Oh, that's where August went...

Yes, my how time flies... I wanted to send out a bit of an update before we head to Miami this week for Wade's defense. Yes, D-Day is this Friday Sept. 4th!!

First, we were able to get some fun when friends from DC (Glynnis & Nathan) came to visit the second weekend in August. We had a much needed weekend of relaxation that involved lounging in the pool, bocce on the beach at sunset (see below), sushi, rum punch, and enough cheeseypoofs to bring down a horse. Ah, what more does one need in life?! :) We also learned how to play Pass the Pigs (something that only British barflies could have invented) which was made even funnier when watching someone make a gigantic comeback then lose when only one point away from winning (sorry Nathan!) - the worst tragedy Glynnis has seen in her years of Pig playing.

Just another day in paradise. :)

Besides having company, it's been a quiet month. Wade has been making his final preparations, I've been working (no travel this month!), and my body has been reminding me that I am indeed getting older (even if my mind isn't!). I threw out my neck earlier this month and have been going through physical therapy this month which has largely consisted of teaching my shoulders and neck what good posture looks like (whee).

Second, for the past two months I have been testing my theory that I have issues with wheat. Yes, my old friend bread is no longer my best friend (this is extremely difficult for me to say, when asked what three things I would take to a deserted island, #1 was always bread). I've gone through some tests which have been inconclusive, but the one thing that has proved conclusive is how I feel when I don't eat things made with wheat - 10 pounds lighter and my intestines are happier. For the past two months I've eliminated wheat from my diet (Wade has gone along too and also noticed some pretty marked improvements) to test out my theory and because I was so miserable in June that I just didn't know what else to do. But, over the last week or two I've tested it a bit and realize that we can eat something every now and then (once a week splurge), but even one meal with a little wheat everyday adds up fast. For a while it was really difficult to have to look at all the things we suddenly couldn't eat, but we've been trying new recipes, Wade is baking his own bread (from alternative flours), and we've found a lot of things made without wheat to replace our favorites (pasta, crackers, cookies, corn taco shells, etc). So, thankfully we're feeling better and can still splurge every now and then, but even better is that we aren't allergic which means life would become a lot more difficult when eating out. (Yes, the irony is not lost on me - the vegetarians already don't eat a lot of things, what else is there to give up?!)

So, that's been our quiet August. It's been nice to have a slow month before things pick up again in September. We hope everyone else has been able to get some down time this summer too! I'll be sure to post next week after Wade's defense!

Wade's 32nd Birthday

This year I was going to have Wade do his own post for his birthday, but then again, we were going to do a lot of things for his birthday... canoeing, fishing, dinner out...

The night before Wade's birthday, I got home from yet another work trip to DC. I was able to duck out of some training to make sure Wade didn't spend his birthday alone. Unfortunately, I am discovering that I too and getting older and pulled a muscle in my chest unloading my carry-on luggage from the plane (better than throwing out my back like I did during my last trip to DC!). By the time I got home, Wade had been typing for nearly 3 days straight (upside of my travel: he gets an inordinate amount of work done while I'm gone) and had a headache, so the thought of loading up all our gear, food, and the canoe was less than appealing. So, instead, I gave him what he asked for: a day to do nothing. We slept in, then when he went for a quick run I decorated the house with birthday banners. After, we cleaned up, opened birthday cards, went out for tacos, and to catch an early showing of the new Harry Potter movie (awesome!). On our way to the theatre we had quite a surprise - we stumbled upon a family of Sandhill Cranes wandering through the mall parking lot! It was the closest we'd ever been to these huge and beautiful birds so we followed them around in the car for a bit while snapping pictures. We laughed and Wade declared it the highlight of his birthday.

After the movie we ran home to change into sailing clothes then ran up to the Bradenton Yacht Club for Thursday night sailing with Steve on the Ocean Angel. Afterwards, Steve treated us to some dinner and a beer for the birthday boy - a perfect end to the day. Below is a shot of Wade helping prep the boat, and below that is the birthday boy basking in the glow of sunset.

Sorry for the delay in the postings, but as Wade's D(efense)-Day (Sept. 4) draws nearer, free time is becoming pretty scant around here. Eeek, so exciting!

Stinson Beach

Last week we had to cut our time on the beach short so that I could hop a flight to San Francisco to work out our program strategy for the next year. Fortunately, one of the people we were meeting with, Kristine, was already planning on being in Stinson Beach, CA for the week (she rents a house there), so we held a mini "retreat" and worked at the beach.

