Blue Wordless Wednesday Joy
Tag Archives: Michigan
Hanging with my sister
Katie here. Even though I’m a princess and sometimes come off as being a bit….well…high maintenance, I know that I have a pretty good life. My folks and lots of other people make sure I get to have special times with friends and family.
And this past weekend I got to see my half sister, Payton, and show her (and her parents and her sister Tally the Gordon setter) my park! I was so excited to share Katie’s Park with my sister. And, like sisters do, we joined forces to make sure mama couldn’t get a decent picture of the two of us.
That was part of the fun!
It was a perfect day for a walk, not too hot, and a bit of a breeze to cool those of us still wearing winter coats. The folks made sure we walked at a leisurely pace, though at the beginning I was raring to go!
We stopped at the overlook deck halfway around the park to rest and enjoy the view. I told Payton all about finding a cracker there once and how I’ve been looking ever since for another one. Payton’s dad gave me a treat to make up for the lack of crackers.
I even shared my annual photoshoot in the yellow flowers with Payton! Mama takes my picture over at my park every year during the yellow flower season.
Payton’s like me – she doesn’t get why that’s so special, but mama is insistent and it’s easier to just let her get the picture than arguing with her.
Most of the time, though, we were able to foil mama’s attempts at getting a nice picture of the two of us together. She did manage to get several sweet pictures of Payton though!
I decided it wasn’t all that bad for her to be focused on someone besides me! That way I got to nap mostly uninterrupted under the picnic table.
We had a great time and I’m really glad Payton’s parents brought her over for a visit. We decided we’d get together again next fall when it’s cooler outside for another walk.
On a much sadder note, we learned yesterday that our friend Sophie got her wings on Friday. It’s a shock because we hadn’t heard that she was ill. She was one year younger than me, and still exploring her yard, swinging with her mom on her swing and supervising everything in the house.
We will miss her daily posts terribly. Mama has been giving me extra hugs and kisses on top of my head and her eyes are all leaky again. It’s hard to understand why some things happen, but we know that we’ll get to see her again, she’s just on the other side of the bridge. Please send good thoughts to her mom and dad who are very very sad right now.
Talk later, I have to get mom some tissue cause her eyes are damp again. I promise not to shred it immediately, I’ll do that later in honor of Sophie, who, just like me was an expert shredder!
-Your sad but still happy Princess Katie.
Blackened
I went for a walk at one of my favorite parks a couple days ago. It wasn’t a pretty day but at least it wasn’t raining. Or snowing.
I went because I hadn’t been in awhile and because I was feeling sad about a friend of mine who is going through some tough stuff.
When I got to the park there was a warning at the gate about a prescribed burn. That’s when parts of the land are deliberately burned to ward off weeds and nonnative plants.
Much of the nature trail area was black, which accentuated the hills that I’m always trying to photograph. For that reason alone I didn’t mind walking along the scorched earth, or the smell that can sometimes be overwhelming.
As I walked I stopped often to take pictures. No surprise. It took me forever to walk the four miles, but it didn’t feel like forever.
It felt wonderful. Spring is arriving, though slowly. Tiny wildflowers are popping up. More will follow.
I thought about my friend and hope he is able to come on a walk with me soon. He’d find hope in the woods, even the burned parts.
Of course yesterday, listening to the Supreme Court news, I felt sadness overtaking me again. The world seems to be a darker shade of burned right now.
I’m trying to remember that deep in the woods hope is poking up from under last years debris.
I think I’m going to need another walk real soon.
Katie’s definition of dichotomy
Katie here!
Guess what? The weather changed! I know that everybody thinks they have the most crazy weather around, but I’m here to say nobody beats Michigan for crazy!
As you know, last Saturday I was with my mama and our friend at a Michigan state park. It was sunny but cold and windy. Perfect.
Then on Monday it snowed! Yes, snow. Not just a little bit either. It snowed most of the day, big wet, sticky flakes of snow that piled up.
The birds didn’t know what to think of it all.
But I knew exactly what we should do — we should go out and explore! So I bugged my housekeeper mama and out we went!
We had so much fun! Mama said it wouldn’t last long so we should enjoy it while it was there. She said she’d try not to grumble about it too much.
Then we got a couple days of rain. I don’t mind rain, it just gives me an excuse to be lazy and nap all day. (Not that I need an excuse, I get to do whatever I want because I’m the only royal resident around here.)
Thursday the sun came out and mama said we shouldn’t waste a sunny day either. Especially a sunny day that was still cool enough for me to enjoy it.
So off we went to one of my parks and we walked in the woods for a long time.
Mama had her stupid camera (of course) so she was lollygagging along taking pictures of not me. I don’t know why.
I had to wait for her all the time. But that’s not unusual. When I think about it, I’m always waiting for my mama.
