My Favorite Photos - June 2019

June went by so quickly. It started out with Olivia and I going on a hike at Interstate State Park in Wisconsin on June 1st - a free-admittance day to state parks. We had never been to this park so we enjoyed driving around and hiking.

There were interesting rock formations left by glaciers. The one below looked like a person (near the top)...or at least we thought it did.

Some of the rocks were huge. I had Olivia stand between a couple of rocks to give a size comparison. She is about 4'9" - so they're tall rocks.

On June 3rd, the tulips were still blooming. There were some purple ones under the pine trees - though I think a mole ate the majority of the bulbs I planted. Aspen is relaxing on what was the limited amount of grass in the backyard. Over half the backyard, at that point, was mud, dirt, and straw thanks to the fire and flooding we had in May and June 2018; and all the construction vehicles that dug up the yard.

The 3rd also marked the day we got two dump trucks of black dirt delivered; and one dump truck full of recycled cement/tar/sand for the driveway. Cooper isn't sure what to make of the big piles of dirt.

On June 6th and 7th, we laid 280 rolls of sod. It covered most of the area that was dirt and mud.

A week later, we laid the remaining 140 rolls of sod. It was very hard work. 

We were basically incapacitated after each day of laying sod. Ice packs and Ibuprofen were necessary for us to use just to get the backyard finished.

Sophia and I took a SAORI weaving course at the art center. We've taken quite a few together now. This time she wanted to make a scarf, so she used blues and greens.

This month also was a month that Sophia received multiple scholarships. The hard work that she invested in writing and submitting them paid off, and her first year of college now is paid for through scholarships, grants, and work study. She was able to decline one loan and may be able to decline a second one - meaning her first year she will have NO student loan debt!

Some of the scholarship providers had special events to congratulate the winners. One of them, through a local hospital, had a very nice event - complete with a cake. Sophia's name is in the bottom row - second from the left.

My sister and her son; and Sophia, Olivia, and I went to Burnet Dairy Days. This was a fun free event that had a TON of samples. They had a wide variety of cheeses, ice cream cones, pizza, sandwiches from their restaurant, pop, milk, and more. We all said that we would go back again next year.

Later that day, we went to the humane society where Sophia played the harp for the dogs waiting to be adopted.

One, in particular, was very attentive when it came to listening to harp music. Bear, the dog, was so adorable and polite. He was fascinated with the harp.

Another dog, Goo-sul, was one of the dogs who was rescued from the South Korean meat trade. He was a very affectionate dog who wanted to be right next to me. I really enjoyed spending time with these two dogs. There was another one, too, who had a huge grin her face the entire time. I've never seen a dog smile as big as she did.

By June 18th, the robin had laid four eggs in the nest and was spending time sitting on the eggs. Periodically, she would fly off and then return...perhaps to eat. By July 2nd, the babies had already left the nest. I looked it up and found out that babies are ready to fledge two weeks after they are born.

This is an odd photo to include in "favorites" for the month. It's Sophia the day after her surgery to get her wisdom teeth out. The surgery was a very complex one. The oral surgeon said that on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most complex, her procedure was between an 8 to 9. Of course. Things can't be easy.

She bravely dealt with the pain which was more intense than a normal procedure. She has two ice packs on either side of her face and a blanket over her face since she head a serious headache. The recovery time is 4-6 weeks, so she should be in better shape by mid-July to early-August.

A major change this month was the painting of the barn. This is one of the last major projects that was part of the fire damage/rebuilding process. Since May 5, 2018, we have either looked at a burned barn or a barn that had primed boards on it. This is the before photo when the guys started working on it during the third week of June.

This is a photo of it after it was done. What a change! I cannot even begin to tell you how uplifted my spirits are when I look outside at the painted barn. I don't think it has ever looked this good. Seriously.

We've been seeing a lot of does and fawns recently. For some reason, they are walking around and crossing the roads during the day. These little twins were grazing by the side of the road. The mother was nearby in the woods watching them. After a few quick photos, they ran back into the woods to their mother.

