A Visit From Mama Bear & Her Cubs

I woke this morning to a strange sound....an odd scraping sound. 

I wasn't sure if it was just a lingering dream....or perhaps the horses next door? They often make weird sounds. 

The Battle of The Bear

I've been missing you all and wishing for more time to spend here. 

But life gets in the way sometimes. It's been super busy around here. 

Bear Update....and a Slice of Life

Our weather has been so bizarre. Not just ours, of course, but all over the globe. 

Global warming? I suppose. 

Bear Update

I promised you an update on the Bear situation, so here it is. 

He was missing for a few days. I thought, perhaps, that he had moved on, since he didn't find any food around my house. 

Bear Butts and Bare Trees

I saw my bear the other night. More specifically, I saw his butt. His bear butt. His bare bear butt. His big bare bear butt. He was heading across the road into the apple orchard a few properties down from mine. I'm thinking from the....ahem....deposits he left in my driveway that he eats a LOT of apples. 

Anyway. 

His butt is not the only thing that's bare around here. It poured out of the heavens all night last night along with very heavy winds - the combination took down most of the leaves that were still clinging on to the trees. 

This morning the sun was shining beautifully and it was weirdly warm. I let my fire die for the day so I can clean out the fireplace. Tonight it will be in the 30's. Very strange weather. 

I grabbed my camera to take a few photos of the bare trees around my property to share with all of you. 

I have a view of the mountains from three sides of my house now. No complaints there!

Most of the undergrowth died with the recent frosts - I can see way off into the woods now. Which is great for spotting a bear. Not that I want to spot a bear....

Remember how this tree looked just recently?  Well the leaves are just about completely gone now. And the pile of leaves that was underneath it? Also gone. I came home Monday and found my sweetie sitting in a pile of sweat and leaves. He spent his afternoon blowing them onto a tarp and dragging them into the woods. He's such a honey. I might just have to keep him!

My resident deer loves to hang out behind this shed. In the spring I think she had a fawn bedded down in there - she would let me get fairly close to her but then would hiss at me. I never had a deer hiss at me before! It was a little frightening, not gonna lie. 

There are lots of leaves left to take care of back here. When they are done coming down they will be mulched into the lawn so they can break down to feed the lawn. Eco-fertilizer. 

Any pots that had any sort of a flower still blooming are now gathered around my garden cottage. Many pots were dumped and stored inside and there was some more work done around the foundation this week, again by my sweetie (see - a keeper!) but that's a post for another day. Making progress on the fall cleanup, bit by bit!

I can see right into the horses' paddock now. I think they may have been in their little barn this morning - the paddock was a giant mud puddle after all the rains. 

The front trees are just about done also - which means a better view of the mountain but also a view of the road. And the folks driving by can see my house now, if they bother to look for it. 

The sunshine is gone now and the rain has returned with a vengeance. 

Like I said, weird weather. 

What's it like in your neck of the woods? 

The Wildlife Outside My Window - Good and Bad

I love the wildlife outside my window! Even when I was living in the city I had a little bird feeder and a bird bath outside my bedroom window. I took such delight in that little bit of wildlife that would come eat the treats I would put out for them.

On that note, most of these photos were taken through the window so excuse any fuzziness.....

I felt sorry for the little critters when I moved away, as I do with each move. They get used to having regular meals provided for them and then all of a sudden....nothing.

Well, that's not happening again since I've decided I'm never ever moving again. Ever.

I love looking out and seeing all the critters, large and small, that bring me such joy. Like my little chipmunk friend.  And my neighbors' horses, seen so clearly out my bedroom window now that the trees are getting bare. They are my favorite neigh-bors - ahem. Sorry. 

Not all the creatures bring me joy and some of the wildlife up here on the mountain can be quite scary. 

Like the coyotes. And the bobcats. And the snakes. Ewwww, I hate snakes. And the skunks. And the porcupines. 

And the bears. They are the scariest of all. 

And I had my first real visit from one last night....well, first time in this house. 

I went to put the peanuts out for the birds this morning and one of my feeders was missing. I found the feeder pole on the stairs and a chunk of wood torn from the deck railing where the bear had climbed the stairs, reached over the gate, and tore off the feeder pole. And took the feeder. 

He carried it down by the driveway and broke it to bits. Destroyed it. Grrrrrrrrrr!

It's not the first time I've had a bear take the feeders....not in a long shot. It's just the first time in my new house. 

Crap. I was really hoping they didn't know where I lived!

We gathered the pieces and my sweetie will figure out what parts I'm missing and I'll contact the company for replacements. This company is fabulous, they truly stand behind their product. 

Funny that it's a squirrel buster isn't it? I wish they  made a bear buster! 

