The blessings of mornings

I am a morning person. I'm totally useless after about 9 pm, but I can effortlessly bound out of bed and be ready for the day at 4 am. I've always been that way. Go figure.

Mornings sometimes offer unexpected bonuses -- like today.

The day started out dreary and rainy, with gray all around.

But unexpectedly, the eastern sky started turning orange before the sun rose.

Light broke through the rainclouds and illuminated the tips of the trees -- can you see the very tops lit up? -- and offered a rainbow.

The other side of the rainbow had a narrow band of hillside lit up behind it.

The episode lasted maybe -- maybe -- five minutes, and then the clouds moved in and it was all gray again. But I was there to witness it.

Bonus photos: Yesterday afternoon Don and I went walking just before sunset. Again, for a brief few minutes, the sun pierced the clouds and illuminated the wet field fence along the road, which I thought was pretty.

This is why I always try to have my camera on me whenever I step foot outside. You never know when God will bless us when a pretty picture, a visual reminder to stop and smell the roses.

Random pix

It's been awhile since I put up a collection of random pix, so here you go.

In early February, a light dusting of snow covered a bench normally tucked on the porch.

Drippings from the barn roof also created mini-icicles on some cattle panels below.

Steamy breath on a frosty morning.

Lydia basking in some winter sunshine.

Matilda peeking at little Ninja, gavotting around the barn...

...and later, like Lydia, basking in the winter sunshine.

A crescent moon and planet.

And just for fun, the same photo with automatic color adjustment. I was actually impressed with how many stars showed up. Maybe I should try a little more night photography.

Early early dawn shadows of the house and barn, stretching westward.

Chickens basking in the winter sunshine.

Dramatic afternoon clouds.

Here's Sparky (black) along with her yearling calf Dusty (on the right) and this-year calf Lucy (on the left). What color calf will Sparky produce next?

A thin sheet of ice on the pond...

...and some fuzzing cattails.

Little Ninja enjoying some winter sunshine

Lydia in a remarkably cat-like pose, with her paws tucked underneath.

Very cute.

Ninja cuddles in the hay on a chilly morning.

Chuck still sneaks drinks from a patient Polly.

Dirty water tank.

Clean water tank. (That's a tank heater inside, to keep the water from freezing.)

Appreciative cows.

Sunrise.

I think the potatoes are trying to tell us something.

"It's spring! Plant us!"

Brit, resting.

Remember the phrase "the grass is always greener...?" Well apparently it also means the hay is always tastier on the other side of the feed box.

Sorry for all the Ninja shots, but he's so durn irresistible!

Breakfast!

Here's patient Sparky doing double-duty with this year's calf (Lucy) and last year's calf (Dusty).

Incoming snow flurry.

Just hanging around.

When the mud dried out, we put Shadow and Ninja down in the woods with the rest of the beasties so he could meet his herdmates.

Even dominant cows are very respectful of a baby's youth. Always nice to see.

I think I'll start keeping a "running tally" of random shots since I always seem to have some. These are from a few weeks ago when the weather was a bit cooler, and before Hector was born.

Random pix

I still don't have much brain power at the moment -- we're all counting the days until the end of our busy season -- so I thought I'd post all the Random Pix that have accumulated over the last month.

Dawn through our back barn door...

...with the sun shining through the corn that never matured (planted it too late).

Full moon rising (in town)...

Full moon setting (at home).

Older Daughter enjoying pizza with her Venture Scouts crew.

For the last month, Older Daughter has been employed once or twice a week doing housecleaning for some neighbors. Here she's walking to their house.

I'm pleased that my girls are earning a reputation for being honest and hard-working.

Water droplets on a broccoli leaf.

Harping around (can't say "fiddling around")...

...while being watched by Lydia.

Polly licking the mineral block.

Field burning across the canyon -- during...

...and after.

Canada geese.

Dawn light on the hay bales...

...and on Lydia.

We had a close call a couple weeks ago. Older Daughter has a glass paperweight on her bedside table.

One afternoon during some particularly bright sunlight, she came in and found it was burning a hole in the table! Can you see the wisp of smoke?

Impressive... and scary.

Snap, our rooster.

Part of our resident herd of deer. We routinely have between twelve and fifteen animals grazing in our field every evening.

And every morning I like to sneak into the barn and peek out back to see who's grazing near the woods.

Doe on a foggy morning.

Our neighbor's horses on a wispy morning.

We found this monster on our front porch. Its abdomen was about 1/2 inch across, and its leg span was about 1 1/2 inches. Are there any arachnophiles out there who can tell me the species?

Chipmunks.

Chickaree.

Old Major, caught in a beam of morning sun.

A robin in silhouette.

The faint, faint colors of early dawn...

...and its accompanying new moon.

Early morning behind the barn.

Quail on a fence post.

Great horned owl.

Corn from a neighbor's garden. (Mine didn't mature before the frost hit.)

Fresh basil (from my garden).

Picking off the leaves.

A neighbor celebrates his 17th birthday at our Sunday neighborhood potluck.

One of Smoky's bandits.

Most of the rest of the bandits.

It's getting hard to fit those chicks under her feathers at night... but she manages.

Adventurous chicks.

Evening grasses.

Walking back from the mailboxes.

Enjoying corn cobs.

I thought this random pattern of an extension cord on the ground looked remarkably like Celtic knotwork.

Zzzzzzzzz......

Picking dill seed.

Sunset through smoke from field-burning.

Another less smokey sunset.