As Our Life Goes On

There were a pair of wrens in the house on the other side of the driveway but now the wrens have made a home in the Japanese red maple next to the breezeway. Their cheery calming songs can be heard all day outside and in the house too.  A large wild rabbit dusted himself in the flower garden in front of the house this morning.  This area might be getting too shady to grow a nice garden so the plants that remain may have to be moved. After the rabbit rolled in the dust and rubbed dust on face and ears it proceeded to eat the stems of the flowers.  There may be no blooms on these daisies.  The shrubs at the top of the driveway have very pretty small blooms.  Wildflowers that resemble snapdragons grow in the meadow grass areas. The decorative tall grass areas in front of the barn are  at least 5 feet high already. Deer flies attacked me as I walked through the sunny yard. The day was pleasant as the temperatures were in the low 70s with low humidity. The waterin

The vacation trips Leave us tired and out of sorts We have no schedules Could it be we are boring And too old to change our ways? -Caroline

Here in the Northern states we have tulip poplars that grow very tall and have small green and orange blooms. Decorative evergreen shrubs also flourish here. The South has tulip magnolia trees with huge white or cream color tulip-like flowers. They are evergreen trees and they shed large leaves all during the year. Our recent trip to Atlanta was actually to see our granddaughter graduate from high school but we enjoyed looking at the many types of evergreen trees and shrubs that grow easily  in that area. The huge magnolia tree bloom shown above was on the tree in the front yard of our son and his wife.  The tulip magnolia tree and tulip poplar trees are related and in the magnolia family even though one is evergreen and one is deciduous. They have similar shapes as far as growth goes. They are also related to the other decorative magnolia shrubs and small trees. I sure with that that tree could be magically transported into our yard. 

Four Dead~One Survivor This tiny baby bird may have been the only chickadee to fly from the birdhouse before the killer sparrow struck. The mother and father flew frantically around the house which is in the tree next to our breezeway as the larger sparrow threw the mangled bodies of their babies onto the ground. We placed the bodies where they could go back to nature in the form of food for other animals. Life can be cruel for birds and other animals sometimes but that is the way in nature.  We lifted the scared bird off of my shoe and it quickly headed for cover. We do hope that it survived. The parents are not in evidence this morning. The sparrow does not seem to be making a nest in the birdhouse. Not sure what caused the killing rampage. 

It seems that these painted turtles always have to cross a road to lay their eggs. This one narrowly missed being run over by a car yesterday. Russ was coming up the road toward home when he saw a car coming toward him. That person saw the turtle and veered to miss crushing it. Russ got out and picked it up. The mud on her back side seemed to indicate that she had already dug the hole and laid her eggs. Her flat under shell indicated that she was a female. She has been safely released near the wetlands behind our house. 

We stopped at the American Roadhouse restaurant in downtown Atlanta before going to the airport to come home from our trip to Atlanta. It would be a restaurant that I would recommend and I don't like eating out. The food is good and the prices are moderate.  The beautiful historic Virginia Highland district in the heart of Atlanta has tall architecturally interesting buildings. Arts and Crafts and Mission style bungalows line the streets.  Fancy boutique shops had their doors open to welcome the customers.  The affluence of this area was quite evident but as we traveled further into town there was a sudden change. An older man was standing on the corner with his trumpet in his hand. The case lay open near a lamppost. His khaki pants seems a bit large and they were cinched in by a leather belt at his waist. A dark stain near the waistline of his pants indicated sweat from many days of standing in the heat which was about 90 degrees at the time we spotted him. I do

There has been a very early onset of very dry hot weather this year.  The ground is dry and cracked. There is a small wet spot by the pine woods on the East side of the yard where a robin's egg splattered its contents as it fell from the trees above. Is that a smiley in the shell on the right? We do need rain soon. 

