Winter Wonderland

 I never thought I'd say this, but I'm really glad for the two feet of snow we've had over the past couple of days.  We've been out and about exploring Vermont, laughing as the dogs bury themselves into the snow.

 

 

 Even Frosty is as happy as can be.

 

 

 

Today marked an epic adventure of Cross Country Skiing with our friends Dave and Sarah.  We found it to be quite the fun event, with minimal falls and wipeouts.  Lesson learned: Teresa and Dave should NOT go downhill skiing...EVER! 



White Christmas

We had a lovely Christmas here in Vermont. Christmas eve was peaceful with our dinner by candlelight (thanks to a wonderful suggestion by Gamma).  The candlelight was continued at breakfast the next morning. We then had a yummy Quiche with fruit salad and yogurt.

Baby Jesus appeared in the manger overnight, snow was falling from the sky in the morning and frosty was smiling away (thanks to his new light bulb). Anyone know when he last had a light change? We opened presents first: Santa was good to Eric. He was given a banana, socks (never mind that they were already his), a lottery ticket (he won $2!), and a Vermont and Bike ornament. Santa brought Teresa an ornament from Africa. So we placed all three on our antler tree.

The dogs enjoyed opening their presents from Santa Paws.  They had a good tug and in about 3 minutes all of but destroyed the home-made toy.  The best part is that we save the stuffing and will recycle it into another toy next year! 

My favorite was Piper's excitement over a package from Grandma.  She began to self-open it and ran around with it in her mouth, tail wagging.  We figured it must be something very yummy.

 

Turns out it was a poo bag holder:)

Milo is practicing his mouse-catching skills.  We caught another mouse on Christmas morning, so he was released at the same spot his little friend was released the day before when we went on our Christmas morning hike.  

The Wilderness Area was beautiful with all the fresh fallen snow.  Anyone notice Izzy in the photo?  She and Piper were having a blast eating the powdery snow. 

When we arrived home, we watched some claymation Christmas classics, played boardgames, and just relaxed.  Ahhh....

Don't eat the yellow snow.

Our dogs love the snow.  They love to jump in it and chase snowballs, but most of all they like to eat it.  They walk along, noses to the ground, grabbing mouthfuls of the cold, white treat.  This is a common practice, which inevitably by halfway through the walk they're now stopping every 5 minutes to pee, Piper always in the lead.  Yesterday's walk was no different.  They were running and eating up a storm.  Piper stopped to pee briefly then continued on.  Izzy, following close behind, was innocently munching mouthfuls of snow.  She was doing this in such a methodical manner, that she obviously didn't realize the yellow snow right in front of her.  She grabbed a mouthful, immediately spit it out, shook her head, and then simply moved forward down the trail continuing to eat snow.  The moral of the story....don't eat the yellow snow.

I am also happy to share that last night the grandest of things occurred...I caught a mouse.  FINALLY!

I'm starting to see a pattern...

It's a wonder to me up here how I can go to bed at night and wake up in the morning to 3 inches of this beautiful white snow and yet somehow no one ever mentioned it was coming!  Does no one up here offer warning of impending storms or is this merely viewed as a sprinkling? 

 

 

At least we can go try out those new snowshoes!

 

I give up!

Due to my most recent conclusions, we went out and bought a larger trap, filled it with irresistible peanut butter and cat food, and set it up in the laundry room.  Nothing!  As I started to unpack the Christmas decorations I learned that the critter(s) had been gallivanting around in my manger scene and yes, they pooped on Jesus!  Naughty little animals.  

For the past 5 days we've had no activity...no droppings, no missing food, and no critters in our newly set trap.  This morning I wake up to find out that once again we've been outsmarted:  

cat food - gone

poop - check

peanut butter - licked clean

critter - absent

I'm simply at a loss....

Critter 100, People 0

For those of you who know me, you know that I love to play games.  I, however, HATE losing them.  This battle with the critter, I fear, has become a game in which I am the ultimate loser.... 

Last night it sounded like the Kentucky Derby was taking place within the walls of the house.  Aside from the ridiculous hats, I swear I could hear the critter (and friends now it seems) laughing as they raced through the walls.  I am well convinced that we have lost. Another night of empty traps and the worst of it is the critter poop left on top of the trap.  Yes, it apparently sits on top of the trap each night.  This only leaves me with two final conclusions:

1.  We are not so smart.

2.  The critters are NOT going to fit inside a mouse trap.

Critter 2, People 0

It's been a few days now.  The trap was set and suddenly silence.  Our furry little friend seemed to have disappeared.  After no signs of it for three days, I left the cat food out last night.  Gone!  I'm now back to more thoughts:

1. The critter is VERY VERY smart

2.  We are not so smart

3.  Will our sissy cat ever help out with this issue???

Critter 1, People 0

Well, last night two traps were set and with tasty peanut butter applied inside.  I woke up at 2am hearing noises after Milo jumped off the bed!  I tip-toed out to find Milo staring at one of the traps.  I turned on the light, opened the trap...nothing. 

