Sunsets and Ospreys

We got back last week from our annual vacation in Stone Harbor. That whoosh of the ocean seems so far away now. The place we stayed was slightly outside of town, and had a wetlands view. We saw some of the most gorgeous sunsets. Each night the sky was bursting with different colors. There was an osprey nest right across from us and the house had a telescope where we could watch it. The first day we saw the mother and father feeding babies in the nest. Then on Sunday, there was a terrible storm that blew the nest to pieces. For a day or so, we weren't sure the babies had survived. But as we kept watch, we saw the baby again (I think they may have lost one) and the mama and papa (now named Chevon and Ian) were stuffing this baby bird with food. It would try to fly and lift about 2 inches vertically and then come back down. My sister saw Ian bring a dead mouse to feed to the baby bird, who was beginning to look like one of the fat birds in "The Kweeks of Kookatumdee" by Bill Peet, about a bird who gets so fat he can't fly. Anyway, by Thursday, the baby bird (Fergus was now his name) finally flew. We saw Chevon and Ian flying with Fergus, teaching him how to circle and flap his wings. Then he would come back to the nest and rest for about an hour. It was all very fascinating and kept us entertained the whole week.







We tried to do some of the jumping photos I've seen on the Internet. We're not always in sync, but it was funny to keep trying.



I have some exciting news though. My niece, Madeline and her boyfriend, Zach (not to be confused with my son, Zack), got engaged at the beginning of the week. The day they arrived, Zach took Madeline to the sailboats (the end of the island) and asked her to marry him. My sister Chrissie, her mom, has known for about three weeks. The rest of us found out about an hour before he asked her. I was completely taken off guard. It's not like I didn't think it would ever happen, but I was just so surprised that it did. When they came back, we celebrated with kisses and hugs all around. Of course there were tears (they're flowing right now just writing this) because I kept thinking how happy my mom would've been to see Madeline get married and it just breaks my heart that she's not here. But I'm so happy for her and Zach, and I will do everything I can to help them have a beautiful wedding.

So it's back to real life this week, with all its' little problems and strifes. All in all, it's really a wonderful life, though, isn't it?