A Good Start

The first snips from the garden....Catmint and a new rose bush I planted right by the front door.  Well, technically I didn't plant it, my landscaper/grass taker-care of guy did, but I picked it out and paid for it.  I have been working in the garden over this past week and nothing beats the "hands in the dirt" feeling.  I still have some work to do in my back gardens, but it will happen, eventually.  Something happened to my huge area of monarda (bee balm), only the seedlings came up this year which is quite puzzling since monarda is a staple around here. So I have this rather large, rather empty space that I need to figure out what to plant in that empty spot.  Visiting the nurseries around here I'm finding, unfortunately, something in common....sadly prices keep going up up up.  Am I surprised, no. Do I like it, no.

I have two very distinct obsessions....books and flowers.  I guess if you are going to have an obsession, books and flowers are not by any means dreadful.  (Dreadful would probably fall into another category).   Perhaps dreadful on the pocketbook, but certainly not dreadful for the deep satisfaction I receive from both.  Sitting on the back porch, looking out at the garden and reading a good book is one of my life's greatest pleasures, along with vanilla ice cream with hot chocolate.

OK, switching to a totally different subject, this past Friday Bailey (granddaughter who is living with me) and I road-tripped up to the Milwaukee Zoo to meet up with Hilary and my great grand, Matilda Mae.  She is 20 months old (I know, how did that happen??) and is just a total delight. She had been to the zoo about a week prior with Hilary's Mom (aka grandmother) and loved it. It is a beautiful zoo, such a lovely setting, filled with just the right amount of animals but way too many peacocks.  I have no idea how many there are, but the males were definitely in the "mating mood".  Their mating call is definitely a turn-off, screechingly unacceptable. But I gotta admit they are stunning birds.

The animals were exceptionally active that day. Instead of the usual trying to spot them sleeping inside a cave we saw this....

A couple of "different" friends....

Matilda, did you enjoy the zoo??  And look, she has wisps of hair over her ears, won't be long until she has a pony tail.

Definitely a great start to the 100 days of summer.

"What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness."
                                                                                                                      ~John Steinbeck

Until next time.....

A Fun, Fun Day

Well, I am happy to report that after 8 hours and 3 technicians today, I finally have AT&T Uverse, internet and telephone.  Whoop whoop...they had to run brand new cable into the house after the repair technician thought everything was good to go for a new install.  HA...thank goodness I had a good technician that knew what he was doing.  So that is over after 3 tries...but what do they say, 3rd time is the charm.

About 2 weeks ago, when my sister-in-law was here visiting we went to the Lincoln Park Zoo where my daughter takes some of her dance students to perform.  How fun for the girls and how fun for us to watch.

The girls getting ready to perform....

Make-up put on...

Aunt Mary Jo and my two grandaughters....

Bailey doesn't dance anymore...she is just too busy with school and work, but she is there to support all of the dancers...

My daughter...talking about her love of her studio and her students....

Family....daughter and granddaughter number 1 (age)

Daughter and granddaughter number 2 (age)

Daughter and son-in-law, Sam

Granddaughter and boyfriend...

Now off to the zoo....

Hey...Come on over and see what I've found....

hmmm....not  too much to him, probably not worth it.

I'll just go back and chew on my cardboard box....

More animals....look at the nose on the top left, shaped like a perfect heart.  And check out the nails on the bottom left bear.  Now I ask you who wants to volunteer to clip those babies....??

Best seat in the house on top of Dad's shoulders.....

Just a cutie-patootie...

Came across this couple...they were doing a photo shoot advertising "bags"....Interesting.

A juggler wandering around....

And finally, what you see from the zoo...it is really close to downtown Chicago...what a view!!

A fine fine day spent at the zoo.

"How beautiful it is to be alive."  ~  Henry Septimus Sutton

Until next time.....

A Night at the Zoo

A zoo visit at night??  What???  The Brookfield Zoo celebrates Christmas by placing lights on just about anything and everything, well, not the animals, but everything surrounding the animals is lit up like a Christmas tree (a very lame joke).  My grandson Brandon and his wife Hilary (my granddaughter-in- law) and I made a date earlier in the week to take in the lights at the zoo on Wednesday evening.  The weather forecast has been pretty much the same day after day here, no snow but chilly so Wednesday night it was.  I drove to their apartment and then from there we walked to a lovely restuarant close to their place.  They live in a really cool neighborhood, everything within walking distance - parks - shopping - restaurants - Trader Joe's (yeah!!) the train.  Strolling back we stopped in a couple of shops, eyed the sales and then off to the zoo we drove.

The amaryllis in their apartment had just bloomed a couple of days before....isn't it gorgeous!!

Charlie was really happy to see me when I arrived, but not so happy when he knew we were all leaving, so he gathered his toys in anticipation for our return. 

