New Project with a December Due Date

It's official - we are looking forward to being grandparents in early December!  Of course, this calls for a very special project.

The plan - woods are maple and cherry

Sides assembled

An end piece

Erick is doing the fabricating.  I'm helping with sanding and staining.

Local birds: I'm always on the look out for chances to get decent photos of the birds that keep us company here in the Oakland Hills.  (Click on a photo to see a larger version.)

A family of quail in the yard of our neighbors 4 lots away. 

Close up with zoom lens 

We see and hear the ravens daily

This one is in a large Monterey pine next door

Steller's Jay feeding in a tree at a distance (zoom)

Steller's jay - head toward camera
We occasionally see just brief glimpses of these jays.

Sometimes I can get a bit closer.

Hummingbird on Parrot's Beak plant

Hummingbird teasing our cat Sunny on a misty morning

Hummingbird headed for a geranium flower

House finch taking a drink

House finch is the reddest bird we see here

Female finch on the  feeder near our new patio space

Three or four scrub jays visit us regularly -
often taking peanuts from our hands.

Scrub jay trying to decide whether to try for a second nut

A look at what our plants are doing in July:

This agave is sending up a shoot - bottom center

This succulent reminds me of an anemone

We chose this one because of the striking burgundy color

Bower vine in bloom

Succulents and cactus along the driveway

Cushion bush flowers

Cyclamen - happier now that it's been moved into the shade for the summer

A young manzanita that was growing under the deck

Views from recent walks - Redwook Park:

Redwoods

"Horse head" -  downed wood 

Steep path 

Downed branches

Cherry tree

In a residential area off the Montclair RR Trail:

An agave in bloom - quite a flower spike!

Close up of agave flower spike 

Along Manzanita Drive:

The glint from a metal tag on this dead tree caught my eye 

The evening sun on a tree trunk, with Erick stopping
 to look for a potential path into the Huckleberry Regional Park 

Views of the canyon and bay:

Cows across the canyon in the evening sun (zoom)

Clouds over Mt Diablo at sunset

Sunset with low cloud across the canyon

Daytime clouds over the Bay

Bay filled with mist near sunset

A typical clear, hot day sunset