Blatantly cute

Quality time is midmorning naptime for Stella and Case.

But like any Border Collie, Casey's ready for anything. You can tell by the keen, alert expression.

Our procreating cottonwood's time has come

The "old girl" of the cul de sac is letting loose with another blizzard of seeds.

As much as we complain, we'd miss those jillions of fluffy little parachutes and the resulting drifts, putting a cap on May.

Casey seems to take this phenomena in stride.  The rest of us don't inhale too deeply when it's breezy.

(Just keep the Claritin handy until summer.)

Stress management and homemade rosemary bread

                      

                                                                                

A DSH* diva taking it one day at a time.

Decisions, decisions, decisions. Does Stella keep an eye on the Great Outdoors, or watch bread cool?

(And everyone thinks Casey's got it made.)

* Domestic short hair

Lunch at Oddfellows with a side trip to Elliott Bay Books

Lunch at Oddfellows Cafe followed by a side trip to Elliott Bay Book Company's new location in Seattle would normally have taken most of the afternoon if this "talk-of-the-day" Spring weather wasn't so memorable.

Something tells me it's all happening at the Park

The place to be today is any park in Seattle. Saturday afternoon...70 degrees, clear skies. Casey made the rounds of one of the 12 best parks in the country (forbes.com - November 2009). Go figure.

At least for Casey the fountain was the most enticing attraction.

Trail snippets

Morning on Samish Ridge

A morning walk up Samish Ridge before the temperature hits 70 degrees.  Get it while the gettin's good as far as Casey's concerned.

Hey!  You comin'?

Lunch at Old Town

Grilled marinated tofu with sauerkraut, Swiss, Dijon, dill mayonaise, lettuce and tomato on whole wheat - sounds overly veggie, maybe, but it is sooo tasty, and a popular order at our favorite breakfast and lunch cafe for over 30 years. Also on the menu today - and on Vic's plate - wildcatch sockeye burger. 

And that's just for starters...but they don't serve pups.  (For lunch, that is.)

Lunch out today was particularly satisfying because much of the proceeds went to Maple Valley Inn, an opportunity council that provides hot meals for people in need.  Old Town Cafe is one of the good guy participants. Casey had to settle for just a saved morsel though. Poor guy.

Back to Railroad Trail

To mix it up a little bit we returned to the site of Casey's first trail outing a year or so ago, an abandoned railroad grade through Bellingham.  No fear this time, just wetlands and abandoned trestles piquing a natural Border Collie curiousity this time around.

A far cry from that scared little runt from Minnesota.
  

Mr Photogenic

Spring's returned..."The Earth is like a child that knows poems."

It's said that spring makes its own statement. And the promise of renewal in Bellingham can be as obvious as a horse chestnut on Harris Street, a blooming conifer as old as the city itself,

As incredibly ornamental as a Fairhaven rhododendron still glistening between late afternoon showers,

Or as subtle as a front yard photo op.

Taking in the sights at La Conner

With a stretch of April showers to look foward to next week, a day in La Conner sounded perfect.  The draw this time of year for us were the tulips of Skagit County, lunch at a longtime favorite cafe and bakery, the Calico Cupboard, and just hangin' with Ezra and Erny and Ezra's other favorite grandparents, Ernesto and Lynda.

It seems like everyone else in Skagit Valley had the same idea.

1 in 20,000

Take a look at this photo op we came upon on the way to the Skagit County tulip fields and a day in La Conner, Washington - one of our 20 thousand (or so) North American Bald Eagles surveying the flats. There was just no other option but to pull the car over and hope this big guy didn't just fly away.

Slivers of Casey's front yard world

Bellingham's sustainability marketplace

It's been a long haul since our last saunter through one of our favorite weekend diversions, November as a matter of fact, and in much chillier conditions. If you're in town on any Saturday, there is usually no excuse to not hang at Bellingham's Farmers Market. From provisions to politics, frenetic to serene, it's all there. Sorry, no dogs allowed though. (A lot they know about Border Collies!)

 

Gotta be a sweet ride

This has got to be one saweet ride...










I'd give a dew claw to check out the interior.

Where to now?

Two roads diverged (OK...two "paths") in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both.

Thank you (with apologies), Mr. Frost.

False alarm

The crazy, unpredictable weather this time of year in the Pacific Northwest left Bellingham a little "nipplely" - high 40s to low 50s and breezy - but bathed in sunshine most of the day.  And Case was all smiles.

Spring Break

It looks like Frisbee tosses and long walks are going to be at a premium for the next couple of days with windy and rainy conditions moving into Western Washington and Bellingham getting more than its share of predictable bluster.

At least the cherry blossoms in the front yard haven’t hit full bloom yet, or else these spring fronts would wipe the branches clean. We’d just like to enjoy the view for awhile before we get an early pink blizzard.

Entertaining a thrill-seeker like Casey indoors can be a real challenge - might just include letting him have his way with a chew toy stashed away for occasions just like this.  Today, a used stuffed animal from Goodwill was a short-term fix.

Mr. Excitement after 1/2 hour...looks like the thrill is gone.

It's going to be a long couple of days...at least for Case.

Time to Head Home

Let's head on home, Case.  That's enough pristine for one day.

Rebirth on Easter Sunday

"Easter is not a time for groping through dusty, musty tomes or tombs to disprove spontaneous generation or even to prove life eternal. It is a day to fan the ashes of dead hope, a day to banish doubts and seek the slopes where the sun is rising..."

...so naturally Casey and I wore ourselves out in the woods today - our First Church of Spring Renewal, and rebirth was everywhere.

Sunset stroll in the neighborhood

(It may not compare to airing it out with a Frisbee, or full-throttle on the interurban trail...but one more stroll with Vic and Gene at before dark can be nice too.)

Casey - bright and early

Gene post:

On a night that I was looking forward to 7 or 8 hours of sleep, you know, the recommended daily amount for us “adult/older persons”, Casey had other ideas. After jumping into bed at 5:30 and attempting co-opt a disproportionate share of king-sized mattress, REM sleep was history. 50+ pounds of snuggling, just-trying-to-get-comfortable Border Collie means anyone in somber proximity is done stacking zzz’s.

Might as well get the coffee going. Now how do we entertain the kid today?

Lunchtime Royale

Screw Guilt

No apologies. The perfect, "well-rounded" lunch for two - one double tall Americano, a double tall, nonfat mocha (no whip), and an Irish whiskey maple cupcake - in honor of St. Patrick - at Verite's, Seattle's best espresso cafe in the "land of espressos"!

Spring tease

A week to go before the first day of Spring and barely 50 degrees, not warm enough to coax the cherry blossoms out of hiding but an impressive harbinger of things to come.
 

Check out the sneak preview.