Younger step-son's sunburn has now become so itchy he can't sleep, so VPH and I are running around trying everything we can think of to make him more comfortable. It's so hard to watch your kids in distress, even when it is their own fault. After multiple calls to the dermatologist and multiple trips to the pharmacy, he's finally able to rest without writhing in discomfort and poor thing, crying in frustration. However, it looks like our trip tomorrow to Cooperstown and the Baseball Hall of Fame is in not going to happen. It is the only thing that I planned for this vacation and I want to go!
Wildlife abounds here in the Catskill Mountains. There are hummingbirds, but so far they've been too fast for me to capture. We keep seeing deer on the side of the road driving around at 50 mph -- not terrifying at all, really -- but haven't seen any around the house to photograph.
Take a look at this:
Pardon the photo through a window, but we had a bear in this spot not 30 minutes ago. I am now a touch petrified to go outside. Elder step-son came running upstairs shouting. Apparently the bear put his face right up the window and scared the heck out of the boy. I don't think I have ever seen him move that fast. By the time we got to the window, only younger step-son actually saw the bear, VPH and I were both too slow and it wandered off into the woods -- I heard it moving around in the brush off the deck though. Probably a good thing that I missed it, if I had actually laid eyes on it I would be even more freaked out.
Here's the only wildlife I've been able to capture on "film" so far:
Not exactly scary since the rabbit is not in my garden, but if I were at home, I would be absolutely terrified!
This is the incredible view from my bedroom -- I will miss it once I've gone home:
But I haven't been using the little deck up there because of these:
Sorry for the slightly out of focus photo, but I was shaking being so close to that many wasps!
The last little surprise that the property had in store for us is just past the parking area:
Walk forward 20 feet and you find this:
Again, at some point it must have been lovely, but the pond has fallen into disrepair. The waterfall appears to come from a stream that runs the entire length of the hill. It's pretty nasty water/dirt, but full of the cutest little tadpoles:
I want to be home, I wonder if I have a ripe tomato waiting for me. Less than 48 hours now. VPH and I will miss the pool, but because of what happened to younger step-son, elder step-son now refuses to go out in the sun. I swear plants are easier than kids.
That whole countryside is so peaceful and lovely! The little pond is especially beautiful. I like the enhancement of dissolving back into nature. Did you bring any tadpoles home?
I would have completely freaked if I had been anywhere close to that bear - they really scare me. Did you know that they are porcine? That still doesn't give me
comfort.
Remember what we used to say? "Don't have
children - have puppies!"
Posted by: Mummer | August 05, 2007 at 11:08 AM
Is that a skull in the pond with the tadpoles???
Posted by: Wendy | May 11, 2011 at 11:24 PM