Dandelion fluff Two seeds escaping the ball New plants to create -Caroline

This groundhog did protest a bit when caught coming out of the hole that it had dug under our shed. These destructive animals tend to pile the dirt so that it touches the floor of the shed. This can cause moisture and rotting of the wood. Woodchucks can be somewhat aggressive. This one chattered its displeasure when approached. It was safely transported to a large farm with an old Christmas tree field and released from the Havahart trap so that it might seek a new home away from our yard. 

It has been some time since I have seen more than one honeybee in our yard. Last evening however as I walked by the blackberry bushes I noticed a number of them busy pollinating the blackberry blooms. There should be an ample crop of berries again this year judging by the number of blossoms. The berries are somewhat seedy but so sweet. We like them in pies and cobblers and they make a great addition to a fruit salad. It is good to add them to a salad just before serving as the color tends to bleed. 

Click on pictures if you really want to see a larger picture.  We found a butterfly in the driveway today when we arrived home. It had very beautiful markings on the underside. The beauty was very easy to see because the poor thing was belly up. It seemed to move slightly but it was dying. Not sure whether our vehicle struck it when we came in. Perhaps it rode home in the grill of our van. It has been left in plain sight so that it can return to nature. I found the rabbit remains under a grove of pine trees in the side yard. Looks like a hungry hawk may have finished off the meat. A baby robin may have met the same fate in our front yard. See the pile of feathers in the last picture.  There are other animal remains that are best left without graphic descriptions laying over by the pine woods. Yuk! Stinky and smelly! It is the way of nature so we have to respect that. 

The chives are growing well. Notice the extremely dry ground around them. After this picture was taken I hauled out the hose  and watered this area. The robins chirped in anticipation. Certainly some earthworms would come to the surface for their dinner.  A very social chickadee perched on a pine tree branch very close to me an chattered noisily. Those purple blooms on the chives are good to eat and make a pretty garnish for Spring salads. 

As I made my way down to the swampy area at the bottom of the steep sledding hill out back I was being scolded by a bird. I had to look high in the trees to spot the half concealed bird. At first I thought it was a pileated woodpecker because of its call but the color was all wrong. The call of the Northern Flicker and the Pileated Woodpecker are very similar so it may indeed have been a flicker. It flew into the upper hole in the tree and I did not see or hear it again.  Tall dead trees, or snags, can be home to many types of birds and other animals. The birds provide great insect control. The areas behind our home contain a lot of wetlands and there are plenty of mosquitoes and other insects in our back yard. We encourage birds to nest in our yard by providing man made houses and leaving the dead trees and stumps where they are. 

A columbine flower after the rain After breaking an all time record for rainfall last year we find ourselves lacking in precipitation at this time. A few things around the yard have had to be watered. The concolor firs are doing quite well and they are receiving regular doses of the wet stuff as they send out lots of new growth. If you crush a soft needle from these firs between your fingers they send out a citrus-like smell that is somewhat like an orange.  Concolor Fir

The sight of a cemetery should remind us of death or perhaps everlasting life. This cemetery sits high on a hill above the city of Emlenton, PA and it still reminds me of an estate auction that we attended just across the street from these beautiful grounds. It was as nice a day as when this picture was taken but it was quite a few years ago.  There was a lunch wagon available at the auction so we seemed to be all set to stay and watch and perhaps bid on a few items. Then came the really bad news. The auctioneer stood on the podium to read the terms a rules of the auction and evidently he had forgotten one of the rules for auctions that have food service available. He announced that there were no restrooms available to the bidders and we would not be let back into the house at all. Maybe he just did not care! You may have guessed why the cemetery reminds me of the auction. It was the only place in the neighborhood with some cover and privacy. People went across the street and back

The day could not have been more beautiful. It was warm but not too hot and not humid. Some things got accomplished that needed to be done and my mood was good. What could be much more important than that?

