Luna moth, turtle, deer, porcupine....what's next?

Happy Sunday everyone!  Today would have been Russell's parents 63rd wedding anniversary.  We think of them always and hope that they are celebrating in style up above.

I can't believe that today is the last day of May.  This month went by very fast for some reason.  We've had some cool days and some very hot days.  Very inconsistent weather.  We woke up this morning to a cool + 6 celsius.  It has warmed up some and the the sun is shining.  

We had a good week.  I planted more Coreopsis and Blue Catmint in the front.  I also replaced a plant that our friendly deer munched on.  If you look closely at the picture below, specifically towards the deer's behind, you can see the plants that have been "clipped" almost to the ground.  I planted some ornamental grasses instead which the deer do not like...so far anyway.   On the topic of planting, I will be helping Terri and the Horticultural Society of Huntsville by planting annuals around our little town this coming Tuesday.  I will take pictures for my blog next week.  Should be a fun day!

During one of our walks last week, we came across a painted turtle.  I must say that for a turtle, it was going at a pretty fast pace but we were able to take a picture.  Cooper was fascinated by it.  He was not so impressed though when he saw a porcupine outside our fenced backyard this morning.  This is probably one of the things that we dread the most....the Coop coming face to face with a porcupine.  I shiver just thinking about the damage that the quills can do to a dog, or any animal for that matter.  We are always on the lookout for critters because we know they're around but, so far, none have made it inside our fenced backyard, that we know of.

You may remember from last week's blog that I was stopped by a RIDE Program on my way to the gym last Sunday morning.  At the time, I thought it was interesting that the program was on so early in the day.  Well, on Monday, I heard on the news that two drivers got a 3 day suspension and two drivers had their licence and car taken away.  All this between 9:15 am and 10:00 am.  Wow!

The end of the road for our Mini Cooper will be this coming Thursday when we will return the car to the dealership.  We've had some good and not so good moments with it.  The yellow Mini will be missed in Huntsville though.  We can't go anywhere without people noticing us and knowing our whereabouts.  That's what happens in a small town.

That's about it for this week's blog.   I wish you all a great week and a good start to June!

A male Luna moth...4 inch wing span... on front porch!

A little nap after munching on the perennial gardens.

This porcupine made a slow escape up the tree from the carport!

Safely up the tree, Cooper continued to watch and sound the alarm.

A painted turtle on the run!

Bye, bye Mini Cooper!

It's been a cool one!

Well, this past week sure felt like Fall, or even early Winter.  It was a very cool week with very cool nights.  We woke up one morning with a dusting of snow on the barbecue.  Thankfully, this cool weather is now a thing of the past and it is already a balmy 22 celsius with lots of sunshine.  Warm temps are in the forecast for the week, with rain.  It's a good thing as we need it.

This past week was quiet.  We went for a few walks, all bundled up with our fleeces.  Russell seeded the grass, again, and now we wait for it to grow.  The rain will help the process.  This past Winter was harder on the plants and the grass than we originally thought.  The perennials are growing slowly and a few didn't make it through the Winter.  We went to a few nurseries and bought 12 plants of Blue Catmint and 6 plants of Lavender.  I planted them last week.  It's looking good.

This year, we decided that we would not make it easy for the deer to munch on our annuals.  So, for our wheelbarrow, I put together a big pot of good old Marigolds......or "Stinky Maries" as Russell calls them.  The deer do not like those at all....surprise!  They may stink but they sure provide a good pop of colour!  I even planted a few between some of the bolders in the front.  It's actually quite nice.

Not much else is going on.  We leave in less than three weeks for our trip to Mayan Riviera.  We are looking forward to it.  It will be a new experience for us.

Cooper is doing well.  He went to doggie day care on Thursday and had fun playing with his buddies.  The Coop and I are not doing agility this year.  The focus of the training this year is really for those that want to compete and that's not me.  We had fun doing it for two years and we learned a lot.

