February 5, 2010

Today the sun is shining and it is 60 degrees so I decided to take a walk around our loop! Yesterday I saw an amazing rainbow over the Cascades and Mount Baker, between rainshowers, but today the mountains are out in all their glory. The sun is shining on their white peaks and they are breathtaking! Due to El Nino we are having a very mild winter. And in Canada they are hauling snow from Mount Baker to Whistler to help prepare for the Olympics!

As I walked around the block I was missing my own grandkids while I saw kids in shorts and white stocking feet (yikes!)(definitely not warm enough for shorts) running their remote control cars on the street, children of all ages having fun on the playground, boys shooting hoops, kids flying down the street on skateboards, our 3 year old neighbor boy driving his motorized "Cadillac", people doing yard work and taking down Christmas lights (that were due down in January per the ROA), Mom's walking babies bundled up in their strollers (which isn't unusual here, even in the rain), neighbors walking their dogs (I met 2 dogs named Phil and Lewy), kids learning to ride their bikes (one 5 year old went right in front of a car without looking, whew!) and teenagers walking hand in hand. As I passed the golf course I saw the lush green color of the grass, the blue sky with puffy white clouds, and the tall pines reflecting into the pond that was as smooth as glass. This is a strange phenomena, as last week the same pond had white caps caused by our 65 mph wind gusts. I stopped to let a golf cart pass!

On the way back home I paused on the hill that overlooks the golf course and the Snoqualmie Valley. It was silent..................... except for a helicopter hovering over Snoqualmie Falls and a jet passing overhead at 32,00 feet. As I turned to leave a deer dashed across the green and into the woods. I walked back to our home via the wooded trail that goes behind our subdivision. As I looked at the beauty along the trail I felt sad that many trails will be closed this spring, due to funding problems. What a shame that everyone can't continue to enjoy the beautiful trails in the great Northwest. Hopefully there will be a solution to the problem. I entered our yard, cleared some dead follage from our flower beds, admired the pink and white heather that is in full bloom, checked the ferns that are huge (last year they were frozen flat to the ground at this time), noted the cherry tree is budding, admired the vinca vine already blooming with tiny blue flowers and the crocus whose heads are already above ground with yellow flowers!! I hope this tender vegetation isn't shocked with a surprise frost.

We are so blessed to be able to enjoy our beautiful surroundings on a daily walk!

Happy Birthday Olivia!! Our "Super Bowl Baby" is 4 today!!
Go Colts, Go Saints!!