Filed under: The Wildlife I Love to See | Tags: birdhouse, birds, bugs, empty nest, Montana, Spring, wildflowers, Winter, worms, wrens
We saw our first robin yesterday, so I guess that Spring is on it’s way to Montana! In a way, I’m sorry to see Winter leaving, but the freshness of a new season does bring a certain excitement and anticipation to us. We’re anxious to see the wildflowers bloom, the grass and trees turn green, and the river rise.
The baby wrens pictured here were from last year. The mom wren had moved into a birdhouse we put on a tree, and she raised her 5 babies there. We watched her as she brought in sticks and twigs to build her nest. Before too long, her eggs hatched and we began to hear the peeping of the babies.
Some time later, the babies began to stick their heads out of the holes, as they hungrily waited for the mom to bring worms or bugs. This was a seemingly endless process…all day long, mom wren would fly away and soon return with a tidbit for one of them. I wondered if she could keep up with the 5 little ones’ hunger for food, but she did! Did she ever find time for herself to eat?
Then it was time for them to leave the nest, and we were thrilled to watch as each baby cautiously hopped out. Hours later, after each of the babies had tried to return to the nest, some more than once (who can blame them? it’s a tough world out there!), they ventured several feet away, into the brushy outskirts of our yard. They found a heavily wooded bush and a pile of fallen limbs we’d gathered, in which they were able to play for hours, sheltered by the intertwining limbs. They practiced hopping, perching, and even flew a little, their wings still not strong enough to support them in full flight. I thought of a baby trying to walk for the first time, still unsure of just exactly what their legs will do.
After several days and a lot of photo shooting, the little wrens had gained the strength to fly away. And then they were gone. We never saw them again. Even I, as a spectator, felt something of an empty-nest syndrome. Sure, it was a little quieter without them, but how we missed those baby wrens!
Filed under: Daily life in the Wild West | Tags: adventure, colon cancer, colonoscopy, New Jersy, prayer
We just found out that my older sister, A, was diagnosed with colon cancer. There’s no history of this in our family, but it does underscore the need for regular testing. Yes, I know….we all get squeamish at the thought of that test (I know I do!! Yikes!), but it saves lives. “A” goes in for more tests this week, so everyone please keep her in your prayers, would ya’? She lives in New Jersey, and I’ll be flying there, at some point, to be with her for surgery. That’s all we know about it, so far.
She is only 2 1/2 years older than me. A thing like this makes me really feel my age. Usually, my mind feels like age 30…..if only I didn’t have to look in the mirror, I would think I am! In truth, I haven’t seen 30 in a long time. It’s funny how, as we age, we keep the same mindset, to a certain degree. Of course, we gain wisdom (one hopes!), but we still have many of the same desires for fun and adventure that we did years ago.
So that’s all for today. It’s hard to write when I’m worried..
Filed under: Postcard Views | Tags: Beartooth Mountains, log home, Montana, Mountain scenes, Utah, Western photography
This is the end-of-Summer view of the mountains, taken from the road to our cabin. Our cabin is pictured in the 2nd picture. I’ll tell ya’…sometimes, you could almost run off the road… it’s so pretty! Even after a year, I’m still in awe of the scenery here in Montana. I don’t know…for some reason, I never thought of Montana as a state with beautiful scenery. In my head, I imagined it as a desolate place. I realize now how crazy that idea was. I thought the same thing about Utah, before Hubby took me there in 1980. Turns out it’s one of the most gorgeous places you’ll ever see.
We took this shot of a log home in the Beartooths this Winter, while on an afternoon ride not too far from home. It had just snowed the night before, and we were anxious to see how pretty it all was. We rode up to the East (or was it West) Rosebud river and cruised around enjoying the snow. If I remember correctly, it was pretty thick, and we couldn’t go as far as we’d hoped. The sun was going down in the sky, and we were stunned at how pretty this was.
Kinda’ makes you want to take a road trip, yes?
Filed under: Daily life in the Wild West | Tags: dogs, frisbee dogs, harnesses, leashes, River scenes
I told you all about Daisy in a previous post. Now, I’ll tell you about my other dog, Lucy. She’s what I call “the intelligent one.” She’s a sweet little dogs, and much calmer and quieter than Daisy. Daisy, being a Jack Russell terrier mix, is very hyper and happy-go-lucky. Lucy is more introspective… a thinker….a very devoted little pup. She’s also the alpha dog. At 20 pounds, she’s a little squirt.