The little booger excaped us. It can only mean 3 things:

1. It's a critter much larger than a mouse and it simply couldn't fit into our traps.

2. It's so full from theiving the past few nights that last night it took a break.

3.  The critter is a mouse and WAY too smart for it's own good.

Lets hope it's not the 3rd case or this could be a LONG process!

TO BE CONTINUED (again)...

The VERY hungry cat

It all started Sunday night when the dogs let out a single sharp grumble and then once again, silence.  In the morning I was amazed to see Milo had eaten all his food, since Eric had just refilled his bowl that Friday and Milo's well-known for his small appetite. 

 

Monday night came...another dog grumble, another empty food bowl and I'm thinking to myself, "no way Milo ate an entire bowl of food overnight!"  He was snuggled up next to me all night long sleeping away.

 

Then, the surprise.  It appears a little friend left us little presents in the cat food bowl.  The dogs, doing their duty, at least growled at the thieving creature.  However, Milo being Milo, is allowing a furry creature (which he should normally want to eat mind you), to steal his food in the night.

 

Now we must find a way to catch the critter...TO BE CONTINUED

 

The pumpkin thief...

I arrived home to find a small orange pumpkin missing and that our large pumpkin had become the victim of someone's hunger.

 

 

 

My initial thoughts were the resident chipmunk (who has taken great pleasure lately in teasing the dogs by sitting near the front door and chirping at them) decided to snack on our display. 

 

However, it turns out the culprits are Izzy & Piper, who decided to help themselves to a yummy treat.

Naughty dogs!

 

 

I guess considering last years "pumpkin fun," I can't blame them for wanting a little snack.



Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

We had our first official blast of flurries!  The girls were extra excited

to see their favorite little white snacks falling from the sky. 

We bought our snowshoes last weekend and

are ready for the massive blizzard. 

 

 

Bring it on!!!

Noodle Goes Full Circle

The Noodle saga has come to an end.  It is sad to note that Noodle, the orphan baby Broad-winged Hawk, had a freak and unexpected accident during his rehab that ultimately resulted in him being put to sleep.  This was very sad and disapointing for all of those involved in his care.  This sadness, however, is tempered by the fact VINS was rehabbing another Broad-winged Hawk who breezed through the rehab process.  They were kind enough to allow me to release this beautiful bird back into the wild.  It was an amazing experience to see this bird take its first flight outside of an enclosure and I wish it the best of luck.

 

Remember the Noodle.

 

More pictures in Flickr.



Lions and Topis and Hares...Oh My.

 

We are back.

 

A Kenyan safari was definitely time well spent.  Wildlife viewing far exceeded our expectaions (we were within 10ft of adult lions and saw tens of thousands of wildebeest) and we spent time with the excellent Maasai people.  It was an outstanding trip in every regard despite the 26+ hour travel time on our way back to Vermont. 

 

The animal tally:

giraffe, hippo, warthog, dik dik, lesser kudu, eland, oryx, common waterbuck, Defassa waterbuck, bushbuck, wildebeest, impala, Grant's gazelle, Thompson's gazelle, gerenuk, cape buffalo, zebra elephant, ground squirrel, African hare, black-backed jackel, golden jackel, genet cat, lion, cheetah, serval cat, yellow baboon, vervet monkey, Egyptian mongoose, dwarf mongoose, banded mongoose, spotted hyena, agama lizard, nile crocodile, leopard tortoise, and birds too numerous to count (highlights being ostrich, 3 types of vulture, 7 types of eagle, secretary birds, hornbills, several owls, and some seriously awesome songbirds)

 

We will be eager to tell you all about our trip. 

Mt. Ascutney

Yesterday we made the hike to 3,150 ft. above sea level to the summit of Mt. Ascutney.  The excellent Day Hiker's Guide to Vermont by the Green Mountain Club says that the mountain derives its name from an amalgamation of the Algonquin words Cas-Cad-Nac and Ascutegnik, meaning "mountain of the rocky summit" or "meeting of the waters."  We did not find any waters meeting but we did find a rocky summit.  Our route was the Windsor trail and took us 2,520 ft. straight up in 2.7 miles.  We were rewarded with an outstanding view from the summit observation tower where we could see above the trees to the White and Green Mountains as well as the Berkshires and Taconics.  In all, it was a great way to spend the afternoon.  The dogs are more than just a bit tired today. 

