Comings and Goings

 Winter kept coming, with snow again on April 24

 

 adding to the piles that came and went all spring.

 The pond was still frozen and snow-covered

to the disgust of the geese that have been waiting to set up housekeeping on the island.

 Eventually the pond began to thaw

 

 

 even as the snow kept coming.

 May 1st looked as Christmassy as many days have this spring.

 Steve took advantage of a thawed Munger Trail for a bike ride from Mahtowa to Moose Lake

 where loons were navigating around the still considerable ice on Moosehead Lake.

Nearby Spring Lake cleared more quickly

 

 and fields began to green up

 although the woods still harbor piles of snow as of late May.

 Flurries changed to fog and drizzle.

 

Ducks have returned to the local waters

as have the frogs (turn up your speakers)

 

while deer are boldly hanging around

 and something big dug a foot-wide hole in the front lawn.

 At first we feared a badger or skunk

 but then decided that a coyote probably widened a smaller hole

 in search of the Franklin's ground squirrels that are proliferating this year.

 Among the other welcome spring comings were Eclipse and her daughter Chandra, photographed in the Goatmobile by friend Laura

 who helped welcome Chandra to her new home.

 Eclipse is a sentimental purchase: she's the daughter of Mr. T.

She's now the noisiest goat in the herd

and feisty enough to knock heads with any of the older girls. 

  Chandra is a true Alpine mountain-climber

 

 who loves to play on the stump pile.

 Eventually she will move to Laura's Split Rock Farm.

 The new girls spent a few weeks getting used to the place before being integrated into the herd.

 On those rare warmer days Viva and Geisha go out to play

 mostly on the furniture

and on the skywalk in the back pasture

 

where they bully the younger bucklings --

 

 not that anything could slow the guys down for long.

 The older does take advantage of the better weather to browse the pasture

 

 bask in the sun

 or -- best of all --

 eat trees

 

while Barb & the new girls watch.

 With all the spring comings, there were some goings, too.  Myky

 Rosado

 and his brother Chorizo have moved to Split Rock Farm.

 We miss them, but we're delighted that they get to stay together and that they're getting such good care.  They get to play with Laura's own crop of young bucklings, Starsky & Hutch and Willie & Waylon.