Realizing that there’s a natural pecking order with dogs, I’ve always let “the girls” solve their own disputes. Not that they fight or anything like that…not at all (well ok, occasionally over a bone)…but Lucy does feel the need to exercise her authority at times. For example, if I’m petting Daisy, Lucy will strong-arm her way in by me, so that she can be the one being petted.
I had rescued Lucy before I rescued Daisy, but under much less dramatic circumstances. Lucy came from the same house…reputed at the time to be a crack house. It seems that was true, because a few months later, there was a big drug bust at that same house. But before that happened, Lucy, at about 4 months old, had been wandering around loose in that neighborhood during the cold of Winter. A neighbor (and fellow animal welfare activist) told me about the poor little neglected tan dog.
My friend and I drove to the neighborhood and knocked on the door of the reputed crack dealer. We asked them if they wanted the little dog. They said no, take her. So I did! She was in good health and seemed to be well fed, unlike Daisy, as we later found out.
The thing about dogs is that, with them around, you can never get too much of a case of the blues. Just the fact that they depend on you keeps you going. And then there are their silly antics to keep you laughing. They help to keep your mind off your troubles. Yes, dogs are good medicine.
In this picture, I’m sure the girls had no idea where they were being taken and what the heck was happening, as we moved me from Florida to Montana last February. We stopped in motels for several nights, and one of our stops was at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota (a place I’d always wanted to visit). Before we left Florida, I had bought harnesses and retractable leashes from Drs. Foster & Smith for the girls, and I was glad I did. By the way, ’scuse how goofy I look…we’d been on a harrowing road trip in the snow and ice for several days!
The girls, being terriers, absolutely love to dig for underground critters. In this case, it’s moles. Daisy does it for fun, but Lucy is very, very serious about her craft. Consequently, Lucy has caught several of them. Daisy… well, she has other good qualities! They entertain themselves for hours with this sport. 
This little dog can run like a speeding bullet. I wonder if I can teach her to be a frisbee dog. Trouble is, I’d have to put Daisy in the house. I tried it with the frisbee once, but with both of them outside, there was too much confusion….neither dog could concentrate.
I remember when we first moved here (after all, it was only a year ago). After having a small yard in Florida and never having been off the leash when out of that yard, they were able to run free on the property we have in Montana. On the first day we let them outside, once Lucy discovered that she was “free,” she took off running ’round and ’round the house as fast as she could. I swear she was smiling the whole time. It was so cute to see her that happy!
Last summer, we took the girls with us on an uphill hike on the Woodbine trail in the mountains nearby. Hubby convinced me to let the girls off their leashes away from home, for the very first time. I was a nervous wreck, but he insisted they would not run off. And he was right! They happily followed us on the trail, sniffing most everything, as we hiked along. Once we got to the little wooden bridge that crossed this little river, the girls apprehensively crossed it with us. We stopped to sit on the rocks and take a break, and Lucy promptly hopped into the rushing water. It seemed as if she didn’t realize what she’d done, until she was already in the water. I watched her closely, as she stumbled on the slippery rocks. Then I called her out and rewarded her response with a ‘biscuit’…….one of the girls’ favorite things in the world!
Every day is a new adventure with the girls. They light up my life.
Filed under: The Wildlife I Love to See | Tags: Bald Eagle, birds, Canadian geese, Golden Eagle, River scenes, snow scenes, Western photography
Is there anything quite as majestic as America’s beloved Bald Eagle? I’m honored to have the good fortune of seeing them fly down the Stillwater River by our cabin every day. They have continued to do it all Winter, passing us 2 or 3 times a day. I haven’t seen one of them dive down and get a fish, though I’m sure I will one day.
Also gracing us with their presence are the huge Golden Eagles, though not as often. But this week, the Golden Eagle seems to be stalking our house. Is he after a rabbit? A fish? One of my dogs? Yesterday afternoon, I saw him dive down at 5 Canadian geese who were happily floating on the river. The geese all fled at once, as the eagle dove almost to water level and then swerved back up. He didn’t grab any of the geese, so now I wonder… did he see a fish and the geese just happened to be in the way? Or was he after one of the geese?
Filed under: Crafts and Hobbies | Tags: California photography, coastal photography, ferry rides, harbors, Pacific coast, rocky coast, seals, surfers, tall ships
It’s finally finished! Hubby has finished his new DVD, and I believe it’s really the best so far. He has it on our website, and we’re already filling orders for it. He lived in Southern California for over 25 years, and this DVD has the best of Southern California’s rocky coastline, harbors, ferry rides, seals, tall ships, and surfers, accompanied by a beautiful musical score. I’m very proud of him!
