Wildlife Wednesday....July 2014...

Tina over at  My Gardener Says...

has started a new meme.

She's hosting 

Wildlife Wednesday, 

the first Wednesday of each month.

We have a lot of wildlife here.

From tiny bugs, to large four-legged critters.

There is always an abundance of wildlife.

We're never without the ever present deer.

Among the other four-legged creatures....

This little possum was in the cat's bed, on the porch.

And, the battle with the squirrels continues.

As it does with the raccoons.  Sorry, no photos of them or the armadillos.

There are lots of birds....

Cardinals, and Titmouse (is more than one Titmouse, Titmice?)

and lots of Sparrows....and, more.

A Green Heron, thinking he's hiding.

And this month, we've seen more of the Egytian Geese around.

I think maybe they've decided this might be a good place to live.

And the very efficient clean-up guys...

Black and Turkey Vultures. 

And, this guy wasn't in our garden.

But, we've seen them around here.

This one was in Lake Texana, east of Victoria.

Our daughter and family are camping there, 

and we went down to spend the day.

We didn't see any of the alligators.

But, that's ok. 

 At least we don't have alligators here.

I'll have more to show you next month.

Be sure to visit Tina, and see what others have to show.

What kind of wildlife do you have in your garden?

***********

'Til later...

Take care..

~~Linda~~

Traffic Woes....

Ah....the woes of getting caught in a traffic jam.

We were clever enough to get to just west of Denver, 

on the Saturday of Labor Day weekend.

Well....at least there was something pretty to look at.

And, plenty of time to to look at it.

But, even in more remote places, there are traffic jams.

Getting up early to head out to Lamar Valley in 

Yellowstone National Park, 

to see if we could see some wildlife.

Even early, sometimes you catch up with the 'traffic'.

These guys weren't too interested in hurrying.

You don't want to push the issue with them, though.

An auto wouldn't have much of a chance, if this guy gets a case of

Road Rage.

Happy Gardening...

~~Linda~~

This and That for Thursday...

Remember the old John Fogerty song....

'110 in the Shade'?

Well...it's not quite that here.

But, close enough.

That old sun is beating down.

Barely any breezes blowing.

But, hey...it's August and it's Texas.

It's expected.

It does seem, the older I get, the harder it is to handle the heat.

With  Mr P's help, we got part of the New Project done.

The mulch is down on this part.  Native grasses are planned for here.

We put wire around part of the old Rock Bed.

I need to clean it out and will plant some of those 

'deer resistant' (ahem) plants, that our deer like to eat.

Ones that require more sun than the Fenced Yard supplies.

This part will be planted with salvias.  Very low water plants.

Can you tell I've neglected this bed?

The part between the large rock and the bucket is new bed.

It'll need some amending.

But, when it's already 80F when you get up in the morning,

projects move pretty slooooowly.

You do a lot more sitting in the shade, than digging in the dirt.

While I was sitting, I noticed this Hyacinth Bean had taken hold in a Live Oak.

Now the Oak is blooming purple.

While you're here, I'll show you one of my new toys.

I put a Coke can on it, to give you some perspective.

It is 'toy-like', right?

The heaviest part is the rechargeable battery.

Not big, but it gets our tiny piece of lawn mowed.

If we don't get some more rain soon, we won't have to worry too much about mowing.

In the mean time, we'll keep putting out water for the wildlife,

dragging hoses around, and staying in the shade.

Hope you have the weather you want, wherever you are.

'Til next time...

Happy Gardening...

~~Linda~~

Speaking of wildlife,

I did a short post, over at my photo blog, about these.

Pinedale, Wyoming....

Recently, we took a road trip,

 to visit our daughter and her family,

in Wyoming.

Yep....she moved again.

This time, to 

Pinedale, Wyoming.

It's another one of those places we never knew was there.

We headed into Wyoming on the interstate...I-80. 

We had almost the whole state to cross.

A lot of wide open spaces.  High desert foothills.

and LOTS of snow fences.

Hmmm....the signs must be right.

Sometimes these roads are closed, due to snow.

Heading north, we could see our destination.

Snow topped mountains.

What a contrast in landscapes.

Pinedale is a small town, at over 7000ft elevation.

How's that for a view down Main Street?

Surrounded by mountain rivers and lakes, 

it's no wonder there are several fly fishing shops.

And, being cattle country, there are, of course, Cowboy Shops, as well.

It's a small town, but there are lots of things to see.

The Pinedale Aquatic Center, is fairly new.  Lots of activities inside.

There are new schools.

And, a very nice visitors center.

The Mountain Man is celebrated here.

In fact, the Rendevous starts next weekend.

Celebrating the historic days of fur traders, 

Native Americans, and everything to do with 

Mountain Men.

The mountains and lakes are just beautiful.

Above, is one of the Green River Lakes, with Squaretop Mountain

in the distance. 

The wildflowers were wonderful.

I have a lot of photos of ones I don't know the names of.

Pine Creek runs right through town.

And, right behind the lodge, where we stayed.

Rivera Lodge & Bed and Breakfast

It's a cute, comfortable little old fashioned lodge,
just a couple blocks from our daughter's house.
It's been around since 1952.

We were lucky to get Cabin #2.
It's a one bedroom cottage, that backs up to the creek.

On Sunday mornings, in summer, the guests are treated to
a pancake breakfast.  It's an old-time tradition at
Rivera Lodge.

Emi, the owner, mans the grill, over an open fire.

The morning was chilly, but good, hot coffee helped that.
The breakfast was hearty and delicious.
All the breakfasts we had were great.

Bird, is the resident 'Meeter and Greeter'.

And, a pancake lover.

And, another visitor....Horning in on breakfast..(haha....sorry),
was this bull moose.

I think he was the same bull we saw the night before at our daughter's house.

Now, how many times does a moose show up for breakfast?

We liked it so much, we have this cabin reserved in September.
No. 2 was booked.  But, all the cabins are cute and comfortable....
and, close to the grandkids.


I have lots more photos of our trip that I'll share later.
We had a great time.

I'll leave you with a shot of a glorious sunset.
The skies are beautiful there, too.

To the west.

And, remember to always turn around.
The sunset on the rain/snow clouds on the mountain
was spectacular.

'Til next time....

Happy Gardening...
~~Linda~~