Sum Sum Summer Time 2014

Ok where did I leave off on my last blog about Spring.  Here it is the end of summer and I am camping right now so have some time to blog.   This is our first time to camp this summer and it is a few days away from the end of August, but we are here at our favourite place Davis Lake Recreations site here in BC Canada only an hour or so from our home.  So let’s just start from where I am right now Davis Lake.

Well the first couple days for me was just relaxing and reading.  Then weather cooled and I spent many hours inside the motorhome with a spectacular views of the lake working on photos and this blog.

My hubby of course was out fishing the whole time.  Finally when the weather cooled he was getting bigger trout, the biggest caught was 19 inches.

Mornings and evenings always bring a change to the lake scene.

One night we had some close friends come for dinner and enjoy a beautiful evening as the sun set behind the hills. 

 Trips

End of June I went to Oregon to a nephews wedding and while down there did a little sight seeing at Silver Falls State Park and Oregon Gardens Resort as well as stop in and see an old friend.

Wedding
I really do enjoy capturing special moments at weddings with my family.  However I would hate to do it professionally.  Way too much pressure.

Silver Falls State Park
It rained off and on my visit t here but the falls were spectacular. 

Oregon Gardens Resort
My sister and I spent one night at this resort that included acres and acres of these beautiful gardens that we first took a narrated tour on a small trolley, then later walked most the gardens.

 Visiting Old Friend
I always love to stop in a visit an old friend while going through Washington and we went and visited her horse for the afternoon.

Trip to Shuswap Lake
My hubby and I were invited by some friends to stay a couple nights at a resort they were staying at.  What a treat that was.  Luxury to us.  The drive down first was very scenic.

What a treat to relax here the weather just broke from a rain storm the evening we arrive and gave us nothing but sun the next couple of days.

I rose early the first morning to go down to the water.  I felt all alone on the lake.  It was so quiet with the sun just coming up.

The evening lights from the resort were just beautiful.

This summer was not all trips of course much time was spent at our ranch working and enjoying it. 

Gardening

The garden got off to a good start early summer.

But as we were gone often the baby marmots kept eating all my lettuce and greens.  Somehow flowers are now taking over the vegetable garden.  But something that I am getting for the first time this year is squash in the garden. 

I won’t have much to harvest in the garden this year just lots of potatoes, onions, turnips, kale, carrots and lots of garlic. but had plenty of berries to harvest.  It was a very berry couple of weeks.

 Flowers

The beginning of the summer found our deck very bare looking when I first set all my pots of flowers out I started in the greenhouse.  But it didn’t take long for the heat of summer to bring color to our deck again.

I wasn’t going to do flowers this summer, but somehow did and was surrounded by them all over our property. Right now I will begin collecting my annual seed to carry on the flowers for the next year.  I have been saving flower seeds for 20 years. 

Just a glimpse of the many perennials I have in my flower beds.

Wildflowers
This June and July we had so many wildflowers and many new varieties.

 Wildlife

I was blessed one morning to sit and watch a fly catcher bring food to her babies as they had just left the nest.

Well the marmots are still here, but we had some new visitor this year.  We have bunnies in around the house, not good as they have munched a few things now.  But I was able to see some otters that came down the creek and got some really great photos and videos of them.

 

Our Part Time Home

Well I guess for those of you who follow me know I spoke of a new property
we purchased last winter and was going to start work there is summer.  Well our tenant in our rental house in town moved out and we decided not to rent it right now as we had owned it for over 20 years and wanted to spend a little time there.  So many weekend from July through August we would go there and work a bit, and I was also able to go to a few Saturday flea markets in town and set up for selling my greeting  cards.  But mostly just enjoy being close to town yet right on the river and wonderful walks on the dikes and trail systems right from our back yard.  Now we may want to down size there.  Still will spend some time at the new property in October.  But here is a glimpse of the walks we take from our little house on the river in out town.

Going north east up the river we follow the trail to where our two rivers in town meet.

When we go South east up the river we follow it for awhile then cut over to the Kettle Valley Trail.  There is so much wildlife right here in our town.

Once back on the Kettle Valley trail we go through the old train tunnel and come out at the other river and the old train bridge.   The walk takes just over an hour.  Where the trail passes by town it is all lit with lights at night.

We are seriously thinking of downsizing to town as we really do love it there.   

My Folks New Business
Ok my folks are in their 80’s and have started a new internet business selling outdoor recreations and sports gear along with  emergency stuff.  I think my stepbrother got them all set up and started.   They only ship in the United States so check them out if you are interested in camping gear and more.  Great sales on right now.  Also check out their about page to see the cute photo of them.  My stepmom does the blogs for the sales site.  They just keep plugging away  in life.
http://yavapai-outdoorsupplies.com/

 

 Creations by Here I Am Carrie
Well I finally got out this summer to sell some of my greeting cards at our local outdoor venues. 
My first time out was at our local Saturday flea market and I didn’t sell anything, but was learning a great deal watching the other vendors.

