Life in the Bristolwood

I went down to the dentist yesterday…my appointment was originally for today, but when the little plastic temporary crown made to cover the post for my mini implant slipped partially off on Sunday,  I was anxious to get in a bit sooner!

On my way down to the dentist, I had a few extra minutes, so I stopped at Woodville and saw that one of the Eagles was perched in “the tree”.  I also watched as a young woman backed a small trailer carrying her kayak up to water’s edge.  She parked, walked around, then launched off on her own.  Time was a-tickin’ and I had an appointment!

I got to the dentist office and was taken in quickly.  The first order of the day was to remove the temporary. The hygienist was ready to crank it off with those dental “pliers”, but I told her it should pop right out.  She took a gentler approach and out it came with little urging or force!

The hygienist then told me she was going to scan my teeth.  Mark had this done previously for the manufacture of a crown, but it was new to me.  I was amazed as she began, listening to the computer giving her instructions on which to to scan, the surface to be scanned, and the degree at whixh to hold the “wand”.  It was funny….the voice sounded similar to a female computer voice for GPS.  When this was done, the hygienist looked at the scan….for one reason or another, it didn’t show the teeth properly.  She spoke to the dentist, and he came in to give it a whirl.  For one reason or another, the scan just wasn’t working….it seems there was too much light reflecting.  I told the dentist it was just my luminous nature and we laughed!

Ah yes, back to business….the lab was still going to need an accurate model of my teeth. So….back to the good ole impressions!  The hygienist came at me with one of those bite plates and a “caulk gun” full of goop.  The dentist and I laughed as she was about to try out the plate….it looked about the size to fit a horse….I have an abnormally small mouth!  She came back with the right size and gooped it up, bluish green glop running down the sides of my mouth.  To add insult to injury, the bite plate had to remain in my mouth for five minutes.  Yikes!

After that procedure was done, I thought maybe I was free, but not. Next, a bottom impression was needed. Thankfully, the glop wasn’t so wet and the plate only needed too remain for two minutes.  Then, a bit model needed to be made, showing how my bite is, top to bottom.  This one was really easy and only had to stay in two minutes as well.

In the midst of all the dental marvel, there was a four-year-old sitting in a chair kitty corner to me, absolutely terrified of the filling that was being worked on in her mouth.  Ah, what ambiance!  I was thinking back to our kids…they didn’t have filling until they were older.  It would be traumatic getting a filling at four! 

I was thrilled when the hygienist took a photo of my teeth and told me I was done!  Hurrah!  In about three more weeks, I will have the final crown mounted and this mini implant will be complete!  I am thrilled, particularly since the dentist was leary at first.  He had done a bone scan that indicated I might not have dense enough bone. However, upon screwing the post into the bone in my jaw, he said it appeared the bone was very dense.  Whatever….he was impressed when he tapped on the post yesterday.

I went back home, noting that there was an Eagle when I passed by Woodville.  I quickly made lunch and cleaned up.  When I was done,  I asked Mark about going kayaking by myself.  He has always been an advocate of the “buddy” system, just in case there is a problem.  I told him I had seen at least four women launch their kayaks with only themselves. He thought about it and gave me a thumbs up!  It was awesome!  I loaded the kayak in the back of the truck by myself and drove on down.

I was able to unload the kayak and get into the water in record time!  There was an Eagle in the tree and I paddled like crazy to get out there!  It was so obliging and just sat there as though it had been waiting for me! I took zillions of photos. Of course!

What an awesome bird!

I could have sat all day, admiring my friend, the Eagle.  Thinking I probably had some fairly good photos, I decided to leave.

I paddled over near the mouth of the river and looked over toward the tree where the Eagles often perch. I felt sorry for anyone who doesn’t even realize they are there!

It would be so easy to miss seeing these birds if one didn’t know where to look!

