Giant Willow Tree Gone

Here are two photos of what used to be a landmark for me. This giant Weeping Willow tree was visible from all the way across the lake, and its branches hung over the spot where I sat in my kayak to take these photos. I tried to blend them into a single photo, but there was too much distance between the two, causing too much paralax to handle with photo editing. You can see the damage to the house in the form of broken shingles, bent gutters and downspout, and a broken eave. Also the fence has been damaged and is only braced into position.

Paddling Down the Cedar River

Click Here to See the Movie
Here's a low-resolution version of the movies I recorded while paddling down the Cedar River last Sunday. In the full resolution version you can see the fish clearly, hear the bird calls, and see two of the three Blue Herons flying away. The biplane landing at the end is a bit more obvious too.

Monya and Miss Maple

Here is Monya holding Miss Maple at her first birthday party.

Tiny Miss Maple

This photo was taken by holding the camera at arm's length, then watching Miss Maple to decide when to press the shutter button. I chose this photo because it shows how tiny she is compared to me.

Asian Pear Blossoms

The Asian Pear tree is covered with these large white flowers. The Comice Pear tree has just one cluster of flowers, but the trees are blooming at the same time.

Walls and Gables Complete

This is where we quit for the day. The doors and roof are all that remain to be assembled.

Wall Corners Secure

The foundation has been leveled, and wall plates fastened to each other. The corner sections of the wall have been assembled on top of the wall plates.

Assemble a Garden Shed

Here is the location for the garden shed. The water tank is under the blue tarp. The sacks of hardened stucco make nice (but heavy) bricks to form a foundation.

BeeBoo and Arthur

BeeBoo and Arthur were playing a video game. They were so intent on the game that they didn't notice me holding the camera in front of the video screen. Notice Arthur's favorite resting position with his new pink cast.

Camelia Stump

Here's the Camelia stump I took out to make room for a blueberry bush. I dug all around the stump, cutting off roots as I found them. Two roots remained hidden, and the stump refused to move, so I forced it out of there with two hydraulic jacks. This photo was taken just after the last root snapped.

Miss Maple's New Yellow Sweater

Miss Maple was happy to try on her new yellow sweater. She started crawling the other day, and this photo shows how she is spreading flowers from her socks to the carpet.

Aunt Bonnie's Sled Ride

Aunt Bonnie had to travel all the way from Laurens to Renton to find suitable conditions for a sled ride. Colette helped pull the sled.

Snow Mermaid

This snow mermaid was inspired by the character Ariel from the movie The Little Mermaid. The customer requirements included the seashell amulet hanging from her neck. Note that the sculpture has an anatomically correct tail.

Yellow Sweater "M"

The name of this sweater is "M"
It belongs to Emma, whose name is 'Melia, also known as Miss Maple.
Note that this photo was taken at 1/5 second with the camera set to adjust for flourescent light, with an incandescent bulb providing the light. It has the best representation of the true color I could manage. You have to feel the sweater to experience how soft it is.

Tree Moss

For years I have enjoyed the healthy crop of moss in this tree. I suppose this will be the last photo of it. I like how the angle of the ladder matches the angle of the power pole.

Windfall Cleanup

All of the branches have been cleaned off the roof and cut back away from the house. Large branches will become firewood or lumber, but smaller branches were chipped and shredded into mulch. The orange chipper/shredder is resting after a hard day of work.

Arthur's Red and White Sweater

Arthur tried on his new red and white sweater Dec 23, 2006.

Flee Plus Flee Equals Six

During the Christmas holidays we had several meals with the Amboy branch of the family. There were three of us on each side of the table, when Arthur noted:
"one, two, flee," pointing at each of us on the opposite side, and "one, two, flee," people on his near side of the table. Then he pronounced, "flee plus flee equals six!"

Boxelder Tree Blown Down

Notice how the branches broke in multiple places, and only smaller limbs actually hit the house. The kayaks were right next to it. The trunk didn't break, because the roots pulled up instead. One branch got caught in the telephone lines, and now that pole is leaning as far to the right as it was leaning to the left.

Kayaks are Safe

It looks like the tree was shaped perfectly for arching over the boats. The boat rack leg is broken, so it may have actually hit them.