<p>There’s nothing particularly interesting about a <a href="http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/american_robin/id">robin</a>. It’s probably the species of animal most overlapping my childhood in the Midwest and fatherhood in the PNW – though the ones here are <strong>much</strong> fatter than their eastern counterparts with some positively huge.</p>

<p>There’s a farm not too far from my house where I do a lot of volunteering and we keep a small p-patch. Near the farm there are a couple of weathered structures nestled among the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotch_broom">scotch broom</a>. The broom is in color now, and though it’s an invasive, I can’t help but love its bright yellow against a clear blue sky.</p>

<p>Lots of yard work today: ferns to prune, blackberries and weeds to pull, naps under the midday sun. I recall making blackberry pies in Illinois and paying $15 for the primary ingredient – here the blackberry is an invasive weed.</p>

<p>I open the window shade, lean over to my daughter and ask if she can see the mountain, “I can Daddy!” It’s the first flight she might remember and it’s just fantastic to see her enthusiasm for “flying taller than Daddy.”</p>

<p>One of the special joys of living on Bainbridge is access to farms and animals. My daughter loves animals, though she saves a particular dislike for raccoons.</p>

<p>We had some concerns about the health of some of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhododendron">rhododendron</a> in the yard after this winter’s heavy <a href="/2008/12/21/snow-ski-lake/">snows</a>. Fear not, color have we!</p>

<p>Today marks the one year anniversary of <a href="/">I’m not here</a>! A year ago I was returning from a trip to <a href="/2008/04/16/israel/">Israel</a>, a year later I’m returning from a trip to <a href="http://www.weatherbill.com/">California</a>.</p>

<p>The <a href="/2009/02/21/crocus-witch-hazel-spring/">crocus</a> colors paint the garden but we found the butterflies in the <a href="http://www.pacsci.org/butterflies/index.html">Tropical Butterfly House</a> at the <a href="http://www.pacsci.org/">Pacific Science Center</a> put on an even greater show.</p>

<p>I’ve been busy, extremely busy, of late so I’m seriously behind in posting some photos. Let’s play catch-up.</p>

<p>This is not <em>the</em> Big Puppy, my daughter’s absolute favorite animal, but his backup. Big Puppy recently started showing the signs any animal would if he weighed five plus pounds and was carried <strong>everywhere</strong>, usually in a stranglehold about his neck. My wife and I decided acquiring a backup would be a prudent decision, especially considering the Huge size was no longer available in the catalogs.</p>