Birthday Season

Right after Christmas, birthday season arrives at our house! It starts with our youngest grandson, Will. A week later it's one to be forgotten - mine! Two weeks later it's our oldest daughter - Nicci. A week later's it's the Crappie King's - another to be forgotten. And on the last day of February it's another grandson - Luke's bday. It's good to be Aquarian!

     One might think there is very little to do at the lake in the winter months, but throw that cold thought out the door.  Today, after a huge biscuit and gravy breakfast, we headed out the door with all the grandies.  Eagle Days at the Lake is in its' fifth season. Last year we caught the Eagles seminar at Osage National Golf Resort.
This year we headed to Osage Heritage School for the Owl seminar.  It was totally cool; the grandies and the adults gave it two thumbs up - something hard to do with so many different ages in our herd! Grandpa mentioned that in order to do every venue offered for Eagles Day it would take two days. I think we'll just keep doing it one chunk at a time!

Screech Owl

Grandie observation
 

Barred Owl



Great Horned Owl

Crappieking's baby sister holding our only girlie grandie!
 

The holidays are upon us. Twelve of us took a trip to Dallas over Thanksgiving to visit with the CrappieKing's baby sister.  We looked a bit like a caravan toodling down the hwy.  The grandies look forward to the fact that it is still warm enough to swim in a pool in TX vs MO. When you're a kid, there's nothing like eating your turkey and swimming it off all afternoon with your cousins.
Life is good!






Heated pools are the greatest!



 

Let's Play Tourist



Sunday morning we filled our bellies with biscuits and gravy, jumped in the truck and headed to the other side of the lake to:  Ha Ha Tonka state park.



Rules for fishing

It had been years since we went with the girl scouts. Now, our girl scouts have little scouts of their own! I'm not sure how that happened so fast!  There are many things to see when visiting, plus breath taking views of the castle,

Picture perfect



the spring, and lake below. The little scouts were quite excited to see a muskrat on a log in the water, while the rest of us tried to think of that old song from 1976, by Captain and Tenille, "Muskrat Love." The bigger scouts became enthused upon seeing some large trout suspended in the clear water.    



How to catch trout



Trout hangout





If you get a chance to visit us here at the lake, take a day to wander at

Ha Ha Tonka.  You won't regret it.





photo Op



View from above at the castle





There's A Monster In Our Yard!

There's a monster that comes out after dark in our yard.  Each day we see where the monster has dug more holes in the yard and ran crazy through our flower beds.  We can no longer see beautiful mulch! It looks like we hoed around what flowers the desperate deer have not munched to the ground in this year of the drought.


Scare him and he'll jump straight up in the air, due to poor vision



Time was one only saw these monsters in Texas, but they are slowly creeping north. Yes, it is the Armadillo, derived from the Spanish term, "little armored one." Nine bands cover the body, a hard shield protects the face, even their tails are covered in rings. Only the belly is soft, their legs and claws are very strong to help dig for dinner.  They can weigh from two to twenty pounds and eat up to 200 pounds of insects in a year.  They do not fair well in cold, maybe we will have an early winter since we had an early spring?  Wishful thinking on my part.

An interesting fact from history - President Herbert Hoover promised a chicken in every pot.  However, this did not pan out and many took to cooking armadillos, nick-named "Hoover Hogs."

Something's Burning - I think it's me.

   

Pink Knock-Out Roses


This was our forecast, April and May will be much cooler than normal, with near-normal precipitation. Summer will be drier and cooler than normal, on average, despite hot spells in early and late July. If expected rains do not come in June, drought will be an issue.
September and October will be cooler and rainier than normal, with snow in late October.


Gladiola



A record-breaking heat wave in Missouri.  In late June and early July, we broke several hot temperature records. I fear my electric bill.

So far, this forecast has been fairly consistent. Our spring was quite warm and we are now in a drought. We almost get giddy if we see a gray cloud. We frown when said cloud blow on past. The other day the radio mentioned one had to be 58 years of age to remember it being this hot for this long. I mentioned this to my better half, by stating I probably didn't remember much of it I was so young. At this point he informed me I was 57, not 58, so at least one good thing has come out of this heat - I have become younger!

Little Lime before it cooked in over 100 degree temperatures

 Last summer we had so much rain, we hardly had to water the yard or our flower gardens.  This year we drag the hose around and water all day long and still plants are cooking in the ground. What hasn't died has been consumed by deer. Our hostas have been consumed, along with purple coneflowers, knock-out roses, even Virginia creeper has been chomped up like a precious delicacy.  Even with watering the grass is brown where the sun hits it all day. I will close with a picture of our beautiful knock-out roses before the hot weather and the deer worked them over. Last winter I made the decision to get rid of Stella O'Day lilies the deer ate, and I feel the hostas may follow the same path for something less yummy to our four legged neighbors.

Rumor Has It

Rumor has it now that Dollar General has arrived in our neck of the woods  it is the largest store built recently.  Another rumor is that it out sold all the area Dollar General Stores Memorial Weekend.  One thing I do know, I have yet to drive by that there aren't at least 2 cars parked there shopping, normally there are several cars parked out front and it is unbelievable by the weekend.

Another rumor has it that we are now going to see a motel of some sort - either on Y-10 or across from Dollar General.  How can this be we asked at? However, as we thought about it, the more sense it made.  There is rarily a weekend goes by that there are not fishing tournaments underway all year round.  Where do all these fishermen with plain and beautiful bass boats stay when not tearing up the water for the perfect fish?After all Coffman Beach Public Launch is very close by. When I hear more on this interesting story, I will keep you apprised. In the mean time, the water temperature is 81 degrees and I will leave you to ponder a quote by A. K. Best, "The fishing was good, it was the catching that was bad."



Me trying out a $20 fishing chair.



Grandie thinks it was made for her!