Snowdrops...

Around four in the afternoon the girls come up the steps to the door and call for their daily snack.

Odd companions....

Every year for the past three these geese have returned to nest here at the pond. And every year there is a large heron that visits on occasion. The geese do not seem to mind the heron. In fact they float within feet of the heron who fishes on the edge of the water.

If the ducks or the other pair of geese that fly in each spring come anywhere close the male goose goes right after them. Last year there was a knock down drag out fight between two males as the females glided peacefully nearby.  

Millie and Little Chicken enjoying the lack of ice.

It's coming...

Little green...

February Sunrise

Spring sunshine shinning on Baki...

Vergennes Vermont....

University of Vermont...Lake Champlain...

February in Vermont

They are back to try for a family again.

Ice Storm Indiana....January 2012

Ice House...

In the pines....

In the pines, in the pines


Where the sun don't ever shine

I would shiver the whole night through ....

....how does it survive

Another garden passes...

Waiting for Spring...

Winter Skies in Indiana...

Cloudy Days In Vermont

The silence of Joy...

A medium-sized goose that breeds on the arctic tundra, the Snow Goose travels south in very large, high-flying, noisy flocks. The swirling white of a descending flock suggests snow, but among the white birds are darker individuals. Until recently, the Blue Geese, as the dark birds were called, were considered a separate species. They are now recognized as merely a dark form (or "morph") of the Snow Goose.

Snow Geese

Snow Geese at Sunset

Snow Geese 2011

Snow Geese Vermont November...

Vermont...by Claudia.

Vergennes Vermont...

Church Street Vermont

Some kind of berry bush....Vermont

So many mushrooms....

Now these were found near Anderson Falls, Indiana in October. They are about a quarter of an inch in diameter. The tiny spots you see are the "guts" of another tiny mushroom below these three that burst open when we poked it. 

Unknown Mushroom....

...found in the walkway...Vermont....September...

I used to walk barefoot around the yard.....

Scott took this picture of this rather large (about an inch long) creature he found wandering around outside.

After some research we found "The Velvet Ant". Here is what they say ....

Velvet ants are not aggressive and will try to escape from you. The females have a very painful sting if handled. The name "Cow Killer Ant" was given to the velvet ant because of the reputation of the female's sting. It is said that the sting is so painful that it could kill a cow. This handsome insect does make a sound (especially when stepped on) but the squeaks of the cow killer ant would hardly be heard over the painful screams, if the person stepping on the wasp was barefoot.

Lake Champlain from Mt. Philo

Mt. Philo

Philo Mushrooms....

Mt. Philo Vermont

Mt. Philo's mushrooms and views....