06.06.10

Nest Updates

Well, today the bluebird box was empty. I could hear some bluebirds down a couple of houses, so I'm guessing the fledglings are down there somewhere. Anxious to see if they come back into our yard tonight.

The tree swallows now have eggs - six for sure. When I came to check their nest, they were not happy with me at all! I flushed one of them off the nest and as I was taking a photo, they were both swooping in and yelling at me. I love how the swallow nest looks...so warm and cozy with all of the feathers.

05.29.10

Seven Little Mouths

There are two hard-working bluebirds in our backyard. They are working non-stop to feed seven, hungry mouths.

05.22.10

New Arrivals

During the weekly nest check I discovered the eggs have hatched. Not sure if there are six or seven...one seems to be a little tucked in more than the other.

05.21.10

"Grape" Iris

I'm not sure what type of irises these are, but they smell like grapes...I love them! In the past years it seems that there's always been a late snow - just when they are opening. I lucked out this year.

05.18.10

Sunrise

I don't catch them often, but this morning's sunrise was BEAUTIFUL!

05.17.10

Iris

Well, the first iris of the season have bloomed. They are on the front of the house - where it's warmer. The purple ones that smell like grap should be opening within the next few days.

05.15.10

Still Seven

Did my weekly check-in on the bluebird box...still seven eggs. The tree swallows don't have any eggs yet, but the nest was about twice the size as last week.

We have had to clean out a few finch nests from the gutter under the deck.

05.12.10

Is it Really May?

Well, it's Wednesday...golf league...but I don't think we'll be playing golf today. We got just about an inch.

05.08.10

We Have Eggs

With the crazy weather we've been having, I have waited to check-in on the bluebirds. Today when I came up to the box, I tapped and out came the mother. I took off the top and snapped a photo...7 eggs!! Very excited to see how many hatch.

04.30.10

Swallows

About a week ago I noticed a swallow circling over the backyard, but I never say any hanging out on the deck corner...until this morning. They have officially arrived and are ready to make their home under the deck. I will be registering that nest box as well.

04.27.10

Hummingbirds!!

They come in a close second to my bluebirds. We have hummingbirds the entire spring, summer and fall...and they are CRAZY hummingbirds. They are always buzzing around, usually shooting way up in the air and then dive-bombing back down.

For a number of years I have always tried to find their nests, but have had no luck. Today the first hummingbirds of the 2010 season arrived!

04.25.10

Ear Muffs?

Well...spring in Colorado has proven itself this year. It's been crazy weather - A LOT of COLD!!! I'm hopeful that the bluebirds can stay warm. The male looked a little cold this AM.

04.23.10

At Least One Foot!!!

Well, one foot of snow was not in the forcast. All would have been well if I wouldn't have had a doctor's appointment up at Skyridge. It took me one hour to get there! I've included a photo of the lone tulip in the front of the house and a photo of I-25 on my trek north.

From under the snow I would like to wish my mother a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

04.18.10

The Beginning

As previously mentioned, I will be taking part in the Colorado Bluebird Project. Not only will I be monitoring my own nest, but I will also be monitoring several next that are on a trail around the school.

Today I had to make a few modifications to my nest box since it does not open. I was actually a little surprised to find a completed nest in the box. (And I was hopeful that my tinkering didn't disturb the nesting couple.)

I think I will have to take down the box this winter and do some repairs - or a full replacement. After six years it's beginning to show its age.

04.13.10

The Rockies

A second day at Outdoor Ed. Of course I had to pack my telephoto lens...got this shot of a marmot. The other photo is of Many and I - we missed Pikes Peak in the background, just to the left.

04.12.10

Outdoor Education

I had the opportunity to travel to the High Trails facilities with our 6th grade students. I was a little worried...spring and mountains don't always mix. We lucked out...the rain came during the night so we only had to deal with the wind.

Just thought this was a very cool tree...possibly a victim of a lightning strike?

04.11.10

Oh Deer

I usually see the deer on my way to work. There were a few along the road as I was headed to the grocery store. I'm sure they are looking forward to the some green, spring grass.

04.07.10

Easter Experiment

We all headed east to Burlington for Easter Sunday. Renee came across some creative ways to dye the eggs...which had us both hitting the Goodwill stores for silk ties. This photo represents the three "good eggs."

03.18.10

LIFE

Had the opportunity to get a sneak-peek of Discovery's new series - LIFE. It looks GREAT!! It seems to have a little different feel than Planet Earth, but the same amazing cinematography. Looking forward to watching it this Sunday!

03.16.10

Permanent Resident?

Well, we've had a pair of bluebirds around for a few days now. (I'm hopeful they're here to stay.) Chad said there were actually two pairs out back today fighting around the nest box. I hope they can all survive the cold, yucky weather we have in store.

03.13.10

Male

Caught this male hanging out on the neighbor's tree this morning. Haven't seen any action around the nest box the last several days. (I like the snow-capped Rockies in the background.)

03.11.10

Another Female

Not sure if this is the same female bluebird, but she was out cleaning herself this morning.

03.03.10

They Have Arrived!

This evening while watering my plants in the basement I had a VERY pleasant surprise...a female bluebird sitting on the nesting box fixing her feathers. I felt this was a little early, but looking back at this blog I discovered that they appeared exactly one year to the day as last year. (I'm just hopeful that this year is better.)

