A New Beginning: Part III

Another week has passed by, and I find myself feeling a bit better having gotten a taste of spring while exploring a new locale in the valley that family had told me about. The lovely blue skies and a bit warmer temp definitely helped raise my spirits!

Meanwhile, while we are waiting for spring to really arrive, I want to share some more winter photos from the past few years...

A bit of snow on the hillsides and trees. 

It has been an interesting winter for sure!

Christmas decor in Taft (one of the cities that make up Lincoln City). 

King Tide at Bayview. 

King Tides in Oregon take place in the winter months and are very high tides. 

(link below has more info)

This VW Bug is often decorated on the different holidays. 

I always look forward to seeing how the residents decorate it!

No parking at the RV park in Clackamette Park. 

Interesting to take photos of though. 

Each year we leave some fruit on our trees, bushes and vines. Who would have thought that robins would like kiwi? But they did and were pretty energized feasting on the hanging and fallen fruit. 

King Tide at one of the day areas at Barview County Park. The tide was so high it covered much of this area. 

Well, that's it for this week. 

Wishing you a new week of peace,  joy and love. 

Aimee

Links:

King Tide

A New Beginning: Part II

Since it seems like our "good" friend, Punxsutawney Phil hasn't been altogether honest with his forecast of an early spring this year, I might as well continue winter on this blog as well--even though every fiber of my being longs for sun, springtime and warmth! But, with each passing year, I realize just how precious every day is, and that, though some of them are gray and cold, they are still gifts to be cherished and lived to the fullest. 

Since I am so late in posting this week, I'm going to keep this post rather short. Hope you enjoy it though:)

A winter's walk at a favorite wetland :)

A fun first for me (and our youngest granddaughter) on one of our favorite beaches. 

Teepees alongside I-5 during a winter trip to southern Oregon. When I was younger my parents used to take us to Kah-Nee-Ta, a resort in central Oregon where you could stay overnight in one, ride horses and swim in their lovely warm pools. Such good memories. Sadly the resort closed this past September. 

Nation's largest black cottonwood reflected in the waters of Mission Lake, 

Willamette Mission State Park.

Wishing you all a week of joy, peace and love. 

Aimee 

A Walk Among the Irises and Columbine

Aimee was VERY bad last month. 

You see Aimee is a VERY passionate person--

especially when it comes to history. 

And, it just so happened that a LOVELY history research project developed in her mind 

early in April

and that was it...

before long I was dragging my DH to a pretty little area in the valley

and spending a WHOLE bunch of time there and

on the Internet doing research.

And, soon, very soon--

almost ALL of our allotted data time was gone. 

No data for browsing your lovely blogs,

no data to share my adventures with you. 

NO DATA. 

No.

Poor hubby. He suffered too.

But, it's a new month. 

And if I am really good, 

I might be able to catch up with my pastime of browsing blogs

and, maybe just maybe, create a few of my own. 

And if I am bad?

Well, I found a public wifi I can use :)

Here is our latest adventure...

a trip to a bit of heaven known as Schreiner's Iris Garden.

And now the photos

(data time is flying by)

Every time we go here, 

I am awed by the beauty and peace!

So MUCH variety!

Truly paradise!

Just incredible! 

My Mom would have loved it here--

she loved columbines. 

I do too and our home garden has many. 

LOVE!

A walk here always changes my focus--

it's like a breath of fresh air in the midst of a dust storm. 

A drink of cool water in the midst of a hot desert. 

I am crossing my fingers in hope that we make it back this way soon:)

A lot has happened since my last post. 

Many road trips as always. 

A trip back in time to the days of Beverly Cleary

(the object of the research project I mentioned). 

And there was unexpected news...

See ya soon!

Blessings, 

Aimee

Link:

http://www.schreinersgardens.com

(amazing, amazing place!)

Abundant Blessings

So much has happened since last I posted, but first I would like to take a moment and extend a HUGE thank you to those who left comments on the sad passing of our little Eskie gal. She will be missed for a long time always, but we have a lot of sweet memories of her and lots of photos. 

THANK YOU everyone--you are most KIND!

