And then, Christmas was really upon us! This year, for a change, we have had Christmas-like weather instead of the shorts-and-t-shirts temperatures that are all too common here in Central Texas. Mid-December was a bit wet, but not too disagreeable to keep us indoors.
While our son, Brian Wann, and his wife, Debi, traveled to Tucson to visit his grandmother, we had a house guest, our grand-dog, Louie. He had a great time with the Bagley Pack, and was happy to pose for a portrait when we took a walk at our favorite dog park, Turkey Creek Nature Trail.
Brian, Debi and our grandson, Gage Wann, joined us for an early Christmas dinner on the 22nd.
Louie showed off his Christmas collar.
Our Christmas celebration continued with dinner on Saturday with John’s nephew and wife, Chris and Jamie Hightower, then we began packing for our trip to the farm. Family has been scattered this year. John and I celebrated Thanksgiving in Austin, then joined our cousins, Kathy and Eric Vanderbeck for dinner on Christmas day.
On Christmas morning, John and I opened our presents, and the dogs were beside themselves because they knew Santa has left new toys in their stockings. It was a festive occasion, and thankfully a couple of the new toys survived the "unwrapping."
Later, we had a lovely walk around the farm on Christmas Day…and saw a bit of welcome sunshine.
We have not seen much wildlife, but enjoyed watching ducks take flight from our ponds, along with this majestic great blue heron.
The cows got fresh bales of hay and had a lovely Christmas of their own.
On Tuesday, December 26, I looked out the kitchen window and saw turkeys...lots of turkeys...drifting across the parking lot. I raced for my camera, and by the time I reached the bathroom window they were parading through the yard by the BBQ pit.
John counted 21 birds while I sneaked from window to window to get photos without spooking the flock of hens. Fortunately, the dogs were still inside and never knew there was potential prey only a few yards away.
After a few minutes foraging in the yard, they drifted out of the yard and across the pasture toward the corn feeder a couple of hundred yards away. What a treat!
Later Tuesday morning, Taylor Quedensley, a botanist from Fort Worth, drove down with my brother, Allan Jones, to look for lichens on the hillsides and along the creek. Cousin Eric Vanderbeck joined them to collect samples of the lichens, some so small they could only be identified with a magnifying lens.
John was nursing a cold, so he, Colt and Kota stayed home while Rue and I took a walk and supervised the lichen collection.
John counted 21 birds while I sneaked from window to window to get photos without spooking the flock of hens. Fortunately, the dogs were still inside and never knew there was potential prey only a few yards away.
After a few minutes foraging in the yard, they drifted out of the yard and across the pasture toward the corn feeder a couple of hundred yards away. What a treat!
Later Tuesday morning, Taylor Quedensley, a botanist from Fort Worth, drove down with my brother, Allan Jones, to look for lichens on the hillsides and along the creek. Cousin Eric Vanderbeck joined them to collect samples of the lichens, some so small they could only be identified with a magnifying lens.
John was nursing a cold, so he, Colt and Kota stayed home while Rue and I took a walk and supervised the lichen collection.
Even though it is winter, the vegetation still has beautiful colors. Colors in the image above, are soft and subtle. Others, like the berries on this "possum haw" are brilliant.
Then, on Thursday Terry and Pattie Meyers, good friends from Georgetown, drove up to spend a couple of days between Christmas and New Year’s. We had a wonderful, decadent, time with special appetizers and a scrumptious prime rib that Pattie cooked. Their dogs, Chunk and Nut had fun as well, with long walks, fetching sticks, and hunting mice in the grass with the Bagley dogs.
It was a relaxing time.
As the New Year approaches, we are holed up at the farm with temperatures dropping into the lower 20s, a fire in the fireplace and a thin sheet of ice covering our flagstone walk. We'll stay in this year, and hope that all our family and friends are safe and warm as well. We hope you had a very merry Christmas,
and that 2018 will be filled with joy and God's blessings for each of you.
As the New Year approaches, we are holed up at the farm with temperatures dropping into the lower 20s, a fire in the fireplace and a thin sheet of ice covering our flagstone walk. We'll stay in this year, and hope that all our family and friends are safe and warm as well. We hope you had a very merry Christmas,
and that 2018 will be filled with joy and God's blessings for each of you.
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