I heart U

We had a fun family day yesterday. The kids and I went out to play in the snow...sledding and snowfluff fighting (to dry for snowballs!). My daughter wrote this giant message for her boyfriend before we called it quits on the snow and went inside to make hot cocoa and sugar cookies. Fun day.

Golden Tulips

One of my favorite things each spring is the display of tulips around my home. There are hundreds of bulbs mixed in with daffodils, hyacinths, and irises and the display is gorgeous.

Southwick Grade

I think I have also heard this called the Orofino Grade. This is a shot taken as we went down the grade from Southwick, past Dworshak Dam, and into the small town of Orofino. It is quite a drop with some very dramatic views, a nice twisty motorcycle road, and plenty of road hazards in the way of local wildlife...everytime we have used this road, we have seen (or very narrowly avoided) some sort of critter. One time it was a group of about 30 wild turkeys which was pretty cool.

Orange beauty

How about a bright spot of color today? With our winter wonderland outside right now, I thought I would share yet another of my poppy photos. By now you know how much I love them!

Birds in the Maple tree

Today I did a bit of birdwatching. It was a relaxing day. :) I first noticed the birds in the crab apple tree next door and posted about them on my Palouse Daily Photo blog. Then I noticed a few of these birds in my Maple tree. I am not sure what kind any of them are, but they were fun to watch.

Man's best friend

There is no doubt that my husband loves his dog. None. We have been blessed to have her in our lives for the past nearly 14 years. She is starting to show her age...the hearing is gone, getting up and down isn't so easy...you know how it is. I am just hoping she has a few more good years left in her. This time of year is her favorite...romping in the snow with her 'kids' is something she can still do and have fun.

Yellow daisy

I am feeling a bit 'cold' today...there is a near total whiteout outside my windows, and more snow on the way, so this nice warm looking flower was my pick for the day...no pun intended!

Finally a moose!

Ok, so the photo is awful...blurry and ill composed, but hey, it's a Moose! What is so impressive about a moose you might ask? Well, when we moved to Idaho about 8 years ago, it was my fondest desire to see moose...they are my favorite animal, after all. We lived in Troy, which has moose frequently seen meandering about town, eating the farmers crops, and chasing (and ramming) school buses. Not a difficulty to see a moose...just not when I would have my camera with me!

Fast forward to this past summer. My hubby and I were on a motorcycle ride, two-up. He rides a Kawasaki Ninja and one of our favorite things to do anytime there is not ice on the road, is go for a bike ride. So we headed out for an entire afternoon, just the two of us. Just as it was getting dark, I saw a moose. Camera in hand from the back of a moving bike I took shot after shot in desperation that one might turn out. The light was gone and it was pretty dark, so I didn't have much hope. Then we stopped and turned around...and so did the moose. So we turned around again and so did the moose. Finally we stopped and sat in the middle of the road so it wouldn't be afraid to cross and when it did, we went ahead on our way. I got home to ONE picture that had enough light and not too much blur. But hey, it's a photo...of a MOOSE!

Ice stems

When the snow was finished with us, these branches from my Lilac trees looked beautiful. We didn't get nearly the amount of snow that was predicted...never trust the weatherman, they are just guessing! We did get about 3" though which was plenty for having a bit of fun in. The kids stayed out nearly 2 hours sledding yesterday and came in with bright red cheeks, ready for cocoa! Today it is a balmy 9°, but sunny which is nice.

Steptoe Butte

One of our favorite rides to take with our local motorcycle group is this one up to the top of Steptoe Butte. It is a nice ride through the rolling wheat fields of the Palouse and then a nice spiral one lane road to the top of Steptoe. It was a gorgeous fall day and the visibility was amazing. This photo shows the beginning of the road into the park. In the trees there are some nice picnic areas and they are often empty. I posted more about Steptoe in this post on my Palouse Daily Photo blog.

Playful pups

A few years ago we had a pair of Shih-Tzu's who produced several delightful litters of puppies. These three beautiful pups were lucky to be born in the spring and were so much fun to play with outside where they would race and frolic until finally they would collapse against the nearest human for a much deserved rest. Cute little bundles of love and energy to be certain!

