Saturday, June 30, 2007

More June Gardening...



What our flower bed project looked like before we got started: burned and wilted irises and lots of foxtails. Ugh!



The flowerbed after -- no weeds, new compost, and plants donated by Miss Sandy in San Antonio (the honeysuckle in the middle) and by Judith, our blessed neighbor....



The tools of the trade ... including some from my great-grandmother.

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

More Balboa Park....



A hydrangea leaf in the Botanical Garden...



Architecture in Balboa Park



A flower in the Botanical Building...



Koi in the Reflecting Pond -- it had just jumped up out of the water...



The Botanical Building and Reflecting Pond....

Saturday, June 16, 2007

More Cuymaca Photos....



Here three of the kids stroll along the shore of Lake Cuyamaca. lakes are a rare thing in our county where the Pacific Ocean and Colorado River hold the most sway for water-lovers.



T found some quartz rocks at the Stonewall Mine. He obviously had to leave it behind, but it was fun to dream that perhaps a small vein of gold ran through it....



Here's Stonewall Peak as seen as we drove back from the mine toward the highway. I used to gallop our horses across theis field on our way back to the horse camp, which used to be behind that grouping of pines. We also used to hike through this field at twilight and count the deer we saw. The effects of the fire still remain almost four years later....

More Cuymaca Photos....



This is a shot of the equipment from the old Stonewall Mine, which was in operation from 1869-1892. The shaft has been mostly filled in, but at one point it went 800 feet down. The mine brought in over $2 million in gold over its lifetime, and a city of over 1000 people once lived in this spot which only blue jays and other wildlife call home.



Another of the mine. I remember hiking up to this mine all the time as a kid when we camped at the nearby equestrian camp, which was destroyed by the Cedar Fire
of 2003.


This was taken in the mine parking lot. The fire moved through here so quickly that some trees were burned and the ones next to them left untouched....



T took this of Stonewall Peak as we drove back down the mountain and home again.

Thursday, June 14, 2007



J enjoying his ice cream cone...



B isn't used to soda...



This is our kids' favorite animal: Michael, the Children Zoo's otter. We usually get some great photos of him cavorting about, but this day he wasn't coming out of his shady den and we could only get his head....



A mama and baby settling down for a nap in the sun....

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

San Diego Zoo Additional Photos



Love the interplay of light on the turtle's shell...



This hippo was a fast swimmer -- we couldn't catch up to him to get a full facial photo. He was on the move!



Near the zoo entrance is the Terrace Lagoon where we watched ducks, turtles, and some of the largest koi I've ever seen from a Japanese-style bridge. Lovely!



The meerkats were adorable. Guest photographer T could get a far better view of this guy than I could from the wheelchair.



Happy Birthday, J! I think he had a great birthday celebration....

Monday, June 11, 2007

More Duplo Creations...




The boys rock out to their own custom-Duplo guitars!

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Balboa Park, Part Three

There's another bunch of photos below -- don't miss!


E and T at a science station -- using reflections of each other to merge into one person....



J and T at a science station, rubbing the handles of this brass pot full of water to make a deep gonging noise....



A mountain lion at the Natural History Museum; this one may have been done by my great-great uncle who was a taxidermist for the museum back in the 1950s-60s.



The theatre near the Natural History Museum -- love the architecture!

Balboa Park



Three boys watching a science activity...



A golden eagle at the Natural History Museum...



Three boys goofing off, and a patient elder sister...



This pendulum used to be in the entrance before the remodeling of the Natural History Museum. I remember watching it as a young girl, and so does my mother. It's now in the back of the museum but still a treasured memory.



This science activity was the kids' favorite. By covering the holes in the poles, a tornado-like effect is produced. The kids spent a very long time at this station...