It doesn't exist. Not that I know of. If anyone knows of a way to truly keep the bears away from the feeders please share! 

I'll have to bring the feeders into the garage every night before dusk now. Until I'm off his regular feeding route again. Or he goes into hibernation. 

The bear at my last house didn't hibernate in the winter. I had to bring the feeders in every single night, all year. It's irritating to have this extra chore every evening but for me, watching the birds outweighs the annoyance. 

I found a replacement in the garage, installed the feeder pole again, and waited. It wasn't long before we were back in business!

The Nuthatch is coming for the suet. He'd like to get to the peanuts but the Blue Jays won't let him. 

This will do for now!

This is the first time I've seen the Mourning Doves on the flat feeder. 

I honestly wasn't all that sure they were bright enough to figure out there was seed in there! My sweetie calls them the Doofus Birds. He's kind of right....but don't tell him I said so!

The Blue Jays have been regular visitors for a while now but this is the first time I ever captured three on there at once - usually they are too busy fighting!

It didn't take the Gold Finches long to figure out how to work the replacement feeder. Smart little pipsqueaks!

The Dark Eyed Junco comes around looking for tidbits on the ground. Although they are primarily ground feeders they will come to the feeders as well on occasion. 

The Finches like this little thistle feeder outside the kitchen window. I really enjoy being at the sink and watching them up close! 

This poor little Mourning Dove was trying to stay warm on Sunday morning when the temps were in the teens - I felt so bad for him! Look how he fluffed up his feathers to try and stay warm! Yup, that was snow on the railing. That was this cold blustery day.

I love watching the antics of the squirrels. They are such goofy little critters! This guy looks like he has ants in his pants waiting for the other squirrel to have his fill. 

Waiting not so patiently for his turn at the feeder.....he's looking a little anxious now. 

And he gave up. Perhaps the Blue Jay bullied him away. 

The Blue Jays are ganging up on the squirrel but he doesn't seem to be bothered at all. 

Getting a little impatient now....."Come on, you've had enough - it's our turn!"

What kind of wildlife do you see out your window? 

The Garden In Late June

Thank you for all of your sweet comments on my last post. It's amazing how this little blog has connected me with so many wonderful blog friends in the three years I've been writing it. I truly appreciate all of my loyal readers and your comments are so precious to me.

Happy Monday, Y'All!!

I hope you all had a fabulous weekend! The weather couldn't have been better and seeing the sun shining and blue skies with big puffy clouds on a Saturday morning is sure way to start the weekend off right!

We had a busy weekend for sure and there never seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done. 

I've been spending part of my weekends trying to get myself settled and completely unpacked in my new home - I think I have just 2 more boxes to unpack - woo hoo!

More exciting for me is that I'm finally hanging some artwork which makes the house truly feel more like home.  I've been so hesitant to start hammering into my freshly painted walls so I've been putting it off and off and off....and I don't quite feel so bad since I just read that Jessica over at HowSweetEats.com How Sweet Eats is just getting around to hanging pictures a year after moving in!  Of course, she was kind of busy writing a cookbook, on tour to promote the cookbook, and at the same time growing a tiny human.....and what a terrific job she did, he's truly a gorgeous baby, I just want to squish him! Baby Max

I spent some time tackling the weeds this weekend - seriously, how do they get so out of control? And why on earth did the previous homeowners decide to plant so many dang weeds?? heh heh heh

The garden steps look so much better now without all those ugly weeds. The flowers are pretty wild at this point in the season and like to hang right over the path but there's no way I'm cutting them back until they finish blooming. 

Check out this gorgeousness!!!!  The Casablanca Lilies have finally bloomed and they are absolutely glorious!!  The scent when you are anywhere near the garden is intoxicating. In the evenings their scent wafts right up to the sitting area on the upper deck, which is exactly what I hoped when I planted them in the spring. Stunning, giant flowers - they are the showstoppers in the garden right now without a doubt. 

Lily loving the Lilies!

Three of them were a tasty dinner for a hungry deer earlier in the season. Why can't the deer eat the weeds?

The morning glories are still going strong, and have finally flowered on the obelisks they share with the Jasmine. 

Morning Glories on Veggie Garden Fence

It makes me so happy to see these beautiful blooms first thing in the morning. It truly is the little things, you know? All these little moments of beauty add up to create the home you love. 

This weekend I also added a second feeder hanging off the deck in hopes the birds will find them before the cold months set in. No luck yet - I only have a chipmunk as a regular visitor, on the flat feeder, which was hung first. I have a third feeder pole arriving today so I'll add some suet into the mix and see if that brings any action. 

