Remembering Mom: The Feline Edition

So we were watching a television show about baby kittens when Tate hopped off the couch and jumped up to take a closer look at the program.
He's never done that before.

He watched very intently.

We wondered how long the show would hold his interest.

The show kept going.
He kept watching.

Was he remembering his mom and litter mates?
Nostalgic for the days of kittenhood?

He would look away during the commercials.

Once the show resumed he was tuned back in again.

Eventually his bossy Aunt Frenchie came by and told him he should get down.

He batted her away and watched until the show was over.
"You are not the boss of ME!"  we could almost hear him say.

Tate also enjoys the flowers blooming outside as seen through the storm door or front window.

The backyard garden is coming alive with the spring sunshine and rain. 

This year's squirrels are proving to be a tough group.
They have taken down all three of our bird feeders.
I usually enjoy squirrel antics and don't mind an occasional raid on our bird feeders but when they started busting things up, I am not so amused.

Made me so mad I started thinking about making me some squirrel stew, if you get my drift.

I looked in both my Mennonite Girl cookbooks and didn't find a single recipe for squirrel anything.
No squirrel stew, baked squirrel or fried squirrel.
Perhaps in their next book this obvious oversight will be corrected?

I am happy to report that I did recently acquire another cook book  put together by group of not quite so pretty Christians in Louisiana that did include a great fried squirrel and cornbread dumpling recipe.
(Incidentally I would LOVE to see the Mennonite Girls and the Duck Dynasty Boys interviewed together about cooking and their Christian faith.
Now that would be interesting.
I can dream, can't I?)
I will get back to you about squirrel stew after I get Bernie to bag a few rowdy squirrels for cooking.

Tulips were awesome this year.
Even the ones that were planted several years ago out front managed to bloom.
We didn't know tulip blossoms are the most favorite food for area deer when we planted them.
Each of the past five years the tulips have just barely budded before they were neatly bitten off by the neighborhood deer.
(Several deer live in the back yard of a house in the next block.  The home owner isn't much for gardening apparently.)
These are the variety that blooms late in the season.
Each year I vow that next year I will buy hundreds of tulips next season.
Someone remind me to do that next fall, OK?

The apple blossoms are almost spent, the white petals have been blowing about the garden like confetti.

We have not had a lot of rain this spring but last Friday the rain came and brought a rainbow into my garden.

And so it goes...another mixed up mishmash blog post.
I am still busy with assessing second grade kids; they are so droll I can hardly keep from laughing out loud most days.
One question in the Science part of the assessment asks the question "What hides the sun on a rainy day?"
The child that answered "Rainbows" had me smiling for days.
I think he is lucky, like me, to live in a place where we so often do see rainbows.
And sometimes the rainbows even touch down right in our own back yards.

Fast Visit

 

Family visits are always much too short.
My folks manage to make a short visit go crazy short.
Two and a half days...not long enough!
They left San Diego on a Thursday to drive up to Salt Lake City with my Dad's Honda Trail bike. At age 89 1/2 Dad has decided he was too old for it anymore.
Dad routinely rode the Honda bike around La Jolla until just a few months ago. Parking is awful in LJ; a little trail bike make running village errands a far less taxing adventure, at least in terms of finding a parking space.
Jeff said he would buy the honda from them; Dad said he would throw it on the back of his van and he and Mom would drive it up once to SLC once spring arrived.
It was a beautiful weekend for a visit.
They arrived on a Friday afternoon; and left to drive home again on the following Monday morning.
They may be retired, but they have a very busy life.
Dad nearly drove non-stop all the way home!

A stroll around the Temple Square Garden was in order during the brief visit.
As was a few photo ops.

The great grand baby got his share of photo op attention too.

 

 

A seat in the sunshine, and then it was out for Chinese food for dinner that evening.

The bedtime routine was switched up just a bit:  "Good Night Moon" was read by Great Grandmother that night.
My Mom has spent years volunteering in school with reading programs for second graders.
I doubt Luke will ever have difficulties learning to read; he has been studiously flipping pages in board books since he was four months old, and will turn the book right side up if it is handed to him upside down.
He comes from a long line of readers.
I was glad he got to be read to by his great grandmother once again and hope they will share story times again soon, either here in Salt Lake, or there in San Diego.
Either way...it will be a really special time.

Birthday weekend

Turnin' 59 on April 14.
Bernie bought me a cake that was oh so yummy.
The candles were lit on the thirteenth.

He bought Luke a cupcake for his turning one birthday too, which actually was on  April 12.
We celebrated with him on the 13th too.

Sure, we can always celebrate together on the day between our birthdays.

Luke came home from the hospital last year on my birthday proper.
It will be hard to ever top that for a birthday present.

Still...Bernie hit it out of the ball park by taking me out for high tea after we did cake photos with Luke.
Bernie has only recently started to enjoy tea and had never experienced the pleasures of high tea.
Oh he liked it just fine.
We both did.
It was cold and rainy outside.
Inside a harpist played, and we sipped champagne, then enjoyed our tea time repast.
After a week apart, we had some catching up to do, and this was a lovely place to do it.
Last Valentine's Day I was too sick to attend a Valentine's Day tea party.
He promised me he would make it up to me.
I got to wear my Valentine's Day outfit for my birthday instead.

I did see Luke on his actual birthday.

How could I pass up a chance to spend time with that little face?

Bernie flew home late in the evening of his birthday so we went over with a birthday cupcake the next day.
The vivid frosting was declared off limits, but he did get a mouthful of cake.
All that was really important was that a first birthday with a cake and candle photo was done.
And that we have begun a tradition of celebrating our birthdays together between our two proper birthday days.
I've already decided how we will celebrate his 7th birthday.
I think he will be taking high tea with Bernie and me.
And then maybe go fishing somewhere too.
Or rock collecting.
Or mini car racing.
But definitely high tea too.