Spring 2014 - Hooray!!

Sunshine, grass growing, sprouts sprouting, flowers blooming, birds chirping- must be Spring! (And since summer has actually arrived,  I'd best get this blog post done, eh?)

First day of spring.

We must have a glass of wine and a fire in the fire ring..

Hmmm on second thought....

Lets admire the fire from the warmth of the bedroom. Spring does not equal warm.

There are signs of spring...daffy buds.

Daffodil in bloom

More signs of spring..black elderberry shoots.

Primroses

New leaves - plant name?

Pear treecoming back to life

Peony coming up

Robins

White daffodils.

One of April's high lights was a trip to Tofino, on the east coast of Vancouver Island with 6 of my painting buddies. This view is on the dive in.

More of the drive in. look at the size of that log in the back ground!

Lunch stop at Coombs and bit of shopping for art supplies we didn't need.

Artists don't travel light.

Perry painting on Chesterman's Beach - near the house we rented.

Sky over the beach...perfect painting inspirations.

Judi and Linda reflected.

Back at the house..cooking,

Community Scrabble game...people played as the spirit moved them.

Eating,

Wine-ing

Frolicking.

In nearby Uclulet taking a walk along the coast. Photoing inspirations spots, of which there were many.

Skunk cabbage..looks pretty, smells bad.

Random note stuck in a tree along the walk.

More painting inspiration,

And more.

Not so inspiring to paint.

Lots of trees with beautiful shapes

My favorite.

Proof that we really did do some painting.

My Mom and Dad's hat hang in our sun room/mudroom and I think of them every time I come indoors.

A stunning sky and clouds..the view is always interesting and lovely.

Table set for Easter dinner. Eggs are from across the street and not dyed..they come that way.

The kids table

Aine and Saoirse at their table

Having a hilarious time with after dinner cheers

What do you mean we have to calm down?

Lovely empty nest in the woods.

My fava beans are coming up!

Mama hummer in a nest at Mia and John's.

Tea pot decor on our fence

Cormorants in Campbell River. If you read the book Ping, these are the fishing birds whose necks had rings around them so they couldn't swallow their catch and instead 'gave' them to the fishermen.

Now and then we do have rainbows off shore. This one was particularly beautiful and stayed around a long while.

The hummingbirds discovered our feeder and have given us hours of delight. The feeder is near the deck and  right outside the guest bathroom window so we can observe them very closely. Bear with me while I share some of my favorite shots taken mostly from the yard and deck. I love the bird shadow in the window.

Another neat shadow

Taking a sip

Checking me out?

Sitting on  holly branch. They sit more than I realized.

The photo club went on a shoot to a couple of nearby farms. The baby pigs were adorable.

Barn and woodpile

Great idea...plants in old work boots.

Shaggy cow,

Shaggy cow's feet..looks like she had a pedi.

My favorite..they look like they are saying what are you and why are you here?

Buck collecting oysters most of which which we will freeze to use later.

Sea lions having a good old time out in front of our house.

It may still be chilly but the grass is growing and the Buck is weed beating and mowing.

May First and our first party in the garden.

May is a great month for eagles. Here are 3 bad boys on the beach.

Someone has moved into our bird house. We think it is a type of wren.

On my way home from the store I drove up beside these ducks out for a stroll.

Mighty master of the rock.

Mia and I went on a field trip with Aine and Saorise's school. I especially love this photo of Saoirse and the little boy.

One afternoon this young fellow flew into the yard to see what we were doing.

Beautiful, horrible invasive Scotch Bloom. Sadly the first plants were sent here from someone in Hawaii. They were sent to someone who was missing the gorse in Scotland. Imagine!

Signs of the planting season..my geraniums out in the sun, potting soil and my gumboots.

Plants ready to be put in the garden or in pots.

More plants looking out at their new home.

Had to add one more hummer photo. This is from the throne in the bathroom. Instead of a book I take a camera with me these days.

Buck doing a presentation about his Biker Buck 50-50 ride at the Hariot Bay Inn Pub. He did a great job and it was good fun.

Truck loaded and we are off to Oregon again. This time, a new route via Horseshoe Bay, North Vancouver.

Look at the size of the truck they are loading.

Um, is that a hearse on the left?

Ferry with Howe Sound behind it. Whistler is up north somewhere.

Beautiful new Port Mann Bridge in Vancouver. It is a toll bridge but nowhere is a tool booth  or information about paying the toll. Luckily our friends sent us a website. Ah, one pays online. But if you don't pay right away you get a fine. How's a person to know? We hear the locals exit the hwy, avoid the bridge and then get back on the hwy. This has  caused a large traffic problem. Somehow I think there is a flaw in this system. Still it is a beauty of a bridge.

Mother's Day at Thad and Jessica's. Lovely Linda and Jessica.

Mother's Day dinner on the patio.

Boys with toy swords at the park = trouble. 'Twas a very short lived game.

1-2-3 jump.

Thad's first tree.

And the second tree. Landscape at the Young Laird's is looking up.

Diner at Alan's Mexican Restaurant with my two guys. They can't take their eyes off me..ha, the ball game on TV has them captivated. They didn't know I was there. Next time they sit with their backs to the TV.

It's a bubble gun and he's deciding whether or not to shoot me. Wise kid, he decided not to chance it.

The sprinkler is out of its winter quarters.

When you have allergies and you need to mow, you get creative.

Deedo and his boy.

Heading home along the Olympic Peninsula. It is always a beautiful and interesting drive, no matter what the time of year.

The monkey in the rafters of the Black Ball ferry seems to have gained a friend.

Celebrating birthdays of 4 friends at the stunning Tsa Kwa Luten Lodge on Quadra

Part of the group.

Cate -lovey inside and out.

Hooray for Quadra's May Day - celebrated at the end of May. This year's theme was the Vikings. Hat sitting on the firetruck.

The RCMP and bagpiper leading the parade.

One of the floats

Princess Ruby in the Royal Court float

Viking firefighter

The crowd following the parade to the Rebecca Spit field.

Look the other way and serenity is there

Blasted tent caterpillar returned. Buck sprayed the trees with BTK - an environmental and human/animal safe spray that is absorbed by the leaves and kills the caterpillars when they eat those leaves. It worked but we should have sprayed earlier.

All dressed up for the opening of the small gallery at the Southend Winery which is across the street from us. I had a painting accepted in the show - my first ever. Very exciting.

Later - me and my painting. Its title is Boats Have Memories Too.

The call for art was: The Jane Dee ll and the decline of the fishing industry.  This is the Jane Dee ll where she sits in the bushes on the road down to our ferry. She's a popular inspiration for painters and photographers..

Whew! That is all for now...next up will be June and July. Hopefully I get to the Blog before August so it isn't as lengthy.