JANUARY: one of my goals for 2012 was to explore more of our "backyard" and see some of the many natural wonders in the great state of california (and drag pete and cassie along with me). so in january we headed east to the grey lodge wildlife refuge south of chico to witness the waterfowl migration. i used to hunt birds with my dad and brother when i was growing up, so i have seen my share of huge, huge flocks of geese and ducks leaving a refuge in the morning to find food and returning at night to find shelter. despite how many times you have seen it, though, it is such an awesome sight (and sound). many of the geese at the refuge in january were snows and blues but there were a few canadas to be found as well.
Fly off at the Grey Lodge Wildlife Refuge
FEBRUARY: backyard exploration in february was facilitated by pete's family. every year on presidents day weekend, they get together at a house at the pajaro dunes, 20 miles south of our house. this is another birder's paradise, particularly for shore birds. it is always fun to spend three days all in the same house playing games, walking the beach, and enjoying family.
Pajaro Dunes
MARCH: we flew the coup in march and drove to seattle, washington. pete was heading in that direction for work so i tagged along so we could visit our dear friends tish and morgan...who were pregnant with our future god daughter! we had a great weekend exploring seattle, eating great food, and enjoying the company of many friends.
Seattle Space Needle
APRIL: lots of trips were made to minnesota again this year to visit my family and help my mom whenever possible. i got to spend the day with my brother on his birthday...something that has probably not happened since 1996!
i also made my yearly pilgrimage to pinnacles national monument to see the spring wildflowers and to try to catch a glimpse of the resident california condors. an unplanned "detour" resulted in the only condor siting of the day!
Pinnacles National Monument
MAY: pete's coworkers convinced him that he should join them for a 100 mile bike ride. he agreed to a 100 km ride so i started training with him and we rode the strawberry fields forever ride in mid-may. our training totally fulfilled my desire to explore our backyard as our training rides took us all over the three county area...and allowed us to see things that we might not notice in a car.
the riders from the USGS Marine Facilities (MarFac) - and me
(one of these things is not like the other...)
(one of these things is not like the other...)
JUNE: this was a VERY busy month. pete and i drove to the airport together in early june to board two different planes bound for two different states. he was going to north carolina to spend a week with roy underhill and learn the trade of hand tools, while i flew to miami, florida, for a conference and a bit of diving in the florida keys. shortly after our return, our god daughter was born! and shortly after that our niece madeline arrived in california to spend two weeks with us.
Roy Underhill after a hard day of work
Vizcaya Garden, Miami
melina and pete warming up to each other
maddy hugging her first redwood in Henry Cowell State Park
JULY: i was back in minnesota in july to be with family for the first anniversary of my dad's death. we were able to gather as a family and share memories of his life and love. while we miss him every day, i feel so lucky to have five other immediate members of my family that i love dearly. sarah, steph, matt, and i also ran our first running race all together!
the Foley running crew
AUGUST: pete and i both traveled to the elwha river on the olympic peninsula of washington state...but we didn't travel together. i had to leave mere hours before he arrived and we passed like ships in the night as i drove east by land and he drove west by sea. the elwha is my future field site when i start working at the USGS in march 2013. hopefully pete and i will be able to better coordinate our schedules then so he can drive the boat while i do science. :)
Elwha River lagoon
SEPTEMBER: the month started with a trip to Alaska for our friends terry and moorea's wedding. our trip only lasted about 48 hours. mama cass, our beloved black lab, started getting sick just before i left and declined very rapidly. pete's parents provided doggie hospice until we could get home to be with her. she died in our arms after nearly 15 years of unconditional love. we miss her so much.
whale watching on resurrection bay enroute to the wedding on Fox Island
mama cass - 18 december 1997 to 6 september 2012
OCTOBER: we managed to travel together! a last minute injury to one of pete's coworkers resulted in a trip to hawai'i for me! we were working with other USGS scientists off the coast of kona drilling coral to learn about groundwater seeps in the area. neither of us had done coral coring before - it was hard work but really interesting. we were on the water long days so we didn't get a chance to explore the big island at all, but we did get to be together for our 3rd anniversary!
NOVEMBER: my mom arrived just as we flew home from hawai'i to spend ten days in california, soaking up as much sun and warmth as possible before returning to the minnesota winter. we had a full agenda - symphony, state capitol (thanks to a work meeting), monarch butterflies, the beach, and hearst castle.
Natural Bridges State Park and Hearst Castle State Park
DECEMBER: lots of travel made the last month fly by. we headed to minnesota for an early christmas and managed to miss two major storms. we were in oakland for actual christmas and are heading to mexico for new years.
writing this post and going through photos makes me even more thankful for all that we have and all that we are able to experience throughout the year. wishing you all a happy, healthy, and blessed new year.