Another thing we are seeing a ton of are little American Toads. Every summer, we see hundreds of these for a while. I looked up some information about these little toads. On Ask a Naturalist, I found out that these "newly metamorphosed toadlets...are so tiny compared to the adult toads. We don’t for example, see mini-bullfrogs.

"The tadpoles of many species of the genus Bufo (what most people consider to be the “true toads”) metamorphose at a very small size, often all at once, and then disperse. If you live near a pond or lake or stream where the tadpoles are common, you might all of a sudden see dozens or even hundreds of these tiny toadlets for a few days, and after that, see them only occasionally."

During the fourth week of June, we scrambled to get the final touches on the yard and home since we were hosting Sophia's high school graduation party on June 29th (which also happened to be my birthday).

Despite a 95-degree day with high humidity and dewpoint, we had a great turnout. People stayed to eat a meal; talk with neighbors, friends, and family; and look at the gardens and repairs made after the fire. This is Sophia by her cake. She picked purple and silver for her homeschool colors.

Larry and Maureen are family friends who made the trip up from Winona. They knew my parents since the 1960s; and would have been my parents had something happened to my parents when I was a minor. So, having them at both the graduation ceremony last month and the party this month meant a lot to me. They are closest people I have to parents since both of mine no longer are living (they died in 2012 and 2015).

One of the gifts that Olivia and I made for Sophia was a money cake. I saw the idea on Pinterest and wanted to make one for Sophia. It was a rather time-consuming project, but she really liked it.

I also gave her this gift card/money wreath. The gift cards are to places near where she will be attending college in the Fall. The extra money is to give her a bit of spending money on campus or if she goes out.

In closing,  as I look back on June, I'm so happy when I think about the flowers that were blooming around our farm. The lavender has been doing well.

These are flowers that are in a container with moss roses. They bloom prolifically.

We planted a lot of purple flowers since that was one of the colors Sophia picked for her homeschool colors. The catmint, below, is attracting bees.

The shrub rose is doing well this year. There are quite a few red buds on it.

This is an annual that I found unusual. I love the hundreds of tiny white petals and the circular center.

More flowers are ready to bloom in July. I'm looking forward to seeing how the flower gardens change during the upcoming month; and how colorful they will become.

My Favorite Photos - September 2018

During September, I had quite a few favorite photos. These aren't ones that are artistically skilled in terms of photography. Rather, they represent activities and events I was involved with; and/or memories of things that we did as a family.

On September 1st, a group of volunteers that I coordinated from the Lions, Leos, and community planted bushes and perennials at two corners of an intersection in town. It turned out well, and we received a lot of positive feedback from the community.

On Labor Day, we saw Crazy Rich Asians. What a great movie! 

Afterwards, we went to Dairy Queen. We go there every year on Labor Day. It marks the end of summer for us and the transition to the new homeschool year.

The first week of September, Sophia applied to one college. Within a few weeks she heard she was accepted and received generous merit-based scholarships.  During the third week of September, she applied to another college (also one of her top choices) and heard within two days that she was accepted!

The first weekend in September, there was a big community event. I was responsible for the coordination of the vendors. There were 47 vendors this year (up from 19 in the previous year). One of organizations that was there was the Wildlife Science Center. They brought this beautiful owl.

The day after the community festival and parade, we went to another community parade. There were a lot of floats, marching bands, and people throwing candy.
.

On Friday, September 14th, the farrier was here to trim the horses' hooves. In the process, while Sophia was holding the lead line, her middle finger got stuck in a metal loop as Bailey jerked her head up. There is a clean, diagonal break. It was buddy-taped in Urgent Care that day; and then examined closer and re-taped a week later by an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in hands. 

Because she plays the harp and piano, the surgeon did not want to do surgery on her finger and put pins in it to set the bone. There would be a loss of feeling and sensation in that finger which would not be good. 

So, although the experience was not a "favorite" one, what I (and Sophia) found interesting was the x-ray and how the bones look within her hands.

September marked the first day of 12th grade and PSEO courses for Sophia; and 10th grade for Olivia. How quickly the time has passed.

With senior photos coming up, Sophia needed some shoes to go with her dress. Olivia had fun trying on high-heeled shoes while we were at DSW at Mall of America.

