Wild Bunny Update

The bunnies are doing great.  Nancy e-mailed me to let me know that the mother bunny comes back and nurses the baby bunnies in the morning and evening.  I know she can get thru the fence that I put up, but I opened it up a bit to make it easier.  

The bunnies are about the size of a tennis ball - so cute!!!!

Lori and I took Jane to the Butterfly Museum here in Durham - it was really cool to see the butterflies and the plants in the conservatory.  They had finches and a million butterflies.

Jane and Lori

Then off to the Tobacco Warehouse complex for lunch.  I took this picture of Jane in front of the water so she could remember what water looked at, since they are in such a drought in California.  Which was mean.  I am sorry.  When I got home, Amy handed me a brochure from the city of Durham which gave the days that I am allowed to water!  Odd numbered addresses can water on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays!  So I do have to be careful!

Jane

Jane left today and arrived safely back in California.  We miss her already!!!!!

And, Maren finished the bar exam today and texted me and said she was exhausted, but glad it was over!

:) Leslie

Good of Everyone

I had to share this picture ~ I was on my way to an eye appointment with Mom and Amy wanted to get a picture with Carole's oldest daughter, Jane AND all the dogs.

Jane takes fabulous pictures, but getting the dogs to cooperate is not easy.  But, we were successful:

Success!!!!

Time to take them all for a walk!

Love, Leslie

Some More Changes

"Never underestimate the power of an extremely pissed off woman.  They're the ones that'll kill you  in your sleep."

That quote made me laugh ~ but it is so true!!!!!!!!

I planned on just showing some changes, but I had some excitement.

Here is the excitement.  Last night, Amy took Buffy out in the yard and Amy commented that Buffy spent some time pawing the ground over by my blue chair next to the garden.

I go out there today with the dogs and Melanie is over there nosing around, so I go to look. Baby bunnies.  Buffy had disturbed their nest a bit and one tiny was was about a foot away.

I am not going to tell you what I said, but I called the dogs to go inside, went and got gloves and a big spoon.  While I was getting the gloves, I saw that I had a big bag of sterile spanish moss and I thought I could put that around the bunnies instead of pine straw.

Here are the bunnies - there are 4, but you can see one.

I took the fence from around the butterfly bush and put it around the nest, to protect from the dogs.

You can see the nest to the right of the chair.

Honestly, I am out there EVERY DAY!  Why would the bunnies figure this would be a good nursery?  I do know that baby bunnies are pretty much on their own when born, but we can protect them a bit for a while.

Then, I finally got the hummingbird feeder out by the fence and hummingbirds have already found it!  The same day!  I am going to put a mandevilla plant under it.  That is for tomorrow.

Okay, the changes - we got the blinds for the screened porch, which really make a difference.  We can roll them up or down as needed.

And mom's blinds for her bedroom window were installed.  There was nothing there except dark brown taffeta curtains that when pulled closed, looked like a gigantic black hole.

This is not really a good picture - mom paints on the desk in front of the window.  I am going to get a better picture.  But it is light years better!!!

Love, Leslie

Vacation Continued ~ Old Family Photos

Since the move to Durham from Davidsonville, I have a couple of boxes of pictures, paperwork, etc. that I felt we needed to go through and HOPEFULLY identify people in the pictures.

Here is a hint:  if you have a day with nothing to do, go through and identify by name the pictures.  Don't wait until you are old!  Mom had difficulty seeing some because of her macular degeneration and some she plain can't remember.

And, if you don't want your children to laugh at you, get rid of everything !!!!!!!!!!

For example, this picture, that NO ONE has ever seen before!



Why is my mother pointing a gun at me? I am smiling!!!

And, for the record, I have great difficulty coming up with my great great grandparents names - so WRITE it down!!!!

We did find some very cool stuff, newpaper articles about Dad when he was a freshman in high school - and we have his birth certificate which listed him as one name, Hiram Peter, but he was never called Hiram Peter - his mother kept the birth certificate name a secret - until he was accepted to the Naval Academy and he had to have his name changed legally to Svend Erling, which he had been called all along! (It is a little late to find out that your birth certificate is wrong, when you are 18.)



We have had this photo of Dad's Dad:

Dad's dad ~ Albert David Thomas, Army Calvalry, WWI.

But the group shot is new to us, and we had to really look to try and identify where Granddad was in this picture.
Carole and I picked out who we thought and then we got Jane to look and we all picked the same guy.  So we are PRETTY SURE that our relative is in the second row, 3rd from the left.  It would be nice to be sure.....but nothing is labeled.

Photo from Camp Wilson

I just looked up Camp Wilson - it was an Army camp of instruction, located at Fort Sam Houston and there is a memorial stone that says "Erected in honor of the officers and men of the Wisconsin National Guard Stationed at Camp Wilson, Texas  1916 - 1917."

I also had fun sending some pictures to friends to see if they "remembered" where they were and who they were with.  And some pictures we have no idea at all.


All in all, we had alot of fun.  Until Carole and Emma tried to leave.  Of course their flight was delayed 2+ hours.  Honestly, flying commercial is not easy.