Tuesday morning I was scheduled to fly out early, but instead was woken up at 4am with a call from Delta letting me know my flight was cancelled. After haggling on the phone for a half hour the best they could do was an evening flight. So I went back to bed and tried calling again a few hours later. That time, our travel agent for work found me an afternoon flight and a first class seat! So the moral of the story is, don’t take no for an answer from an airline, especially at 4:30am. I must say, now that I’ve flown first class, I am having a hard time riding “in the back”. Everything was free up there – movies, TV, HBO, bottomless margaritas (in a real glass), a plated hot dinner complete with side salad, roll, and chocolate cake! Although the goodies were nice, my favorite part by far was that I could actually cross my legs in my seat. Normally my flights aren’t that long, so it doesn’t really matter to me, but for the killer 5 hour flight from Atlanta to San Francisco, it was a beautiful, glorious thing. I got in late to SFO and took the metro (BART) to the hotel. I didn’t even bother unpacking since we were leaving the next morning, so I went straight to bed.

The next morning (Wednesday) I was treated to a visit from my co-worker Whitney (see Dominica post) who was also at the San Fran office for the day. It was nice to start the day with a friend and laughing, even if it was for only 15 minutes. I met up with my boss, Amanda, and our media guru, Tom, and we trekked off in search of the rental car place. It was more like being on a treasure hunt really, while carrying luggage. I don’t recommend it. Once we finally rustled up the car we headed north out of the city to Stinson Beach. I finally got my first glimpse of the famed Golden Gate Bridge and tried to snap a few shots while we drove through (rather unsuccessfully). I have a confession here: I must be a real Floridian because I was not really all that “wowed” and thought the Sunshine Skyway Bridge (in Tampa) was better! Although, perhaps if the bridge is viewed at sunset it looks more majestic? I just thought it was fun to imagine the final fight scene from X-Men 3 (involves the bridge)... yes, call me a simpleton.

After twisting through the hills we arrived at Stinson Beach. It is a little town on a spit of sandy beach that is surrounded by parks – Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Point Reyes National Seashore, Muir Woods, and Mt. Tamalpais. It’s a cute little beach town with low slung wood and glass houses and landscaping filled with flowers, succulents, and sharp pointy things. When we arrived, we had lunch on the patio then sat on the beach to discuss our goals for the next year. It was odd how intense the sun could be but how cold the air (and water) was, so I got sunburned a bit on my arms. While we talked I enjoyed watching a seal body surf in the waves. We spent the rest of the afternoon going through our planning exercise, then finished up for a walk on the beach before dinner. We walked down the spit and around the backside to see the lagoon (more seals) and more seabirds. It was a nice visual change to see topography, which everyone laughed at me for commenting on. After dinner we worked through more of the planning tool before finally giving up for bed.

Thursday morning we got up early so Kristine and I went for a short hike up Mt. Tam. I saw my first Acorn woodpecker (they have personalities and group social structures like parrots) – they are hilarious, fun, and appear to be wearing a red Jewish yamaka on the back of their heads. We also saw a Chickadee some Bluebirds, a Hairy woodpecker, a Northern Flicker, and some other little song birds. I also was able to get some great shots of the coastline looking back at San Fran, and you can just barely make out the silhouette of the city in the fog (just below the words San Francisco).

After the hike we got back to work, had some lunch, worked more, then finally left just before dinnertime. It was a long day and a half of planning, but sitting on couches that looked out towards the ocean made it almost enjoyable. We got back in the car and wound our way back to town. Amanda was driving, but as passengers, Tom and I turned green and clammy and couldn’t speak the whole way back. The winding roads took quite a toll on us for some reason and we thought we were going to barf for sure. We made it back without making a mess and checked back into our hotel. We met another co-worker from the San Fran office for a nice dinner on the other side of town, so I enjoyed being able to see a new part of town.

Friday morning I got up early to do a bit of shopping and rearrange my bag before meeting Tom and heading to the BART station for the airport. The trip home was fine (I was in the back), although I was quite envious of those in first class! A saving grace was that my co-worker Michelle and I discovered that we were on the same connecting flight so we met up in ATL just in time to catch our last flight home. It was great to have company and catch up after all our traveling. It was also wonderful to see Wade at the airport when we landed. And to prove we were actually working, here is a picture of Amanda and Tom taking the usual EDF-waiting-posture while we wait for a cab in San Fran. Yes, there is a wee bit of a Treo (like a blackberry) addiction problem...