On the 16th, Sophia and I co-led a session at a local church for people who wanted to volunteer to make shoes for children in Uganda through Sole Hope. Sole Hope takes the pieces that are cut from blue jeans and sends them to Africa. Tailors and cobblers there make shoes that are given at no cost to children who have jiggers (microscopic insects that burrow in one's feet and lay eggs).

By receiving medical treatment and a pair of shoes, children go from not being able to walk, run, play, and go to school to being able to do all of these things!

Volunteers make 22 pairs of shoes and assembled 17 Care Kits that are shown below. The Care Kits are given to children and adults to continue at-home care for jiggers (to make sure they don't return). Simple things like Bandaids, cotton balls, safety pins, alcohol wipes, and Neosporin ointment are life savers for people in Uganda.

Later in the week I attended the USA/Canada Lions Leadership Forum in Columbus, Ohio. While I was there, I visited Pilot Dogs and had the opportunity to go on a walk with Rudy, the guide dog. Rudy led me safely through an obstacle course while I was blindfolded.

Not being able to see and having to totally rely on a dog to guide me through the obstacle course was quite a memorable experience!

One night in Columbus, the Lions Club president and I went out to lunch in the German Village. It was a nice meal. Both she and I had the buffet and got to sample a variety of German dishes.

On the way back to the free bus that runs throughout downtown Columbus, I noticed these flowers.

While in Columbus, I ate at North Market several times. There was a donut shop with delicious donuts, a bakery, cheese/meat vendor, Vietnamese food, and more. There were all these mini-restaurants (without seating) that you could buy food from.

Towards the end of the month, on the 26th, Sophia got her senior photos taken. It was quite the process for doing her make-up and hair (part of the senior photo package which was nice).

One of my favorite photos that I took as she was getting ready was of her wearing her Chinese headdress. 

After the shots with Sophia in her Chinese headdress and dress, she changed and the make-up artists/hairstylist took her hair down for another look. 

This photo is one that Sophia took of herself on my phone as we were driving between the photographer's studio and a park.

The park had some beautiful flowers - including the ones shown below.

There were many different places that the photographer had Sophia sit, stand, and pose for her photos.

Sophia wanted one of herself laying on the grass in the flowy dress with white roses in her hair. She said she felt like Sleeping Beauty wearing the dress and with the flowers in her hair.

By the end of the month - the 29th - the entry to our cellar was completed. The cement area around it provides easier access to the basement and helps direct rain from pooling near the home and eroding the area by the other concrete slab. Aspen is checking out the step while Danny has already explored the new concrete steps and walkway. He'll like that in the winter since he doesn't like his paws to be in the snow.

The flowers that a friend gave me are blooming well. I don't know what type they are since they are not ones typically seen in the area. They are about 3 or 3 1/2 feet tall; and are perennials.

On September 28th, we helped oversee the first three hours of the blood drive that our Lions Club hosted. Sophia is sitting with Tom, the husband of the club's president. They welcomed people when they checked in to donate blood.

While Olivia was at gymnastics on the 29th, Sophia and I went to a Booya and Bake Sale at a local church. I used to take the girls to this event when they were younger, and would purchase containers of the soup/stew to take home and enjoy during the Fall.

For $9.50, we got two big bowls of soup, coleslaw, a roll, crackers, two cups of hot apple cider, and apple crisp. It was a very filling meal.

Afterwards, we stopped at Eichtens which sells cheese, meat, and other delicious items. They had tables set up with samples of products that we enjoyed tasting. Outside the door to the store, there were containers of these pretty red flowers.

We drove around a bit looking at the first signs of the changing leaves; and then stopped at an apple orchard. We bought some apples to eat plain and then make into applesauce and apple pie. We went down by some of trees and took some photos.

I like the one below because it shows the girls smiling naturally.

By the last day of September, the milkweed pods are getting ready to dry, crack open, and release the seeds. This one I opened to see the progress of the seeds.  They are so orderly as they wait to be caught by the wind and float to a spot to start a new milkweed plant.

So those are some of my favorite photos from September. It was a great month; and one that I can look back on and know that we enjoyed living and experiencing it to the fullest.