By now, I had taken enough photos. I had to get back home, so I began paddling away. As I was paddling, something made me turn back.  I looked at the Eagle and called out,  “Jesus loves you, Eagle”!  A funny thing to say to a bird, but I thought about the verse that states that God even knows when a sparrow falls from a tree.

I paddled to the north a bit to get out of the water lilies and seaweed that grow profusely in the shallower waters.

Suddenly, a large shadow came over me and I nearly fell out of my kayak. The next photos are awful.  Between shaking, and just being bounced about by the waves, (there was a pretty brisk breeze over the water) it was hard to capture what happened!

Now, I have no idea what, exactly, inspired that bird, but both in taking off and in landing, it flew directly over my head.  I don’t remember when I have been quite so awestruck!!!

hahaha…you will hear why soon!

Ben and I decided to take a little kayak adventure this morning.  Instead of just paddling along on the lake,  we decided to head on down the river.

As we passed by the Eagle tree,  we looked, but no Eagles to be seen. I did find this little bird seeking food while sitting on lily pads rather amusing!

The little bugger actually placed the lily pad in its mouth and picked it up, looking underneath for food!

We paddled out into the lake and turned into the river. There sure was a lot to be seen there.

Ben called out to me about a Great Blue Heron ahead.  He hung back while I paddled ahead, hoping to get close enough for a good shot.  Well….

That bugger lifted off! As Iwas photographing it,  I heard the strangest noise…Refusing to lower the camera, it was only after I had finished that Irealized the dreadful sound was the Heron!  Wow, could that thing make noise!

We passed by so many, many turtles! They seemed to be “hanging” off every floating thing in the water!  Some were very shy,  immediately going overboard as soon as the kayaks approached,  while others held their ground,  seemingly undaunted by me and the camera!

As we paddled along,  it began to grow hotter and hotter!  The hat on my head had to be removed as I thought I was going to explode from the heat!

We passed by some pretty awesome “still life’s”.

We had a good time, but as the heat increased,  I was anxious to get out of the water and to remove my life vest.  We paddled some more and even though we weren’t exactly sure we were on the right path, Ben assured me he was 85% sure.  Not that the 15% worried me….too much! 

As we moved along, the green algae increased.  I made a comment that it felt more like we were in a Louisianna bayou than the river and Ben smiled….he had the very same thought!  As we approached the launch where Mark agreed to pick us up,  we needed to paddle down a fairly short “corridor” of waterway.  We moved along at a pretty good clip..the algae was so thick, I can only liken it to porridge!  The stench was enough to propell the paddles at a nice rapid pace!

All in all, the scenery was lovely, but we shan’t repeat this adventure until some of the “green” disappears!

Yesterday’s long day seemed like it would never end sometimes.  When Michelle inquired if we were going to be home before 11pm,  I laughed….little did I realize that was closer to reality than not!

Here is a photo of  a Swan taken yesterday.

and another…

Ben has been feeling a tad under the weather.  He has been suffering through a cold. (colds in warm weather really stink!) I was so surprised when he got up today, because he went to Mark and asked if we could go kayaking!  Poor kid, he looked run down, but thought it would still be fun.

We went down to Woodville and right away, we decided we would try to paddle the nearly five miles to Vine Valley. Ben was pretty happy with the new kayak!

Mark called and I told him our plan, so he agreed to drive to Vine Valley to pick us up when we were done.  We paddled. And paddled. And, paddled some more!  My arms did get tired and I was getting way too overheated! It is funny how everything looks so different on the lake and we couldn’t recognize much of anything!

We did eventually reach our destination.  By the time we arrived, I could barely climb out of the kayak!  Ben came over and helped pull me out…I was so exhausted! In all fairness, I should say the wind was blowing smack against us from time to time.  I think Ben and I were happy to spot the truck waiting for us at the Vine Valley boat launch!

When we got home,  I made a late lunch and then had to wipe down the kayaks.  It is so nice not getting wet, nor getting the kayak wet with the new models. When we used the inflatables, we always wound up in a puddle, no matter what.  I finished wiping the kayaks down and a little White Admiral butterfly came over on the driveway to see what I was doing….