Now for the main reason I have been absent for a long time...and it's actually a GOOD thing, one of those blessings this post is about. Not too long after THAT sad day, my eldest son gifted me with a new little toy to play with and that is what I've been doing these past weeks....

to be honest, there were definitely some moments when it felt more like WORK than play, (that's what happens when you have to learn a totally different OS from what you have used FOREVER),  but now I am pretty good still learning to do things the Apple way and I mostly LOVE my laptop! Of course it helps to have SO much info on the web and a son that does tech support:)

Besides computer challenges and triumphs, my hubby and I have been taking a lot of day trips. We've been to beaches, bays, rivers, historical sites, lakes, wetlands and up hills. We have also been planning a few trips--some close, some further away. We'll see...

And now a few photos...I still haven't transferred any of the ones on my phones and even the most recent ones on my cameras. BUT, and this is an important but, at least I know how to transfer the photos now to my laptop and somewhat edit and organize them:):) And, as of just a few moments ago, I can actually upload them--sort of--to blogger. LOL.

 I am just SO used to doing things the other, non Apple way.

Oh well, challenges are good. I think:)
Update: my phone, the phone I was going to transfer those photos from...
well it's now decided not to respond anymore. Sigh. Good thing I had texted some of
them to my e-mail awhile back--but some photos are probably lost for good.
:(
Now on a happier note...photo time!

(Still learning this new photo editing app so bear with me please.
Suggestions welcome!)

One day we came back from a wetland area to find we had some visitors of our own. 

Apparently these guys take their "free ranging" seriously! 

Our wetlands adventures were many and we loved seeing all the geese, swans, ducks, eagles, egrets, heron and even beavers close up this winter! It almost made ALL the rain worth it (almost being the keyword here). 

Aren't they amazing? 

Beautiful on the ground, in the lake and in flight!

One last photo for now--

this is Depoe Bay on the central Oregon coast. 

The surf and sea spray was amazing that day spraying up onto the parking area...

a BIG blessing!

Yikes! I just looked at the time and it's way past bedtime. Hopefully by my next post I will have perfected the photo editing programs and can upload faster. Until then--

Blessings, 

Aimee

PS: Is everything in your yard in bloom right now? I can hardly believe it but we have roses--yes roses--in bloom! It isn't the first time, but it is still a bit shocking to see daffodils and roses all within a few yards of each other. Spring is AMAZING!

Wetlands Wednesday

Like a hawk I have been watching...

for another rain break

and

for a certain road closed by high water to reopen.

 

This week both happened

and we (hubby and I) set off towards a certain wetland I had been wanting to visit

 since I first heard about it.

 

 

When we arrived I was truly blown away by the tranquil scene before us.

It was better than a massage,

better than dark chocolate,

better than...

well at least it was better FOR ME than a whole lot of things:)

 

 

A lot of the usual feathered friends were there...

geese,

 

 

an egret

(I think he fit in well with the Oriental feel that part of the wetlands has),

 

 

 swans

(A special thank you to Teresa for reigniting my desire to see these beauties this winter!

BTW, for some amazing close ups of Mirror Lake's tundra swans see Teresa's lovely post on "her" feathered friends here:

http://teresakasner.blogspot.com/2016/01/lots-of-swans-swimming.html)

 

 

The trail around the lake was amazing--

all except for one snake who was definitely NOT hibernating

(being that this blog is a no-snake zone,

I am not posting any of the 3 photos I took of the slithery one)

 

 

The trail is mostly flat and only a tiny bit over one mile in length.

 

 

Oh, oh DH is up and foraging through the fridge in search of food.

Better go:)

 

Night all!

 

Blessings,

Aimee

Sunshine On My Shoulder Makes Me :)

Every so often a miracle occurs here in the Pacific NW.

The gray, drippy and very dreary winter skies give way to blue ones
(or at least partially blue ones)
 and...

Aimee, sick or not,

escapes to one of the many roads which -- sooner or later -- leads her to a wetland area.

You see one of the TWO things Aimee likes LOVES about winter are the numerous wetlands
and their amazing inhabitants
(the other, as you may already know, is snow, snow and more snow)!
 

Today Farmer Boy and I set off to explore a wetland I had just learned about
and another that we had driven by, but not stopped at before.