As I write this I am on a plane bound for DC. I’ll be there Mon-Wed this week. I made sure to be home in time for Wade’s birthday on Thursday! His request is to be paddled around Myakka Lake so he can go fishing. I am happy to oblige, so stay tuned for pictures... :)



For more San Fran and Stinson pictures, check out our Picasa picture site here.

Fourth of July

This past weekend Wade and I took our first "vacation" since I started my job. We had Friday off, and we took Monday as a vacation day to spend a four day weekend at my mom and step-dad's house on Anna Maria Island.

As a bonus, we were able to spend the time with Mike and Melissa and their little one, Gian (sounds like John). This was also his first big trip on a plane and with so many new experiences he was a trooper. It was so good to catch up with them and fun to watch Gian experience his first beach and pool. The pool he was a fan of, but the beach will take a little more convincing it seems. He was not thrilled with the results of wiping his face with a sandy salty hand! Below is a picture of the Valenti clan enjoying some old Florida time one the fishing pier while we waited for fish sandwiches.

It was a really nice weekend of relaxing and cramming in as much sun as humanly possible. We were also treated to a bonus visit on Sunday from Marilyn on her way back to Miami and Michelle who came up for the afternoon. Below is everyone frolicking in the pool (sorry for the blurry image - that's actually from the heat and humidity!)

Surprisingly, it was a little rough at the beach this weekend, so Wade was having fun trying his hand at body surfing the waves... with mixed results. I am fairly certain that he completely flushed his sinuses a few times.

All in all it was the perfect weekend of relaxation, fun, friends, and sun. Just what every holiday should be filled with!

Dominica

Dominica ("Dom-in-eek-a") is one of my favorite places in the Western Hemisphere. Granted, I still have a lot to see, but when Wade and I stopped here on our honeymoon we couldn't wait to go back. The island is one of the few left in the Caribbean that hasn't been seriously developed, so it's known as the Nature Isle. There's almost 80 freshwater rivers (complete with waterfalls!), mountains with boiling lakes, rainforest, coral reefs, and beaches made of black sand, smooth stones, or brown sand. The people are fairly friendly, and due to the rich volcanic soil, no one goes hungry - they can grow just about anything you can imagine. They also make their own rum and beer there, both of which are delightful.

So, I have already gotten lost in describing the wonders of the island, but didn't mention why I was there! I was giving a talk at the Association of Marine Laboratories of the Caribbean meeting, that was being hosted this year by the ITME lab, in Roseau (Rose-oh), Dominica (the southwestern coast). I will try to recount this in a daily journal style to keep my thoughts organized....

Monday, May 25: I flew into San Juan, Puerto Rico to meet up with my co-worker Whitney for the one daily flight to Dominica. Our flight ended up leaving an hour late, but we weren't in a hurry, so we went with the flow. I made one last call to Wade before we took off knowing phone service would be unavailable or expensive while "down island". To land at the airport in Dominica, we cut across the island and brushed the tree-covered mountains before dropping into the valley that housed the airport on the eastern coast of the island. We were greeted with mountains, palm trees, and the ocean as we disembarked the prop plane and strolled across the tarmac. We made it through customs and hopped into a "taxi" (the 14 passenger Nissan mini-vans that are ubiquitous all over the Eastern Caribbean) for an hour long ride across the island to our hotel. Whitney and I were both in desperate need of relaxation by this point, so we were happy to crank the windows open to take in the seabreezes followed by jungle smells and sounds. We arrived at the hotel in Roseau to find happy hour in progress. We dropped our stuff in our ocean front room (and squealed with delight), threw open the doors and windows to let the seabreeze in, then ran down to enjoy rum punch and some dinner. I was excited that we ran into a friend from grad school, Erinn. She had dinner with us while we caught up on where we've been. That night Whitney and I fell asleep under a fan and seabreezes to the sound of the ocean washing up on the stone beach below.