That's it for this week's blog.  I include two pictures that Russell took of Cooper and I yesterday during our walk at the Canada Summit Centre (built for the G8 summit in 2010).  Cooper just loves sitting on that big rock.  Russell also took a pic of the dusting of snow and our Marigolds!

I wish you all a great Sunday and week ahead.  It will be a quiet day for us, perhaps a walk after lunch then relax on the deck.  My day started with a Bootcamp class at 9:30 but not before I was stopped at a RIDE Program on my way to the gym.  I was asked if I had anything to drink for the past 12 hours.  The answer was no but I thought it was interesting that they were doing a RIDE program so early in the day.  They were stopping all the cars so traffic was rather heavy.  Good for them I say!

Marigolds in the barrow...waiting for the deer!

Cooper on his favorite perch at the Summit Centre.

A much needed rest on the 2.2 km walk at the Summit Centre.

The "S" word....snow!

Happy Birthday to the Coop!

Four years ago today, a little Havanese pup was born.  Six months later, he became part of our family and has brought so much to our lives ever since.  It is a special day for us but for Cooper, it is a normal day filled with fun and lots of hugs and kisses.  Oh, and he gets special treats and doesn't have to work too hard for them.....

I have to tell you that we had fun taking his birthday picture.  Normally, Cooper will simply sit and look at the camera (he is a poser after all) but having a fresh, grilled hot dog in front of him was quite the distraction.  Who could blame him!  We didn't expect that he would actually grab the whole wiener but he did.  Russell was quick to take it away from him but not before Coop got a whole chunk of it.  Good for him!

So, this is the first long weekend of the Summer.  That means that Huntsville becomes alive again.  The town is buzzing and the cottagers are back.  The stores are busy and the town traffic is heavy.  We saw some boats on the water yesterday although the weather was terrible.  I must say that this past week was quite cool but today, finally, we have nothing but sunshine and warm temperatures.  It is already 21 celsius!  Apparently, the black flies are out but we haven't seen any yet, at least up on the hill where we live.

We haven't bought any flowers yet but we will go to a nursery this afternoon to check things out.  We want to wait another couple of weeks just to make sure the weather stays warm. On that topic, despite the cool weather this past week, the hummingbirds have been coming to the feeders daily.  So beautiful to watch.

It's already noon.  I've been to the gym, did one load of laundry, the dinner is organized and ready to barbecue.  Now, we will enjoy this beautiful weather and have fun with the birthday boy.

I wish you all a nice and relaxing Sunday and day off tomorrow.

Happy Birthday to me....think I'll sniff and lick this end first!

Mmmmmm..tasty, think I got a big enough chunk?!

More please....so tempting those hot dogs.

Bursting into view along roadsides and forests... the Trillium.

Happy Mother's Day!

To all mothers out there, all women and all the moms of loving pets, I wish you all a wonderful Mother's Day.  A special loving wish to my beautiful mom and to Russell's mom who is always watching over us from heaven.

It is a quiet Sunday for us.  We just got back from a walk and it looks like we timed it right.  It is cloudy and it was raining a few minutes ago.  The weather is cooler than it has been this past week.  What an incredible week we just had, weather wise.  I hate to say it but on Friday, it was actually too hot to go for a walk with Cooper.  Too hot for the humans or for our dog?  Maybe both.  This sudden heat was almost too much too soon...but I am not complaining one bit.

Yesterday, we finished our yard work.  Russell blew all the leaves (again) and raked the gravel on the driveway.  I turned the mulch over in all the flower beds and got a peak at what is growing and what is not.  Most plants survived the Winter but a few didn't.  While we were doing our work, Cooper was on the deck watching us and surveying his domain.  His treat was to lick our sweat.  Who needs to towel off when you have a dog that does it for you!

As I was turning the mulch over, I noticed a lot, and I mean a lot, of small plants growing.  At first, I thought they were weeds but then I realized that they were lupins.  You see, last Fall, I went "lupin hunting" with a neighbour, Linda, on Highway 11.  We literally filled large garbage bags with lupin stems that had turned black.  She told me then to simply stick them in the ground and that they would seed themselves.  I was a bit skeptical but I did what she said and stuck hundreds of lupin stems in the ground....she was right. Now we have lupins!