 

 

A tiny chipmunk we saw.

Perhaps his name is Alvin?

 

 

"My" beloved geese.

 

 

A mourning dove?

 

 

A hawk who likes heights better than yours truly.

 

 

A lovely snow white egret.

 

 

Guess who?

One of the major challenges was actually being able to get there...
we got turned back twice when trying to visit one of the areas I wanted to explore.
 

 

Of course, sometimes one HAS to get out even if the skies aren't blue

and we've done a little of that too. Those photos another time.

 

Blessings,

Aimee

 

Valley Views + A Very Special Blessing

You'll have to excuse me,

 but we haven't taken any interesting drives lately due to coming down with nasty colds Thanksgiving week (sometimes sharing isn't a good thing--LOL).

 

And, I haven't put up decorations for Advent yet

(of course, I should confess that I never took all of them down last year.

I like being surrounded by Christmas trees, wreaths, nisser and reindeer no matter the season).

 

No baking, no garden strolls, no special meals to share with you either.

 

Instead lots of TV, time spent catching up with Bible reading

(in Revelations now--yippee), lots of prayers, lots of changes,

some sadness, some anger, some laughter...

lots and lots of sleep...

life.

 

Anyway, today's post is just a collection of photos --

mostly from the valley I believe --

that I haven't posted yet.

 

 

Another river view from Clackamette Park. I miss these colors already.

Feel the need for some lovely, bright white snow to color my world

(or a sunny day in the mid 60s to warm me up AND color my world).

 

 

Tis the season...

love these guys!

 

 

OK, Bigfoot most likely does not walk around with one of these.

But, according to my hubby, Bigfoot does walk around here in the Pacific NW,

and he should know.

You see he saw one

 on a quiet, forested mountain road some 40 years ago--

and his story

has stayed totally consistent for the whole time I've known him.

 

What about you?

Do you think they exist?

 

 

Perfect location for a "Avoid Distractions..."sign.

Don't you think?

:)

Fortunately Farmer Boy was driving, not his VERY mountain distracted camera toting wife.

 

 

Not quite the contrast of the day before when I was west of this area and the sky was a fabulous blue!

Still a pretty scene though.

(Jonsrud Viewpoint, Sandy)

 

And now for the BIG announcement I kind of hinted at quite awhile ago.

Just so you know, there's been a bit of a change whole lot of changes since this was taken...

 

 

Yep! That's right.

Our family is about to get bigger by ONE lovely little baby girl!!!!

 

AND

 

that means we're about to become GREAT grandparents for the first time:)

(Insert happy smiles here)

 

Told you it was a VERY SPECIAL BLESSING!

 

And with that special announcement I will close for this eve...

 

 

Advent Blessings,

Aimee

 

 

Giving Thanks Down By The Riverside

Difficult challenges in life can make you sad, depressed, hopeless, angry and bitter

(been there; done that)

Or they can make you think of all the things in life you are truly and completely grateful for...

kind bloggers,

sunny days,

a pumpkin pie tempting me from our fridge right now,

a sandy beach during HIGH surf,

and...

 

 

 a certain lovely river and some of its feathered inhabitants.

Ah, yes. It is THE season for a bird lover like me:)

 

 

Just like my feathered friends at the beach,

the feathered friends here by the riverside make me smile...

 

 

cause me to admire their beauty and grace as they float with the current

or swim against it.

 

 

And their unique characteristics cause me to be filled with joy and a deep sense of wonder!

 

 

I may not like the rain of autumn

(though I am very grateful for it after months of drought),

I may not like the cold

(though there is no snow without it and I LOVE snow).

And I may hate the decrease in daylight hours...

but I look forward each autumn to seeing some of the feathered ones

who only visit us at this time of the year.

 

 

So, in my little unofficial beauty contest here,

which of the feathered ones is your favorite?

 

 

So many to choose from--

ducks, Canadian geese, pigeons, gulls...

 

 

I can't choose.

I LOVE them all!

 

Wishing you all a very blessed and joy-filled Thanksgiving no matter where you live.

 

Blessings,

Aimee

 

Photos:

Clackamette Park

(located at the confluence of the Clackamas and Willamette rivers)