Before long hopefully my feeders will be a regular stop for our feathered friends....and fingers crossed the bear doesn't find them first! Naturally, after hanging the second one yesterday, late last night I heard all sorts of odd sounds which I convinced myself was the bear up on my deck ripping down the feeders....but they were safe and sound this morning, so I guess my "bear" was the horses next door.  

I'm still not totally used to the various noises the horses make in the wee hours but I love having them as my "neigh-bors!"

I hope your week is off to a wonderful start!

Remember to stop for a moment and find the beauty in your life. 

It's all around you. 

Spring has Sprung and I Need a Clone!

Doesn't it always seem there are not enough hours in the day? Either that, or I seriously need to figure out how to clone myself. 

Farmer's Market Kabobs

We finally got rain this weekend....blessed, glorious rain!

And boy, did we need it!

Waiting Ever So Impatiently

Here we are just days away from the official start of spring and the weather has gone from spring to winter back to spring so many times I feel like a yo-yo. 

I bet that's how all the trees and animals feel also. 

What I Absolutely Hate About Spring

Spring in the mountains is a wonderful time of year.

 

The snow is melting, the creeks are gurgling happily through the forest, the birdsong is spectacular.

Busy as a Bee

I'm sure you've guessed that things have been pretty darned busy around my little house recently....thus the lack of blog posts! 

There's so much I want to tell you and show you, and yet I don't have the time to get frequent posts written these days. 

My Mountain Top Home

I often refer to my mountain top home and I know some folks may think my home hangs off the edge of a cliff. 

Nope, that wouldn't work for me at all with my fear of heights! 

The Garden in Late June....and My Critters

Exciting things are happening in the garden these days!

Well....exciting for me, but maybe that's not saying much about me, huh?

A Cozy Cabin Christmas

It's that time of year again.....time to think about lugging all the Christmas stuff into the house and creating my own little indoor winter wonderland!

The Sweet Scents of Home

As most of you know, I absolutely love to cook. 

But almost as much as I love to cook is how strongly I absolutely detest the smell in the house after the meal is done. 

An Update On My Awkward Living Room

Since Spring has finally made its long awaited arrival to the mountain top, I've been spending as much time outdoors as possible, getting the gardens ready for the season. 

However, I didn't forget that I owe you an update on my awkward living room solution....I just got sidetracked with that darned bear!

One Of The Ways I Combat Daily Stress

I've always been a big fan of Aromatherapy. It started many years ago, when my children were babies and I went through one of the most stressful times in my life. 

That's a story for another day, but suffice it to say, I used Aromatherapy regularly as one of the things that got me through that terrible time.  Candles, essential oils, linen mists, body sprays and lotions....you name it, if it was scented with essential oils, I used it.  It's amazing how a particular scent can lift your mood or calm your mind.

Oh, and then there was wine. That helped, too.

A Room With a View

There's nothing like coming home after a long, busy day....unless it's coming home to a project FINISHED!!

My amazing contractor finished up the trim and painting around the new windows yesterday and I couldn't be more pleased! 

Despite my long day and the late hour when I got home I set to work getting things back in order again. 

I poured myself a cocktail and started cleaning windows and hanging curtains. 

Yes, I know - they are wrinkled. I don't iron. Don't judge. 

If the wrinkles don't fall out on their own (please do!) I have a steamer I can use on them if absolutely necessary. 

The house looks so cozy now looking in from the deck. I had to snap a couple of photos when I went out with the pups. 

The table will look better surrounded by loved ones but that will happen soon. I'm ready to host another dinner party now that the house is back in order. 

And of course I have to christen my new best friend. You can read all about her here. 

I was glad I got all the work done before I went to bed so I could just relax with my coffee and enjoy the beautiful view when I woke up. The sun wasn't shining yet, it was barely over the mountain, but the view is still gorgeous. 

From the living room I see out onto the conversation area and firepit on the deck, and beyond to the woods and the mountain range. And the flat feeder which the blue jays have taken over completely!

Can you see the two greedy blue jays fighting over the feeder?

From the dining room I see the outdoor dining set and also the woods and mountains beyond. And the goldfinches.....they are pretty much at that feeder all. day. long. 

I don't know if I've even seen any other bird on this feeder yet other than the finches. 

From the guest room window I have a great view of the neighbor's horses and their little red barn.  I think that might have been the point during my initial tour when I fell in love with the house. 

I mean, come on. How could I not? 

I can see the horses out of one of my master bedroom windows also. And I hear them clomping around during the night....it's become a very comforting sound for me in the past few months, once I got used to the noise and stopped thinking it was a bear on my deck!

From my other master bedroom window and also one of the master bathroom windows I can see my little garden cottage and the woodlands beyond. It's so private and quiet. 

I'm so very fortunate to be able to look out my new windows onto views that make me smile and feel at peace. 

What's your favorite view from your home?