The Livin' is Easy

I have a few more cottage photos to share with you. Grab a fly swatter and some bug spray and come join me for a wander by the lake.



The day we arrived, it was raining hard. It had been dry, hot and humid, and we needed this downpour to rejuvenate plant life, animal life and ourselves.




With the weather change, came strong winds and cooler air. It was quite refreshing to venture outside after the raindrops stopped falling. Frank stood at the edge of the dock to assess the fishing conditions, and little Bayley scampered up behind him to help.




Benny and the kits played around together for a while. Benny generally initiated the chasing as JRTs are wont to do but every now and then one of the kits would pursue him and he'd show his displeasure about being the hunted.

Mostly, Benny liked to run circles around them and nip them gently while they tried not to keep their backs to him. Here's how they typically interacted.




After playtime, Bubbles and Bayley were ready for their bottles, and both drank with gusto for a long while. They became even more cuddly afterward, and Bayley nestled into my arms for a snuggle. Theresa warned me that being such a young one, he was prone to pooping when content with a full tummy and a warm nuzzle but I decided to take my chances...




Suddenly, it was laundry day! Bayley had indeed proven his contentment.




The last light of day provided a good peek at the sun, and the promise for a lovely day ahead.




On one of the last mornings spent at the cottage, I woke up with the awareness of a pink glow outside the cottage. It was just after five, and that could only mean that a glorious sunrise was about to occur. I stumbled out of bed and brought my camera to the living room window to capture the first, colourful light of day. That strange glow to the left is the reflection of the bedroom lamp.




While standing there, hummingbirds were already busily starting their own day. I snapped the above two photos for my pal Cricket who has eloquently rhapsodized the wonders of the early hours of morning.




Later, it was time to check out the fishing. Frank needed to start up the bilge pump to empty water from the boat. This of course fascinated Benny.




He suddenly decided that he must have every last drop of it. He peed a lot that day.




The fishing wasn't wonderful but photo opportunities were fine. A much needed fly swatter (mosquitos and horse flies were bad) rests on the cooler, creating an interesting shadow on its lid, and on a colourful lure.




Frank had some fishing success later on in the week, and Mother Nature continued to provide us with lovely sunsets and copper clouds. It was a fine time all around.

I might be disappearing again for a few days. I will definitely have a Posts of the Week up for you folks on Wednesday, and hopefully an additional post set up for Thursday but no promises there. If you don't hear from me after Wednesday, you'll know that more cottage time fell into place for us. I'll try to get back to visiting your blogs and responding to comments as soon as I can. Right now, it's summertime and the living is easy. I sure hope yours is likewise.

A Happy and Safe 4th of July to all of my Amurikan friends south of the border!

All Creatures Great and Small

Frank and I had a wonderful ten days up at his family cottage where we enjoyed incredible weather, decent fishing, great company and amazing creatures - great and small.

Benny of course, is an amazing creature who is both great and small. He was wonderful company for me when I spent one night alone while Frank made a quick trip home to prepare one of his sons for his own time away from home.



This photo was taken through the screen door. He's chilling out on the front deck, just enjoying the sunshine. He loves the cottage life.

When we arrived, Frank's sister Theresa was there to greet us. She had two new orphaned raccoon kits with her - born about a month apart. The first day she had them up at the cottage, Spike came around to sniff their empty carrier which had been left outside. Sugar hasn't been seen since late last summer but we're hopeful that she's found a mate and moved on out of the territory. It's what I'd like to believe. If you're unfamiliar with Sugar and Spike, you can read all about these darlings here. They were released at the cottage last summer.



Great: This is Bubbles and she's the older of the two. She might look rather large in this close-up view but really she's only a bit bigger than her adopted brother Bayley.




Small: And you can see how tiny he is. Aren't they adorable?




Great: The Great Blue Heron is a frequent visitor of the cottage where he likes to fish in a nearby bay. I was sitting on the dock, reading when I happened to look up in time to see him do this fly-by. Luckily, I usually keep my camera close at hand.




Small: A smaller winged, blue critter, and also a regular visitor to the cottage is this lovely dragonfly.




Small: Another one of the many dragonflies seen around the cottage. This one was snapped from a distance with the zoom lens.




Great: Not a dragonfly but perhaps a great fire-breathing dragon announcing the end to a perfect day with a blazing sunset. Can you see him?




Great: A few of these beauties were circling over the cottage one afternoon. Frank and his niece Jenna each figure it's a Broad-winged Hawk.




Small: Another winged lovely circled around the front yard a few times and then posed for this photo. It's a White Admiral Butterfly.

On our last evening at the cottage, Frank's sister Lisa and I took Benny for a walk up the road. Lisa has a keen eye and ear for birds and she soon spotted what she initially thought was a hawk flying ahead of us into the trees.




Great: She soon focused on where it landed and discovered that it was this beautiful Barred Owl. The light was dim and the branch high enough to make this a less than sharp shot but I still wanted to share this wonderful bird. It was hissing at us and we were hearing similar sounds from the left and from behind us. We soon saw why this bird was mildly distressed.




Small: Landing on the branch just in front of us, was this young owlet. There were at least three owls in this young family. Lisa and I figured that the parents were upset with us for standing there so long, watching and snapping photos. Maybe Benny was of concern. Maybe Benny was a meal consideration! We decided to move along, very appreciative to have witnessed these marvelous creatures.




Small: Another stunning creature is the Ruby Throated Hummingbird. Depending on the light, this tiny gem of a bird can appear drab gray or a brilliant green. The male's throat is ruby red but often appears yellow or orange - again, depending on the sunlight or its absence. This little female is perched on the clothesline between two standard sized clothespins. It gives you a good idea of just how tiny she is. You might want to click on this (and the next image) for better detail.




Great: Standing close to the feeder which is conveniently situated to catch the late afternoon sunlight, I was able to capture a photo which shows just how brilliant this male's colours are. Isn't he great?




So ends a perfect day. More cottage photos coming soon.

Happy Canada Day to all my fellow Canucks!