I can’t remember when I have been so tired!  All that fresh air and sunshine was exhausting!

There’s a full moon on the rise!

(soooo….do you remember that song by Creedence Clearwater Revival, or CCR?)

When I took the photo above near Lowe’s in Henrietta this evening, all I could think about was that song!

We got home after ten tonight, after leaving home this morning around nine. I am exhausted beyond exhaustion! On the way home, my eyes were so “juicy” from being tired,  my contacts were sliding all over the place.  I was sure I was going to lose one. It is so nice to be home after a very full and tiring day!

The big news is, we picked up another kayak, so I am thinking perhaps if I wasn’t so tired, we might give those ‘yaks a good paddling….(not seriously, though!)

Now, then, off to slumberland!

I have no idea why I am so enamored with the eagle down in Woodville.  I think about it all the time and every time I see an eagle (there is probably more than one that roosts in that tree, I would think) it is as though I have never seen one before.

Yesterday, Michelle and I went kayaking in the morning.  The sky was a tad dark…almost “colorless”,  and I hoped we could paddle awhile any rain might come. Michelle hadn’t tried out the new kayak yet, and we wanted her opinion.  My own opinion is that the new kayak is much easier to paddle. It goes through the water much smoother and faster. When Ben tried the kayak the night before,  he also was sold!

Michelle convinced me to inflate the little yellow kayak Iwould be using (believe me, it was hard going back to the inflatable!!!) before we left home.  One yellow kayak and the new one easily fit into the back of the pickup truck with only about three feet hanging over the tailgate.  We arrived at the launch and there was an eagle…sitting in the tree once again!

I was so happy to paddle over to the eagle…unfortunately,  the lighting was miserable, but I took  lots of photos anyway!

Michelle and I decided to cross the lake over to the other side where there is a lagoon.  We paddled over the mouth of the west river and to the lagoon where the water was so calm!

I asked Michelle what she thought about the new kayak and she said it was “okay”.  When I turned around to talk to her,  Michelle was off in some greenery, trying out the  new kayak’s maneuverability.  Yeah, Michelle….the new kayak is okay, indeed!  Truth be told,  although we loved the inflatables,  their bottom is much flatter than the new kayak.  When we paddled over seaweed and plants,  the yellow kayaks would balk and complain about continuing on.  The new kayak glides right along with each stroke!  One funny thing that happened was that once we were petty far out in the lake,  Michelle said the new kayak was leaking! I looked at her and asked if there was water visibly coming into the boat.  After she said “no”,  I told her that as that new kayak breaks through the water, it makes a noise like running water!  She then confirmed that was the case!

Even though she never said so, I think Michelle was impressed!

Michelle called me over to take a photo of what she called “ a natural bouquet”.  Tiny Forget-Me-Nots seemed to appear from nowhere at the base of some pretty wild irises, mixed in with greenery.  Michelle was right…it was very pretty!

We lingered on a bit, just enjoying the tranqility and nice surroundings. We finallybegan heading back, but before we left, we went over to admire the majestic eagle just one more time. 

When we got home, it was time for Mark, Ben, and I to be off and running on a myriad of errands.  We were out for much of the  day and by the time we got back home, we were all tired!

This morning, the phone rang early and Carly asked if we might want to get together. She and the girls came down and the kids played in the pool until we called them out for a late lunch. I’m not sure if we were starving, or if the food was truly that good, but everything was delicious! Carly cooked chicken on the grill to perfection!  I had made a bean salad and Carly brought down some fresh loaves of bread.  She grilled some asparagus and it was awesome, too! Everyone ate well…the kids must have been very hungry!

I was happy when lunch was done and I could bring out dessert….

I had made a pumpkin roll andit was also a hit! I was happy with how this turned out because Wegman’s sells half  logs for (I think) over $6.00.  This was so easy to make and everyone  liked  it.  Yay for quick and easy desserts!