The beet goes on.

Things have been rather busy up here in Vermont for the last week or so.  Here is the recap:

• As you saw yesterday, we did just fine at the Harpoon Point to Point.  Thanks again to all who donated to the cause.  The tandem is great fun and is allowing for the exploration of some new locales.

• The "Noodle Report":  The baby red tailed hawk that I (Eric) found while mountain biking is actually a broad winged hawk.  The good folks at VINS made the correct identification according the unique sounds that broad wings make.  Otherwise, Noodle is eating and growing well.  He has almost all of his flight feathers.  If everything continues to go well with him, we should be reporting on his release in the next week or two.

• Things have been very "agricultural" around here.   The garden continues to be very productive.  All of the potatoes are dug and we have been enjoying tomatoes, kohlrabi,  and beets.  A cabbage was harvested yesterday.  We have about four gallons of beans in the freezer and they keep coming.  Zucchini production is slowing but the pumpkins and corn (sweet and popcorn) seem to be doing well.  Last weekend, I attended the Billings Farm Antique Tractor show.  Twenty-two tractors were being displayed and participated in the tractor parade.  I believe the oldest was from 1937 and a few were driven by their original owner or were in the same family for several generations.  We were able to see a nice display of more tractors last night at the Cornish Fair.  There were antique tractors and souped up tractor pull riding mowers.  We watched the ox pull for quite some time.  The winning team did a full pull of over 11,000 pounds.

•  Be sure to check our Flickr for recent photos and feel free to leave comments.

Harpoon Point-to-Point Ride



It was a success!!!  A BIG thanks to everyone who donated to the ride.  A total of 700+ riders faced the challenge to travel over hill...through the rain...back to waiting beers (yum).  To date, over $107,000 has been raised for the Vermont food bank.  We made it the full 25 miles and next year hope to continue the tradition on the Mean Green Lime Machine and conquer the 50 mile ride.  Perhaps some of you will come and join us?!?!



Everything is so green.

Yesterday we made the drive, which included braving the traffic nightmare of I-95 and an extraordinarily strong rainstorm, down to Belmont Wheelworks  to take possession of "The Mean Green Lime Machine." 

 TMGLM is our new Co-Motion Periscope Scout tandem.  So far, the "around the backyard" riding test indicates that it rides well.  The metallic "Tropical Green" paint looks great, too.  It is a bit difficult to capture in photo but looks great in person, especially when the sun is shining. 

TMGLM's first official shakedown ride is coming up in less than a week when we ride the Harpoon Point to Point to benefit the Vermont Foodbank.  We are tantalizingly close to meeting our fundraising goal and it isn't too late to make a donation to our team.  You can do so here.  Some folks have found the donation process to be a bit cumbersome and confusing.  Let us know if you have any questions.  We will definitely post an update on how the ride goes. 

To beet or not to beet...

Well, today marks our second blog posting and it seems like we have set a precedent for lengthy intervals between posts. We'll do our best to do better with that but for now, enjoy some photos of today's harvest and harvests to come.

We even have a Flickr Photostream now so that you can see even more photos of what is going on here in Vermont.  Not included is the tasty jam that Teresa made today with local strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries.

We hope that you enjoy and make sure to leave a message for us when you stop by.

Why a blog?

Since arriving in Vermont on April 27th our lives have been filled with excitement.  After our first porcupine siting, we vowed to create a blog to document all of our adventures.  Since then the adventures have been piling up!

- The dogs have been swimming with a beaver.

- We have off-roaded on a "town highway" (which was nothing more than an overgrown, eroded jeep path) in the indestructible Ford Focus.  Eric at the wheel driving like a champ and Teresa running down the road ahead tossing logs and boulders out of the way!

- We spent an afternoon tubing down the Ottauquechee river (which runs through the Quechee golf course) with dogs in tow and occasionally on our laps.

- Attended a celtic music concert in an old 1800's barn (and man do those barns shake and move!)

- And most recently, Eric found Noodle on a mountain bike ride.  Noodle is a week old red-tailed hawk who happened to have his nest fall from the tree.  We drove him to VINS (Vermont Institute of Natural Science), which happens to be a bird sanctuary and rehabilitation center right here in little old Quechee!  We hope to have updates on little Noodle as he grows and are hoping to be present for his release back into the wild.

Keep tuned in for new adventures to come!