Waiting to go outside. Waiting to go on a walk. Waiting for an adventure. Waiting for my supper.
Well. I don’t wait for supper very long because I tell her off if I have to wait for that! Anyway, we had a wonderful time in the woods, and there’s proof of spring popping out all over!
Mama says if we just wait a bit it will probably snow again, and I wouldn’t mind that at all, but daddy says enough is enough, he’s ready to get on his big riding mower and take a spin around the yard! And mama says it’s time to clean up the gardens.
She says we have a lot of work to do out there.
I don’t know who this we is that she’s referring to. She’s probably hired help or something.
Of course I’ll be out there to supervise. Royal responsibilities never end. Talk later, I need to get rested up for the upcoming royal weeding.
–Your favorite weather girl (and princess), Katie.
Adventure-girl
Katie here. You knew it was going to be me, right? Cause who else do you know that loves an adventure as much as me?
Saturday mama and I went to walk with my friend Queen Abby’s mom. You might remember that Abby got her wings in January of this year, so her mom has been a little sad. We thought maybe getting to walk together, even without the Queen, might make her feel better.
I have to say it was kind of hard to be out there without Abby, but we think maybe she was with us even though she wasn’t physically pulling on the leash.
I pulled on the leash enough for both of us.
We met at a state park I’ve never visited before, and there were a couple of trails we walked, mostly through the woods. I think I walked over a mile! It was so cold that the mamas wished they’d brought heavier clothes, but I was a happy girl, trotting up ahead of them most of the time, even up the hills!
It was such a pretty park, with winding trails and roads and it even had a campground, which of course mama had to explore.
And then we walked down near the lake. It was much windier there and I wasn’t sure about the waves blowing in. I didn’t want to stand close to them just for mama to take another picture
So I didn’t.
But I chose a spot just a little bit away from the pesky waves and let mama take one more picture.
And then the mamas sat on a bench and talked and I took a little nap on the cement underneath. It was nice and cool and the wind ruffled my fur and I was so happy!
This was the longest car ride I’ve been on since I got sick. At first I thought I was going to the vet and I was scared. But mama stopped at a rest area on the way so I could walk around and stuff. That never happens on the way to the vet, so I began to get excited.
And once I was at the park and walking with the mamas I was sooooooo happy! I pranced all over that park and couldn’t stop grinning.
Thanks, mamas, for taking me on a grand adventure that was the perfect size for my status! Why, I’m still dreaming about it today!
Wordless Wednesday joyful yard
Rendezvous with a chickadee
Waking early to another cold morning here in Michigan, Katie and I wandered out to the backyard to fill the feeders. I knew the birds would be hungry. Katie waited up on the deck as I went down to get seed from our metal storage bin.
As I was pouring seed into a flat feeder several yards away a little chickadee dropped down to the rim of the bin, checking to see if there was anything good within reach. I waited quietly for him to decide. Noticing me, he flew up into a nearby tree to wait.
I slowly walked over and he hopped down a few branches. Watching.
I reached into the bin, grabbed a handful of oilers and offered them, hand outstretched, to him. He dropped down a couple more branches. I stood still.
Closer, closer, he skipped from branch to branch, clearly fixated on the oilers in my hand. Inches away he considered how to get breakfast, but wasn’t quite brave enough to make that last hop.
I moved my hand closer to him. We were at eye level and he looked at me. I looked at him and moved my hand a fraction of an inch closer.
He stretched out and delicately chose an oiler from my palm, then hopped up to a higher branch to enjoy it.
I had a rendezvous with a chickadee this morning, and I liked it.
And then there were barns
Just last week I was heading up to Michigan’s thumb to attempt an astrological photo shoot. As you read, it didn’t exactly go as planned. But I did get this:
So I’m happy. But I also can’t wait to try it again! The end of the month will be more moonless nights…if I can get the weather to cooperate maybe I can get an even better image. Maybe one with the whole Milky Way in the frame!
But until then there are always barns.
On the way home from my starlit night I took my time, wandering around big farm blocks, teased by wide open vistas filled with barns.
There are so many beautiful barns in the thumb!
It seemed like I’d see one across a huge field, get there, and then see more on the far side of another field!
I wasn’t too sure where I was during most of my barn hunting, but it didn’t really matter — how lost can you get in a thumb?
But it wasn’t just barns that I found fascinating. I loved the big expanses of fields, and the tree lines in the distance too.
And there was this guy who moved a wing and caught my eye while I was focusing on a barn over his left shoulder.
What barn was I focused on? Well, these two:
But there were so many to choose from.
I could have driven around looking at them all day. It was almost as fun, in a different way, as shooting at night out under the stars.
Almost.
Change Is Hard 