Well, after I left everyone….or is that “you”?….last night, are you wondering what I had to further blog about? 

I wanted to go kayaking yesterday, but the kids had friends over for a few hours.  The kids stayed until after six, so Iwas bummed.  I really wanted to get back out on the water.  Living within five miles of the boat launch makes me antsy! Ben must have taken compassion on me and decided to go out with me.

We arrived down at the lake and I brought along the Nikon D-80 with a (cheap) 70-300mm lens. (And I did  make sure the SD card was IN the camera!) As soon as we pulled into the parking lot, I got so excited!  One of my Eagle friends was perched in “the” tree at the south end of the lake! Needless to say, I was off and paddling in a hurry with the camera sitting on my lap!

Here are photos from last night…

The Eagle opens its wings and pants to cool off!

As you can see, the water was so still and it was awesome going out late in the day.  Who would have known? We weren’t out too long….not much more than an hour, but oh, what agreat outing this was!

Today was jam-packed it seems! Michelle and I got up early and wanted to take out the kayaks.  Mark and I picked up a kayak at BJ’s Wholesale Club that we thought might be worth trying out.  The kayak is made of plastic, (but given a fancy name, of course!)  and made in, of all places,  Canada!  It really looked pretty nice and the price is a fraction of kayaks sold in sporting goods stores.  If it doesn’t work out, we have thirty days to return it.

I placed my older Nikon camera (the D-80) in a plastic bag with its 70-300mm lens. I was so excited,  I could barely contain myself.  Mark wanted to watch the maiden voyage, so he drove us down  to Woodville.  I got into the kayak  (much easier than the inflatable one!) and Michelle handed off the camera in the bag.  We began paddling and I couldn’t believe how much easier the new kayak was to paddle!  WOW!  I am not a strong paddler, but outdistanced Michelle with ease.  I was so far ahead, I decided to take some photos!  I removed the camera from the bag, and began composing,  when I realized the little light warning no SD card was inserted began to flash.  Argh….I had placed the card in the computer last night to upload photos so Icould reformat the card. Oops! The SD card was in the computer.

So. No pictures.

We went home after about one and a half hours of paddling.  Michelle said her arms were getting sore and I felt guilty as I could have gone on. Quite a bit more, really!

Mark and Ben worked on a project for a bit,  then Ben wanted to go to Penn Yan to play football with friends.  It was such an awesome day, I was happy to go for a ride. We dropped Ben and Michelle off, then Mark and I picked up takeout Chinese. I wanted so much to take some photos today and as I jumped down from the truck, I saw one golden opportunity!

The horse was so beautiful!  As I looked at my photo, I thought perhaps it might look good in black and white, or perhaps sepia… Iwent with the sepia. Welcome to a world some one hundred years ago!

We went to a park by the lake to eat.  As the food cooled down,  I hopped out of the truck to take some pictures. 

There was a fairly large flock (gaggle?) of  what appeared to be domestic geese grazing on the grass in the park.

These were only part of the flock,  but I didn’t close in too much as I could only imagine what all those buggers could do if provoked! I snapped away, admiring the lot, when I kept hearing a peep,peep, peep sound.  Suddenly,  some of the geese moved aside and I saw one tiny little gosling.  Only one!

Mark and I finished eating and then went for a ride. I told Mark Iwould love to get some photos of Amish or Mennonites today, and boy, was I in for a treat! Because the weather was so splendid today,  many of these folks were out and about!

We saw quite a few young  Mennonite people riding their bikes.  It is incredible watching these kids ride their bikes….pedalling effortlessly! They must have such strong legs as Penn Yan is far from being flat….quite the contrary, with some steep hills!

This young lady was pedalling along a road that leads down to the next “finger” of the Finger Lakes…Seneca Lake.  You can see the hills on the east side of the lake off in the distance.

The last photo is terrible…taken through the (filthy from bug juice!!!!) windshield.  But look at those faces….pure fun!