The next week I was back again and this time put a little music on behind my display and made some sales.  I always look so tiny compared to the other vendors as I only have a patio umbrella.  I usually had to pack up by 1pm as it got to hot.

We had a music fest in town my 3rd weekend and I set up on the closed street along with other vendors for 2 full days and did really well with my sales. I had a great display and was really getting the hang of talking to people.
 

So I am back at the ranch didn’t even get this blog finished up while camping.  Already put in 3 hours in the garden this morning.  We are heading camping again in 10 days so I am going to have a very busy week.  The temps. have cooled down finally after a very hot summer, but that also means soon we will be getting frost here at the ranch.  There no longer seems to be an end to the work ahead with too many properties and trying to squeeze in extra activities.  Feeling very overwhelmed again trying to do it all.  I swear next summer no annual flowers and only potatoes, onions in the garden. 

So I hope that as your season ends you were able to accomplish all that you set out to do and have a
Good Morning….   Good Afternoon…  Good Night…
What ever it is to you.

Photos & Words
by
Here I Am Carrie

 

 

Spring Moments 2014

Well another couple of months have passed filled with so much more then I can even begin to share.  Life is full, what can I say.

Now I am sure I had told myself I wasn’t going to garden or do flowers this summer as I knew I had a lot of other work projects that really needed attention, but once a gardener always a gardener, I just couldn’t stop myself.  In the greenhouse I soon had it filled with every pot with starting seeds and creating hanging baskets.

Soon the rains came along with melting snows and rising waters.  We had our road washed out at one point and lost a stretch of our fencing which we had only replaced a few years ago,  other then that we were lucky and not major damage.

Another year older and a beautiful birthday was spent having breakfast on the deck, then going for a bike ride just up our dirt road.

I am a very big recycling person and am so glad to see our dump include all types of plastics now as well as milk cartons and many more plastics and styrofoam's.   Our dump will hopefully last for many more years.  We have a really great dump for recycling so many different things.  It takes a bit more extra time cleaning the cans, glass and stopping at the different locations at the dump to empty your recycling.  Just wish more people would take the time.

Well is wasn’t long after returning from our winter home down south that soon all our woodsy friends starting appearing to greet us for the spring.

Now I know many of you are probably wondering what is happening with that little acreage we bought last winter.   Well amazing how life’s paths can change.  Seem our tenant moved out of our rental in town right on the river that we have own for 20 years and we decided to not rent it anymore and was thinking we would sell it.  Well after spending a couple of nights and enjoying the private backyard and being right in town yet right on the edge of nature we may just have a complete change of retirement location.  We haven’t even had a chance to spend at the new property as any extra time is now spent at the house in town cleaning it and trying to get the yard green again.  Many repairs need to be done there.  News and photos of there coming next blog.

When the days warmed up and the grass turned green life was good here at the ranch with all the fruit trees blossoming and the garden ready for planting.

What ‘s spring without some spring flowers and this year I was blessed with many.

My flowers don’t even begin till almost middle of May as our season is so far behind.  But when it does come all the planting I spent years doing suddenly paints my landscape with so many different colors.

By middle of June it is time for the first harvest of rhubarb which I bag and freeze it all for later use in the fall for wine and jams.  During the summer lots of rhubarb crisps are also made.

Sheaba’s world is forever changing, upon returning back to the ranch, she was fearful and hesitant for a while.  But since the weather has warmed and sunny days with no wind she is much happier.  She now comes to us while we are sitting to be pet and snuggled with her tail wagging.  I am now trying to teach her to lay down.  Even with treats it is a fearful moment for her to be asked to do something, but today she laid down with a gentle nudge on her back.  With all the flies and mosquitoes out now she again prefers to spend all day in the house between her walks.  She showing so much more affection for us even though she can still run away when feeling fearful.  But with all her lying around she is gaining too much weight.  I think I will have to cut her food down.  But so many people always comment how beautiful she is and what a healthy coat she has.  I do spend a fortune on her dry dog food.  But cancer and many other problems on the rise with our pets I believe the food is a great cause , along with environmental exposure. 

Our animals all seem to have some sort of social problems.  Siriun our cat is now 8 years old and is the laziest cat I have ever met.  I have to throw him outside.  He used to be a great hunter when we had our other cat Wildflower, but without her outside as well he doesn’t want to go out. So he sleeps, sleeps and eats and sleeps.  He never even gets active in the house.  We have a new to us couch and he does enjoy now snuggling next to me while I am sitting there working on my laptop. He really needs to go on a diet.  But his only joy seems to come from eating.