Emily's Journey

In 2001 I was pregnant with my first gestational surrogate baby, Emily. When she was born in 2002, I made this Postage Stamp Trip Around the World Quilt for her. It is made up entirely of 1" squares and is, I think, the best quilt I have ever done. Emily's parents are my good friends and live in Australia, so this surrogacy journey was indeed a trip around the world for them...twice!

Road Trip! Seattle - The Museum of Flight

Road Trip! Seattle - The Seattle Museum of Flight was our last stop on this trip. What a fascinating place, and lots of history contained in this building...even a flight capsule from one of the space missions if remember correctly. We also got to step onboard one of the old Air Force One presidential airplanes. I believe it was the one from the Eisenhower-Nixon administrations and certainly isn't anything like the current ride our president enjoys. The kids reallyhad fun playing the flight simulation games and sitting in an old F/A-18L Hornet .

Road Trip! Seattle - Seattle Aquarium Dragons

Road Trip! Seattle - After the Space Needle and the Science Center, we headed over to the pier and visited the Seattle Aquarium. Next to the tidal pool exhibits, the leafy sea dragon (Phycodurus eques) tank was my favorite thing to watch. They are so delicate and graceful! We spent a very nice 3 hours viewing all the tanks and the outdoor displays as well. The salmon ladder here is world famous and there are many viewing areas both above and below to see the native fish.

Road Trip! Seattle - Science Center Orchid

Road Trip! Seattle - This photo is a bit grainy, but I still love it because the orchids looks so translucent and delicate. These were also at the Seattle Science Center.

Road Trip! Seattle - Science Center Moth on the Cobblestones

Road Trip! Seattle - Outside the Science Center it had just stopped raining...rain...in Seattle...imagine! hahaha Anyway this guy wasn't inside the atrium, but I thought him just as worthy of a photo. I imagine he had come down to the ground for a drink.

Road Trip! Seattle - Science Center Dino Bones

Road Trip! Seattle - Inside the Seattle Science Center they had this great T-Rex display. He doesn't seem as terrifying as one might imagine from the movies although I am sure they were nothing to mess around with at the time! I was just expecting something a bit...bigger.

Road Trip! Seattle - Science Center butterfly garden 2

Road Trip! Seattle - Another photo from inside the butterfly garden at the Seattle Science Center.

Road Trip! Seattle - Science Center butterfly garden

Road Trip! Seattle - We visited the butterfly garden at the Seattle Science Center which was pretty nice. These lucky butterflies get a nice climate controlled atrium to avoid the cold and dreary weather outside. I remember the camera I was using at the time I snapped these photos...a point and shoot Olympus that I beat the heck out of until it died a sad death on a concrete floor. I look at these and wonder how much better they could be with my new baby.

Road Trip! Seattle - KOMO helicopter

Road Trip! Seattle - From the top outside walkway of the Space Needle, you can see all of Seattle. The KOMO 4 News Building is just below and I thought it looked like a giant clock up there at the top with the helicopter blades for hands, so of course I had to snag a photo. The kids really thought it was cool that they could see it so well.

Road Trip! Seattle - The Space Needle

Road Trip! Seattle - In the winter of 2002, right before Christmas, we met my mom in Seattle and spent a few days being tourists. We visited the Space Needle and were surprised to find Santa ensconsed in the viewing room waiting to hear what we all wanted for Christmas. It was an incredible day for this photo.

Little Monkey

My middle son is happiest when he is climbing or hanging from something. During the summer he can most often be found out back in one of our apple trees. Here we had gone to the park and he immediately found the monkey bars. Now all he needs is a banana!

Fragrant Bloom

Can't you almost smell the fragrance? This is a rose from my very own rose bed. I have 30+ plants but this one is the one I love most because it has the most amazing scent and just the lightest tinge of pink on it's petals. The flowers are a very good size as well, but they don't last long once cut which is a real shame.