02.21.10

New Visitors

Late this afternoon we had several coyotes across the fairway from us. We saw one on his own and then a few minutes later there were three more headed in the same direction.

02.10.10

Fundraising for Haiti

I am so VERY proud of the students at my school, Clear Sky Elementary. The sixth grade students organized a fundraiser for Haiti and in just over a week the school raised $2800!!! Today a representative from the local Red Cross chapter came to the school for a special presentation. He shared a little about the history of the Red Cross and what they do for our community.

01.30.10

Birthday Weekend

We had a WONDERFUL weekend at my parents' house. We all went home to have a birthday dinner for my dad. And of course...there had to be wagon rides and tractor driving.

01.29.10

And the fog came rolling in...

I thought I was living in San Francisco this morning with all the fog. When I first woke up it was still dark outside and the fog was moving in from the north. When I took this photo it had started to clear.

01.27.10

Happy Birthday!

Just had to send some balloons to my dad on his 60th birthday...LOVE YOU and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

01.25.10

A Sign That's in Monday?

I was going the school taking some photos for a project and came across these Base-10 blocks scattered on the floor. They just looked like "Monday blocks."

01.24.10

Family Dinner

Tonight was the first of our family dinners for 2010. This will be our third year of dinners...thanks to Kelly's "New Year's Goal." We had a tasty dinner with chicken and beef kabobs for the main course.

01.23.10

The Rock

As we were headed out to grab a drink and dinner, the sun was shining on the rock...it looked beautiful against the blue clouds and sky.

01.22.10

Rack Them Up!

Played a little pool tonight.

01.21.10

Sunrise

It seems that I so often get sunsets, but not many sunrises. This morning the eastern sky was gorgeous!

01.19.10

Shoes

Other than the back of students' heads, this was my view for the day. We are in day one of twelve of student assessment in the lab. I'm getting LOTS of steps in and burning those calories!

01.18.10

Hand Sanitizer

Being that the tech lab is my classroom, I live with a lot of germs. While at Sam's Club I purchased a vat of hand sanitizer. It was sitting in my office with the sun shinning through.

01.17.10

Ice

Not sure why...just decided to take a photo of my ice before adding my Diet Pepsi.

01.16.10

Photos Selected

Since it's January, I obviously didn't take this photo today. (I took this photo in a wheat field by my parents' house.) Today I did learn that three of my photos were selected to represent Kit Carson and Douglas counties by the Progressive 15 organization. The photos will be used in their various print and online publications.

01.15.10

Interesting Morning

When I turned the corner and headed toward the school, there were several police cars blocking the street. At first I was afraid something had happened at the school, but I later learned that a middle school student had been struck by car. (There is a bus stop in the bus loop of our school.) We were all so relieved to hear that the students only suffered a bruise and was able to go to school that same day.

01.14.10

Dinner

We made a pizza tonight and the crust got a little out of control!

01.13.10

Warmth

Today's assignment for The Daily Shoot was to "Make a photo of something you wear to keep yourself warm and/or dry: coat, gloves, scarf, hat, you name it"

I took a photo of my scarf a few days ago, so today I took a photo of my wool gloves and hat...I will probably be needing them again soon.

01.12.10

Dessert

Here is one of my favorite new desserts. I first found the French Vanilla and then expanded out to the new flavors. We also enjoy the ice cream sandwiches. TASTY!!

01.11.10

Fruit

I LOVE those times that I crave fruit! They help me equalize those times that I crave brownies. ;o)

01.10.10

B&B Breakfast

There is a great local restaurant that began in 1899 as a livery stable in the back and bakery in the front. In 1922 the building was completed and the B&B Cafe was created. There is a great deal of history in this building and many original items still remain...including a bullet hole in the ceiling!

Today we decided to head there for breakfast...yummy breakfast burritos smoothered in green chile sauce. (We also shared a banana-walnut pancake.)

The photo is the wall and ceiling next to our booth. As you enjoy your food, you can look at the photos and articles that highlight the history of the Cafe. I love the pattern in the ceiling tiles.

Workout

One year ago today I posted a photo of my dusty elliptical. There were two reasons for the dust: our basement was getting finished and it hadn't been used. This photo is of our home gym in the basement...we love it!

Well, after one year, I am proud to announce I have lost 22 pounds! It was an up and down year...some months being better than others. I did have to take a break in July and August due to some minor foot surgery.

One of the things that really helped me stay focused and have an accurate assessment of my workouts and calorie consumption was my Body Bug. This is what the competitors on the Biggest Loser use...and I love it! I have also adjusted my thinking about food - I really evaluate if the calories are worth it or not. I still want to loose a little more weight, but it feels great to be on the right track to good health.

01.08.10

so easy

I received a copy of two differen Ellie Krieger cookbooks for Christmas. I've enjoyed making several dishes from the So Easy book.

01.07.10

Scarf

With our cold weather today, my scarf came in very handy during crosswalk duty.

01.06.10

Morning Clouds

Today actually began with sun and some beautiful clouds...but the fog, ice and cold quickly moved in. We have a trace amount of snow, but it's been snowing more this evening. (I don't think we are supposed to get more than three inches.) On thing is for sure, it will be COLD tomorrow - the high is supposed to be 14 degrees.

01.05.10

Cords

The story of my life...and this is only a small fraction of them. While waiting for a computer to boot up in the lab today, I just noticed all of the cords. I think the neutral colors of everything except the orange hard drive caught my eye.