(The view from our balcony)

Mini-digression#1: For those who don't know, I love rum. Particularly the "real" stuff made in the Caribbean which is stronger and better flavored than what you can find in the States. On our honeymoon, I thoroughly enjoyed sampling the rum punch on each island we visited. :)

Tuesday: We awoke to the sound of the ocean and sunlight streaming in our open windows. Without lifting my head from my pillow, I could see the ocean! :) What a fabulous way to wake up! We drug ourselves out of bed and stumbled down to breakfast where we enjoyed fresh tropical fruit and a full breakfast with the birds. Some of the local birds (bananquit & bull finch) apparently like sugar so they come into the porch where breakfast was served to snack on pastries and each sugar out of the sugar jars on the table. We found it immensely entertaining. We also discovered that Tuesday was cruise ship day and the ship was pulling into port as we were eating. It was amazing how everyone in town seemed to spring to life in response to the cruise ship... it's a shame thought that most people don't realize the impacts that large scale cruise tourism can have on small islands, people, and coral reefs.

(The view from my pillow - we could hear and see the ocean!)

After breakfast, we headed to the meeting to watch talks and we were able to sit with two other friends from grad school, Alison and Jill. (Although I missed Wade, I was relishing the week of girly fun with friends!) After lunch we snuck out early to work on our talks for a bit. Yes, we're bad, I know, we should have already made our talks. but, since mine was supposed to be based on the findings from my workshop and things were a little more difficult than expected, it took me a while to process things. Once the talks were done for the day, there was more rum punch, then we tagged along with Jill who was helping staff the meeting (during grad school, she did work at ITME, the host lab). We piled into the back of truck and headed 20 minutes to hang out at the lab. On the way up we stopped for sandwiches and were treated to bats flitting through the air just overhead! (we also found out that Dominica is home to a fish eating bat!) We talked the night away at the lab before finally heading back to melt into bed. Although we were getting seabreezes on the island, it was still hot and muggy, so we quickly discovered the cold showers were a best way to stay cool.

(Whitney, me, Jill, and Alison hanging out at ITME)

Wednesday: We performed the same breakfast routine then headed out for the field trip day. Yes, that's right, field trip day. I have a lot of respect for people who purposefully schedule fun into a meeting to facilitate networking and general appreciate for the area you're visiting. Whitney and I picked a hiking trip to Middleham Falls that also went to Titou Gorge. We were ready with cameras, but could have kicked ourselves for not bringing an underwater housing! Fortunately, Erinn also came on our trip and saved the day with her underwater camera. :) We drove up to the rainforest to start our hike. It took about an hour, and man was I beat. (I am so out of shape right now, despite biking to work) however, we were richly rewarded with the beauty of the falls and the cool waters to swim in. It was so frigid I shrieked like a girl and everyone laughed, heck even I had to laugh at myself. One of the great things about Dominica is how clean and clear the freshwater rivers are there. You can drink from them and it's the best tasting water... so good in fact, it supplies all the water needs for the island. Once swim time was over, we hiked back out and took another ride to the Gorge for more swimming (and shrieking by me), and playing in a waterfall. Here is where I should mention that a lot of parts of Pirates of the Caribbean (all three of the movies) were filmed in Dominica. Other shots are from St. Vincent (we saw the sets there during our honeymoon in 2006) and the Bahamas. This gorge is one of the locations they used. On the walk back to the van we were even able to see one (of the two) local parrots species fly overhead (pretty rare). That night we ate dinner in the bar at the hotel and I was finally able to get my laptop to connect to the internet so I could "talk" with Wade. It was a great virtual date. :)

(The bottom of Middleham Falls, which is a few hundred feet high!)

Thursday: After watching Jill, Alison, and Erinn give their talks, I was starting to feel nervous about my talk (sucking). After breakfast, I went back to the room to practice then rejoined the group after lunch for my talk. Whitney and I both spoke in the early afternoon and we were both happy once it was done. To celebrate, we went for a swim in the hotel pool that looked out over the ocean. That night was a banquet and I was happy to see more vegetarian options than meat options on the buffet line! When I asked the chef what was for dinner his response was "Ah, vegetarian - that's how we do things here!". It was a good dinner, and after it and some more rum punch, Whitney and I were ready to fall into bed. We turned out the lights, but ended up talking and laughing in bed for another hour before finally drifting off to the sounds of the ocean.

(The view from the pool, complete with my and Whitney's feet basking in the sun)

Mini-digression #2: Fresh local juice is served at every meal because there is such an abundance of produce... guava, papaya, grapefruit, passion fruit, "cherry" (some small fruit that is not what you would know as a cherry), etc. Because of this "natural resource", making rum punch (esp. with local rum) is really fantastic and cheaper than drinking soda or tequila or whatever has to be flown in.

