Near the top of the tree, way out of my reach... Beautiful!

The apricots are going fast! Of course the largest, prettiest ones are at the top of the tree! Delicious, tree ripened goodness. Their season is much too short. Our tree is about 35 yrs old now and produces every other year or so.

Yes, this really is an apricot! Yum!

It's Huckleberry Season!

Huckleberries in our area can ripen as early as July 4th, but typically they are ready Mid July and the season can last into September. In our search for the wild Huckleberry we took a drive up to one of my husband's favorite deer and elk hunting camps. It's an easy drive up the old highway then onto a dirt road that goes to a great spot filled with huckleberry plants. This year we picked our first batch July 13th and another on July 19th. Not sure if we will get another picking as the weather has turned quite hot! In addition to huckleberries you can find wild strawberries and Thimble berries. Never enough of the later two to do anything with so we eat them as we find them. While we stretch our legs during a break in picking there are lots of wild flowers and other interesting things to take pictures of and just enjoy the faint hint of pine scent in the air and the warm sun in a beautiful mountain setting. Talk about stress relief!

Wild huckleberries and strawberries.

You really must taste them! A few did make it into my picking bucket!

Thimble berries are getting ripe! 

Thunder rollin' Lightning flashin'!

We had one heck of a storm last night! Thunder rollin’ Lightning flashin’!! Hubby had gone to bed before the big show started... not sure how he slept through any of it! I went out with my camera and could not get one shot of the storm, so grabbed hubby’s little camera and got one pretty good shot.

Cacti, Succulents & Flowers... Oh my!!

On a recent trip to California we were treated to a drive through Joshua Tree National Park. Took far too many pictures to be able to share them all, however a few were of plants that are rare. If you ever get the chance to go there early to mid May is the best time for blooms, most years, we didn't get there until the end of May and most cacti were done blooming. Wear sturdy shoes to protect your feet and use lots of sunscreen! - http://www.nps.gov/jotr/index.htm -

Pholisma arenarium - a dicot, is a perennial herb (parasitic) - Family: BORAGINACEAE

Beehive cactus/Spiny star - Escobaria vivipara (Coryphantha vivipara) Family: Cactaceae, Cactus.

Callie's Kittens update

We only have two kittens left. Smokie found a home and has been renamed "Monster" as he is quite a terror! Joker and Garfield are still with us and are growing up fast. Joker is still the little one and Garfield is growing into a very large boy. They will be 8 months old on May 9th! Their favorite pastime is to watch the birds and squirrels from the dinning room window.

Spring Flowers ~ Tulips

Tulips have always been one of my favorite spring flowers, the red and yellow ones have been producing flowers here for 35 years. I've planted many other colors and they just aren't as hardy. That said, I must admit that the wide array of spring flowers are a nice escape from the continuing cold and snowy weather we are having this spring. Not that we don't get snow and cold every spring, it just seems like this spring is having a harder time getting here.

Crowned Sparrows ~ Sure sign of spring

Every spring we are privileged to have Crowned Sparrows visit. This year we counted at least 50, which may be an all time record for our yard. Their sweet songs can be heard early in the morning, as they sing their tribute to spring.

Fruit Trees ~ Plum in bloom

There were a few days of very warm weather that got the fruit trees blooming but with so few bees about there won't be an abundance of fruit, if any at all, on our trees. Our Plum tree has loads of blooms and I hope some got pollinated! This one produces early and while the skin has a sour bite to it, the flesh is quite sweet. We usually peel them before eating. They also can up nicely (skin on) and make a nice jelly or jam.

Spring Spinach

We have spinach! Last year a few of the spinach plants produced an abundance of seed and were left in the garden to see if we would get any plants come spring. Well, we have several little plants and will be separating them and planting them in rows. It will be so nice to have some fresh greens from the garden! Lots of  catnip came up too. Will be keeping some for the cats and giving some away.