Happy Birthday, Mandy!

Here's a shameless blog in honor of our daughter, Amanda.  You moms will understand....
October 26, 1977 was a very important day for our family.   A tiny little girl was born on that day named Amanda.  Her friends call her Amanda, but for me she will always be "Little Miss Mandy Kay."

Mandy loved to go camping in our pop-up tent camper.  In those days, we had to bring all the baby gear along with us:  swing, diapers, pacifiers, the whole deal.  Makes me tired to think about it!

Mandy was one of those little kids who always clung to her mom's leg.  My very first memory of her in the hospital room was her putting her little arms around me, even as a newborn.  This girl came into the world with a kind, loving spirit that I can't take credit for -- she was just born that way.

She was a quirky little kid -- always had her shoes on the wrong feet, and for a stretch of a few years (as shown in these photos) EVERYTHING had to be pink.

Mandy's kind-heartedness extended to any and all animals.  Sometimes she loved them a little too much -- just ask the cats who were dressed in doll clothes and pushed around the house in a doll carriage (with one tiny pink arm holding them firmly in, whether they liked it or not!) 

One problem with being too cute for your own good, especially if you're the baby in the family, is that you tend to get away with murder.   I can't even count the times when Roger and I had to bite our cheeks to keep from laughing when we needed to discipline her.  A few incidents come to mind, like hiding her guinea pig in the door of the antique mantle clock (playing hide and seek).  Oh well, the replacement glass door was prettier than the original one anyway....
poor Squeaky, the guinea pig, was probably traumatized for the rest of its short life, though.

In junior high and high school, Mandy was often the peacemaker among her zillion girlfriends.  Her friends came from every group in the class -- she was (and is) an equal-opportunity friend.  Her loyalty is legendary.

Amanda is very artistic and creative.   She sees things through an artist's eye.  She follows her own drummer and thinks "outside the box."


She's a beautiful person, inside and out.  As much as I love the cute kid photos of her, my favorites are those below.  These photos show just what a kind, loving, patient, involved mom Mandy is to our granddaughter, Kaia, who is the center of her world.   The love just shines through in these photos:

  

Mandy, we're so proud of you -- you're doing a great job!!!

Happy birthday, Honey!

Almost forgot the whippet photo of the day.  Amanda isn't the only one whose birthday is October 26.  Our baby of our four-legged children, Chaplin, is eight years old today!  He still gets an e-birthday card from his breeder every year.  Thanks, Peggy and Steve, and Happy Birthday, Chaplin!  I'll make sure you have a special treat today.

The Ultimate Bike Trail - Yosemite Valley!

Hi all -- Dianne here.  Wednesday we made our second long trek back to Yosemite National Park.  When we planned this trip to California, we were excited to see the Escapees Park of the Sierra Co-op on the map so close to Yosemite, our destination.  (Being Escapees members, we can stay at these parks very inexpensively). 


 Well, it may look close on the map, but the reality is that it is about a two-hour drive from our camp site to Yosemite Valley -- Not what we expected, but worth it nonetheless.  Part of the problem is the current road resurfacing within the park.  No alternative but to stop traffic and use a pilot car to help the lanes of traffic take turns on one open lane.  The normal wait for each construction stop is about 15 minutes.


(Roger here...  Every trip to the park involved at least four of these stops for the round trip.  A little frustrating on a long day, but a good time to look at maps and decide where to park the car.)


Another little detail we didn't take into consideration were the twisty-curvy steep hills and grades along the route, with speed limits to match. 

 Gotta say, though, if you have to be stopped for road construction, this isn't a bad place to do it!


Roger had researched and found that there are miles of bike trails around Yosemite Valley.  (R:  all flat and all paved :-)  Rather than just drive or take a bus and get off at the various sites, we decided it would be a lot more fun to take our bikes.  What a great idea that was!  We parked the car near the Curry Village rental tents and took off on our bikes. 

 Although the signage left a lot to be desired, [R: A LOT to be desired -- with my concrete sequential skills -- (disease) -- I could really help them with this], once we figured out where the bike path was, it was great.  The bike path was paved, and a large portion of it followed a road that was closed to all vehicular traffic but service vehicles and those with handicap license plates.  

The valley was as awesome looking up as it was looking down on it from Glacier Point the week before.


There were bike racks strategically placed near the points of interest so that we could park and lock our bikes, then hike to see the highlights.

One of the first was a short hike to Bridal Veil falls.  We were expecting it to be dry, but it was flowing.  I can only imagine what it's like in the spring going at full force!

While biking along, we also saw this trail of mules being led along a hiking trail next to the river.

Here are a few of the more famous sites, from the valley perspective.  (R:  Adding to the fun was the thrill of keeping your balance while staring straight up.)

You can't visit Yosemite without learning more about John Muir.  

According to this plaque erected near Yosemite falls, John Muir lived for two years in a cabin at this site while he studied the area.  The quote on the plaque was very appropriate on this beautiful autumn day.

We were also surprised to see water flowing at Yosemite Falls; we expected it to be dry this time of year.


The short hike to the Lower Yosemite Falls had another surprise. 

 Not only was it a lovely trail, but resting very close to the trail -- but not noticed by most who walked by -- was this beautiful buck. 