Friday: We missed some of the early talks due to our inability to get ourselves to move faster than island time. By now, we had gotten in the habit of sleeping about 9-10 hours every night and it was glorious. After the talks, we wrestled up some brave troops for an adventure. I was really ready to see more of the island, and the allure of an island beach bar on a black sand beach was more than I could take. We ate an early dinner then Whitney, Alison, and I along with four others trekked across town to find a public bus (the same Nissan vans) which was super cheap. We found the right one and once we were all in, there were 18 people total in the van, our group of 7 squished in with 11 locals like sardines. But, it was well worth it. Once we arrived at Mero Beach, everyone's cares were forgotten. We ordered a round of rum punches (homemade with only fresh passion fruit juice and local cane rum) and the local Kabuli beer. We sat under the swaying palms and talked about the fate of the world and it's coral reefs. After two rounds of progressively stronger punch we were ready for the water. After soaking up the water and sun, we headed back to the bar for more drinks. On the way out I found seaglass in the sand (beach+bar=seaglass in greens, browns, and whites!) so we proceeded to pick through the surf for treasures before heading home (after one last rum punch of course!). That night, we stayed up talking about how to save coral reefs some more, before finally succumbing to bed.

(The black sand at Mero Beach - see how it sparkles?!)

(Sunset approaches on Mero Beach)

Mini-digression #3: One of the things I loved about traveling with Whitney is that she can sleep as longer or longer than I can. If you don't know, I can sleep about 12 hours if I'm really beat, and on average, I need about 9 or 10 hours a night to really function properly (yeah, I'm screwed if we have kids)



Saturday: All week, I had been perplexed about how early the sun must rise for it to be so bright by 7:30am. This morning I finally figured it out - I awoke once by accident at 5:15am to see dawn just beginning to break. And I knew that by 6:15 am it was fully up. This morning we stuffed ourselves at breakfast in preparation for our next field trip to the Indian River and snorkeling off the town of Portsmouth on the NE coast. We piled into a taxi with 3 other people, so it was practically like having a private tour. We enjoyed the scenic ride up the coast to the mouth of the Indian River. There we got into a row boat with a guide who paddled us up river. (This was another filming location for Pirates) We saw beautiful countryside, tropical trees, fish, and the air was filled with birds and their calls. After a half hour we docked at a little old wooden dock and found a little makeshift bar where they bring folks on tour. We ate local bananas and fresh coconut and watched hummingbirds, banaquits, and butterflies buzz about. It was incredibly relaxing and just what we needed. After that we were paddled back and taken to another beach bar for a late lunch (and more rum punch). Then we snorkeled before the rain moved in and we headed back. We got back just in time for me to meet up with Wade online again, then Whitney and I headed to dinner at what was rumored to be the best place in town. When we arrived, we were surprised - it was a very sophisticated looking place on the inside (but the entrance was in an alley!) that was open to the outdoors. The chef was jamming out to Prince and we had the place to ourselves. The food was wonderful (even for Sarasota or DC standards) and we toasted to having a fun and successful week. We packed that night and tried not to think about having to return to reality the next day.

(Our chariots await us - ours was the teal and yellow one)


(The view heading up the Indian River)

Sunday, May 31: We ate a leisurely breakfast before checking our work e-mail (I finally got mine to work). Ugh. Harsh reality sets in. Then we checked out and boarded the taxi for the airport. The drive to the airport was quiet despite the full van. I think everyone was saying goodbye to paradise and thinking about the work that lay ahead of them at home. Fortunately, we were flying out with a big group of folks that Alison works with, so it was nice to have company. Once we landed in San Juan, Whitney literally ran to make her connection, which she successfully did. I had dinner with Alison & co. which was fun - such a nice change not having to travel and eat alone! We eventually parted ways as they were destined for Miami, and me for Tampa. I got home a little late and was in bed by 1:30am. It was wonderful to see my hubby and furry kids again, but we were both exhausted and headed straight to bed.

(A banaquit sneaking some sugar at breakfast)

(The bar, and only place we could get internet, go figure)

For more pictures from my Caribbean adventure, check out our Picasa site here .

