It's Alive!!!

Spring is fast approaching Summer and the energy outside is almost electrifying.  Everywhere you look things are changing - plants and flowers are growing, new critters can be found at every turn, and the weather is increasingly temperamental.  It makes exploring with your camera a very fun and interesting experience!

The Dreams in Fiber household headed to the lake this past weekend so the minions could check out the Farmer's Song Fest.  Little man really enjoyed the band, Bella Ruse, and little miss was chatting it up with the singers and hosts and anyone else around her.  It was a rather wet and rainy afternoon/evening but I got lucky and snapped a few pictures before the rain hit and the very first pictures I took I found new friends. 

The hubby got up early the next morning to throw a few lines and little man wasted no time in coming to fetch me to check out the "cool webs".  They were cool.  And they were everywhere.  Each one different, each one delicate, each one beautiful.  It was really foggy in the morning and everything was still wet/covered in dew.

 

During my walkabout, I met a new friend.  A little ravine is found close to the in-laws house which houses a plethora of birds and bugs and other critters and the idiots at the lake association are filling it in so they can fill their pockets with more $.  As the ravine becomes no more, I have no doubt that we will be seeing more wildlife in the yard than we would had they left things alone like they should have.  This little fellow must have gotten lost on his way home from the music festival so the hubby ushered him into a nice little hidey-hole until he could meet up with his friends.

One of the things I like about living in Iowa is being able to drive around in the country and see the history all around you.  Each hill offers a new surprise or a glimpse into the past.  The hubby came across this little abandoned building during one of his baseball meetings and drove me out so I could take a few shots of it.  It was really muddy and I didn't have my boots so I will have to go back another day for more. 

It has seen better days, but I love the detail in the shingles.  You can almost imagine what it used to look like in its prime. 

The minions are happy to report that the garden is thriving - both our container garden and the one at the lake.  Little miss harvested a few peas and I took pictures of the flowers on the potato plants.  I love how they look like pumpkins/squash.

Met a few friends while I was at it.

Then I got better acquainted with fungus.

When we got home, little man was talking to some of the neighbor's Grandkids and they were very curious to see Aragog (aka Charlotte).  Without disturbing her too much, we placed her in the smaller critter tote and brought her outside so they could learn a little bit about her.  They were intrigued.  Maybe they too, will take care of one?  While I had some decent indirect light, I snapped a few shots of her.  She is really rather pretty.  She is the gray variety of the Chilean Rose Hairs and has light peachy-brown hairs.  At 13 years old, she is about 3-4 inches from the end of her abdomen to the end of her pedipalps though I would gauge her leg span closer to 5 inches or so.

As usual, there are a few more pictures on my Flickr page.  I'm off to spend some time outdoors before it gets too humid and to see about my To Do list.