A Little of this and a little of thatā€¦

I Have been wondering where the sweet scent in the air lately is coming fromā€”couldnā€™t see any flowering bushes, just a lot of silvery leaves, but then I took a closer look.Ā  They may be tiny but there are profusions of tiny yellow bells dangling under the leaves and they give off a strong musky, sweet scent.

IMG_20160602_115738886Itā€™s called a ā€œWolf Willowā€, and produces a mealy berry, thus the alternate name, ā€˜Silver Berryā€™.Ā  Apparently it produces beautiful seeds that have traditionally been used to make necklaces!Ā  Iā€™d better keep an eye on these bushes.Ā  No doubt the bears and elk will be too!

Well since last post weā€™ve done a bit of riding on the tandemā€”climbed Mount Norquay in Banff in hopes of a fast descent, only to be foiled by a strong headwind.Ā  Ski runs always look strange without the snowā€¦IMG_20160602_134246052_HDR

And we had a bit of company this week and did a bit of hikingā€¦IMG_20160604_171240397_HDRIMG_20160604_171453145_HDRIMG_20160604_171457102_HDR

We got to see an owlā€™s nest with its bumbling fluffy young hopping about on a cliff face.Ā  But the pictures left everything to the imaginationā€¦ so it was fun to find a close-up nest along the trail down, even if these arenā€™t owls!IMG_20160604_175515654

Weā€™ve done a lot of settling into our own nest this past weekā€”the best part is getting to unpack the kiddie books and toys for the grandkidsā€¦ and cluttering the fridge with memories of when ours were youngā€¦

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I couldnā€™t get through spring without a few plants, IMG_20160605_140518835

so now there are flowers at the door P1200717and a fig tree on the mantle..

IMG_20160605_140542381.Ā  ahhhā€¦thatā€™s better!

And weā€™ve had spectacularly warm weather, my favorite kind–IMG_20160606_160823378 though they say it wonā€™t lastā€¦

 

And Iā€™ve found a play/work space and have been dabbling in color.IMG_20160605_143016721

God does this too–rainbow out the window

And thatā€™s the latest from our nest. P1200716

 

 

–LS

Whatever your task, work heartily, as serving the Lord and not menā€¦ Col.3:23

Upward and Onward

By the weekend I had sufficiently recovered from my bout with shingles to attempt a real hikeā€¦

We started in Johnston Canyon (in Banff) with the lower and upper fallsā€¦IMG_20160514_142759917_HDR

And then traipsed onward and upward along a lovely forest trailā€¦

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to the Inkpotsā€”an area of natural thermal pools, reminiscent in a very small way of Yellowstoneā€™s wonders.

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We munched our lunch and caught some shut-eye on the rocky shores of a beautiful creek before heading home. Our feet were ready to get out of boots seven and a half miles later!

Got a photo shoot of some bighorn sheep nibbling at the roadside along the way homeā€¦ Is it winterā€™s leftover salt theyā€™re after?

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Itā€™s great to be feeling better, and to get to hike on such a lovely day!

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The mountains will bring peace to the people,
And the little hills, by righteousness.
Ps. 72:3 NKJV

–LS

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(Banff in bloom)

 

 

 

 

A Morning Strollā€¦

Iā€™m not up to much these days but it seemed a perfect morning for a strollā€¦

We started up a mountain biking trail just beside our neighborhood (on foot!). IMG_20160511_121514343_HDR

It was all ā€˜rootyā€™ and rough…Ā  But through the trees we caught a glimpse of green and turned asideā€¦

IMG_20160511_114142375_HDRIMG_20160511_113443623_HDR AHHHā€¦ now thatā€™s more like it!

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And so we had a peaceful stroll along this immaculately groomed course, just the two of us,IMG_20160511_114235898Ā  soaking up morning sun and savoring springā€™s tokens along the wayā€¦

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Tomorrow, we were told, the golf course will open and there will be no more walking here for us, but for today, it was perfect!

Except for one thingā€¦we had to come back to our place to find the truest token of spring:IMG_20160511_122018928_HDR Weā€™re keeping it natural here and weā€™ve got a bumper crop of these ( :

Coyote feels right at home and takes his strolls here each morningā€¦P1200660

–LS

ā€œThe LORD is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made. All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD, and all your saints shall bless you!ā€ Ps.145:9,10