Easter photos

In Scotland we rolled eggs each Easter with the Guthries. Now it's the Ludwigs who race with us -- this year the two youngest boys won by a long shot!















Fredéric was very keen to bring his Easter basket to show to his dad and Greg as soon as he found it.

This emerging Japanese maple looks a bit like a dragon-rider (at least the ones we're familiar with...)















Caroline is looking here at the community water source, not far from our house. Once upon a time the women in the community would have gathered here to do the washing. A bit sad that it is now virtually abandoned.




And for those ever asking -- here's a recent shot of our well-travelled cat. Once a stray in Oxford, she's had quite the life...and now belies her well-over-a-decade by working over-time de-rodentizing Pré Borel and surrounds.

















Last year we had a photo of an Emperor Dragonfly that had taken over Bruce's pond. Now the first full spring of the pond has arrived, it is absolutely teeming with life. Including many emerging Emperor nymphs, metamorphosing into dragonflies. Here's one part-way through the process -- at first her (the females are yellow) wings are still stuck together, and her body is flat. Slowly the wings open up and the body fills out. It seems truly incrdible that she once fit in the grey shell that looks more like captured lunch than a former guise.








































And here are a couple of damselflies laying eggs,








and here one just emerged from the nymph shell, while a red adult looks down on the progress.




















And then, this wee frog got bored with the shutter-bugging.




























Enough for now!