Last Day of the Visit

Skylar riding her bike down our long driveway!
Ella on her bike!
Claudia and Joel watching the girls blow bubbles!! We had a great visit. We hope we'll have more visitors from Arizona!!

Sitting in an Elephant's Footprint

Skylar and Ella fill this elephant's footprint! We couldn't get as close to elephants as we normally would because the male was in his "mating season" which makes him cranky!

The Starrs at the Zoo

I couldn't resist taking another picture of our guests - this time sitting among the blooming violas! This time of the year in east Texas there are blooming flowers everywhere!!! Remember Lady Bird Johnson and her wildflowers? Well, east Texas certainly benefitted from that campaign. The roadsides are a blaze of color right now.

Alligators

I thought this was a good picture of alligators sunning themselves!

Visiting the Aviary

As we entered the Aviary, someone handed Skylar a popsicle stick with birdseed on it. These birds are accustomed to being fed like this. Here Annette is holding a cockatiel.
Then Claudia held the cockatiel. The bird just went from one visitor to the next - very social!
A little finch (I'm not sure) is visiting with Ella.
And then he visited with Skylar, busily eating bird seed from the stick.

A Trip to the Zoo in Tyler

The Caldwell Zoo in Tyler was a good zoo to visit. It is not huge but it is very well maintained. Until 2006 entry into the zoo was free. The entry price was very reasonable and we had a fun afternoon.

The Starr Cemetery

In Texas it seems like there is a cemetery every few miles as you drive on the rural roads. I've been passing the Starr Cemetery for months. So we decided to make a visit since the Arizona Starrs were visiting. John and Susanna Starr were the first folks buried here and that was in 1872. This is a family cemetery and it was very interesting to take a look at their history. Since our visit I learned that the area is called Starr Hill. I believe John and Susanna homesteaded this land.

Fishing at the Lake

These fellows caught a fish while we were watching. There are campsites around the lake. I hope Doug and Marni bring their kayaks when they come - this would be a beautiful place to spend a day. Who knows - maybe I could try kayaking!

Want to go swimming?

This is a shot of Ratcliff Lake. The area with the border is for swimming. The water was clear and inviting - the air was too cool. But a place to return to this summer!

Ratcliff Lake

In the forest is this lake. The forest is beautiful and so is the lake.

The Starrs in Crockett, Texas

On Tuesday of their visit, it was raining in Palestine. So I suggested we take a ride to Crockett, which you've seen before in my blog. About 10 miles from home it wasn't raining. So we proceeded to Crockett, had lunch at the Moosehead Cafe and then headed out for the Davey Crockett National Forest - largest national forest in the state of Texas. First I took a picture of the tourists in front of the Houston County Courthouse surrounded by pansies.

Queen Bees

Todd and Annette were interested in the bees. Here Johnny was showing them some of the queens he is producing this spring.