In addition to finding lupins, we welcomed our first hummingbirds of the season. Russell put four feeders out one day last week, and the next day, we had hummers.  Two of the feeders are in front of our kitchen window.  What a pretty sight to see them every day.  Russell had his camera on the kitchen counter and, armed with patience, he got one in action.  Not an easy thing to do especially with hummingbirds.  Good picture Russell!

So, Spring is here to say, and soon will turn into Summer.  With that comes the not so nice little things like mosquitoes, black flies and pollen.  So far, we haven't had mosquitoes and saw a couple of black flies but nothing to write home about.  It is a different story when it comes to the pollen.  For the past few days, we've been wiping down our furniture, inside and outside, to remove the pollen.  Not a good thing.  I want to sneeze just thinking about it.  I suppose if we kept our windows shut, we wouldn't have this problem but since we do not have air conditioning, it is kind of nice to open the windows.  Oh well, that will pass soon.

That's about it for this week's blog.  I will spend the rest of the day with my hubby and the Coop, relaxing and enjoying Mother's Day.  Have a great week everyone.  Looking forward to next weekend, the first long weekend of the Summer and Cooper's birthday! I leave you with a few pictures that Russell took and one that Darlah posted on her blog this morning about Mother's Day.  Couldn't resist that one!

First hummer of the season....found the feeder in 1 day!
Using 1 to 4 sugar mix now.

Anne the human salt lick for the Wet Willy King...Cooper.

Spring growth reflected in Lake Vernon.

A beautiful start to May

Happy Sunday everyone and a beautiful Sunday it is!

We got back from Montreal just a little while ago and we had a wonderful weekend. It was nice to see my parents again in the comfort of their new home.  They are happy and it shows.  With the weather being so nice, we were able to sit outside on their balcony. My mom and I did a bit of shopping on Saturday then we had lunch with my dad at the Willows Inn in Hudson.  While we were out, Russell had lunch with his aunt Lorraine and went to the cemetery to visit his mom and dad.  Last night, we had a family dinner with my sister Lynn, her two sons James and Sean and my brother Francois.  It was nice to get together again, it doesn't happen often.  We went to La Perle restaurant in the West Island, a szechuan and thai restaurant.  As you can see from the picture, we really didn't have enough food to eat....it was very yummy! Oh, I almost forgot...my parents got to try Terri's homemade blueberry jam that we brought all the way from Huntsville and it made it through airport security.  It was delicious!

Cooper also had a great time away from us and continues to be smitten with the gals at Camp Talemaker, especially with Adele.  He is such a playboy!  I include two pictures that Darlah took this morning during a retrieve game.  Thanks to Darlah and Nathan for always taking such good care of our Coop when he visits.  I should add that when we picked him up at lunch time, we got the opportunity to meet the newest puppies, two litters born 6 and 7 weeks ago.  I was totally smitten by them.  One of them was licking my foot and using it as a teether.  Such cuteness beyond words!

So, here we are back home to amazing weather.  It's been a long time coming. More of it on the way this week!  The perennials are growing nicely.

This is a short blog as we want to enjoy the outside and play with the Coop...although he is quite "played out" I must say.  Then, we have a hockey game to watch at 6 tonight.  I sure hope the Habs win this one.

I'm including a few photos from this weekend.  My mom fell a few weeks ago, the reason why her face looks sort of discoloured..... I tried to cover the bruises with a special cream but it's not easy.  She looks beautiful anyway! I wish you all a wonderful week and enjoy this Summer weather!

Russell with auntie Lorraine a fav restaurant Pizza Romana.

Mom, Dad and I taking some sun on the balcony.

The whole gang at La Perle for a Pelletier family dinner.

Fetch - Adele on the fly and Coop in pursuit - she is his galpal!

Success...for Mr Coop!