Calm Before The Storm

Last Friday, the kids and I decided to seize the beautiful sunny day. We packed up our gear and headed to a trail. I was proud of both Ava and Isaac because they hiked quite a long way before there was one complaint (mostly from Ava since Isaac still doesn't voice his opinion very often)..... lol
They were facinated by a lot of different things - but they seemed to favor water, sticks, and flowers :)
Of course I had my camera in hand :)

We thought this rock was pretty cool and Ava wanted to take a picture by it ;P

After wearing ourselves out we decided to go ahead and start toward home. I noticed a yellow-bellied rock marmot sunbathing on a rock. She stood there motionless for a minute.

Then she looked around and whistled.........

I knew it was a "she" because she wasn't alone........... her three new babies were sitting in her shadow. We quietly watched them for a little while.

They were amazingly patient with our presence ..........

The babies would pop in & out of the rocks..........

Mom always stayed close............................. these critters are actually pretty fun to watch :)

I was happy we got out on the trail Friday - because a storm came in and stayed the next two days bringing wind, rain, and a measurable accumulation of SNOW!!

Photos to follow in my next post...................

From One Life Zone to Another

Last evening we decided to drive up to the Wheeler Peak Summit Trailhead and visit the winter wonderland. The temperatures weren't exactly warm here in Baker when we left. The elevation here in town is just above 5000 ft - so we knew it would be cold at 10,000 ft at the trailhead. In addition to the chilly temps - there was the wind factor. Here's a snapshot of Wheeler from our house.......... if you look carefully you can see the snow blowing off the top. It was windy here in Baker - I couldn't imagine what it was doing up there. Burrrrrrr.



Nearing closer to our destination.............
We didn't end up staying up at the trailhead for too long because it was so cold and windy. So, if you're curious about how much snow is still up there (nearing Memorial Weekend) here's an example:

Bryan was collecting snow samples for isotopes at various stations on the way up the scenic drive..........

Look at Isaac's expression - he says "What are we doing standing here? Let's go!" ................... and was he eager to get back into the truck!

LOL

Burrrrrrr..............................

Meanwhile, at a lower elevation ......................... the surroundings are much more colorful. The wildflowers are going to be insanely beautiful this year!

Since that trip - I haven't complained as much about how chilly it is here in Baker. I'd rather be enjoying the wildflowers down here in this life zone than waiting for 5-7 feet of snow to melt up there ;)

Hami Babies

This is the first time all the Hamilton kids have been together. So, of course we had to set up a casual photo shoot. Isaac wouldn't sit still so I had to place him in a toy shopping cart. lol . You know how it is trying to get photos of a group of people (especially munchkins) you never know what product you'll end up with. So, here was the attempt; Hami Babies overload:

I give Sarah Hamilton credit for taking this last photo. Good job Sarah! These photos help reveal the kids different personalities. Little stinkers :P

Hopefully we won't wait too long for the next extended Hamilton family get-together.

I'm sure you would all agree, I'm ready to jump into June with both feet! I have not been impressed with the month of May at all. This weekend is Memorial Weekend and I feel like we've been jipped out of adequate warm days for the whole month!!! It's been replaced by horrible winds.
The barn swallows and the hummingbirds arrived a few weeks ago and they are probably thinking "What the h&!!?" The orioles and hummingbirds have been living by our feeders. They take turns sipping the sugar water and chasing each other around. I have to fill the liquid feeders up every 2-3 days. We sure enjoy watching the bird show every day.

I've been eagerly waiting to plant veggies in my garden without using wall-o-waters. I've got a pretty good head-start on my garden this year. I planted my corn yesterday. I figured by the time they popped their heads out of the ground in a couple of weeks - we would be cleared of any danger of frost. But, this year has been so moody and weird - ya never know. So, I guess I'm gambling.

It has been raining (quite heavily at times) the last 2 days and currently is at this moment. I'm waiting for the raindrops to transform into leopard frogs. Just kiddin'! Actually, the rapture was supposed to be a few days ago according to some. The only empty trousers I was laying around were Isaac's. Ha ha :D

In other news:

My mom started her new job working (in uniform) for Great Basin National Park (NPS) today! I believe her primary duty is visitor center/campground janitor. She'll also be one of the flaggers when they do road maintenance and help with other projects. She gave the Border Inn almost 20 good years. This is definately a good change and I'm so excited for her :)

Bryan and his cohorts from Washington caught a couple of king snakes this week over at Mount Moriah.

I'm switching my Therapeutic Massage day at Active Chiropractic to Mondays instead of Fridays.

That's about it for now................. I'm ready to watch my garden grow!!!!!!

Hami (Extended) Fami: Part Three

All the grandkids got to spend some quality time with their grandpa and grandma :)
We tried to get some photos of them all together - but they just refused and we'll as the expression goes "you can lead the horse to water but you can't make it drink."


Ava monkeyin' around as usual.....................

Bryan has been playing his guitar regularly - he doesn't think we listen ~ but he's misled ;)
I was planning a bonfire with everyone during the week. It would have been great listening to his music in front of flames along with good company. But, the weather wouldn't have it! Grrrrrrrrr. Then, on top of that - my Sunday plans were ruined because I picked up the 24 hour flu somewhere. However, I was in bed all day when we were having 50 mph winds which didn't let up ALL freakin' day. So, guess if I had to be sick, it was a "ideal" day to be sick.

Wyatt found his fingers......................

Grandpa having a heart-to-heart with Isaac over dinner :)

Then, we decided that maybe if we held the kids in our arms we could get a nice photo of everyone:

Maybe next time we'll get a closer shot - but you get the idea and you can see our good looks, right?
:)

:P

:D
;)

LOL