The year so far

Summer vacation is here, hooray! Today I had a delightful fancy lunch with two of my favorite ladies to kick off the summer...the Dine About Town menu at Spruce was quite yummy.

What else has been going on this year?

In late January, the chickies began laying eggs. Dan discovered the first egg, laid by Henrietta, the Rhode Island Red.


Little brown egg

By February, all the girls were laying eggs of pretty colors. Rosie and Poppy, the Ameraucanas, lay blue-green eggs. Goody, the Buff Orpington, laid pale (buff) eggs. As the daylight hours increased, egg production went up as well...the eggs got bigger too!


Egg color palette

To ring in the year of the tiger, Dan and I took Arrow to Lake Tahoe for some relaxing, cross country skiing, and playing in the snow. My brother and Margi joined us for part of the time.


North shore


On the cross country ski trail

Pi Day was celebrated in March with four kinds of pie: blueberry pie, coconut cream pie, lemon meringue pie, and s'more pie. Dan and I attended Steven and Lisa's wedding at the end of the month, and I made cupcakes for the reception.


Wedding cupcakery

In April, Dan and I took Arrow camping in Big Sur, part of Marie's birthday celebration. We went to a beach with purple sand, the wildflowers were blooming, and we saw sea otters. I want to go back.


Purple sand at Pfieffer Beach


Coastline


Sunset view from the campsite


Wildflowers in Ventana Wilderness

At the end of the month, I hosted a baby shower for twin mommies-to-be. Bibs have been made for recently-arrived and on-the-way babies. Very exciting...so many babies!


Baby shower cupcakes in progress


Pepper-themed shower favors

May was sibling graduation month. Johnny graduated from medical school...my brother is a doctor! Then Katie graduated from college...my sister is a super star! And I got to visit an Ivy League school. One day in late May, Goody "the most beautifulest chicken" died suddenly. Dan and I were shocked by her death. He sent her to UC Davis for a necropsy, but the results were inconclusive. She had signs of visceral gout, but nothing infectious. We are monitoring the diet of the three other hens carefully and making sure they have plenty of water to drink.


Good bye, Goody

In between, there was teaching, book clubs, girls nights, walks with the beagle, raising silkworms, and all the other things that make up life. My first challenge this summer is to get over my fear of riding my bike in the city and conquer the roads of San Francisco...wish me luck!