A White Squirrel

I sat patiently this evening waiting for this little guy to come looking for dinner and it paid off! He's so cute. When Elisha and Allie stayed here this spring they saw an adult white squirrel which we now believe is the sire of this litter of babies as we've seen the mother and she is gray. We just this little guy for this first time last evening. He's not as active as his siblings and he cautiously ventured down the spruce tree to eat a mushroom.  Unfortunately we saw a small hawk in the tree the other night so I worry that Whitey will become it's meal since he is obviously the most vulnerable. 

Since 1998 when we moved into our house we've seen at least one white squirrel annually out and about in the neighborhood.  

After my photo session I did a quick internet search on folklore regarding white squirrel and found out what I already knew-that white animals of any kind were revered by Native Americans. They were said to be "spirit" animals and killing one was considered taboo.

Lynd's Apple Farm

We love fall. Perfect day to pick up some honey crisp apples and home grown popcorn and take a few photos at Lynd's Apple Farm. About 40 minutes east of us.  

Memorial Sign Dedication

Andrew and I attended a memorial sign dedication for a colleague of Andrew's who passed away in July of 2012.  There was a very nice ceremony followed by the unveiling of the memorial sign which is just the first of several to be placed on the London, Ohio bikeway in memory of Jack McDowell. A couple of Andrew's other co-workers were in attendance and below is a photo of us with Jack's wife Sue.  I first met Jack 20 years ago as a resource management intern working John, with the man I am standing next to in the photo, and Jack was picking prairie seeds when I met him. Jack was instrumental in the restoration of thousands of acres of native prairies in Central Ohio and was a beloved community member, environmental advocate, teacher and football coach.

Missing Daisy

Tomorrow will be one year since we lost our Little Daisy to autoimmune hemolytic anemia. Not a day goes by that I don't think about her and sometimes feel her presence. I'm pretty sure Andrew feels the same way and when I sent Elisha the video she said she would have to watch it later because she didn't want to cry at work. If you've never fiercely loved a pet that is a member of your family then you might not understand.  I made a video about our lives and memories to commemorate the first year since her passing.  You can watch it here.

We are very fortunate that we were able to get our bichon puppy Nolan as soon as we did after Daisy passed.  He has kept us busy and is a lovable soul in his own right. Nolan is not meant to replace Daisy as that will never be possible, but he is a new addition to our family and we love him very much.

 Me and Nolan. His expression in this picture cracks me up.

We Won!

There was a photo contest for Homecoming announced in July. The theme was to show your "Ruby Red Cardinal" pride. We were to take a photo on vacation, with friends or whatever and somehow depict the Wizard of Oz characters. Homecoming's theme was There's No Place Like HOMEcoming!

Super excited that we won with our photo submission of the fisherman's version of the Wizard of Oz complete with Dorothy (in ruby Crocs), Toto (aka Nolan), the Scarecrow, the Lion, and the Tin Man on the yellow brick dock at Vechells Resort on Drummond Island (our favorite vacation home away from home) with our good friends Tracy and Robin.  9/25

Otterbein Homecoming

I spent the Homecoming day as usual covering parade photography for the university and a couple other events; but I did manage to have quite a bit of fun in the process. Our department held a 40th Anniversary Reunion as our building was built in 1974. This was the best Homecoming ever!

 Pre-Parade, our department

Nolan in the parade with my friend Sherry

Nolan had a super bad day (not) with the Otterbein cheerleaders.

Andrew and I managed to have a photo taken together.

It was a full house for the reunion

Boundary Waters Canoe Wilderness Area

Andrew and his colleague Barry spent last week in Minnesota departing from Seagull Canoe Outfitters in Grand Marais.  

.

Spirit Wear

I made three dozen doggie scarfs in assorted sizes for our alumni dogs to wear at Homecoming.  Nolan was my model. Here he is all ready and showing his spirit.

A Visitor

My cousin Cyndi's son's girlfriend had twin girls on Sept 4th so my cousin came up from North Carolina and stayed with us while she was visiting the babies.  We had a nice time catching up and had a couple adventures as well.

 Nick and Katy with Ariana & Kylie (identical twins)

At Waldo Community Park in Waldo, OH-home of the famous fried balogna sandwich at the G & R Tavern. No trip to Central Ohio is complete without at stop at G & R.

Cyndi, Aunt Patty, Angela (Cyndi's daughter), me (and God knows what was going on with my hair that day) and my mom.