I wonder why the fellow was riding beside them on his bicycle….(oh, and what a beautiful and fancy buggy to boot!)

We could have driven on and on for a long time…just Mark, me, and the Scottie boys.  But, we knew the kids would be calling and we had strayed a few miles from town. We headed back and Mark stopped to snoop around a business (lumberyard) called Knapp and Schlappi….isn’t that a catchy name?  We actually just drove around looking at lumber and building supplies. I love this “special area”….

Oh, and a out the side window shot….

We talked to the kids and they weren’t quite ready to head home, so Mark parked in an area near downtown.  Restless, (what is new?)  I hopped out and took a walk, taking some pictures along the way.

As I crossed the small bridge on Main Street,  I admired the pretty flower box mounted to the bridge.  As I looked down the bridge ahead of me,  I saw many more of these boxes, each planted with a different selection of flowers!  They were so beautiful!

As I passed over the bridge,  I looked below and saw two young fellows fishing.  I recognized right away that they were Mennonites by 1. their plaid shirts, and 2. suspenders.  I hollered on down to them and asked what they might be hoping to catch.  They called back up to me,  “Bass”!  The funny thing was, Icouldn’t see the boys’ bicycles.  There was no way they walked into town…

The view from the bridge…

Not only does Penn Yan have beautiful flowers gracing the bridge,  but also lovely baskets of blooms hanging on the lamp posts.  Can you see the bumblebee?

Aha!  I discovered the boys’ bicycles near the path!

Because Penn Yan is located on the north end of Keuka Lake, one of the Finger Lakes,  it is a popular tourist community in the summer.  A quick stroll down Main Street offered some nice photographic opportunities.  The town is small,  but picturesque. The buildings are old and have lovely architectural details.

I just loved this store entrance!

I really like the Keuka Lake sign below, and the one about unsupervised kids is pretty funny.

Upcoming events!

and one blast from the past!

How cool is that?

As you can see, this was kind of a busy day.  A wonderful day!

Michelle and Ben have a friend whose family owns a terrific hardware store in a small town not too far from our house.  On Saturday, the family had a celebration to honor seven years of  serving the community.  There were hotdogs, sodas, and chips….free!  There also was a clown and activities for little children. A fun day was planned!

Michelle and Ben were invited by their friend, Casey, so they were excited to attend.  We picked up their friend, Jacob, on the way.  When we arrived, the festivities were under way and everyone was enjoying themselves.  Mark and I sat in the shade of a beautiful Ash tree and a stiff breeze was welcome through the open windows of the truck. We sat for quite a while,  then I got out and asked Michelle how long the kids planned to stay.  She said they wanted to linger for an hour or so, so Mark and I decided to go for a ride.  The thermometer in the truck was reading 95 degrees, which translates to 35 degrees, Celsius.  Add humidity to this temperature, and one can see it was uncomfortable!

As Mark and I were leaving the party, so were a couple of customers.  The hardware store is located in a an area with a large Mennonite population and many of the families use horse and buggy to get around.  I managed to get a couple of “parting shots”….

Mark and I went on up to Canandaigua and almost as soon as we arrived,  Michelle called to say that she wasn’t feeling well…at all!  Mark and I hurried back to pick the kids up and Michelle was clearly overheated.  We had packed our inflatable kayaks in the back of the truck, thinking we could paddle a bit on the way home,  but we took Michelle home.

As soon as Michelle was home, she plopped on her bed and rested with a fan directed on her.  After a short time, she said she was feeling better.  She asked if we would get her a sub for dinner, so we (very relieved she was hungry) headed down to Naples to get her one.   Ben and I thought maybe we could paddle a little in the kayaks, but when we passed through Woodville, there was no Eagle in sight.   I had wanted to go out because I had seen the bird sitting in “its” tree earlier in the day.

We picked up a sub for Michelle, then made our way back toward home.  We decided to take another look in Woodville and to my surprise, there was an Eagle in the tree!  Ben and I went out for a very short paddle to visit the Eagle.