Love, Leslie

Vacation Continued

Yesterday, Carole took Holly and Diane Stevenson to see the Duke Chapel and a tour of Duke.  Holly and Mrs. Stevenson went to the Duke Gardens earlier and they are gorgeous!

Dad, Mom, Neal and Diane Stevenson

I really like the "Duke Blue" plastic around the scaffolding - they are doing massive renovation projects at Duke - most to enhance student life.

The chapel entrance - the entire chapel is closed until next May.

 Then we all met at El Corral for dinner - Jim and Lori's favorite Mexican place.  Thank goodness I moved the garage around and got the treadmill repositioned so it can be used and Jane is the first user.  We open the garage door and have a fan blowing so no one dies of heat exhaustion.  

The weather forcaster says it is "chokingly humid".  And that would be correct.

Jane on the treadmill.

 Jesse didn't join us for dinner - he was out making his first adult purchase - a new truck!  When he was in Austin for his job, his company rented him a big white Dodge Ram pickup truck and he really liked it, so this is his new baby. 

Jesse's new truck!

I have a box of photos that I brought downstairs so we could go thru them and WRITE names on the back of the photos so the people could be identified.  I also started taking a photo of the ones I liked and putting them on the hard drive.  

First box of pictures to identify.

Nancy e-mailed me about the Family Weekend in Pittsburg at Carnegie Mellon ~ 

"We had a terrific time at Family Weekend in Pittsburgh.  Zoe is happy as a clam living on campus and loves what she's learning.  Can you imagine being sixteen and knowing exactly what you want to do with your life?  Drew was talking with the director of the program and was asked which child was his.  When Drew said Zoe, the man's face lit up and he raved about how wonderful she is and the future she will have.  He then told Drew that he would write a letter of recommendation for her to whatever university she is interested in attending."

I know that has never happened with me!!!! And then the bad news ~ 

"On the home front:  I was cleaning the kitchen this morning when I heard a loud boom.  I walked to the bathroom window and watched smoke billowing out of my generator.  The battery exploded like a small bomb and covered the insides with acid and small bits of metal.  As soon as the guy finishes the hazmat cleanup, he will be able to assess the damage."

I might have had a heart attack if I heard that explosion.  Our neighbor has a generator, so if it ever happens, I will at least know what it was.

Love, Leslie

Summer Vacation ~ What Did I Do

Here we are smack dab in the middle of July and we are having summer vacation - or at least our version of it.  

Carole and her girls, Jane and Emma, arrived and we went to the Durham Bulls game on Friday night - great night for us, not so much for the Bulls.  And there has been alot of shopping, with more to continue.

The view from our seats - pretty darn good!

 Some of us are not having summer vacation - here is a picture of Carolyn and her doctor friends in dermatology - I don't believe they get a vacation any time soon.

Carolyn is on the far left

Our dearest friend, Diane and Holly Stevenson arrived yesterday for a visit and Sunday dinner at Jim and Lori's house.  I TRIED to get pictures of all the cousins, but Maren is completely obsorbed in studying for the bar, I did get a hug - but no picture with Maren. But I did get the ones I could corral. And they are cute, aren't they?

Emma, Jane and Jesse

Lori (Snoopy), Amy, Emma, Jane, Carole with my supervisor, Bennett, in front.

I took the above group shot as they were all on their way to TJ Maxx.

Love, Leslie

I Am Not A Vet, But Thanks to YouTube......

I have parakeets and a love bird and I have only taken the love birds to the vet one time to trim their wings, so they can't fly.  I know that sounds mean, but when I first adopted them, I was afraid I would lose them some how.  

As it turns out, they can't see in the dark, so if they do get out, all you have to do is turn out the lights and you can get them.  So, I never had their wings trimmed again.

The yellow parakeet's beek started growing - and I had always "thought" they could file the beak down on their own on the rough things you keep in the cage.  But the yellow one's beak grew and started to hook in.  

Amy came up and was looking at the birds and agreed that it didn't look good.

So I went to You Tube, and sure enough, there was a video on trimming a beak!  So, I got brand new nail clippers and gave it a shot.

My first mistake was trying it in the daylight.  Didn't work, because the parakeets did not want to be caught.  And they can demonstrate that they don't want to be caught. (Think wild animals.)

So, I waited until dark.  It is not easy to catch one anyway, but I got him and clipped.  I put him back in the cage, and of course, he got out.  The good thing about caged birds is that if they do get out, they get freaked out by all the open space and tend to just stop.  So I got him and got him back in the cage.  And neither of us had a heart attack.

When I got a light on, I saw that I didn't really clip anything - after all, it was dark.  (I am really lucky I didn't hurt me or him, but I know to always start small first.)

So, yesterday I tried again.  This time, I left the closet light on.  And, it worked!  

See, he looks great!

I guess next I will try the toenails.  Live and learn!

The best news is that Carole, Jane and Emma arrived!  They did have an adventure, though.  They got to SF airport for their 8am flight and found out that it had been cancelled. Honestly, the paying customer is not treated well when they fly!

So, Carole got them on another flight that took them to Dulles, VA and they got here about 8:15pm.

