One week from today, we'll be here: San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. We've rented a rather large casita near the center of town, somewhere close to that big pink cathedral (the Parroquia) you can see in the photo. Rick's mom is joining us. Can't wait! If you remember, we were scheduled for this trip last October when Alex got sick and we had to cancel. Thankfully the owners of the house let us keep the half of the deposit we had already paid and the airline extended our frequent flyer miles so we didn't lose any money. 

When I tell people we are going to Mexico they always assume we are going somewhere with water. When I tell them that we are nowhere near any water, they frown. Why go to Mexico if not for the beach? Because. Because San Miguel is magical. Because San Miguel is historical. Because San Miguel is one mile high. Because the food is wonderful since many top chefs choose to live here. 

Below is my favorite photo that I took when I was last there. Rick doesn't like it as much as I do because he wishes I had used a deeper depth of field. I like it the way it is because it focuses on the woman with her orange bucket. To tell you truth, I didn't even know that gentleman was across the street when I took the photo because I was so focused on her. So, how about you? Do you like the shallow depth of field or would you have preferred to see the gentleman in full focus as well?

Gee, it's been a while since I posted last. I'm not sure where the time goes! I am boring with no photos to show you and I really do need to replace that wintry header. BRRR! It doesn't look like that here anymore, although we did have a little snow overnight with 26 degrees. Hopefully that is the last of it!

Rick had a business trip to Miami and one of the days they took an excursion to the Everglades. He got some wonderful photos! Here is the link to his site (or click on Rick's tab above) where he has four of his favorites up with a link for the full gallery. Be sure to leave him a comment -- he'd love that.

In other news my sister's visit came and went by very quickly. She was excited that while she was here our little T@B trailer came in and she went with us to Pennsylvania to pick it up. She suggested the name Lady Bug and we liked it so much we are going to keep it! Thanks, sis! More on Lady Bug to follow very soon!

I think we've now turned the corner to Spring! We only have a few stubborn patches of snow left after our two inches of rain this past weekend. On Monday when the snow finally receded off the flower bed by the pool I saw that the daffodils had broken ground and just been waiting for their white covering to leave. The dogs have been running all over the yard, sniffing and taking in all the scents that they haven't been able to sniff since December. The trees have taken on a reddish tinge that means they are thinking about bursting their buds. Finally.

My amaryllis have started to bloom. The big one has already sent up a flower stalk which has finished blooming and it is sending up yet another one. The "baby" (shown here) also bloomed for the first time. I guess I should separate it out from the mother bulb when they're done blooming. My oldest amaryllis has two smallish stalks coming, but my favorite frilly one has only produced nice shiny new leaves. I don't think it's going to bloom which breaks my heart.

Tuesday was a beautiful day. The sun was out and even though it was still a little brisk it was really nice. I went to Skylands for a walk. I did the lower loop with all the woods and the pond. I heard the knocking of the pileated woodpecker and searched for it high in the trees. It was close to the nesting box at the pond. It's so much fun to see it. They are such cool looking birds. I was aiming the camera and staring up when a man and woman walked by and wondered what I saw. I pointed out the woodpecker and the woman said "Oh, it's a woody." I liked her cute little nickname and I think I'll adopt it.

I found the pond still mostly covered in ice.

This pair of geese were enjoying the parts of the pond that are now ice-free.

Once back in the car and on my way out of the park I had to pull over to see what the splashes of purple were by the side of the road. Crocus!

Welcome, spring!

Okay, maybe I am in a strange mood today, or maybe it's the winter doldrums, but I've wanted to post some of these pics for a while now. It's not my usual "thing," but when I see something I think is worth taking a photograph of, I do. I'm not sure you will agree, but here they are anyway, bizarre as they may be. A few were taken a couple of years ago and two were taken just yesterday. All but one were taken at Long Pond Ironworks.

Discarded doll. Long Pond Ironworks. April 2008

Barbie takes a break stuck in the railing on the Walkway Across the Hudson. Poughkeepsie, NY, May, 2010

Abandoned antique wheelbarrow. Long Pond Ironworks. Yesterday.

Abandoned toy in a dilapidated shed. Long Pond Ironworks, yesterday.

It makes you wonder how they got there and why they were abandoned. What is the story behind them? 

I’m still here! I just didn’t have anything much to say. I’ve just been going from gray day to gray day, hoping for Spring to arrive in person and not just on the calendar. Saturday was pretty nice when it got up to 50 but the wind spoiled any chance of sitting outside, plus the sun was in and out. Today the sun is out nice and bright but it’s below freezing. Tomorrow we are expecting some (shhh! not too loud) snow. We still haven’t  completely gotten rid of our snow cover from the past two months yet, although it’s melting slowly and we have more clear patches of yard than we do snow.

Even though it was cold and there was a chilly wind blowing, I took myself out this morning for a long awaited walk at Long Pond Ironworks. This was the first time since the snow started to fly and pile up week by week that I’ve been there. I wasn’t even sure if my legs would carry me over uneven ground since I’ve only been walking on paved surfaces and grocery store aisles. And also because ever since I slipped and fell on the stupid ice a week ago when taking the girls to the groomers and banged up my knee pretty darned good, I haven’t been walking long distances because of the pain. It’s still swollen some just below the knee around the leg bone, but it’s better than it was. 

It was nice to get out in the fresh, but cold air. The snow had pretty much melted but there were lots of spots that were just pure ice and tried to walk around them. When the path became more ice than it was clear I turned around not wanting to chance falling again. I learn pretty quickly that way.

In other news, we are still looking at vehicle. We have decided against the Toyota Sequoia for now because the one we test drove I didn’t like very much. It felt very boxy yet rode like a luxury car. This vehicle, whatever we end up with, can’t be a namby-pamby sort of girl. She’s going to be a country girl. In all other respects the Sequoia ticked most of our boxes except for not having a seat position memory. We also looked at a Nissan Armada which did tick all the boxes except it does not measure up as well in user reviews in Consumer Reports. We did not drive the Armada yet as they did not have a new one available to test drive. But when I sat in the driver’s seat it felt more like our Surburban than looking out over that huge hood of the Sequoia. We will revisit the Ford Expedition since we have just found out that the salesman who showed us the last one we looked at did not know how the seats folded and we dismissed it because they did not fold flat, but I guess they really do.

In the meantime, our Suburban decided to show us just who’s who and test us on our love for it. While Rick was driving it last week the brakes went out! It figures, doesn’t it? Rusted clean through. So, Big Red is in the hospital getting new brake lines and Rick is driving a loaner car. Not really an expected expense, but what else can you do?

That pretty much sums up what’s been going on (or not) around here. 

Photos: old window latch; barn shadows