From the log to the shore was all ice while the other side of the log was all open water. And so this ice incursion was successfully contained by the log!
No Ice Allowed Beyond This Point
Damming the Ice
Greeting the Sun
Even the weeds gone to seed love the sun and celebrate its appearance.
At last the sun is rising early enough for me to be able to catch it before work!
It’s a tough couple of months in late autumn and early winter, with the sun rising above the horizon so late that we have to go to work before seeing its golden glow spread out across the landscape. Finally, in late January, the sun is coming up over the hill to our southeast right around 7:50 in the morning. Now that is a reason to celebrate!
Pond on a Cold Morning
Don’t you just love these ice crystals growing between logs in the pond? Crystals are endlessly fascinating, whether these common but evanescent* ice crystals or the incredibly huge, unimaginably ancient gypsum crystals in the Mexican Cueva de los Cristales: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/04/photogalleries/giant-crystals-cave/ *Evanescent – Soon passing out of sight, memory, or existence; quickly fading or disappearing. Oh, how I love finding the perfect word, one that expresses exactly what I wanted to say as economically as possible! 🙂
Pond Crystals
Hmm, ice crystals grow relatively quickly at temperatures of around 32 degrees F, while the gypsum crystals formed incredibly slowly (over millennia) at around 136 degrees F.
Getting Ready to Transport Grass
The horses eat grass. Lots of grass. Since we are in the midst of a drought and the horses have long since eaten all the grass we had available on the part of our 40 acres dedicated to pasture, that means we must purchase grass and transport it back to the horses. I sure am glad someone cut it, dried it, and rolled it up into these big, relatively easy to handle bales!
Do you think he could have ridden home balanced up here?
Bridger leapt up on top of this five foot diameter roll of grass as soon as it was loaded on our trailer. How could he have resisted?
Ice
Evidence:
Ice melting in the dry grass
2012 has seen some days below freezing in NE Oklahoma!
Buttercup
While I am on the theme of pet portraits, I think I will post Bridger’s favorite photo of Buttercup.
Buttercup - Bridger's Best Buddy - 2010
Buttercup is a Dutch Shepherd. She makes a great companion for an active boy!
Zookie
My husband’s favorite photo of his dog:
Behold the Great Pyrador!
Zookie is half black Labrador, half Great Pyrenees. She has big, brown eyes and she adores my husband. The feeling may very well be mutual 🙂
Junk in Our Woods
Sometimes the sun lights up just junk. Is it really the treasure the sunlight implies?
Corvair - Junk to Me, Treasure to Bridger
The Star
The spotlight is on these simple leaves, the star in today’s production of Nature :o)
Simple and stunning. Makes my heart sing.
Following the Sun
On certain days the bright, golden quality of the sunlight draws me irresistibly outside, camera in hand.
What the sunlight revealed
Then I roam our 40 acres, following the sun beams. I try to capture some of that beauty to share with others who are not able to explore the natural world.
Back Forty 