Here's Abigail

This is Abigail. She is 5 1/2 months old. She is so much fun. She loves to roll over. Her parents had her ears pierced Sunday. It is a custom in the Hispanic culture here in NM to pierce baby's girls ears. Her mom, Amie, and my granddaughter makes her food. I fed her peas yesterday and she loved them.

Guess whose who.

Here's a surprise Jan. I found this while packing up the house. Guess which one is Jan and which one is me. This is a photo taken back in 1971 while Jan and I were doing our undergrad psych nursing rotation.

Shhhhhhh!

Happy Father's Day all you Dads

Whether you planted us, picked us out or we just dropped in on ya, we all love and appreciate all your life long love, support and dedication. We just celebrated a new dad's baby girl here, we have a dad who is brave enough to hang out with us and help us with the rules, and we have a few lurker dads. We hope you all have a great Father's Day.

Happy Birthday, Lauren, Born June 13, 2010 5:31 PM

Say hello to Mary's new Grandbaby: Lauren Elizabeth.

In case you missed it, she was born 3 weeks early and weighed in

at 8 lbs. and is 20 inches long.
Mom and Dad and GRAMMA MARY are doing well!








"Babies are Angels that fly to the earth,

their wings disappear at the time of their birth.

One look in their eyes and we're never the same,

they're part of us now and that part has a name-

That part is your heart and a bond that won't sever,

our Babies are Angels, we love them forever. "

Author unknown







... ooh -
Congrats Auntie Carol and Auntie Big Sis too!







(posted for Mary)

Come see the Louisiana Wetlands.

Creole Nature Trail

"Grab your binoculars. Pack your fishing pole. Got your camera, hat and sunscreen? Louisiana's Creole Nature Trail All-American Road is a hands-on opportunity to experience one of America's untamed natural wonders."
Since Carol and her sis are going to be driving along 'The Creole Nature Trail' soon, I decided to learn some more about it. In my reading this morning, I learned that the Creole Nature Trail is known as Louisiana's Outback, and that it meanders through marshes, prairies, and along the Gulf of Mexico. The byway goes through and along three out of the four refuges in Louisiana (which I'm going to list at the end), and they are part of a network of more than 540 refuges throughout the U.S. states (and territories).

The Trail is home to more than 300 species birds (making it one of the Top 10 Birding Destinations in the country), which includes birds that live there year round and others that migrate to the area. There are several sites along this 'Nature Trail' that rank among the best birding locations in the country.

Refuges / Sanctuaries
There are four federal and state wildlife refuges and sanctuaries there, and in each, you have the opportunity to observe natural environments that play an important role in North America’s wildlife 'eco-system'.

-- Sabine National Wildlife Refuge includes the 1.5-mile self-guided Marsh Trail with interpretation stations, an observation tower, and panoramic view of marsh terrain - and you see many birds and other marsh animals.

-- The Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge is home to wintering waterfowl and resident mammals. The refuge is also an important area for research studies on a number of marsh-management strategies. You can fish in this area, but hunting is prohibited.
-- Next, you may choose to turn back west toward Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge or continue east toward the western terminus of the byway wildlife

-- Holly Beach (also known as the Cajun Riviera)
provides 25 miles of year-round beaches, campsites, and outdoor recreation.

I'm sure Carol knows better than any of us about this warning I ran across on one of the sites: "It is advised not to take dogs along at Marsh Trail because alligators may consume them."
http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/scenic-drive-in-louisiana-creole-nature-trail-ga1.htm
Overview: http://www.creolenaturetrail.org/maps_audio/

PERFECT! NOT QUITE...

On June 2, 2010, Armando Galarraga of the Detroit Tigers pitched a perfect game against the Cleveland Indians, but because of maybe the worst umpiring call in the history of baseball, umpire Jim Joyce blew the call at first base costing Galarraga the 27th straight out and a Perfect Game....


The anger was instant among baseball fans, no matter what you were doing, watching baseball, listening to sports talk radio, watching TV news, reading the sports section of the paper...the only topic was the Perfect Game that wasn't....

Baseball rules don't allow replays to determine anything other than home run controversies, so once the ump called the runner safe at first, the Perfect Game was no more...

There seems to be universal agreement that there was no question but that the runner was out and the ump's incorrect call cost Galarraga his chance at baseball immortality...

So much so that the next day MLB Commissioner Bud Selig had a meeting to consider whether to reverse the ump's call and declare it a Perfect Game. However, Selig decided late in the afternoon that the call would stand and for all time this game will be a one-hitter that Detroit won by a score of 3 - 0, but that everyone knows was a Perfect Game....

In the history of baseball there have been only 20 'official' Perfect Games (with 2 this year in the last month) pitched. A perfect game...when a pitcher for 9 innings does not allow an opposing player to reach first base, whether by a hit, a walk (base on balls), hitting a batter, or a fielding error...the pitcher retires all 27 batters in order...

Armando Galarraga did just that on June 2, 2010, but human error failed to acknowledge this and he will be denied his place among those select few honored at Cooperstown in that exclusive club of pitchers who have pitched a perfect game....

One thing that can be taken from this event is the image of a pitcher who has graciously accepted the outcome and an umpire who took responsibility for missing the call and immediately apologized to Galarraga, who with class and grace, accepted the apology....

And so the story doesn't have a completely unhappy ending...GM gave Armando Galarraga a Chevrolet Corvette in appreciation of his accomplishment......

Gulf Wildlife 'Dead Zone' Keeps Growing

Memorial crosses symbolizing what is lost due to the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and oil spill stand in the front yard of a house in Grand Isle, La., Tuesday, June 1, 2010.

-- Experts who assessed the Exxon Valdez disaster describe how the Gulf oil spill could affect birds, reptiles, shrimp, fish and other wildlife.

"An over 7,000-square-mile wildlife "dead zone" located in the center of the Gulf of Mexico has grown from being a curiosity to a colossus over the past two decades, according to the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), and scientists are now concerned the recent oil spill and other emerging chemical threats could widen the zone even further.

The NWF describes the dead zone as being "the largest on record in the hemisphere in coastal waters and one of the biggest in the world."

During the summer months, it is nearly devoid of wildlife, save for the dead bodies of crabs, shrimp and other marine species that succumb to oxygen depletion in the polluted water.

Animal toxicology experts believe the Gulf dead zone is a man-made monstrosity.

"Outside of widespread impacts from oil release, the drainage of the Mississippi River into the Central Gulf has deposited massive amounts of agricultural chemicals and fertilizers from agricultural activities in the Central United States," Ron Kendall, director of The Institute of Environmental and Human Health, told Discovery News.

"Basically, this has created the large dead zone in the Central Gulf," added Kendall, who is chairman of Texas Tech's Department of Environmental Toxicology and was part of the assessment team for the Exxon Valdez." http://news.discovery.com/animals/gulf-dead-zone-oil-spill.html