Update from Colorado Wildlife Country

Hi all, Dianne here.  This is just a quick update from beautiful Colorado.   As you can see from the opening photo, there is no shortage of wildlife roaming through the RV park!  This beautiful buck shows up almost every morning.  What you can't see in the photo is that my neighbors behind were actually sitting right there in their lawn chairs while the buck wandered onto their site for a drink of water out of the tree irrigation well.   Close enough that they could have reached out and touched him!   They offered him a carrot, but he didn't partake.

Roger worked long and hard to find a safe place to park me for the three weeks he'd be in Indiana this summer.  His hard work paid off, because this is certainly the perfect spot.  It's a beautiful, well-managed RV park.  I am surrounded by very nice neighbors, in case I need help with anything (not likely).  It's far enough out of Colorado Springs that I feel very safe here.  And the wildlife, for an animal lover like me -- let's just say it's perfect!

First of several Robison girls (two generations of them) to get hitched at First Presbyterian Church in Frankfort, Indiana

Just have to say Happy 40th Wedding Anniversary to Roger across the miles.  40 years ago today two 22-year-old kids set out on an adventure that feels like it's just getting started.

Our First RV! 

So, what in the heck have I been doing all by myself?  Well, I have a to-do list that I try to mark off at least one thing per day.  I'm still putting off cleaning the stove....

My wildlife cam has been kept busy every night.  In fact, I need to adjust it, because last night I had over 600 photos on it!!  Almost all of them were this fox and his friend who came over and over again to get a snack.

This young buck paused on his morning trek through the park to get a snack, too.  

The girls pass by, too.  Usually all this activity is around 6:00 - 6:30 a.m.

On our morning dog walks we sometimes see a whole flock of wild turkeys.  I took a photo, but they were too far away for it to be "blog-worthy."  

A couple of times horseback riders have passed through the park.

This cat shows up day and night.  Not sure why he's interested in the bird seed....  

I assume it's a feral cat -- possibly looks pregnant.  He/she stopped by again in the middle of the night.  I hope it was only sitting on the bird feeder!  No "evidence" was left behind, and the fox and birds still eat the seed, so evidently it was just sitting there.  Actually, now looking at the photos it appears to be two different cats.  

Just to let you know, there are birds here, too.  This one's a pine siskin:

Also have seen ring-necked doves and Steller's and western scrub jays, plus the usual mountain hummingbirds -- rufous, black-chinned and broad-tailed.

The Doggies Miss Their Dad!

Every morning after our walk, the "kids" and I enjoy patio time until around 10:00, then I try to get something accomplished from my list.

Charlie the cat especially loves it here.  He spends his outdoor time stalking birds from behind a rock...

...or strategically situated near the bird feeder!  He can't quite reach it, but he tries.

Here's how I know that there's more than one fox:

  

My Puzzle Collection So  Far

One of the things I looked forward to this three weeks was working on jigsaw puzzles.  My favorite souvenir from the national parks visitor's centers are puzzles of the beautiful park scenery.  I figure they'll be fun even when I'm an old lady and no longer traveling -- I can "re-live" our adventures, even in a nursing home!  

Any of you who live with cats know that there is no possible way to leave a puzzle out on a table without it becoming a play toy.  It's also a problem when you only have one table to use for everything.  When I worked at Amazon in 2009, I came across this "Roll and Go Puzzle Carrier (shown in photo behind puzzles)."  It has a blow-up cylinder and a velveteen surface that you simply roll up after each puzzle session.  I find that it works even better with a layer of shelf gripper on top of the puzzle pieces before I roll it up.  Roger was very proud of me when I told him via phone that I used his air compressor to blow  up the cylinder.

So far, I have puzzles from Yosemite, Mesa Verde, Capitol Reef, Zion and Bryce.  The first visitor's center puzzle that I bought was from a state park, Hearst Castle in California.  That's the one I decided to try first:

  As you can see, I've had lots of time on my hands!   Put my iPod on the speaker deck, pour myself a glass of wine, and the time melts away.

That's all from Colorado for now.  Roger and I talk daily, and he's having a good time in Indiana with our friends.  I may or may not post again before he returns; if not, just assume I'm hanging out with the foxes and deer!

The pet photo of the day is a shot of my speckled pups doing a little bird watching from the patio: