Woodland Friends

Hello, Dear Friends, it's been quiet and still here in 

the foothills of Mt. Rainier, and the little creatures 

in our corner of the woods are enjoying the solitude. 

Except this little guy - a male Annas Hummingbird. 

He is tiny but fierce, as he defends his nectar feeder. 

You can see him looking around, ready to chase off 

any other contender. 

Luckily for his rivals, I have two other feeders to keep them 

all happy. 

Soon, the Rufous Hummingbirds will arrive from their 

spring migration, and he will be very busy! 

The Annas Hummingbirds are year-round residents here, 

as we have relatively mild winters due to the moderating 

south Pacific currents off our coastline. 

This little Song Sparrow has been a regular around here. I frequently see him/her

searching my back deck looking for insects, even when I am just 

a few feet away. 

I am so happy to have this little sweetie around, because I so enjoy 

the beautiful songs all spring and summer. 

We have Chestnut-backed Chickadees and Black-capped Chickadees. 

When it is hot, they will sit in the pear tree by my hydrangeas

when I water, and let me spray them 

while they rustle their feathers,

all the while chattering happily to each other. 

A Spotted Towhee looking for grubs. 

We have a nesting pair here. 

Our beautiful Steller's Jays. 

It is difficult to photograph them, as they move very quickly. 

These intelligent birds mate for life and stay within 10 miles of their 

place of birth. 

They are the watchdogs of the forest, mimicking the calls of hawks

and eagles as a warning to others. 

They fearlessly harass them if they make the mistake of 

coming into their territory, attracting other jays 

from the surrounding area to join in. 

The common American Robin.

Still wet from the bath.  

We have year-round residents and also migrators 

that arrive in early spring. 

I always know when they arrive as they eat all the remaining 

holly berries off the trees. 

They also sing from dawn to dusk and sometimes 

later, all spring and summer. 

They are very territorial and will attack their own reflection 

in the windows! 

Yum! 

A Dark-Eyed Junco searching for insects in the moss of the 

Big-Leaf Maple tree that grows behind my house. 

Don't you love the descriptive names? 

Who comes up with these? Lol! 

This large tree is visited by many species of birds

which gives me wonderful opportunities to observe them. 

Same tree - different bird. 

A Northern Flicker. 

This beauty seemed to be hanging out with 

a pair of Steller's Jays that arrived at the same time. 

Revealing the black necklace over a pretty spotted breast. 

This one appears to be a female, as the male 

has a bright red 'mustache'. 

These woodpeckers feed on ants and beetles, primarily,

and are the only woodpeckers to regularly 

feed on the ground.

Their loud 'wacka-wacka' call clearly identifies 

their presence.  

We have a pair of Ravens that nest nearby. 

I've not seen the nest, but they regularly parole 

their territory with juveniles in tow in spring 

and summer. 

They are considered the most intelligent of all birds, 

and mate for life. 

I have a love/hate relationship with them, as they 

are nest robbers, much to the dismay of our 

local songbirds. 

This is our native Douglas Squirrel.

They love the cone seeds from our Douglas Fir trees  

and the wingnuts from the maples. 

They frequently search our deck-boards for any 

that have fallen and are lodged in the spaces. 

They are named after David Douglas (1799-1834),

a prominent Scottish botanist. 

You can read his interesting biography by clicking on the link.  

We keep a little basin of water next to a large tree

just for them. 

We love watching them scampering around

and chattering angrily at the dog from high above. 

We have a healthy population of Pacific Tree Frogs, here. 

They are about 2 inches long with a black stripe from their 

snout to their shoulders. 

They come in a wide range of colors, from bright green,

brown, tan and even reddish or bronze. 

Their long legs and rounded toe pads allow them to easily climb. 

Males have a loud "ribbit" call to attract females. 

They are a protected species. 

They usually set up camp around the outdoor lights 

to catch the tasty moths that fly around them. 

We have cottontails here occasionally. 

The population will expand and contract depending on 

the predator population. 

We have had a resident Black-tail Doe for the last 

3 years. She was born in our fenced in 5 acres

and we watched her grow. 

Last year she surprised us with a fawn, 

although we shouldn't have been surprised...

She had visitors...

Aren't they beautiful? 

This was the 'surprise'! 

She kept her hidden for a few weeks, 

but we suspected something when she turned unusually 

aggressive towards Kai. 

We always keep Kai in the fenced area around the house, 

but she was patrolling the fence and rushing the dog! 

We gave her lots of space and never let the dog out of the fence. 

Kai...

What? I just want one little bite. 

O.K., I'll settle for a treat. 

Good boy! 

We call her 'Deer Baby' and have watched her grow. 

And yes, they have eaten a lot of my flowers and landscaping, so I have been 

researching deer-resistant plants. 

Over the years we have encouraged native plants that are naturally deer-resistant, 

so that we can enjoy these beautiful creatures.

We keep a healthy distance and never interact with them

as we don't want them to get too friendly for their own safety. 

These photos were taken early in the morning from the windows. 

Deer Baby is almost grown and able to leap the fence, 

so, we only see them occasionally now. 

But every sighting is a happy occasion. 

This little family arrived late last summer to eat the wild plums

growing at the edge of our clearing. 

There were actually three little ones with mama, 

but one was in the tree! 

They made quick work of all the fallen plums

and then disappeared as quickly as they came. 

xx

These photos were all taken from windows or my back deck

over the course of the year. 

Living here in the foothills of the Cascade mountains 

is peaceful, quiet and occasionally exciting when wildlife 

comes to visit. 

I consider myself very fortunate to experience nature 

up close and take my stewardship very seriously. 

My motto: Do no harm. 

I hope you enjoyed seeing some of my woodland friends. 

