Tangled Antlers

It is the beginning of the rut at Yellowstone, and the bull elk are coming around to check out the females. The sounds of the bugling bulls wake us up at night, and we have to look around as we walk outside, because the bull elk are dangerous and unpredictable.  Yesterday, two beautiful males with huge antlers appeared on the lawn and proceeded to circle each other and the tree between them, before engaging in some clashing of antlers. The fight didn’t last more than fifteen minutes or so, but the tourists gathered, getting ever closer until the rangers appeared to make them back up.  I was in the relative safety of the front porch, but ready to run inside if they got closer.

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Growing Up

Miles is in second grade this year.  He loves reading and science and math- just about everything involving learning.  He loves school and is so confident and articulate- I couldn’t be more proud! Since we last saw him in May, he has shot up a couple inches and seems heavier too.  What happened to the little premie who was late to do everything as a baby? He is excelling now!  Here he is practicing piano before his lesson yesterday. 20150916-MMA_2773_melinda_anderson-Edit

Penny the puppy isn’t a puppy at first glance- she is also growing up. At six months old, she is almost as big as Callie, the older golden in the house- but her behavior is VERY puppyish. She is sweet, incredibly intelligent (can sit, down, heel etc. etc.); however she is full of spunk and energy and can be very naughty, especially when her daddy is not around.  She is definitely keeping me on my toes!

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The Visitor

20150915-MMA_2743_melinda_anderson-EditI’m used to being surrounded by elk at my daughter’s house here in Yellowstone, but yesterday we had a special visitor! It was pouring rain, but I managed to take this photo through the latticework on the back porch. Yes, he saw me, but I was very far away and using a zoom lens.  I chose to edit this photo in black and white, because a bison just doesn’t look right on a bright green lawn!

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Back to School

I’m having fun at Yellowstone! I’ll be visiting here for over a week and spending most of my time babysitting Henry and Miles while my daughter and husband are on vacation in Alaska. Yesterday I spent the morning in preschool with Henry, which was a blast- especially because his mommy is the teacher!

At 4 1/2, Henry is one of the big kids at preschool this year.  Here he is, happily stringing some beads before the rest of the kids arrived.

4Henrys

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Granite Mountain

Granite Mountain is the stark backdrop to the northwest area of Prescott and one of my favorite views.  On Labor Day, my husband and I decided to take a short hike on the trail leading over to the mountain.  As we walked along, we saw bikes and horses as well as hikers; it’s a popular area.  After walking for a half hour (and continually stopping for me to take photos), we could see the mountain getting closer, but we were not yet near the base.  It was time to turn around- we definitely plan to come back on another day.

Granite Mountain:

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Gates near the beginning of the trail:

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Summer Memories

I’m looking back to the beginning of summer- and looking ahead to this weekend when I return to Wyoming to spend some precious time with my boys!

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boys3And I’ll even have a couple days to spend with my girl, who is having a birthday today! She is still the same smart, capable, fun-loving person she always has been- HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CAITY! I love you! ❤

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Sunnyflowers

My friend, Carol and I took a walk at Willow Lake the evening before she left- hoping for a dramatic sunset, some birds, and golden light on the rocks.  There was a lot of golden light, but no dramatic sunset and few birds.  I enjoyed photographing the weeds and flowers backlit by the sun, which was hanging low in the sky; here are a few of my favorites:

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I love how only one flower is facing the camera in this shot.

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A hazy Granite Mountain can be seen in the background here.

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An Umbrella, A Spoon, Some Music, and a Tornado

Such a fun adventure we had yesterday in Sedona! We drove over in the middle of the afternoon and had a great time wandering around and checking out the galleries and shops at Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village. We enjoyed a fabulous dinner at El Rincon, where, to the amusement of our waitress, I couldn’t resist photographing the reflection of the little white lights on the overhead umbrella on my spoon. umbrella_spoonMidway through dinner, the flamenco guitar music began!

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During dinner, Lonnie was googling best places for sunset photography in Sedona, so we ended up on an overlook on Airport Road. The wind had kicked up, and it was threatening rain, making for dramatic clouds.

20150831-MMA_2086_melinda_andersonAfter we walked across the road and began setting up, I realized I didn’t have my cable release, so I walked back to the car and lugged my whole camera bag back across the road to where my tripod was set up. Lonnie and Carol were busy photographing the scene while I got set up again. What I didn’t realize was that they were photographing a tornado forming! I continued taking photos of the rocks, oblivious to what they were seeing. Fortunately, I have a few shots at the end of the event- although I didn’t know what I was shooting.  It wasn’t until we got home and they started talking about the tornado, that I realized what I had missed! You can check out Carol’s magnificent twister photos at http://infocusdaily.com

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