Twins?

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned the doe and her fawn that showed up in our yard and that I hoped she would be back so I could get some better pictures .. well, she's baaaack!
And not only that but she came with a big surprise .. a second fawn!

The first two days we saw only the one but than all of a sudden, on the third morning, this tiny little cuty appeared!
I still can't figure out if we just didn't see it previously, or if she had it hidden away longer because it was so small or, rare but it does happen, maybe she adopted an orphan?

  

I've seen siblings of different sizes before, but this really seems more like an age-gap than just a male/female or runt of the litter?
They do act as a family though and it seems healthy and lively enough. They play and chase each other through the orchard .. here's some blurry pics, they're always on the move!

I tried to make a little video but what with the trees and having to stay somewhat hidden it wasn't easy!
Also, for the life of me, I can't get it embedded in this blog, so here's a link to my Facebook post:

https://www.facebook.com/1054723558/videos/615892196397369/

I was sitting on our covered 'porch' while filming this, hence the white sail you see halfway through their run. When the sun turns later in the day, I close the gap in the middle. It makes a big difference when it's warm).

See that red geranium there in the front? It had about 5 beautiful orbs of red flowers :

 
Well .. apparently deer like them and it looks like the pic on the right now! Like James said: 'how about venison for dinner?' &^%$#@!

                                                                                                                                                                             

Talking about flowers, we went to the Willamette Lavender Festival in Newberg last week:



It's a fun, festive event which 'brings local lavender growers and the community together'.
The climate in the Pacific Northwest is great for growing all kinds of flowers, apparently including lavender…some say the region is on par with France’s famous lavender growing region Provence!

There were lots of craft-boots, selling lavender products, fresh-cut lavender and lavender plants from local farms. The overall smell of the fair was intoxicating!
Food trucks provided their full menus as well as specialty lavender-infused food and beverage options.
We shared a huge burrito, lavender lemonade and lavender/lemon scones!

After lunch we went inside the Cultural center and took a look at the paintings created by one hundred and fifty artists “en plein air” (outdoors) during the Oregon Lavender Paint Out. The Paint Out takes place in the lavender fields of Oregon in the weeks prior to the Show and attracts amateur and professional artists from around the Northwest and beyond.

             

                                                     

We than proceeded to drive part of the Newberg Lavender Trail which leads you through the hills around town, passing the beautiful lavender fields and many farms open for u-pick flowers, as well as  businesses throughout town that sell anything 'lavender' you can think of.
We got out at Wayward Winds Lavender farm:

                                      

This farm is one of the largest in the area and besides having a lavender-a-maze, and U-pick fields sells award-winning essential oils, plants, products and refreshments in their open-air gift shop.
They also have a test-garden in the back which shows about a hundred different lavender varieties!

Of course we dove into the fields for some pics:

Alright, I think I've covered about everything of this very summery week. Temperatures are soaring into the high 80s and the occasional 90 at the moment.
                                                 We're definitely in the lazy days of summer!

Oh, I forgot! Doug and Brenda took me (and James of course) out for dinner to celebrate my citizenship. We went to Bistro Maison in downtown McMinnville.



It's a cozy and authentic french restaurant with a real french chef, Jean-Jacques, and it boasts a delicious french menu.

On a nice day, you’ll have a choice of dining inside or out and since it was one of those beautiful summer evenings, we opted for outside ..
We enjoyed a wonderful time together and had a truly outstanding dinner. Just the perfect celebration for a very special occasion!
(In hind-side Doug was questioning himself if he should have taken me to an 'American diner' instead, which would have been more appropriate to the occasion? Or maybe McDonalds? I don't think so! This was perfect!)

This was desert, oh la la!