Born TODAY!

This morning, my baby became a mother.

The look on Kelty's face just says it all . . .

relief . . . amazement . . . profound joy.

(And you can't help but notice,
she's been working MIGHTY HARD!)

Here's the proud papa.

The parents have named this precious child
Rella May.

Born @ 10:15 a.m.
January 27th, 2010
7 lbs. 7 oz.
20" long

Heavenly Theatrics

Yesterday, I hiked the front side of our mountain.

The view across the valley was worthy of hauling my telephoto lens.

SO COOL the way the cloud patterns reflected
on the frozen surface of the lake in our valley.
(SEE BELOW.)

It's a bigger lake than most people imagine.
Big enough for Cloud Silhouetting.

West Mountain -again below- hasn't much of a name . . .

(Photo taken from my hot tub deck after my hike.)

. . . but it's fascinating to observe SKY DRAMA
which takes place around ole West Mountain.

Here's an early evening shot, taken at a slightly different angle.

Definitely, a storm was brewing.

And I thought of my mom reading us Winnie the Pooh . . .

Oh the wind is lashing lustily
And the trees are thrashing thrustily
And the leaves are rustling gustily.

Yes, indeed.
It became rather BLUSTERY in Utah.

* * *
These last three shots were taken TODAY.

OH WHAT PASSIONATE HEAVENLY THEATRICS!

I simply couldn't live in other parts of the country
where the skies are generally blah
and the clouds are not clearly defined.
Places without hearty doses of our local SKY DRAMA.

Such a thrill to look across our valley and say,

THERE.

Snow (or rain) is falling THERE.

For example, the photo below.
See how the clouds have broken open
right between the two mountain?

I can easily imagine the deer, the pines,
maybe even some mere mortals
getting a dusting of white powder,
over THERE.

Tonight the clouds have brought the snow right to my doorstep.

I just heard the snow plow rumbling up the hill.

The driveway will need shoveling.

Still, I love it. Oh I do.

Hippie Jill

She did it AGAIN.

Hip, hip HURRAY!

My dear daughter-in-law got her SECOND hip replacement in less than six months after her first one. Why did this skinny little gal need to get herself a set of new hips? Read HERE.

The above shot was taken 5 days after surgery when she was hiking up and down the street with her home health physical therapist (who is holding my grandson's hand.)

My responsibilities during her recovery = cooking and luvin' up those grandkids. Now, who couldn't adore a babe like THIS???

As long as she has a BOOK in hand, Miss Audrey is a happy camper. NO toys compare.

On the other hand, Mr. Kenneth required more involvement and I was PREPARED. I came down with two boxes of Cool Stuff, like this train:


I also brought some innovative crayons which he found very entertaining for OTHER purposes besides drawing:

Jill's willpower propelled her into a record-breaking recovery. She was OFF the walker in four days. OFF the cane in more three days. Jumping back into mothering in a blink of an eye.

At the end of the 10th day, mom and dad made the brave decision that they were ready to manage on their own. The last night of my stay, Arian and Jill created a bit of spontaneous music, a favorite passtime in their household:

On my last morning in Nevada, my son took this shot of Kenneth and I waiting for the school bus.


This three-year-old is one smart little whipper-snapper. None-the-less, he qualifies for early intervention due to a speech delay. This was my last moment with him . . .

If you want to get JILL'S take on her unique way of Ringing in the New Year, go HERE. She's got a sense of humor to beat the band and she'll surely make you laugh.