Today it happened. All six of our hens laid eggs. The light green/blue eggs are from the Ameraucanas. The deep brown eggs are from our Rhode Island Reds. The tannish colored eggs (which are sometimes speckled) are from the Barred Rocks. They were the last to start laying. 
An absolutely beautiful day for the parade. The kind of day when at 8 in the morning you can't decide to whether or not you'll need a sweater. This is Sierra Madre Blvd., kind of a lonely place early parade day morning and it was fun to walk right down the middle of a usually busy street. But, this is where the floats go for post parade and in a few hours, this area will be overflowing with people looking at the floats.
On our way down Sierra Madre Blvd. we said hello to friends already in place for the parade or wandering around the street. Some school friends had slept overnight. We got hit up by scouts for Krispe Kremes. Then, further down Sierra Madre Blvd. we met up with another Pasadena family to watch the parade. Most of the people around us were locals (or relatives from out of town) -- people who year after year watch the parade at the same spot. One of the many Trojan fans was next to us. Oh, nice mountain views too.
I decided to try my hand at photography this year. I'm trying to improve my photography skills. So far, the pictures I see and the ones my camera takes seem to be two different things. This is one of the few pictures I took that I really liked. That's Alhambra's float by the way.
The Penn State band was fantastic. Five miles into the parade and the band still had great energy dancing their way to the finish line. Their baton twirler was juggling batons! Here she is waiting for one of her batons to come back to earth. Penn State got huge cheers from the crowd around us. And their band was so good I almost switched my football team allegiance from the Trojans to the Nittany Lions.
It's the Emerald City! But, the poppies, the poppies will put our heroes to sleep. Good thing Glenda the Good Witch is there to save the day.
Sometimes you can get flowers when the parade and post parade are done and the floats are bing towed back to storage. But, I'd never seen anyone run out during the parade and pick a flower off of a passing float. Actually this was for a good cause. The flower filcher presented the rose to a lady celebrating her 50th birthday on the curb watching the Rose Parade.
It's an international parade. But, it's also a local parade. Actually that's one of the things I really like about Pasadena. In many ways, we're a world class and world renowned city. But, in significant ways we're also a small town. This well decorated girl scout just marched five miles in the world's best known parade and was plainly happy to hear a chorus of friends calling her name from Sierra Madre Blvd.
Wile E. Coyote is after the Roadrunner on Sierra Madre Blvd. Looks like he's still using those ACME rockets. Some coyotes never learn.
The good news is that, out of hundreds of beautiful contestants, we've selected you for the honor of riding in the 120th Tournament of Roses Parade where you'll be seen on television by millions of people world wide. 
Gotta like band directors who engage the crowd. This guy from the LAUSD All District Band was shaking hands, waving and clapping.
Notice the helicopter flying just out of the surfer's grasp. I waited for this shot.
La Canada's entry. I like the fact that many of our surrounding cities have floats in the parade.
What float will Raul and his parrot ride on this year? Answer: China Airlines. Spectacular float. This guy knows how to do it.
The Liberty High Grenadiers were really good. But, the hats.... Even the band director had one. Leadership by example.
Great float from Alaska. These guys did a hunting dance and charged the crowd. Lots of fun.
It's the Age of Aquarius. Lots of activity here: dancing, drums, juggling, wild colors. I'll pass on the Jumbo Jack. But a wonderful float.
Donate Life. Huge cheers from the crowd. And with good reason. 
The City of Hope and Duarte float. We like City of Hope. It's an inspiring and world class place much befitting its name. My mom is there now, but soon to be released. She was watching the parade on TV when I called her from the parade route.
Here are the good folks from the Valley Hunt Club, which club founded the Tournament of Roses 120 years ago. With the Hunt Club's history, the horse driven carriage and all, I thought I'd try some fancy photo work and go black and white. Great idea; terrible photo. Also, while I was thinking 1890s, I didn't notice the tow truck in the background. Oh, well.
Cal Poly makes fun floats. Like them every year.
Roseville float from NoCal. The engineer has both arms and half his body out of the window. This was a fun float with lots of energetic riders.
The Sierra Madre float broke down and was towed to the finish. The guy in the white jumpsuit is not part of the Bollywood thing, but just a really dejected float driver.
Burbank. Great job. I thought the drive-in with the mountains in the backdrop was a nice touch.
One of the directors of the Band of America. Five miles in and still engaging the crowd.
You know times are tough when realtors can't afford shoes.
Elizabeth Pomeroy, author of Pasadena: A Natural History, recalls Earthside Nature Center as "inspiring and verdant little oasis of California nature." She says, "I visited there often -- once inside, under the sycamores and beside the pond with its tadpoles, the city seemed far away."
This photo is taken from the south end of Earthside looking north to Del Mar Blvd. That's Eaton Blanche Park on the left, the Eaton Wash channel down the middle and Earthside on the right. There is a footbridge from Eaton Blanche over to Earthside. Can you see it? 
If you look hard, you can spot little signs around the Earthside site identifying plants and trees. Some of the identified plants remain. Others are gone.
There are also plaques dotted over the site on rocks, tables or posts, which bear the names of Earthside supporters. 
It is a rainy Christmas morning. But, the fire's going and its warm inside. Christmas music is going. The kids have opened their gifts. Our five year old is playing with her Polly Pockets. Our eleven year old is already on the phone to a friend ("hey dude"). We've had our morning coffee and gingerbread cake is underway with fresh brown eggs. We've read the Christmas story with all the readers in the house taking different paragraphs. We watched Linus tell Charlie Brown the meaning of Christmas and read the Grinch for the umpteenth time with such gusto I'm surprised the neighbors didn't complain about the "noise, noise noise, noise." There's nothing like Christmas morning.
Closed off for more than a decade, the weathered remnants of Earthside Nature Center hold forth. Like the Secret Garden, it waits to be restored.
One of the terraced paths leading down the hill beside the wash.
A potting shed with bench and sink to the right. Also, notice how deep the leaves are around the picnic table.
Another trail, now blocked by a fallen tree, heading southward alongside the wash. A 1967 plan approved by the Pasadena Parks Director, but never implemented, designated part of this area east of the wash for overnight group camping. 
Grape vines, like those in the foreground, border much of the nature center. This is taken standing on one of the terraced trails looking south from the nature center. That's the Eaton Wash with Eaton Blanche park to the right.
A kiosk that, according to a faded sign, was donated by the Pasadena Rotary Club.
I had to push away old grape vines to see what this sign said. There are bunches of dried grapes on the left of this photo. I wonder what the Dr. Stephen Smith Learning Center was.
Yes, I know this is a repeat of a photo that appears above. But, I can't figure out how to delete just this one picture without deleting the entire post, which I really don't want to do!
San Gabriel Valley ca. 1890 Pasadena Cal: C.J. Randall Courtesy of the California History Room, California State Library, Sacramento I&#...
