summer rolls on

Sneaking in just before midnight on hump day to join in with my fave blogger - Nici Holt Cline - and her hump day nuggets tradition (little bits of the season in photos and words about the last week), so here goes.

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The days are growing hotter and longer but somehow Amelie and I are getting out more and more. Daily walks with friends have gone from a light stroll around the neighborhood park to two miles to five miles in a matter of weeks (admittedly, five miles only happens when breakfast is the destination – over two miles away - then of course we have to turn around to get back home). 

We stop at parks to let the kids play. Amelie is fascinated with wood chips and rocks.

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Amelie’s pool is out and filled up more often than not.

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Recently my mom joined Amelie and me on a trip to the Denver Zoo. 

My mama and Amelie

I love the flamingos – its so much fun to see these brightly colored ocean birds in our landlocked state. 

There is an orangutan baby who is the same age as Amelie. We visit often and each time I feel like I share a bond with the orangutan mama. The last time we were there the baby, Hesty, was dangling from a rope, swinging and jumping on mama, Nais, who was lying on the floor covering her head with a sheet. Makes me laugh just thinking about it! This time Nais came outside with Hesty for a little time in the trees. I snapped this pic of the two.

Hesty is so tiny, she still looks like an infant. My little primate is getting big. This is our first trip to the zoo since she learned to walk on her own.

I like the juxtaposition in this photo – the humans gazing at the gorilla, gazing at the humans. 

The giraffes are so beautiful with long eyelashes and peaceful demeanor. 

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The summer keeps rolling on. No more lightning strikes in our backyard but storms build up and race to the plains daily.

Sun breaking through the clouds in Boulder

This hump day is practically over. Hope it was a good one!

stormy days

Afternoon thunderstorms have been rolling off the foothills into our backyard for about a week. We've been happy to have the edge taken off the 90-degree days. Just last Friday I set the camera up on a timer and snapped off this picture after a storm had blown through. Amelie and I danced in the sunlight with the last few drops of rain falling around us.

As I write this, late on Tuesday night, I am anxious and ready for these thunderstorms to be over. Two days ago one came rolling in while I was at a baby shower and my husband was at home with Amelie. It blew in fast, with whipping winds and an immediate downpour, flooding the streets. My husband, Jeremiah, was shutting (metal) storm windows when a bolt of lightning came crashing down in our backyard, directly behind the window he was touching. The electricity surged towards the house, shocking Jeremiah and taking out our power. Fortunately, he wasn't hurt, just stunned and the cracking of thunder was so loud that his ears were ringing. Amelie was in hysterics - she had been napping when the lightning hit.

There is nothing to do but be grateful that they are both okay, as well as our household full of animals. The surge fried our televisions and furnace, damaged our computers and some other odds and ends around the house, but those can be replaced. Was it bad luck or good luck? I'm thinking good, but I've got my pair of rosy-colored glasses handy.