Month: May 2016

Soccer in Colorado

If it seems like I’ve been a little quiet around here lately, it would be because I’ve just gotten back from an eight-day trip to Broomfield, Colorado to visit Tyson and his family. Although I’m not nearly as fond of soccer as all our kids and grandkids, I did time this trip so that I could see all three kids play soccer games while I was there.

After Logan and I went birding on Saturday morning, I tried to get some shots of him playing soccer. This one, after a little touch-up,

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was my favorite of the day (except for the shot of the Blue Jay we saw before the game.)

We couldn’t manage to get to Zoe’s game Saturday, but we did manage to see her game Sunday. She’s wickedly fast, and it was fun watching her sprint past opponents, even though the game ended in a tie.

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Sydney’s game followed immediately after Zoe’s game. It was cold and wet, and the girls warmed up right before kickoff by dancing a little jig.

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The game ended early when storm warnings went off the last five minutes of the game, but it ended up being the only win of the weekend for our teams.

In a sign of Colorado’s fickle weather, Sydney’s second game, a few hours later, went off on time. It was nice seeing Sydney show some aggression on the field,

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something I hadn’t seen in earlier years.

Although we were only there for four days, we managed to pack a lot in those days. I’m already looking forward to a longer Fall visit.

Roses and Iris, Too

Though the Rhododendron Garden is definitely my favorite garden at Pt. Defiance Park, particularly this time of year, I find it nearly impossible to drive by the Rose Garden without checking out what is in bloom. As it turns out, not much, though there are a few early roses now.

I’m not really sure I like this red rose, but I was fascinated by the black edges.

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If red roses are the most popular rose, at least in poetry, then pink roses can’t be far behind.

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My particular favorites, though, tend to toward the orange tones.

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The poor little iris garden isn’t even gated off and sits on the other side of the road, but the flowers can still hold their own this time of year whether they’re royal purple

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or royal gold.

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Pt. Defiance Park is my own little empire.

Beyond Words

As soon as I see wildflowers starting to bloom on my hikes, I head to the Rhododendron Garden in Pt. Defiance Park. Although not as spectacular as the Weyerhaeuser rhododendron garden, it is a lot closer and nearly as beautiful in its own way. I’m sure the Garden of Eden must have looked a lot like our rhododendron garden.

If you doubt that, just look at a few examples from a recent visit.

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Luckily, such beauty transcends words.

First Goslings of the Season

Although the Spring migration is in full swing, some local Canada Geese have already started their families. On a recent trip to Theler Wetlands I saw this pair of geese acting even more vigilant than usual.

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When I got closer it was clear why they were standing watch.

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Though there was a total of six goslings, it was impossible to get them in a single shot so I settled for this

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and this.

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They had moved by the time I returned a few days later, but I suspect this was the same group on the other side of the creek.

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I’ve long speculated that the reason we have so many Canada Geese here in the Pacific Northwest is because the geese are so protective of their young.