 2013.  To visit Nature Notes, please go to:   http://ramblingwoods.com/

Hummingbirds~Wild Bird Wednesday~052213

I was chatting with Cathy, the ranch owner, last Sunday, when the sound of hummingbirds buzzing around her feeders brought me back to reality.  There had to be a dozen of them.  Of course, she has 3 large feeders on her porch and in her front yard.  Some were babies, too!  She told me most of them migrate, but a few stay in her yard year-round.  She has a nice, shady porch, thanks to a very old oak tree, and she has another feeder out by her gazebo and then one on the other side of the porch.  She has one older hummingbird she calls "Mr. Grumpy".  He tries to chase off the younger birds, but he's getting too old for that nonsense!  I always enjoy watching these little birds and they put on quite a show last week.  They don't mind people hanging around, either!  Wild Bird Wednesday for May 22, 2013.  To visit WBW, please go to:   http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com/

Old wagon~Our World Tuesday~052113

I love this old wagon that's up at the horse ranch where I board my horses.  Every year, however, it sags a little bit more.  I like to take photos of it during the different seasons. Yes, that's it in February, in my header photo.  See how dry the ranch is now?  Our World Tuesday for May 21, 2013.  To visit OWT, please go to:   http://ourworldtuesdaymeme.blogspot.com/

"W" is for woodpecker~Sunday Stills Challenge~051713

I love the wildlife up in Idyllwild and especially the woodpeckers!  Once they see the other birds feeding, they will come down, turn their heads sideways, and also peck at the birdseed!  I've seen them do that many times now.  This little guy was actually on the "woodpecker tree", which, as you can see, is full of holes!  "W" for Sunday Stills Challenge for May 17, 2013.  To visit Sunday Stills Challenge, please go to:   http://sundaystills.wordpress.com/2013/05/12/the-next-challenge-the-letter-w/#comment-10337

Touch~Friday Town Shout Out~~051713

 Our son, grandson, and his mom stopped by the horse ranch last Sunday to visit the horses.  They all got rubbed, scratched, and loved on!  And, they were happy to see us, especially little Ben, our grandson.  Our son, Hal, always likes to see the horses and he and Sunni are especially close.  Lots of touching goin' on!  Friday Shout Out for May 17, 2013.   To visit Friday Town Shout Out, please go to:  http://mytownshootout.blogspot.com/

Lucille says "HI!"

Boy, I can't WAIT for this weekend!  One more day of state torture testing and the kiddos will be DONE!  I mean, REALLY!!!  I'm worn out, but not too worn out to head to the horse ranch this weekend.  The horses need salt and feed.  Lucille always nickers for her share (as you can see)!  Isn't she a gorgeous gal?

A family visit with the horses

After our weekend in Idyllwild, we all stopped to visit the horses.  They were all intrigued by Ben, our grandson, since he is so small!  Quad was especially interested in Ben and was very patient with him.  Sunni, of course, had to snort a couple of times, but then he settled down.  Scout was insulted that we didn't bring Ben to her first!  Ah....they have such different personalities!  And, a good time was had by all!   :-)

Idyllwild weekend

I took a peek at the availability of our favorite Idyllwild cabin and it was available the weekend of May 10 and 11, so I booked it.  We invited our son, grandson, and his mom to join us, so they did.  We ALL needed a break from the desert and it turned out to be a good choice because it was 100 degrees PLUS down here in the desert this past weekend.  So, up to the pines we went.  Saturday morning we took the little guy to the library and then he didn't want to leave!  He found a book about community helpers and he planted his feet and wasn't going to leave without it, so I checked it out for him.  He also enjoyed playing with all the stuffed animals in the kids' section of the library.  Of course, once back at the cabin, he wanted to go see the fish pond (the cabins have a fish pond full of koi in the middle of the gazebo area...).Oh, and we had to feed the blue jays and squirrels about 20x a day!  Believe me, they were HAPPY we came up there! The cabin manager has a yellow lab named Sully and he dropped by to visit a couple of times.  Then, on our way home, we all stopped to visit the horses.  All are fine, but I need to get up there next weekend and brush them.  Here are a few pics from our weekend.

Cloudy days

We've had two days of cloudy days here in the desert and we even had some sprinkles on Monday!  It's been absolutely gorgeous down here.  Since I was sick all weekend, I even took a chair outside and read a book for a while.  The clouds should clear out today and it will be up to 100 degrees by the weekend (ugh...).  But, it was nice enjoying the cool days and nights while they lasted.  Looks like our mountains got about 1/3 inch of rain, too!

Another lost weekend

I had a sore throat Thursday and by Friday morning, it was raging.  There was NO way I could make it to school, so at midnight Thursday I ordered a sub.  I went to urgent care Friday morning and the doctor did a culture for strep throat.  He gave me 3 days off work (basically my whole weekend) and a z-pack.  I never made it up to see the horses.  I spent the entire weekend in my pajamas on the couch with a headache, sore throat, body aches, and chills.

I hate giving up my weekends to sickness~!  I did stop at Juice Stop on my way back from the pharmacy Friday and I got a shot of wheatgrass.  I'm hoping to make it through this week because this is our first full week of testing at school.  Ugh.  Our daughter and her family went to San Diego so that her husband could run in a half marathon, so I wasn't around the baby (thank goodness!).

So, another week...sigh...

Here's the grandson last weekend helping his dad pick out some peanuts for the blue jays.  I miss the mountains.  They are getting rain today and tomorrow and maybe even a light dusting of snow!   :-)

Koi~Orange You Glad It's Friday~050313

Ugh, actually, YES!~ I'm glad it's Friday.  Unfortunately, I'm at home with...STREP THROAT!  I went to urgent care and the doctor ordered me home for the next 3 days!  Well, it's the weekend again, and now my plans have gone OUT THE WINDOW!  Oye vei!  Why do I get sick only on the weekends (beating head against desk...)

Anyway, I remembered these beautiful koi which were in the pond of the cabin place we'll be returning to in a couple of weeks.  Our grandson was absolutely fascinated with them.  I can tell that I'm going to have to babysit him next to the pond!   :-)  Good thing they have some nice chairs in the shade there.

Aren't they beautiful?  Orange you Glad It's Friday for May 3, 2013.  To visit OYGIF, please go to this link:
http://writingsofmaria.com/

Cabin's fence~Friday's Fences~050313

I found this cute gate while out for a walk one morning up in our local mountains.  Isn't it adorable?  You can see a corner of the house on the last one...I love getting out and walking in the mountains.  The gray squirrels were out, the blue jays were out, and I had heard an owl calling from this neighborhood earlier in the morning!  Friday's Fences for May 3, 2013.  To visit Friday's Fences, please go to:   http://lifeaccordingtojanandjer.blogspot.com/

Mountain plants~Nature Notes~050213

I love to travel up into our local mountains and last weekend we rented a cabin up in Idyllwild.  Our son, grandson and girlfriend joined us and a good weekend was had by all!  In fact, the 4 year old didn't want to to home to the desert and all this week he has been asking our son, "When are we going back to the mountains?"  Hehehehe!   I was enjoying looking at all the different plants up there...trees, shrubs, and flowers.  What a different environment from the desert!  Aren't they beautiful?  Nature Notes for May 2, 2013.  To visit NN, please go to:  http://ramblingwoods.com/