Hot Hot Hot Weather

I love the hot weather. I prefer the heat over freezing cold or snow. I enjoy being outside and the warmth is so inviting.

After a full body slather of the ol' SPF 3000, we pulled out Finn's little baby pool, gave him the hose and let him have at it.

Home Goods was having a clearance on patio stuff last fall. Can you believe $85!!

THE BEACH

My good friend Melissa came to town from Arizona for a visit. A bunch of us met up at Salmon Creek, just above Bodega Bay.What a beautiful day!! About 85 degrees with a slight breeze.  Finn played in the surf, got buried in the sand, made sand castles, and even made a few new friends. We had stopped off at Genova Deli in Napa and grabbed a few sandwiches for lunch on the way out. They have exceptional foodl Love that place. 

THE NEW PATIO

With what we had laying around the property, Billy made us a patio in what used to be the dirt area of the Secret Garden.

 It's nice to be able to bbq and entertain out of the mud.

Whats Blooming

I cleaned out all the old dead morning glory that had covered the fence to the Secret Garden a few months ago. I had found a few birds nest and a few rats nests (ewww!!Yuck Yuck Yuck!!!) Anyhoo, the Morning Glory is coming back and is about 3/4 of the way up the fence. There are a few surprise vines in there too. Such as the Passion Flower, the climbing Rose and a Star Jasmine.

I love how alien the Passion Flower is. 



This rose bush is next to the back door and is a light pink. It smells wonderful in the morning.

 

The Climbing Rose that was totally covered with dead Morning Glory.  I love finding living treasures.

 Here's the backside. Meandering sweetly over the trellis.

What's been going on

We saved a baby frog that was in the burn pile. Finnigan took him for a ride in his Gator for awhile. I finally convinced him it was time to find him a new home.  I had him help me make a little home out of an old pot by the fish pond. He enjoyed doing this and has gone to check on him since.

My future nerd...

Grandma gave us 2 huge rolls of paper. One of the things we made with it, besides the outlines of our bodies, Finnigan and I made a little road with a park and parking lots and even an airport. This occupied both Finni and his dad for at least a half hour.

Corndog Muffins

I had seen this on pinterest. It looked like fun and easy to make. WOW!! What a hit! Making these again for sure.

I found these baskets for $5. This one is for my garden supplies. Everything fits perfectly.

Making more signs again. This one glows in the dark.

A few more from Finnigans Birthday Party

Happy Easter

We started our Easter off with a good ol' Egg Hunt. Finnigan loved this. He squealed and hugged every egg he found. We had carrot cake cupcakes for breakfast and then off to Grandma and PopPop's house.

Finding some more eggs at PopPops.

They are so cute together.

Had a fantastic Easter feast with good friends and family. We always enjoy visiting with the folks in Sonoma! Happy Easter Everyone!

Just Stuff

The girls are getting so big. Billy just finished the nesting boxes and perches, so they are all nicely settled into their new home.  When the boys are in for their nap (Finnigan and the 2 black cats), we let them venture out into the yard. I had them all with me in the sectret garden while I was weeding the other day. They were loving the hoards of worms I kept digging up. At dusk, they put themselves to bed and we have a little personal time together. I can now get them to jump up to my arms. They are getting some beautiful feathers too. Lots of irridecents in the black sexlinks.

This is the view from the front yard. There is over 100 acres of field for the dairy cows to graze in. It is quite stunning in the evenings as the sun sets over the hills.

The babies with their mothers walk by every evening. We enjoy going out to watch them and moo at them. Sometimes they will stop, look over and moo back. There is a bull in there too.  MmmHmmm... National Geographic Live!! Finni thought they were giving each other piggy back rides. I smiled and kept it at that.

Happy 3rd Birthday Finnigan

We threw Finnigan a nice sized party. Our great friends and family all came to celebrate with us. 

He greeted everyone with a hug as they walked in the door. Ecstatic they were there for him.

We were hoping for a bit better weather, but I guess Mother Nature wanted to attend his party too. The sun did come out later in the afternoon so the kids were able to break open the pinata.

We all had a good time, especially Finnigan.

Finnigan on his 3rd cake pop. These were a hit. Perfect little treats.

I love it when my mom comes to visit.  She is a wealth of information on country living.

Tia is always fun at parties.

The spread.

The carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese frosting were so yummy.

Finnigan made out!!! He got a lot of really cool toys. He was a happy boy.

Dominic was a big help with unwrapping the gifts.

Cutest lil cowboy ever!!

The decapitated chickie head of the pinata.

And Henry O'Henry... the slayer of the pinata.

Finnigan got a swing set from his daddy and I. He really needed something he could climb on. He has always been a climber. Definitely like his daddy in the no fear of heights department.

Captain Finnigan using his mighty brain power on the matching game.