Saturday, July 8, 2023

And July Begins...

Corona de Tucson

July 8, 2023 

The end of another day...

It has been a quiet week around our little oasis.  Early mornings are filled with walks, feeding the birds, watering flowers, trees and filling up the birdbaths, and heading out for errands if we have any for the day.  We had no big plans and no adventures this week and enjoyed just being happy at home.  

The early morning glow...

Immature Cardinals have been frequent visitors all week...

The Desert Willows are growing and we are enjoying a second blooming...

Babies...these cuties are hard to photograph.  They never stay still and are so camoflouged that it's hard to get a focus.  

The exterminator sprays the outside perimeter of the house every other month.  Monday, he noticed a Horny Toad Lizard under the kitchen window and called us out to see it.  It's a special treat to see them.

July's full moon is called the Buck Moon.  It is so named because male deer antlers are going fast this time of year adding as much as a quarter of an inch a day.  July's full moon is the first of a series of four super moons in a row.

 
We planted the Bottlebrush tree mostly for the birds, butterflies and bees.  It makes us happy to see them enjoying it!


We enjoy it too...

There is nothing shy about the Cactus Wrens...they make their presence known everywhere!



And a day off from walking for sunrise and coffee at the oasis.


Jack enjoying...a few minutes of sunshine. 



Sally meandering...it's a backyard thing



Dover waiting...to make sure the other two cleaned their bowls.



And I'm pretty sure we all cashed in on a few naps and lazy afternoons.


Such was life for us the first week of July...until next time,

The beginning of another day...








HAPPY TRAILS !

Sunday, July 2, 2023

It's Hot !

Corona de Tucson

July 2, 2023

Sunrise on Monday (6-26) was a beautiful start to the week. 

It was hot last week.  I would say it's because we live in the desert, but that isn't exactly accurate as there have been quite a few hot spots across the country lately.  At least we can say there hasn't been any humidity.  Monsoon season has officially begun with no chance of rain/storms in the forecast.  If this summer is like the past two summers, we won't have any storms until mid to end July.  Fingers stay crossed as we sure do need some rain in southern Arizona.  

It's been a while since we had seen Jamie and Andra so yesterday we met them for lunch at Barrio Brewing Co.  Its a good mid-point and a fun spot to catch up in person.  It was too hot to enjoy patio sitting, but the huge taproom is spacious, colorful and cool...literally.    


The small restaurant with a dream to change the landscape of Arizona brewing quickly gained in popularity.  As the years passed, the brewery expanded...in products and in a larger warehouse. Today, it currently houses 12 fermenting vessels and puts out 85 cases of canned beer each hour while also offering brew tours, running a bar and restaurant and hosting special events.   Barrio brews can be found in both can and draft across Arizona and beyond.  Their flagship beer, Barrio Blonde, is Arizona's best selling craft beer and claims to be the oldest Arizona beer recipe to be consistently brewed on a commercial scale. The first batch was made in May 1991 which also makes Barrio Brewing Co the oldest brewery in Arizona.  


The service was excellent, the food was yummy, and the brews were frosty, but the best part of the day was spending time with the kiddos for a couple of hours! 


With the temps turned up a few notches, staying home was a no brainer.  It's the first week in a long while we actually had no appointments or big errands to do.  

On one of our morning walks, we saw four coyotes (two on our side of the fairway and two on the other side) and that same walk we saw a javelina in a neighbors front yard.  


Javelina eat a variety of native desert plants such as agave and prickly pear.  They can be quite destructive too as they dig for roots and tubers so I'm thinking the neighbor might have had a not so nice surprise. 


This is the reason we have very few plants/pots in our front yard.  


 


  





There is an interesting cacti along the path on the other side of the fairway.  It is every bit as tall as me (just under 5') with lots of wavy arms.  On the mornings we go that way, we always comment how unusual it is. This week it is blooming.







We also enjoyed... pastels,


funny faces,


a curve in the path,


and colorful pods.   


Back at the oasis,  yellow was fun.





We spotted an immature female cardinal, 


a morning bath, 


long, sharp talons...


and a hearty breakfast...


The pups...

Sweet Dover likes the AC

Jack says, "Really Mom...another picture?"

Oh Sally! (I have no words...)   

That's a wrap on our week and June.  

Happy Fourth of July

Until next time, 


Happy Trails !