Life Goes On

We found a spot under the maple tree outside the living room window for Napoleon to rest. He always loved the living room.


Amira picked out some flowers & a bunny statue to mark his spot.



And now life resumes on the farm. Head chef, Rex, woke up early and made doughnuts for himself & his sisters.


Mmmmm ... Donuts!



Today was also a day for hanging out laundry and grazing sheep.





Valerie's cello teacher came by to visit and was excited to take the sheep for a walk.



Spot is a velvety little bandit who steals our hearts.



I collected some beauty from the yard and baked some cookies to bring some cheer back into the home.

Farewell, Napoleon Bunnyparts de la Santa Cruz Wilhelm

Today our little friend, Napoleon, left us. He sure was cute. He provided us with lots of love and laughs. Although he didn't like to be held or get his nails clipped, he was always up for a good head scratching. Some of his favorite treats were carrots and cilantro.

We miss you, buddy.

Not Long Ago ...

I woke up this morning and went to work in my office/laundry room. As I scrolled through e-mail I stumbled upon some old photos sent by my amazing husband. It doesn't seem that long ago ...

Snips & bits

So Rex went to Michael's barber and got a gluten free haircut ... Seriously!







Before:



After:


He looks much older with that short hair. And that cute hare!


In other news, Miss Valerie had a cello recital following the youth leadership conference she attended at CSUC today. I tell you, that girl has too many activities! But we are proud, of course... And there is no stopping her.

Here is the program from the recital:



Here is her solo performance.

Following her performance, the little girl you may have spied in the video totally barfed all over the place (not pictured-- you're welcome).

Valerie also participated in a piece where her friend, Ruth (the bunny whisperer) played violin & Noelle played viola.

I'm sorry I didn't record the final piece, a duet with Noelle. It was amazing. You'll have to take my word for it.

And, in closing, Buster on arrival:





The fatty now:




She has put on a little love ❤️

Naughty Bunny!

April Ranch Happenin's

To kick off April, we'd like to re-introduce Buster as a chubbier, more lively bunny than the shy girl who came to us a few months ago.





She has been eating the furniture so the boys gave her a piece of paper. I guess you could say we got a new paper shredder.





Here's Rex with a chicken ...






Amira's friend, Aubrey, brought down her pony for a visit. How cute is that?





Michael & I headed to S.F. For my friend, Marcus's, 50th birthday party. It was held at the Saint Francis yacht club with all of my old Washington Place friends.

Here's Michael, myself, Outi, Marcus, Marlena & Joerg.


Here is the view from our room on the 21st floor of the Holiday Inn on Van Ness near my old Washington Place neighborhood. Michael picked the best room!



Meanwhile, back at the Ranch, Amira & Bella created a lemonade/flower/strawberry/egg stand out front selling stuff from the yard. Bella also baked a few items for the pop up stand. What enterprising girls!






A sample of their wares:



Valerie got her hair caught in the rock polisher.





We were unable to salvage the dreadlock. Hair 911!

Now Valerie has bangs.




In other news we have a fox in the hood!

If you look closely you might be able to make it out. It was 7am on a Thursday. Mr. Whiskers and his nemesis, Vader, had Foxy Loxy surrounded.



No damage done by Foxy Loxy.


On to yard news. We have had a keyhole, of sorts, mound in the side yard that came with the house. This year we decided to turn it into a garden. It's right out front. Success or failure for all to see. I planted the zucchini closest to the street ... Just in case someone needs any.




Tomatoes, eggplants, several types of peppers, potatoes, cucumbers, watermelons, summer squash, lettuce, chives, rhubarb and some herbs & flowers. Thanks to Michael for setting up the watering!





Here are some of the flowers by the front walk.





Some of our perennials in the yard are blooming.




These guys are here for a few more weeks. Then I will have to take them out and put on the zinnias. That's always hard to do when the look so beautiful. Until then they can adorn the yard and my salads.





Here's a view of the native plants on the hill in front. Some salvias and deer grass in front.





I just love the spring! And we look forward to more blooms, more animal fun and more yard food on the months to come.

Skate Chicks

**the photos on this post will appear normal on a phone or mobile ap. For some reason I cannot correct the distortion viewed from web browser.


Amira turned 11 this past week. It's been an adventurous year starting a new school and making new friends. Lately I've even seen some new hairstyles. My favorite ones are where she pulls her hair out of her eyes so we can see her beautiful face. Today she asked me to braid her hair. I'm no "braidin' maiden" like Aunt Lydia. Even with her book on braiding I have some struggles. So I faked it like this.



Amira invited friends old and new out to the skate rink to celebrate. Below she is flanked by old friend, Ruby, to the right of her, and new friend, Emily, on the left. They were gearing up for a game of Red Light/Green Light on wheels.



Here's Amira pulling a red light stop.



I like that the skate rink provides a hostess and pizza and drinks. In lieu of cake Amira opted for donuts. Going round the table left to right are George, Amira, Ruby, Genesis, Marissa, Jude, Emily and Jason. This was sure taking a lot of stress off me.



At 11 she's not too old to wear a crown and play games.



Now, the boys weren't the best at skating but were total troopers. In fact, all the kids were delightful. I'd say the party was a huge success until the last 30 mins. I was helping Genesis with her skate laces when Jude & George asked me to come with them. As I was walking someone came up to me to tell me that Jason was hurt. I followed the person over to a carpeted area of The arcade where he lays sprawled out on the ground.

A very kind woman, a grandmother who was there for another party, stood behind him supporting his lower back with her leg and asked the manager to get some ice. Jason had gone from standing to sprawled on the ground flailing and screaming in no time flat. No one knew for sure quite what had happened.

The poor kid. To make a long story short, paramedics took him out on a backboard with an arm splint. I checked with his mom later. I hear he has a broken arm and a painful back (that will be okay). Poor kid. Tough note to end a party. I felt so bad the rest of the night.

But my kids all found ways to decompress around the living room.


Now one thing that makes everything better is baby chicks. Here's Valerie with a few days old chick on her lap. She and Madelyn had spent all day making a presentation for 4-H down at the community college. I understand they received a blue ribbon.



And Madelyn hypnotized her chick ...



And Amira opted for a kindle ... Less poopy, but not as relaxing in my opinion.



More Valerie chick time ... A little poop doesn't scare her.



And Rex cleans his paintball gun for a little R & R after a tough day sniping.



What a weekend. I can wait for Monday. I'll go pat a bunny.