I took (over 100) photos of the bird and then we paddled back to shore.  Even with the breeze on the lake, it was just too warm with our life vests on!  You will notice in the photos that the Eagle has its wings spread a bit and its beak open….this is indicative of the heat, also.  The bird was actually panting!  They spread their wings to cool off a bit, too.

Funny….even after seeing the Eagles up fairly close….I’d say within about twenty-five feet,  it is still so exciting to be able to see these birds!  I still feel so excited, I need to settle down a bit to photograph them.  Last year, I was able to capture an adult as well as a younger bird as they sat together.  I wish I could get a shot of several of them together, but it seems they almost take turns sitting there!  Don’t worry,  I’m not greedy…I am just so happy to get these photos! And also happy for inflatable kayaks…

It is just after 8am and I have been sitting here on the front porch for over two hours, looking at photos from both the Nikon and little Panny cameras. So often I find I have nothing to write about on my blog, and yet, in looking back at my photos, I see little stories here and there!

Several days ago, Michelle invited her friend, Jacob, over.  I told her to ask if he might be interested in going out on the lake in one of our inflatable kayaks.  He brought along his swim trunks and we went out for a nice little evening “cruise”.  I was disappointed that the eagle was not in “it’s” tree, but Jacob seemed to enjoy the experience anyway….

As always, I am enjoying the bird activity at my window feeder!  I remember talking to the town clerk one day and she said she doesn’t feed the birds as they have plenty of seeds on bushes and such.  I was so surprised, as I feed the birds year round.  I enjoy watching them so much.  Even Mark and the kids have called out from time to time. I captured a photo of a female Rose-Breasted Grosbeak.

You might remember seeing photos of the males here. They are mostly black with some white on their chest, along with a scarlet “bib” around the neck. The females are just brown speckles and stripes…not nearly as attractive as their mates.  These birds are pretty large compared to the tiny finches, chickadees, and titmice that also frequent the feeder.

And speaking of feeders!!!! I have two hummingbird feeders.  One above the window at the back of the house where I can watch as I wash dishes. The other is on the front porch. As I have been sitting here on the swing these past two hours, I have witnessed the hummers feeding at my huge pink and white Fuchsia.  I have also witnessed a hummer “war” as two males gave chase….they flew so close to my face, I could have easily swatted them…were I fast enough!  I took a photo yesterday with the Panny camera and was surprised it turned out at all. It was taken through both a screen and the window! I kind of like the look of the screen in the photo….

And speaking of Fuchsias! I have a huge pink and white one hanging on the porch.  I bought it early this year, as I usually wait until all that are left are the scrawny no-one-else-will-buy-them pots.  However, as Mark and I were looking around at The Home Depot the other day,  I saw a pink and purple hanging basket and decided I would buy it. It is scrawny, but it will fill in. Anyway, the flowers are so vibrant and colorful!

The pink color on the fuchsia reminds me of the Peonies I have planted in the front yard.  I have been talking about transplanting them to the west side of the house for years, btu have not done so, as we have talked about resurfacing our wooden basement. (yeah, we do a lot of “talking” around here!) Ah well, the Peonies are so pretty and nice this year.  My paternal grandmother passed away 37 years ago, but her Peonies live on far, far away from her Pennsylvania gardens, here in the Bristolwood.

The other day, we went up to Rochester for pool parts and to run some other errands.  Our leaky pump motor was repaired.  Mark and Michelle took everything apart and noted the three parts that needed to be replaced.  When we got to the store, they had the parts sealed in a ziplock bag. Mark is always big on taking in the old parts just to be sure the new ones are the same. 

Thankfully, the pool store had all the parts required and they were exactly the same as the ones on our pump.  Mark asked the parts guy questions and then the guy put the whole assembly together! Hurrah! Mark couldn’t believe it!  It was a blessing, as there are some parts that are so critical, they cannot be touched.  There is a ceramic gasket, that if bits of dust or dirt get on it, it will fail.  Even though Mark could have done this job, the guy had the pump reassembled in about five minutes!  And it is working wonderfully well!