Thank you for visiting, Dear Friends! 

Today I am linking up with Saturday's Critters

Won't you join the fun? 

 

A New Year and a New Decade for me.

Hello, Dear Friends. 

As you know, life goes by quickly when all is said and done. 

Although, there are certain times when it just can't go quickly enough!

I can think of a few times when I felt that way, 

but in recent years it seems to be flying by too fast. 

This past fall, I celebrated one of those milestone birthdays 

that tends to creep up on you when you least expect it.

 

"Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans", 

as the late John Lennon reminded us. 

xx

My dear daughter, Heather, and husband, Eric

hosted a lovely birthday party 

for me, along with help from my wonderful family.

Come along with me and we will go inside and have a party! 

Here I am in my favorite party dress, 

feeling a bit embarrassed to be the center of so much attention. 

 

But I quickly got into the spirit of things

and felt so honored and blessed to have all of my 

favorite peeps there to help me make a wish.

All together there were 20 of us.  

I was led to the beautiful Italian Soda bar and given the most delicious drink

to take care of the cat that had my tongue! :)

I actually had laryngitis from a head cold that I was just recovering from. 

When I tried to talk, strange, squeaky sounds escaped! 

It was hilarious, but frustrating. 

I just kept a happy smile on my face and became a really

good listener for the night.

The gorgeous tables! 

Everything was perfect. 

These were taken before the guests arrived - all close family and friends. 

My two sweet daughters, Jennie and Heather. 

 Jennie flew in from Hawaii to help me celebrate

and to help Heather with the party! 

Love my girls. 

xx

They have always made sure that my special days are remembered. 

xx

With our children. 

From left - youngest to oldest; Dustin, Jennie, Gabe, and Heather. 

Yummy appetizers. 

Dinner was a selection of assorted pasta

with various sauces and either meatballs or sausage. 

So good! 

Served with salad, breadsticks and Italian wine.  

Dessert. 

Served with ice cream, of course. 

xx

The story of my life. 

I don't feel as old as what they say I am. Lol! 

Except when I wake up in the morning! 

I think that I felt old when I was young, 

and now, I feel young when I am old. :) 

Little me.

As a girl.

And as a teenager.

I sewed the clothes I am wearing in my 'Home Economics' class. 

My high school offered full credit classes in cooking 

and sewing. 

I took both for two years. 

I was always a little homebody:)

I was a cheerleader in high school, too.

This was a stretch for me, as I was quite shy, 

but I loved gymnastics! 

Go Panthers! 

High-School Sweethearts

Isn't he dreamy? 

It was love at first sight. 

New mom with Heather.

I crocheted the hat and blanket. 

With my little towhead, Gabe on a summer day. 

With Jennie. 

She has her dad's eyes. 

With my youngest - mischievous Dustin,

and my little niece. 

As a young mom. 

Notice the firm grip I have on the boys :)

We are in front of a waterfall. 

At one of my children's weddings.

With my sweet Mr. 

Before we went gray :)

xx

Flirting with the Mr. 

xx

Enjoying the delicious food and wine in Italy. :)

As we are now.

Jennie with Gabe. 

She had to leave the husband, at home with her little son

who had just started a new school. 

Other than that, the whole family was there,

(including spouses and grandkids), 

along with our good friends.

xx

The loves of my life.

xx

Ramblin' Man and each of my children

got up and gave a little speech

in my honor. 

It was one of those times in life when I could 

honestly say that all of the trials and tribulations, 

all of the sacrifices and sleepless nights, 

and all of the hard work of being a wife and mother 

were worth every ounce of effort.

To hear their loving tributes, the funny stories, 

and the gratitude in their voices

was something that I would do it all again for.

 

And then my little grandson, Liam 

wanted to say a few words. 

He wanted to tell me how much he loved 

coming over to spend the night at 'Grammie and Papa's' 

and how much he loved 'movie night'

with popcorn and milkshakes. 

By then we were all in tears and so was he

and it was just the sweetest thing. 

xx 

Life hasn't always been easy, and I've had my fair share of 

difficult circumstances, people and experiences, 

as I'm sure most of you have, too. 

But the happy, sweet, touching moments have

been the blessings of my life. 

Life can be a drama, a comedy, or a tragedy,

and sometimes all three at once,

but those sweet, simple moments of 

everyday life are the best moments of all. 

I've learned that by being true to myself, determined and 

willing to put in the work, I could achieve my dreams.

Of course, all of them would not be possible without my 'partner in crime'. 

I've also learned that some dreams were never meant to be,

and that if I look back, I realize that 

it was either a blessing in disguise to not follow that road, or that

I was meant to have a different calling. 

xx

I truly believe that every experience, good and not so good, 

was/is a wonderful opportunity to learn, or another chance 

to get it right.

It's taken me a lifetime to come to terms with some of the

difficult experiences and relationships I've had, 

but in striving to resolve my feelings 

and find forgiveness, I have learned so much about myself. 

Mostly, due to these experiences, I've developed empathy, 

patience and realize the importance of kindness in a world 

that frequently lacks basic decency or respect for others, 

especially towards children, marginalized people, 

animals and the environment. 

My favorite mottos are, 'Always do the right thing, even if no-one is watching', 

 'Always take the high road - the view is so much better', 

and 'Do no harm'. 

And I've learned to always, always have gratitude for everything

and everyone in my life.

Every day is a gift.  

Thank you for celebrating my first 70 years with me, 

Dear Friends! :)

xx

I'm grateful for your friendship and hope you will 

come along with me as we continue to celebrate

the sweet and simple joys of everyday life, 

hold each other up through the hard times, 

and try to figure out this crazy world together. 

xoxo