Orioles taking a look inside our house 5/28/2013

Not sure what it was looking for, but it was cute when it jumped onto the fire pit on the patio and looked right into the window! 

"Hey, are all the cats inside so it's safe for me to eat?"

Stig having fun at Grandma & Grandpa's house! 05/25/2013

Samantha & Marty's dog, Stig, is visiting for the weekend at our house, and LOVES to run and chase things, even through the puddles!!  So here's a 15-second bonus video for the day of Stig.

Yesterday was a nice day for planting a field of corn! 05/25/2013

 The guy who farms the ground right around us planted yesterday.

 The sprayer went first, then the tractor...

At least they got it done!  Today, the monsoons are back!  We've already had almost an inch of rain overnight, and even though it's not raining now, it's supposed to rain on and off all weekend...

Leftover metal 05/23/2013

On the way home from Carroll (from the mom's day party at my daughter/son-in-law's house) we stopped by the 'leftover' metal from a train derailment that had happened a few days before this.

I'm sure there isn't any mess left there today, but it was interesting to see what can happen in an instant when things go wrong.

John and Alex (son) looking at all the twisted metal just as the sun was setting.

More birds and some horses, too! 05 21 2013

I should learn not to complain so much about the weather in our neighborhood when I hear about devastating tornadoes in other states.

 We've had birds visiting us lately that haven't been around in several years.  This goldfinch is one of them.

This blue indigo bunting is another bird we haven't seen recently.

 These horses are in a field we pass frequently when we head to a bigger town to shop.  They're so big and majestic-looking, and this day they appeared to have been gathering for a 'meeting'...  Then they turned towards me when we stopped to take their picture.

Orioles at our feeder 5/18/2013!

 One of my favorite things about living in the country is the 'wildlife'! 

While I don't love seeing the skunks or opossums or the coyotes near our house, the birds are fun. 

We used to get more birds when we had CRP wetlands prairie right around our yard, but that's now farmland again but the birds seem to be making their way back to our 'neighborhood'.

Mother's Day at my daughter's house!!

My niece, Michelle, with her son, Reed (on her lap), talking to Reed's cousin, Izaac, who turned 6 years old last week!  TIME FLIES!! 

That's my Uncle Charlie behind Michelle handing Reed one of Marty's 'green' toys.  (That makes Uncle Charlie a great-great uncle of Reed's!!) 

Reed is just starting to walk when he's not thinking about it. 

"Hollywood! (in mom's sunglasses) 

Reed will have his first birthday this week on the 16th.  He's such a cutie!!

Day 2 of Marshall's visit 5/7/2013

Marshall went looking for the snow patch he rolled in yesterday, but it had melted. 

So we toured the 'north 40' section of our yard.  

The damage from last year's drought is evident in several places.   Where there were deep cracks in the yard now there are muddy patches covered in dried grass.

This bush has completely come out of the ground. 

Marshall (the dog) visiting at Camp Stanhope

This is Marshall, our pastor's dog.  He's visiting us on a really nice day! 

He sniffed bunches of the yard while exploring.  He's such a gorgeous color against the grass that's so green.  

 Marshall found the only patch of snow left, and rolled in it happily for a couple of minutes.

That snow felt good under the warm sun!!

Day 2 of the May in Iowa snow, 2013!!

It had started to melt late the first day after snowing. 

But then it snowed again overnight, making the whole yard white again! 

What I didn't realize was how tall the snow was in the middle, and when I drove the van over it, it scraped the bottom of the van.  (This was about 6 pm, and I drove over it about 3:30 pm.)

This is our road at 6pm on 5/3/2013, after traffic and a little melting. 

There are some branches down in the back yard, and a new little drift.

Happy May (snow) Day!! 5/2/2013

 What a revolting development!!

 We've gotten about 5 inches of wet, heavy snow with a little slush underneath (and it's still snowing--supposed to be until tomorrow!)....

 It's been hard on the trees, but we still have power (although it's blinked off and on about a dozen times since 5 a.m.).  Notice the green grass showing in front of the pine trees?

A brown thresher seems to be hungry in the storm today.  I LOVE to hear them sing!