Turtle Hunt

 So Walter, the turtle, has been missing.   It's been about a week since we last saw him lumbering through the grass.  I just figured he'd come out of hiding one of these days.  He can't get out of the yard...I don't think he can get out of the yard.  I hope he can't get out of the yard!

As the days came and went with no sign of Walter I started to get worried.   Surely he must be getting hungry...probably not.  He in a turtle "garden of Eden".    Maybe lonely...probably not...he's a turtle.
Anyway I just wanted to know he was okay.

I decided he was probably just under one of the over-grown bushes...so I'd just do a quick prune job around the base of the bushes and find my turtle.

I pruned and cleaned out five years worth of dead leaves  out from under four bushes...no turtle.
So I decided to just thin out the Ivy... just a little bit.

Now our ivy has grown surprisingly well for being planted in Vegas.  It's turned into a massive tangle vines and impenetrable branches.  By now I'm getting really nervous...what if Walter is caught in a tangle of branches and vines,  starving and suffering a slow and miserable death.   With those thoughts I tear into my beautiful ivy with my pruners  and no mercy.  I'm pulling it up as fast as I can, clipping as I go... searching for my poor suffering turtle.

I rip out 2/3 of my ivy in search of Walter...and there is no turtle.

( but I did find several Easter eggs from years gone by.)  

 I go through the scraggly vines that are left again...no turtle.

WHERE IS MY TURTLE!

I'm now in hour 3 of my 45-minute project.  I scan the yard again looking for any vegetation left that could hide a turtle.  There at the base of the birdhouses by bush #2 is a small patch of ivy that I kind of skipped over in my hurry to get to the thicker growth where I was sure Walter was hiding.
Going back to this spot I clip out a few lengths of ivy.  THERE IS Walter!   Burrowed in a pile of leaves.

I feel like a mother that has just been united with a lost child in a department store.

I reward Walter with a fresh tomato and a strawberry...his favorites.

Now I  face the impossible task of packing all those vines in to two garbage cans.
...and convincing Karl that the ivy really did  need to be cleaned out...and that it will grow back :)

So goes my Tuesday.
Now...where are my pruners?  I can't find them anywhere.

Happy Birthday Kimberly

 Here's a few of my many happiest memories

 UW Graduation

 Many happy visits to that little UW apartment
and our fun "death marches" through beautiful Seattle neighborhoods.

Your visits to Vegas

My five weeks in Hershey with you.

 

 Making that little townhouse homey

 and working on projects

 Our trip through upstate New York

 Hiking at Niagara Falls

Note Karl's  Scout Jacket...
that the Boys ceremoniously burned that while we were all together.

 Breakfast at the Hershey Pantry

.

 before Kyle Medical School graduation.

Moving to Dupont

 

 and building that fence.

  The Garage Gym.

Being there when Charlie met Greta for the first time.

And then helping get ready for

...that Christmas in Dupont

and having the whole family together.

 Hiking,walking, and  running the many trails in Dupont

Oh the happy memories...

 Wishing you many more happy memories today
and wishing we were there to celebrate with you.

Happy Birthday Kimberly
We Love You
Mom and  Dad T.

Spring in our garden

 Roses

 Jasmine in our entry

 It smells so good!

 Sig on the prowl.

 Spinach & Kale.

 Chives

 Tomatoes

 Peppers

 Summer squash

 Apricots

 

 Snow peas

 Lettuce

 Chives, parsley, mint

 

Love this time of the year.

April 15th

8:30 pm

Gotta love Tax Day

...Not

The Tobler Brothers' Weekend

...plus  Mom and Dad.  It's  been 5 years and 4 months since the brothers have been all  together at the same time.  We've tried but it's so hard to coordinate family schedules.  Then to fly a whole family is so expensive.  So the boys decided it was time to have a brothers' weekend...and invite their parents.    They were stalling out on what to do and where to go until they decided to just put Jeff in charge and then... agree or disagree... they committed to support the plan.  And it was great.

 A cabin near Beavers Bend State park in Oklahoma.

 Activities were pretty low-key...

visiting 

eating

 and lounging.

We did make it out of the cabin to check out the lake.

 

We saw a lot of fly fishing.  

 Worked our way through a mud bog.

 and hiked back.

 There was a lot a' beef in that there hot tub

 A few bets were made.

 ...especially when  we played Chad's game he made to teach his scouts about money/life.
We learned...rent, ride the bus and don't trust "hot stocks". 

 

We were all surprised at how much food we could "put away".

 

Sunday was cloudy and  rainy

but that didn't stop the fun.

Since our cabin was "off the grid". 
We had to hit McDonalds for our internet fix.

...more boiling the beef.

Monday it was  back to Jeff's.

 

There was  trampoline testing

 and the finale'...

... who's the heaviest Tobler
after a weekend of constant eating? 

Kyle volunteered to  organize our 2015 reunion.
 And it's been determined that all we really need is a  large couch and a fridge
and everyone will be happy.