Tulips in the trees Green and orange, pretty ones Up high in the trees -Caroline

Happy Mother's Day Grandmothers and Stepmothers Also Included  Foster mothers, care takers Mother figures and ALL MOMS -Caroline

There was a beautiful sunrise this morning in Northeast Ohio. The colors lasted only a short time before the sun rose and changed the sky to blue with lots of clouds. Long streaks of orange and teal with pink and rose colors lit up the east. I like to watch both the sunrise and sunset so early to rise is a priority.  There were plenty of sellers at the Hartville flea market this morning. None of their wares tempted me though. There was nothing I could use and nothing that I desired. It was a nice early  morning ride in the country with the bonus of the fantastic sunrise. 

That's right! There are no traffic lights in Emlenton. The few remaining lights were removed a few years ago and traffic moves quite smoothly through this very small town. The only times that it gets congested is if there is an accident on the I80 bridge that looms high over the town. Then there is a steady stream of big trucks and other interstate traffic going through this little intersection on the narrow streets. There are steep hills on all sides of the town that sits low in the valley next to the Allegheny River. The population in this town has dwindled in the last decade as much as 20%. It is a quiet place if you wish to relax. Click on the link below to read more.  Emlenton Information

Sweet rocket flowers seem to be blooming in many places around the yard. We also saw many of these pretty plants along the roadsides as we traveled around today.  We took a trip to a town that is about 30 miles away this afternoon. The air was cool but  the sun was shining and the puffy low clouds enhanced the blue skies. It was a good day!

Small towns often offer unique and interesting sights not found in larger towns.  The newspapers in front of the Progress News office in Emlenton, PA are free. The small paper is chock full of interesting news about the people in the area. It is information that can seldom be found in the newspapers in larger town. We did not go across the street to pick up our paper on the day that this was taken. We were at the gas station picking up fuel for mower so that the camp yard could be cut and we were anxious to get that done.  The small town of Emlenton is beneath the high bridge on I80 in Pennsylvania. This street is one level above the street that runs along the Allegheny River. The town is quiet and friendly. People in their yards wave at us as we pass by. We don't know them but we wave back. 

I hurried down to the swampy area over the hill when Russ told me there was a Mallard duck pair with several little ducklings close to the edge where I could photograph them. By the time I reached the edge of the water they had made their way around to some cover and when I approached the drake flew away and I did not see where the hen and the little fluff ball ducklings were hiding.  The cracked robin's egg shown in the picture was found on the other side of the yard near a pine wooded area. There are plenty of robins in the area and it sure appears that there will be some of the young birds hopping around here soon. I did not see any today however. The yard was quite wet and mushy after a heavy thunderstorm last evening and rain today. We did need rain.  I looked carefully through the yard to see if I could see what the lightning had struck last night. One of the strikes shook our house and the very loud cracking thunder sound was immediately heard after the flash. 

Emlenton, Pennsylvania is such a pretty town to visit. It is located next to the Allegheny River under the very high I80 Interstate bridge. This very small town is a place where you would think you could go and never be found. NOT SO! One time when my husband was at camp he went down into the town for some food and there next to the river which is just in front of the IGA was one of his co-workers with a companion.   His co-worker was VERY surprised and not too happy to see him under the circumstances. Small unique towns are not necessarily good places to hide. 

Sometimes work just piles up and there are not enough hours in the day to get everything that seems to be important done. Today is one of those days so this ends my blog for today. 

The view from camp was spectacular on Friday. It is about a mile down through the valley to the little white church on the hill. There is an old schoolhouse next to that church. Both of these have been converted to private residences. One can walk up to the church and back without worrying about the traffic. There are very few cars using the road. The surrounding fields were filled with several types of yellow blooming plants. Sitting listening to the birds is very relaxing. This activity had to wait until after some camp maintenance was completed of course. The lawn had to be cut, A post on the trailer had shifted and there were many branches that had to be picked up. There trailer looked good inside even though it was only used by men throughout the Winter months.  I decided not to do any heavy cleaning inside the trailer at this time.  I was lucky enough to find one asparagus sprout. After rinsing the little nub under some water I popped it into my mouth and savored the