Well the summer flowers are blooming now and I have taken a trip to Oregon for a family wedding, and so many other projects and gardening activities keeping me so busy this summer it’s hard to get a blog out, work on my greeting card project  or even less time to visit.  I find more and more it is easier and faster to stay up to date with my long blogging friends on Facebook.  But I will continue to try and get a blog out here now and then.

So as I say goodbye to spring and now summer is in full swing, with a visitor now and then we take a break from all our work and enjoy the moment and view.  May you also take a moment now and then to enjoy the company of friends and take in your surrounding and be thankful for all the wonders that life has to offer.
And have a
Good Morning…   Good Afternoon…   Good Night…
Whatever it is to you.
Photos & Words
by
Here I Am Carrie

Salton Sea Winter 2014 Part 2

Well spring is here and time the snowbirds have returned back north to our ranch in British Columbia Canada.   Lot of leaks and floods in the plumbing when we turned our water back on and feeling overwhelmed with trying to get everything back in order here.  But before things get crazy busy with life at the ranch I thought I should get part  2 of our life at the Salton Sea this past winter.  So on with my collage of photos which help tell the stories.

I spent way too much of my free time making my homemade greeting cards.  But I have finished them all.  I now have about 250 in stock.  As a test on setting them up I went to the outside flea market near Salton City to see how it would all go.  Not the right people for buying, but liked how they displayed off the back of my truck and how much wind the display could take before I had to dismantle very quickly.  I did sell about 20 cards to friends.  Hope to be doing some flea markets in my hometown here in Canada this summer.  When these cards are gone I will only selling  ready made cards online or ones I order and sell through local venues.  These homemade cards just took up all my spare time this winter.  But the money I make off them will be reinvested into cards I purchase ready made online.  Not much money invested in homemade cards just lots or time.  But the sales of this  cards also will tell me which cards are more popular and what ones I will order ready made.
Baby Steps

I could not forget my passion for flowers and this spring at the Salton Sea we had beautiful blooms in our yard of desert scape plants.

The empty gravel yard when we bought this house was like a blank canvas for me and over the last 3 years I have so enjoyed creating the landscape and patio areas with mostly materials and plants with little or no costs. 

I am forever moving rocks and adding a plant or two.  The heat this past winter here did slow work down in the yard.  There was not a drop of rain in 10 weeks and most days ranges from 85 to 100 degrees.  The hottest winter I can remember in 25 years going there.  But as I was inside working on my greeting cards progress was made there.

Everyday either early morning or just before the sun went down I went for a walk for about an hour with my dog Sheaba. Our neighbourhood is so varied and forever changing from one location to the next.

Found under many big trees in the the washes around the neighbourhood are makeshift shelters that were used by  illegals Mexicans or even homeless.

From beautiful homes to stuffed chairs on empty lots our area has it all.

Surrounded by mountains  and glimpses of the sea were always there during my walks.

Occasionally company would come and stay with us so would take them for a walk down near the Salton Sea.  We still own a empty lot near the sea and went for a picnic there with friends.  Then headed for the long walk down to the waters edge.

The shoreline here is lined with barnacles, but one still feels like they are walking along and ocean beach even if it is only a salt lake.

The main fish still in the Salton Sea are Tilapia, which dead ones can be found sometime along the shoreline.  I am sure they were once also a source of food for Sheaba when she ran wild down here near the Salton Sea.

The constant hum of ultra lights can be heard all along the shore of the sea a favourite area for them to fly.

There is now so much activity on the shores of the sea with ATVs, jeeps and fishing.  This group of vehicles parked on the shore were sitting in lawn chairs waiting for the full moon to rise.

Every March Tera Del Sol Jeep club holds a jeep rally near Salton City California near the Salton Sea.  Thousands of camper and jeeps swarm the desert during this weekend.

It’s fun to just park at a view point and watch all the activity in the desert and bad lands.  The dust they create is more then I want to put myself near. 

Our area is not without wildlife even with all the dyeing vegetation.  Coyotes are a regular seen around the neighbourhood and desert along with pelicans near the sea and hummingbirds at the flowers.  I discovered a burring owl just on the edge of the neighbourhood.  How it has managed to survived with ATVs driving within 20 feet of it’s burrow.

Seems the little burrowing owl had a mate in the hole, which I could have been around when the babies hatched out.  So many other birds and creatures were always there to be seen when one took the time to look.

I will miss my walk I took everyday and seeing the every changing landscape and skies.  The mountains with the shadows that changed with the time of the day.   But the snowbird had to leave and head back north.

 

Good bye to the Salton Sea for another winter and see you next time at our ranch in British Columbia.

Wishing you a wonderful Easter
and have a
Good Morning…   Good Afternoon…   Good Night…
Whatever it is to you

Photo & Words
by
Here I Am Carrie