 In fact, we walked right past him without realizing he was there until we saw a group of people stopping and taking photos.  He certainly blended in with his surroundings!


We really enjoyed our trips to Yosemite.  After hearing tales of the nightmare traffic and crowds in the summer, mid-October seems a great time to go.  The weather was perfect and the crowds weren't too bad.  I can see how it could be a whole different story on a weekend in summer, though.  I doubt that we'd have been able to zip along on the bike paths like we did, if they were choked with foot traffic.  


One final view of the Yosemite Valley.

The whippet photo of the day is Chaplin having a good whippet stretch after one of his many daily naps.  These are long, tall dogs when they stretch out!

Escapees Park of the Sierras

Roger here....  Do any of you remember the abundant and colorful wildlife in Disney's Bambi and Snow White?  As a kid, I thought that settings such as those were as fictional as the story lines in the animated movies.  I seem to be wrong, yet again.  

Our site here at the Escapees Park of the Sierras is surrounded by fascinating flora and fauna.  The birds chirp and swoop by constantly.  The variety is amazing:  Mountain Blue Birds,  Scrub Jays, Acorn Woodpeckers (who store their acorns in holes that they drill in trees - and other things), the elusive California Quail that scamper by in single file lines (too quickly to photograph), an owl that hoots most of the night (Dianne is trying desperately to identify it.), wrens, nuthatches, and an array of hummingbirds that gather at Dianne's feeder.  Dianne has been enjoying quality time with her Western Bird Book and her binoculars sitting on a lounge chair at our site.  As I am writing this, the songbirds are singing, the woodpeckers hammering, and the hummingbirds whirring by.  Big Chuck just tried to attack one through the window.


The mammals are also abundant.  The mule deer seem almost tame.    There are enough squirrels and rabbits to keep Jasper and Chaplin on constant alert.  

We have been told that the scattered and huge boulders (especially the pictured "cougar rock") were at one time sunning places for the indigenous mountain lions.  These shy predators no longer lounge around the campground, but they are not far away.

Speaking of animals - not just squirrels and rabbits, but other rodents.  We have seen multitudes of chipmunks and ground squirrels.  Their holes in the gardens and driveways are abundant.  When we arrived we wondered why many of the cars and motor homes had their hoods propped open and decorated with festive lights.  As it turns out, opening the hood and adding artificial lights prevents the cute-but-destructive (they eat plastic insulation on wiring) varmints from setting up housekeeping next to the engine block.  Thanks to the advice of one of our neighbors, I spent a little time setting up our own  "No Trespassing, Ya Little Bugger"  light display.  Small price to pay for life in this peaceful place.

The park was laid out and actually built by the original Escapees owners.  One of them, Al, took us on a tour of the facilities and talked -- with deserved pride -- about how the park came to be, and how everyone pitched in to make it a reality.  No side-by-side sites here. The spacious sites are terraced on landscaped hillsides.  All of the roads are asphalt and meticulously maintained by the residents.  Many of the resident/owners spend most of the year here; thus,  there is a prevalence of attractive landscaping on their amazing hillside views.


Speaking of the residents, what a friendly bunch of people!  We have been treated as if we had been here forever.  Al took us on a golf cart tour.  Lu welcomed us, and brought us information and a homemade recipe clip.  Bruce stops by most days to tell us about things to do in the area.  The dog lovers dote over Jasper and Chaplin.  And nearly everyone we have met asks us if we are going to the big dinner on Friday.  It would be rude if we didn't, wouldn't it?  We will be there!

I have to show you the Manzanita Tree that I am looking at from the couch.  I had never seen these very common (in this area) trees before.  They are covered with berries, and the smooth trunk and limbs are sooo red that they look as if they were painted.

The small former gold mining town of Coarsegold is just a couple of miles away - a pretty little town that is getting ready for Halloween and its ANNUAL TARANTULA FESTIVAL.  We will be attending.  Halloween is Dianne's favorite holiday, so the pumpkin shot is appropriate. 

The Coarsegold Market, though not a superstore, has everything we would need food-wise.  The homemade, prepared dishes (especially the chili mac and meat loaf) have saved us a lot of time on the busy hiking days at Yosemite.  It also sports a great mural on the side of the store.

You know that we have been hiking at Yosemite (another post about that soon), but the doggies (Dianne and I, too) have been enjoying long hikes here at the campground.  Not as spectacular as Yosemite, but so quiet and beautiful.  An old stage coach line (taking tourists to Yosemite) traversed this property at one time.  The wide pathway winds through the boulder-ladened hills on both sides of the park.  The shorter section is part of the whippets' daily walking routine.  The longer, two-mile loop across the dry creek bed, is a particular treat on those days that we hang around the campsite.  Enjoy some of the sites as we walk along:

Jasper enjoying a bit of freedom on the trail.

You can just barely make out a motor home in this lovely terraced site.

Here is a shot of Dianne and Chaplin looking for gold in the dry creek bed.  Nothing sparkly today - just smooth, black rocks.

The whippet picture of the day is entitled, Basking in the Sunlight at the End of the Day.

(Dianne here:  Jasper is beautiful, isn't he??)


 The next post will describe our biking adventure in Yosemite Valley.  I will close with three more end-of-the-day shots from our campsite: