Misty mornings on the meadow as winter closes in.

Oh what a face on this late fall visitor.  

Poor girl. . .  cold and alone?  Not her best side?  Having a bad day ?

She (I believe we have here a female brown headed cowbird) arrived solo at our now deserted feeder and stuck around for a couple of days. We're pretty sure she was happier than she looked after finding a full feeder and no competition.  She had some good meals before getting back underway on whatever journey she was on.  We're hoping she went on to rendezvous with her feathered friends after leaving the meadow.

( a better photo ~ her good side)

Lots of misty and frosty mornings on the meadow these days.  One day last week we awoke to a skiff of snow that lasted on the ground till about noon.  Some light flurries there and there, and winter is soon upon us.  We're just about ready too, I'd say.  A few more little jobs to finish up. We're installing a new bank of solar panels that will track the sun to give us more juice for our day to day work.  Thankfully we live in a place that gets glorious sunshine all through the year.  

...some misty morning shots ...

 and a sunny morning a few days later, the willows frosted and sparkling.

Here's to our feathered friends.  

May they all have a safe journey south

and find their way back here next spring.

Promise to a Squirrel

More later about our promise to this little critter but first some pics of the season.

Wild October skies. Sunsets captured by my darlin' David who is always willing to drop what he's doing to point a camera at the sky.

Walkabout pics (taken by both of us) 0n recent wanders around the property.

Bright bursts of Fall

and all the colours I love to wear.

O .. This tiny marvel of engineering! That's David's (rather large) hand below, cradling the nest just to put it in perspective. Ahhhh yes, Autumn.

And finally; the squirrel of aforementioned promise. We see him frequently at this crossing on the trail ~ he and his tribe. This particular day he stopped to tell us a very long story and as the two of us pointed and clicked and listened intently; I promised him I'd post his picture on our blog. Make him famous. So here he is.

Till next time little one. Be wary and Be well.

Early Fall on the meadow

O!! October! The pure and concentrated colors of the planet. The crisp air, the autumn grasses on chilly mornings and the sunsets that come earlier now! All the wondrous energies of spring and summer merge like a celebration around a big fall bonfire. It's 'Heads Up' season too ~ watching for the crack and crash of an old pine or fir tree as it succumbs to age or disease and an unrelenting wind. Flannel sheets dry on the line in under an hour in an afternoon breeze, or freeze dry!! if left out overnight. Love it all. This time of year. October.

Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns. ~ George Eliot

Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all. ~ Stanley Horowitz

August on the Meadow

Random  moments in August  ~ in no particular order.

Doe on the ridge.

Wildflowers and Yarrow somewhere along the stacked log fence.

David's patience pays off with these Heron shots

 View from the creek, across the meadow and into the blue beyond.

Bees on 'Bearic's'  Valerian 

Looking over a willow thicket and towards our front gate

a favorite place for bears

Garden posies

One late August morning there was a hard frost and we awoke to a wonderland of frozen grasses and weeds where the sprinklers had run overnight.  We irrigate with a gravity feed from the creek. 

A moment of setting sun.

Mandy with Sweet-peas : )

And now, it is September.  A glorious time of year!