Reno/Tahoe, fishing with Grandpa and Max

We just left Reno yesterday after six fun filled days. Max and I had a great time. It's always a happy and satisfying event to spend time with my Dad and his WONDERFUL wife Linda, not to mention their sweet dog Loki of course, I would be remiss in not mentioning little ole' Loki.

It's funny, I've always thought Reno/the Greater Reno area is beautiful but every time I go to visit I grown more and more in love and in AWE of it. It's simply breathtaking. I know a lot of people probably scrunch up their noses at the thought of Reno, God knows I used to, but that town/city is like nothing I've seen or experienced before. It's a large town, small city nestled in a valley between the breath taking beauty of the Sierra Nevada Mountain range. There's beautiful views from every angle in this city. And if you're one that appreciates high desert foliage, such as myself then the city of Reno is candy for the eyes as well. I digress.

So my dad took Max fishing for the first time while we were there. Our first try was at the "Marina" which I found somewhat comical since it's simply a flooded rock quarry, but quaint none the less. They had no luck there, so we all packed up and made a very worth while forty five minute drive up to Davis Creek Park to try our hand at fishing there. Still no luck, I don't think a single person had even got a nibble the entire time we were there, but the surroundings were so beautiful that it just didn't matter. As soon as we opened the car doors and took in the delicious, crisp, dry pine scented air I knew we were in for a nice time, and we were. Max grew weary of waiting for fish to bite so after forty five minutes or so of hanging on to a fishing rod and catching nothing but creek moss he gave up and we went "exploring in nature" which amounted to hiking down very well worn fishing paths a half a yard from the creek. I didn't mind, it was eye candy still and I was able to get lots of great pictures. I did however feel a little bit bad for my dad who had lugged all of this fishing gear half way across Reno and back only to have Max bail in just shy of an hour. What can you expect from I five year old I guess. Max did have fun trying though and was up for going fishing again the next day. That didn't happen.

Any way, I'm happy to be down in So Cal now but oh do I already miss Reno/Tahoe and of course my Dad and Linda. I look forward to seeing them again soon.

Here's a collage I needed to do for an online class I'm taking. It's several images of Davis Creek Park and of course my dad and Max. I just wish I could somehow convey or include the smell and feel of the air there. It was heaven.

Good night for now,

Fire flies

Yeeee Hoooo!!!! So most of the summer weather aside from the lush green foliage, I am not a fan of (although I will take it over winter weather mind you) EXCEPT for the Fire Flies. I just adore this time of year simply because of them. I suppose some, if not all of my Mid West friends may be thinking "what's up with Jane, so what about fire flies", but if you're from some where that does not have them, such as ohhhhh let's say the West Coast, then you may not quite understand the awe that these little creatures can instill upon a novice such as myself. They are truly MAGICAL. It's heavenly to drive by a young corn field, baseball diamond, expanse of weeds even and see this entrancing show. It's impossible to describe how special it is. Disneyland's Pirates of the Caribbean ride does a decent job of reflecting this, but oh so obviously it's just not quite the same as seeing it up close and personal. I do not look forward to the summer heat and humidity, but the fire flies are a different story and thankfully I got my first glimpse of them for the first time this season, tonight. I'm delighted. Here's a picture that I hope captures the essence of what a fire fly experience is like for me. Regrettably, none of the images used were taken by my camera but as usual I still had fun with them in Photoshop.

Happy Firefly watching and Happy Summer.

p.s. for those that don't know, this is what it really looks like. It's amazing, and way better in person.

Pretty Bloom

I found more time not to unpack by creating this picture instead. I know, shame on me but I'm trying to catch up on my creative impulses since I've been behind these last several weeks. Any way, the bloom is from the neighbors tree across the street in my old neighborhood. As always I had a lot of fun with it in Photoshop. I'm thinking I might, MIGHT do a series of images using this one and see how many different ways I can use it. We'll see if I get the motivation to do so. Any way, here it is.

Peace Out

Settling In

We've moved and are two thirds of the way unpacked, yea. So far so good, I'm LOVING it here. It's been good fun exploring our new surroundings, meeting nice neighbors and settling in. Several days ago Max and I went to the play ground behind our house and romped around, it was becoming over run with weeds so I started yanking them out as we played. One little weed turned out to be a seedling of an Oak Tree (I think). It was too sweet to just trash so once Max and I were done playing at the play ground we came back to our yard and planted the seedling there. Max did most of the work. He was very diligent and loving with the way in which he planted the little shoot. Now we'll have to see if it actually grows. Who knows. I'm thankful for our new home, although I do miss some of our old neighbors in the "hood". Hopefully we'll see some of them soon and better yet have them over here for a house warming. We'll see.

Happy Day all,

Jane

Strawberries on a stick

So Max and I spotted the cutest little bunny having a hearty snack on some leaves, probably from a cherished plant, but I prefer to think they were weeds in our back yard yesterday afternoon. Max, being ever enthusiastic about animals lately, wanted to find some carrots and quickly add to the cute little guy’s plate. We had none so I suggested a couple of our strawberries. Poor Max was thinking he could saunter on out, berries in tow and the little furry friend would happily eat from Max's hand. I explained that the bunny would quickly hop away once he/she/it caught sight of us, which it did, but that if Max wanted to watch the bunny eat our delicious contribution to his meal we could put them on a stick and then plant it in the ground right where the rabbit had been eating. Max approved of the plan, so out we marched, strawberries on our stick and jammed that poor little strawberry laden limb into the ground. We quickly trotted back to the house in hopes of catching a glimpse of a no doubt very grateful bunny nibbling away on our fruit kabob. No luck, the bunny was being shy, sure enough though that stick was licked clean by this morning. Short story long, now you know the tale behind the strawberries on a stick.

Happy Day all.

Gracious Gifts

Yea, another issue of Artful Blogging is out. I find myself pouring through it yet again. I love Somerset Studios publications, they're just so beautiful and inspiring. I feel pressure however to get my blog up to par (customize it w/ my own headers, side bars etc), which it is not at the moment. I'm hoping to make time to do this in the next week or so.

In the mean time, I wanted to post a picture of some of the thoughtful gifts I received for my birthday last week. They're beautiful, delicious, fun etc. and they photograph well too.

Thank you everybody for your kind gestures and helping to make my 40th birthday so memorable. It was a great time.

Much love,
Jane

The best Mothers Day gift ever

Yesterday (Mothers Day) was spent cleaning the house after my 40th birthday party the night prior. It was unseasonably cool so most of the day was spent indoors even after the cleaning was done. I was pooped from the party and party prep the night before so I did not mind at all just hanging out with Terry and Max. I did spend some time trying to take advantage of good light to take pictures of some of the thoughtful gifts people brought. I'll post those later. Max decided he wanted to ham it up for the camera then so I was able to get some cute snap shots of him. Here's one for ya. It's RARE that he's cooperative for picture taking so I seized upon the opportunity. He's a wonderful boy, I'm so grateful to be his mother.

Happy day everyone,
Jane