As we were returning home, we stopped in a parking lot in Vistor, next to a set of railroad tracks.  I spotted this little manual switch, loving the bright colors on the flags!

There is one more thing I *must* mention!  While running about in Rochester, we stopped at a Sam’s Club. Since it was warm outside, I stayed in the truck with the Scotties while Mark, Ben, and Michelle went into the store.  Mark and Ben came out later and told me where to meet Michelle. Mark left her with the cart so I could look around some before paying.

Michelle met me near the bakery.

“Dad said we are supposed to buy something sweet that you like.  Shall we buy some chocolate chip cookies?”

“Michelle, you know I am not fond of chocolate.”

“Yeah, I know.”

We searched through the delectable goodies and my eyes fell upon something that really caught my attention! Michelle looked at the package of Lemon Bites and suggested we “look some more”.

Well, we could not seem to come to an agreement on what to buy, so I told Michelle we should just skip the sweets. We don’t really need them, after all! We left the area, and as I placed the items on the belt,  I was surprised to see Michelle had picked up a package of the Lemon Bites.

As soon as we got into the truck, I opened the yellow goodies and took a bite. Oh MY! I nearly swooned as the sweet, lemony flavor dispersed throughout my taste buds! The kids each took one and the “ooooh’s” were soon filling the truck.  Even Mark had a bite of Ben’s tiny cake and he was impressed!

So, if you have a Sam’s Club membership, pick these goodies up! You shan’t be disappointed!

the lake!

I cannot believe that today is April first and we actually went out and launched our little inflatable kayaks at Woodville today!   We left the house early this afternoon,  just after saving a sweet little Eastern Bluebird from our chimney! Yes, another one of those gorgeous little birds flew down the chimney.  This time, however, we heard it and took quick action to save it!

We heard the sound of scratching on the chimney pipe, just above the stove.  I immediately opened the little door on the new damperl we bought for the pipe this year. Sure enough, I saw tail feathers sitting in the little ledge at the right angle of the pipe.  Mark suggested getting a large clear trash bag after I said I thought the little bird could hop out through the door on the damper. 

We placed the open bag over the pipe, then I forced the little door open.  Soon, the bird’s tiny head was seen poking out the door.  Then it hopped through the door and into the garbage bag.  I quickly raced to the back door and after Mark and Michelle followed me outside,  I opened the bag and released the beautiful bird!  It flew right up onto a tree and sat for a bit, before flying off!  What an amazing rescue and what a smart little bird!  It had the sense to hop into the bag, saving us the work of having to disassemble the chimney pipe from the stove….then hoping we could corral the wee one outdoors!

Now, back to the lake!

The temperature rose today to mid-summer highs.  The sun was out with blue skies and everything was just so nice, we had to take out kayaks out for a spin on the lake!

As I paddled out, I couldn’t believe we were really on the lake!

As I got into my kayak right off the shore,  the water was cold, but bearable.  We worked our way across the lake to the other side and as I got overheated along the way, I splashed water on my arms. Yikes! That water felt as though it had come straight out of the freezer!  It was c-o-l-d!

Our journey today was slow and steady, since this was our maiden voyage for 2010.  We weren’t out too long, either, as Michelle had plans to meet friends down in Naples later in the afternoon.  She was going to watch a tennis tournament.

As we made our way back to shore,  Ben began taking off his life vest and sunglasses.  Next thing I knew….

Ben the brave! polar bear!

And, Michelle bringing in Ben’s kayak with her….

We hurried home and Michelle got ready to go down to Naples.  We all went along for the ride.  As we slipped into a parking lot,  a Mourning Dove seemed to enjoy our company;  it just sat and watched us as it plucked at gravel in the parking lot.

Even tonight, looking at these photos,  I find it so hard to imagine being out on the lake, paddling on the first day of April!