week off

I took last week off work to use up some leave and take care of some things that needed attention.

It turned out to be a somewhat productive week. I cleaned out closets and donated a good deal of clothing to the Fairbanks Resource Agency. I bought and planted my flowers for the summer. This year I decided to try cherry tomatoes instead of zucchini. We'll see how that goes.

I spent one day with my daughter and the girls. Maddy is 5 and Atheana is 9. We stopped at the Large Animal Research Station at the University of Alaska Fairbanks to see the musk oxen. Disappointingly, they were not in the close-in viewing area, but way up on the hill behind the barns.

A quick stop at the Georgeson Botanical Garden allowed them a glimpse of reindeer, including some new babies. I was excited to see a lot people with tools. It looks as though they're about to begin planting. That garden is one of my favorite trips in the summer. The flowers are spectacular. I am looking forward to our annual flower trek latter this summer.

We visited Santa Claus House in North Pole, where the girls looked at the reindeer. I think they were more eager to get inside the store than to watch any animals.

We had lunch at Little Richard's Diner (it used to be Harley's Diner). It was ok, but not somewhere I really HAVE to go again. We originally planned to eat at the Pagoda (one of my favorite places), but were too early for their lunch service and the girls were hungry.

After lunch we went back to the LARS, but the musk oxen were still off in the distance. As we drove back to their place, we saw a young moose on Goldstream Road. He was feeding along the left side of the road and I stopped to grab my camera. While I was fumbling around, he crossed in front of us and stopped along the right side of the road. There were two very excited little girls in the back seat.

All in all it was a busy week - not at all the completely relaxing time I initially planned. But I did accomplish something and I did ensure I had time to sit on my benches under the birch tree and enjoy the summer days.

green-up, moose and osprey

I love this time of year. One day there are little buds on the trees and the next - literally overnight - the leaves are open and the hills lose the dull gray-brown barren look. They are all green. It's a confirmation of renewal and life.

To celebrate green-up and enjoy the green I've been driving a little longer route to work, along the river and through the trees. This past week has been great, as I've sat in the car and watched a moose browse for breakfast and an osprey guarding the nest.

The moose is not a large one (relatively speaking), and I watched her munch on some of the young birch trees and on the brush growing low to the ground. I saw her three of the four days I drove that route last week.

The osprey have been around for several summers, and last year built their nest on a power pole. In order to prevent possible disaster to them, our utility folks constructed a special pole for them and placed some sticks on top to lure them. It seems to have worked. You can see the nest they're building.

Friday I watched a snowshoe hare running along the side of the road. I know there is at least one fox family living there too, and hope to see some of them as I enjoy an early morning spring drive to work.

Happy spring everyone. I'm so glad it's finally here.

greenhouses

My friends Mae and Cindy and I drove the greenhouse tour today. It took us to six different greenhouses in the area. Despite the rain, we had a lovely time.

Seeing the plants in different stages of growth really got me excited about the coming summer. I can't wait to go pick out my flowers and get them into the planters in my yard.

I'm still debating if I'm going to plant zucchinis again this year, or try another vegetable or simply go with flowers.

The colors were gorgeous and I am now really hyped up about my yard. Here are some of the flowers we saw today.

We noticed a lot of yellows and oranges - maybe they're the colors of the season this year. There were also a lot of purples (my favorite color) and some exceptionally pretty blues. Our first stop had a profusion of pansies.

I loved the deep purple petunias - they look like velvet. The begonias may be my favorites. I'm thinking of buying a couple of small planters and giving my granddaughters each a plant - maybe a sunflower, or a marigold - they're easy to grow.

As we approached one of the greenhouses, we were surprised by another being wanting to share the road. We gave her plenty of space. She crossed, then looked over her shoulder at us as we drove by her.

Great day. Spring is here. Life is good.