It was really dark strolling thru the zoo, they had all of the main lights turned off to illuminate the Christmas lights but it sure made picture taking quite a challenge.  It was so dark you had to watch your every step, so dark that you could easily run smack into someone and not see them until it was too late, so dark that seeing animals was almost impossible.   A wipe-out between me and a baby stroller was definitely a possibility if I didn't watch my every step.

The zoo had several added attractions for Christmas celebration, one was a ice sculpturer.  Have you ever seen this before??  He just goes at it with a chain saw and the results are stunning.

The children's petting zoo houses llamas and when we walked in, the not-so-groomed female on the right was very agitated.  She paced, snorted, jumped, bucked, and paced some more.  I think I figured out her agitation, the dandy looking one on the left was all duded up for Christmas, obviously going out on the town and she wasn't invited.  Probably would have agitated me too.

The last place we stopped was the aquatic center, dolphins were swimming on their backs (is that how they sleep I wonder, must look that up), penguins were all snuggled in their holes, but a few were still moving.  This hermit crab was walking across the glass like he was looking for a way out.  A way out of the tank or a way out of that shell he carries around all the time??, not sure. 

And lastly this colorful totally accessorized "thing".....I am not sure what this is, I failed to read the wonderful printed signs that give us all valuable information about what we are seeing right before our eyes, but I was sooooo interested in taking it's picture that I failed to find out the what??  It has been far too many years to recall any biology info I may have learned at one time.   This "what" brings to mind one of my favorite quotes from the movie "Steel Magnolias" with Julia Roberts, Sally Field, Olympia Dukakis, Shirley McClaine, Dolly Parton & Darryl Hannah (if you haven't seen it, rent it, it is the PERFECT chick flick movie)  when Clarisse (played by Olympia Dukakis) says...."the only difference between us and the animals is our ability to accessorize"  but this "what" really knows how to accessorize. 

I am wishing that your New Year will be totally accessorized with blessings and joy.

"Never mistake knowledge for wisdom.  One helps you make a living; the other helps you make a life."    ~   Sandra Carey

Linking up with Deb.....






Until next time......

The Zoo Story

Yesterday I checked one off my bucket list....the San Diego Zoo.  I have only been in California twice in my entire life, the first time about 12 years ago when I was here we went to the San Diego Wild Life Park but secretly really wanted to go to the zoo.  So now on my 2nd trip I went to the zoo.  And what a great day it was.  Be sure and make a note that the Tuesday after Thanksgiving is the absolute best time to go to the zoo.  No crowds, no waiting anywhere in the park, perfect.  And I guess I should mention that the weather was perfect too, partly sunny and in the 70's.  Don't ya just hate it when it is freezing cold and snowing where you are and somebody says (brags) "oh, it's 70 and sunny here".  Sorry, couldn't help it now that I am in that area that is in the 70's and sunny.  My son, Lane and I acted almost like a couple of kids, we both love zoos.  We went everywhere, saw every animal, and enjoyed every minute.  But it was not a cheap day.  Tickets were $40 a piece.   And lunch which consisted of 2 wrap sandwiches, 2 bags of chips, a small plate of cookies and 2 drinks added up to another $40.  At the lunch check-out counter I gasped when she said $40.....and I thought prices were bad in Chicago.  Oh well, it's only money, and I don't expect that I will ever be back to the San Diego Zoo again.  Now here is my collection of shots from the San Diego Zoo.....

The giraffe is one of my favorite animals.  They are so beautiful.

The Koala Bear, most of them (all 9 of them) were asleep in the trees.  This one was the only one moving and with his eyes open.  They are adorable animals.

Look at that face.....



The camel...this guy's hump was leanin' a little...

These two were having a strange love-affair....

 This orangutang is still quite young and still acts like a kid....while we were there he put that branch on top of his head. 

Interesting ducks......

This looks like a sparrow, but I am going to pretend it is some rare exotic bird....

Thirsty!!

How would you like to wake up and that yellow eye be looking right at you??

A Condor....ugly, ugly bird and BIG

Mother and child hippos....  Ever wonder how hippos go potty??  In the water ofcourse.....true, I saw it happen.  That was probably information you didn't need to know, but I felt the need to share. 

 Some kind of ugly hog type animal....

 Unusual monkeys...

Open up and say ahhh......

Flies were definitely bothering the kangeroo....

Flamingos.....they are prettier here than on people's front yards.....

Great White Heron landing on a Palm Tree....

What a fun animal the Panda is....he was quite a ham.  

The Polar Bears were out and eating while we were there....

Tigers...one is from Africa the other is from India, don't ask me which is which....

llama...llama

A yellow head woodpecker....well I never!!??

Another totally cool animal....love those zebras

Just a little of the flora and fauna found at the zoo.....

Spotted this church off in the distance when we rode the sky car across the zoo.  Looks quite beautiful...

And finally, another hummingbird, not in a cage.....

A great day, one that I will remember for a long long time.

"You never know when you're making a memory."  ~  Rickie Lee Jones

Until next time.......