Photographing Anika

 Sometimes this is as good as it gets when trying to get a picture of Anika! While Avery is a ham, Anika can have her shy moments.

I had a great visit with them this past week from Wednesday through Saturday. Though the weather did not cooperate we found plenty to keep us occupied. This photo was taken at the Madras Aquatic Center - a great fun water spot for kids. They also offer lessons and other activities.

We also visited Fred Meyer for groceries and lotto tickets, and a birthday cake for Kristie, Walmart for books, 7th Street Brew pub for pizza and a burger - and beer for me, a few antique shops, Costco, Sam Johnson park, and more. No fishing for Avery and Colby this trip. Too cold and too wet. It even snowed on Saturday morning.

Oh, we visited a brewing store and I got a couple of hops rhizomes. Hopefully I'll have hops growing soon. I've got a good spot picked out on the corner of the garaage. Lots of sun, a place where I can build a trellis or other support for the hops, and it will not interfere with the rest of the garden. Happy hopping!

Photos are on Picasa if you are interested.

Brady

Kathy and Brady and I went to Brookfield Zoo and had a great time. We saw lions and tigers and bears, oh my! And seals, and hippos, and giraffes, and bison, and monkeys, and apes. A fun day that wore us all out. After a stop at Portillo's for hot dogs all three of us napped at home. Nice end to a nice day.

This must have been kids day at the zoo. Or perhaps every day is kids day. They were everywhere. Tell me, why do I have to pay extra to get in to the kid's zoo - petting zoo when I have already paid to get into the zoo. And what's with having to pay $10 for parking? The Chicago Zoological Society knows how to separate visitors from their money.

First try at blogging from my iPhone with the Blogger iPhone app.

Today I'm flying to Redmond, Oregon to visit the grand kids. Should be a fun trip. Gonna see the kids too of course.

I'll add pictures and tales as I go. I am looking forward to no hay fever, some good beers, time with my son, and more. Hopefully there will be some good photo ops along the way.

Early Spring

Today was another warm one - over 80 once more. Sharon and I went over to the Arboretum to see what was blooming - this was in the East Woods section. I always enjoy this area in the spring for its early spring understory blooms. I thought today with the warmth and the blooming elsewhere that I would see blooming trillium and more. Nope. There are some trillium sprouting but they are a week or more from blooming. There were a few bright spots though - this photo shows one of them. I don't know what it is but it is tiny and pretty.

Over on the west side there were blooming trees all over as well as many daffodils in full bloom. Check out the Picasa page for samples.

During peak seasons at the Arboretum I am always amazed at a few of the drivers there. The road is wide enough for slower drivers to simply pull to the right, but few people seem to understand that and pull off the road, some rather dramatically. Others have not a clue that there are other drivers out there and will putter along at 10 miles per hour when the limit is 20 and I have somewhere I want to get to! The capper today was an old guy who pulled into a parking area but stopped in the lane to the area - not in the parking area. He blocked the road, stopped his car, got out, got his camera, and took pictures. If he had driven 20 feet more and pulled to the left or the right he would not have been a problem. But other cars had to drive over the grass to get around him and into the parking area. We share public roads with these people! Argh!!!

Though it is only the middle of March the trees, grass, birds, flowers all think it is mid April. We have blooming and sprouting going all over. Today I walked out the back gate and photographed this tree in the middle of Bremer court. The flowers and the light were very cooperative. More photos are on the Picassa site.

 My mom and dad as newlyweds in Dalhart, Texas. Dad was stationed there after Galveston. He was in the Air Corps. Mom followed him there from Galveston 'cause she didn't want to let him go. Little did she know that for a wedding present he would give her a couple of trunks. I heard about those trunks every time she got mad at him. He probably got a really good deal on them being as cheap as he was - except when it came to cars.

I've been scanning old photos this week while Sharon has been trudging through snow and slush in Juneau, Alaska.

This photo has a date on the back - December 26, 1898. From left to right: John A. Campbell, Frankie Phillips Campbell, Colby Dillard Campbell, and Aunt Sally Tramplett. I am pretty sure Aunt Sally is John's sister. This was taken in Austin, Texas. John was a pharmacist and worked on Pecan Street - which is now 6th Street and famous for its music scene. Colby was 10 years old in 1898. John died just under three years later in 1901. Frankie remarried - I found some pictures referring to her as Granny Way.

What else have I learned? Frankie is from Goliad. I've got a photo of my O'pa Colby standing by the gate to Phillip's Place in Goliad. The gate has the date of 1845 on it. John is the son of Lenora Lincecum and George Campbell. They were married in Longpoint, Texas.