Through My Lens

Louie, My Amazon Parrot  Louie has been in our family for about forty years now. We don't know how old he is. My mom got him from her friend and we know he lived in a bar for a long time. Thus his love of swearing and saying inappropriate things. But he is the sweetest boy. When my mom had him I was a little scared to get too close. I'd feed him a peanut here and there and talk to him but that was about it. He loves to yell, "help", which has resulted in neighbors calling the police at least once for my mom. When my mom passed, I inherited Louie. It was a learning curve trying to figure out what I needed for Louie. One thing I learned, was Louie was nice! Mostly. I say mostly because kids can make him nervous. We learned quickly he doesn't like too much action and screaming going on around him. But when it's just him, me, my other two dogs and cat, he is just fine. He will open his mouth to warn the dogs and cat not to get too close, but in general they will a...

 Dubuque Arboretum & Botanical Gardens in Dubuque, Iowa A gorgeous garden in Dubuque Iowa, with flowers, plants, a Koi pond and a gift shop. Here are some pictures from trips I took there with my grandkids.

 Governor Dodge State Park in Dodgeville, Wisconsin Governor Dodge is a fun state park to visit with the family. You can go canoeing, kayaking, fishing, swimming, hiking and camping. There is a really fun trail that goes down to a waterfall, old spring houses and trails that go down between canyons at the bottom of Stephens Falls called the Lost Canyon Short Loop trail, One time when we were there, a bear was too! Although this is very rare. Here are some pictures I took while at Gov Dodge over the years.