Carole, Emma, Jane and Amy

Their shoes

They have taken the Duke tour, so Jane could see the school.  Done one trip to the Duke bookstore, which will be done again for more Duke swag.  Tonight we are off to the Durham Bulls game and then massive shopping over the weekend. (Can you see the shopping trend?)

Anyway, it is great to have them here!

Love, Leslie

Lori's Screened Porch

We had dinner at Lori and Jim's house and she has finished her screened porch:

It is so cool and relaxing!

Love, Leslie

Bringing Jake Home

Amy flew up to Maryland to get Jake.  He is having some issues with lameness - and Amy wants a second opinion.  And, she wanted him here. 

She found a place to board him - with a big stall, where he can stay and look out the window and see other horses - Sharon Oaks.

Going to airport.  Amy wore these socks because she REFUSES to walk barefoot in the airport.

The owner of Sharon Oakes even said she would drive up and bring Jake down to North Carolina, so Amy flew to Maryland to get Jake ready and ride back down with him.

Amy stayed with Nancy and was treated in the usual great style.  Nancy even got Amy a cooler full of Diet Coke and ice packs for her knee! Which made the long drive to North Carolina very nice! Amy did question the green goo concoction that Nancy "tried" to make for Amy:

Amy says it was kale, ginger, pear.....Amy said she had her NOT at kale.

When she got to the barn, all of her friends wanted to know what the rig looked like.  The rig is the trailer and  truck - and Amy had no idea.  What if it was horrible?  Luckily, the rig was good.

The rig.

Danielle (the owner) and Amy got Jake loaded up and brought him to North Carolina.

Sharon Oaks is lovely!  Danielle took Amy and Jake over to a small paddock to meet a mini horse and two little goats that could stay with Jake, in case he got lonely.  

Jake meeting Captain (the white dog), Jill (the white goat) and Max (the miniature).

Max, Jill and Jack (the gray goat)

Jill

Jake has a small paddock, which he needs for his recovery:

Jake getting used to his new paddock.

While they were getting Jake settled, I looked around.  Sharon Oaks is great - they have all kinds of animals out there:

Lola

They have Peacocks!!

Bunnies

Amy brushing Jake - there is lots of big trees for shade.

Covered arena

Jake has a great new home, it is close by and Amy will visit daily (like she always did).

We are all now officially North Carolinians!

Love, Leslie

Wigs. Why So Hard to Wear?

I am sure you are wondering what I am talking about.  Wigs?  Well, it is 3 months until Halloween.

Halloween????? Really????? It is 100 degrees outside and I am actually writing about Halloween?

Well, yes.  I am a true believer that if you don't plan ahead (prior planning prevents poor performance - and yes, it WAS on a test!)

So, Amy thinks we should all be witches for the great extravaganza that Halloween is in this neighborhood.  Lori will come over and participate, since no one braves their uphill driveway at the end of their street in the dark.  

So, I ordered wigs, dress, striped stockings....and they arrived - and they are great!!!!!!!  The wigs are fantastic - one is long and silvery grey and the other is black with hot pink and blue tips.  Next a cauldron and dry ice.

I think someone needs to dress up as Dorothy and use Snoopy as Toto,

I LOVE Halloween!

Okay, I am back to working on the house.  There is one more bed to put together, one guest room to hang pictures up in - and then we are ready for Carole, Jane and Emma.  I, of course, had to hang some more pictures in my room!!!!!

If I could get above the window, I would hang a picture, but I can't get there.

The big news is that Amy is going back to Davidsonville on Sunday and bring Jake down here on Monday.  Amy found a place to board him while he is on stall rest and the lady that owns the farm is going to drive up to Maryland and pick Jake and Amy up and drive them down here!  

I think all of us will be glad to have Jake where Amy can see him and visit him every day.

Time to get back to work.  

Love, Leslie

4th of July

We decided to cook out at our house ~ but Jim did ALL of the cooking!!!!! I provided antipasto and salad.  Hamburgers, chicken, tofu hot dog ~ all the great summer food.  It was delicious.

Then, we were off to see the fireworks, but in air conditioned splendor!  We met up with Gwen and Jeffrey Russell, Woody and Lisa Van (all old friends of Jim's and Lori's.)  We drove to the Durham County courthouse - not to park in the parking lot, but Jim used his security card and we all parked in a secure bunker, used by the judges!  

We rode up the elevator to Jim's courtroom, all brand new, with a wall of windows that looked over the Durham Bull's ballpark.

This is how Snoopy rides with Jim - Amy says it is a moving violation.

 

Amy and Snoopy in the courtroom - yes, that is mom in the background.

Yes, Amy put on Jim's judges robe to try out his view.

The fireworks.

It was a lot of fun and great seeing old friends.  Woody and Jeffrey had come to Lori's wedding, Woody was a groomsman, and the general consensous was that "none of us were welcome to come back to the Holiday Inn in Statesboro and that it probably wasn't a good idea to try and put a catamaran in the Hoiday Inn swimming pool".  But it was fun!!!!!!!!

I hope you had a great holiday, also!
Love, Leslie