A numbers game

10... the number of fun people and old friends from college that sat at our table during Sarah & Evan’s wedding.
9.... The number of days I’ve been away from home for this trip so far (and also my longest trip so far)
8.... The number of times I contemplated quitting my job this week.
7.... The number of people supporting me this week to make our workshop successful.
6.... The number of plane flights I’ve been on (slept through) in the last 9 days
5.... The number of different hotels I’ve stayed in over the past 5 days.
4... The average number of hours I’ve slept each day this week.
3... The number of different states we were in on Saturday (TX, VA, FL)
2... The average time we went to bed for the last three nights – 2am.
1... There is only 1 place I want to be right now – home!

My workshop was a trial by fire this week. This is not the first workshop I’ve organized (more like the 5th?), but it is the first that I’ve been responsible for planning the content (presentations, working group discussion questions, output goals, etc). This was also the first meeting I facilitated which was daunting and proved to be a crash course in mediating conflicts in discussions as we had a lot of strong personalities in the room.
Next comes building a coalition and drafting a policy brief to submit to Science magazine.

The upside of the week was being able to see friends (old and new), tour the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, and being able to travel with Wade for the week. We also were able to slip out of DC for a day to see Sarah and Evan tie the knot. It was wonderful seeing two fun people get married who are so happy and right for each other, and wonderful to see old friends from college. Thanks to Taryn for sharing the following picture of the happy newlyweds! Look out world, here comes trouble! ;)

I write this as I sit in the San Juan, Puerto Rico airport (one of my least favorite airports). I am headed to Dominica in a few hours to attend a week of meetings and hopefully get a tiny bit of R&R in (which I desperately need). I’ll be traveling with a friend from work (Whitney), so that will help keep things fun. When I get back next week I’ll have a few days at home before heading to DC again for a presentation of my program to the executive board of EDF on June 10. Yeeahhhh.... that’s going to be super.

Calm before the storm

Well, by now I should have written about 5 blogs. There's one about my last trip to DC at the end of April, but I can sum it up pretty easily: terrible. There's one about my office mate and friend, Kellyn, leaving for a new job in Asheville , NC: bittersweet. The next would be about my and Wade' new adventure learning to sail with Megan's Dad, Steve (see his website and travel journals under our link section (Steve & Joy): exhilarating. I can't forget that Wade started his first post-doc job with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) a few weeks ago: daunting and interesting. And the last would be about celebrating Easter with my Mom & Larry (our present was to teach them how to blog): fun.

So it seems pretty lame to give you a one word synopsis about all five of those, but that's because I've been pretty much consumed with preparing for a meeting I am holding in DC next week. It really is everything I've been working towards for the last 8 months and really will make or break my program. This week I've been working non-stop in prep for it (yes, I did work until midnight on Monday...), and we're undergoing some cuts at work which has everyone on edge, including me. So I've had to be extremely focused to get everything done while not freaking out about who's going to be let go...

On Sunday Wade and I will fly to DC together for my workshop which is part of a larger suite of meetings. Although he's really going for the other meetings, it will be wonderful to have him along for moral support. We spend a week there, then head to TX for a day next weekend for Sarah & Evan's wedding, then back to DC for a day to wrap up the meetings, then back home. But alas, after a week, I won't actually get to go home. We'll overnight in the hotel in the Tampa airport so I can fly out on Memorial Day for a week in Dominica for another meeting where I will be giving a talk. Wade will stay home with the kids, but I will be meeting up with a friend and colleague from work, and two friends from grad school.

I am telling you all of this in advance b/c it could be difficult to get a hold of me until June (seriously). And once I get back I am already scheduled for 2 trips to DC, one of which will be a big review of my program... and in a not so fun kind of way. Ahh, belt-tightening.

Amidst all this hustle and scurrying, I've been working from home more to ward off stress. Snuggling, I mean, working with the cats around has been wonderful, and we've discovered that we're running our own little bird sanctuary in our yard. We now have a full family of Carolina Wrens and Downy Woodpeckers winging through the yard and singing in the trees. It has been very entertaining watching the youngsters learn how to use the feeders and inspect us on the back deck. This new life is already on top of the small Tufted Titmouse family, gang of blue jays, Red-bellied woodpeckers, Mr. & Mrs. Cardinal (who might also have a nest), various warblers, occasional Red-shouldered and Cooper's Hawks, osprey, and Great Flycatchers we regularly hear in the neighborhood. I am also excited that we're just now getting the cicada's singing again - one of my favorite sounds of summer. I hope the promise of summer is as exciting for you all as it is here in our own yard!

And I'll do my best to send out updates while I'm traveling. In the mean time, hold tight and we'll be back with pictures and stories soon. :)