Wyoming Animals

We went to Grand Tetons and Yellowstone National Parks. We also spent a few days in Jackson, Wyoming, where we went on some float trips on the Snake River.

American Bison were everywhere in both parks. They like to make dust burrows to sleep in. Some of these are right by the road.

Bison traffic jam. It was fun for the kids to get this close in the safety of the car.

Baby bison, a/k/a Red Dog.

This big guy likes to hang around the Old Faithful complex, along with two females with babies. We stayed in the Snow Lodge and got a surprise. None of the hotels have air conditioning and it was really hot. I mean hot.


Black bear. We went on a sightseeing tour in an old 1930s tour bus. It's nice to go with a guide who can show you where the animals are.


This is an immature bald eagle. We saw it on our Snake River float trip. It's mother or father was in the background, but I wasn't fast enough to get a photo of them together. It was on the log eating a fish that the parent caught for it.

Ground squirrel, Jackson square.

We saw quite a few other animals, some of which dh got a photo of. He has a better camera, so I'll try to put up some of them if he ever downloads them. He took some photos of elk, closeups of the bear and the bald eagle. We also saw a marmot, which is a large rodent-like animal, beavers, a coyote, a fox, weasels, chipmunks, mule deer, pronghorn antelope, osprey, hawks, etc. The kids wanted to see a moose and a wolf, but not this time.

It was a great trip. Both kids are sick now, so we have to get over that. School starts in two weeks and I can't believe our summer is almost over. Dd goes to Sea World camp next week, and I need to plan and have her birthday party before school starts. I am glad to be home and have all the trips behind me for now.

Grand Tetons

Coming home today.

Grand Prismatic Lake

Yellowstone National Park.

Grand Geyser

Yellowstone National Park.

IMG00027-20090715-1843.jpg

Relaxing in Jackson, Wy.

Garden

Can't wait for the tomatoes to get ripe. I've seen a few of my neighbors selling theirs by the roadside, but mine are ripening so slowly. . .

This is my first try at bell peppers. They are supposed to get red, so I'm going to leave them on the plant for longer. It's tempting to go ahead and harvest them, before something gets them. I have a ton of jalapenos and I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them. I'll probably make some jelly, but I have more than I can use for that.

Okra blossom. I made fried okra the other night. I really love it, but I'm the only one at my house who does. . .

Gazania. I grew a couple of these plants from seed and they are blooming beautifully right now. The blooms are very distinctive looking and they can take the heat very well.

I'm leaving for a week in Wyoming tomorrow, we're staying at Yellowstone for part of the time. I hate to leave my garden right when everything's coming in, but this should be my last trip of the summer. Dd is already ready for school to start. We've been gone a lot and she's missing her friends (although they text each other all day and night long!). . .

Annette from Knitty

I just finished up Annette from Knitty. Details are at Ravelry. I wore it out to dinner last night and I love it. Now I wish I had one in white or cream, and it's fast and easy enough to make it quickly. I was at my parents' last week, so I had a little more time to knit (no chores!) and I managed to finish the knitting there.

Here's a photo of it blocking, the stitch pattern is *fishnet*. You start at the bottom and knit up and it's made all in one piece.

Closeup of neckline. This is some yarn I had in stash, St. Tropez from Almedahls. It's a blend of cotton, linen and acrylic. I have three balls left and I have no idea what I'll do with them. I guess it's enough for a scarf or something.

I caved and bought some silk dupioni curtains from Pottery Barn last week. I wanted to sew them, but my windows in my living and dining room have been bare for a year since we repainted and I just wasn't motivated. They were on sale enough that I don't feel too guilty about it. I want to make only what I enjoy making and not feel like I have to sew EVERYTHING.