As I walked by the motorhome the other day, I noticed the tires sinking into mud. The weather had started to warm and the snow was melting quickly. And seeing the motorhome like that, sitting in the woods slowly sinking deeper into the soft ground, got me thinking about what was next for the Wandering Dolphin crew.

What do you do when you don’t know what to do or where to go?

We continue to throw around different ideas, wondering what our next steps are. Do we head out on the road again? If so, when? Do we pack up and move? Do we settle in? Where do we go? And how do we do it?

We are waiting for something to click, to feel right. We don’t want to force a decision, though I would like for it to click sooner rather than later. I am sad that our family is divided, with the cats still living at my parents’ house. I am feeling the draw of another adventure building up.

But I am also enjoying taking things day by day, finding joy in the small things and the quiet moments.

After getting things situated, we recently rejoined with one of our family members. Pica moved back in with us after living with my parents for the winter months.

She seems to be enjoying herself so far! She’s in a larger cage again, and she gets to spend a lot of time outside of it. And we are adapting to having her back, as are the dogs (little Teddy is super jealous of her).

We also took our large fish tank out of storage so that we can enjoy it during our time here.

We are slowly getting it set up and ready for fish (or perhaps fostering turtles, the jury is still out).

We have continued with our search for wildlife and have found a lot of enjoyment in getting outside with the camera to see what we can find. We took a nice long walk through the woods with my dad and saw quite a few animals — deer, an owl, a muskrat, wild turkeys.

It has been fun to watch the ice recede from the lake. It started slowly, first in areas with water movement.

And then it quickly started to recede even further around the edges of the lake.

The open water is drawing in a lot of wildlife.

Waterfowl of many kinds are heading to the lake. But one of the most interesting sightings is one that Andy saw without me.

A beaver.

I’m super jealous I didn’t get to see it, but I am so happy that Andy got some good photos!

During a drive the other day, we saw a few deer — they have been very active lately, and I see deer nearly every day!

And on my way home from work, I spotted a few sandhill cranes in someone’s front yard. The photo was taken with my phone, so it’s definitely not great.

Just outside our living room window was a bald eagle. It sat in the tree for more than an hour.

It has been a very active spring as the weather starts to warm. And then today, things started to change again. In true Minnesota spirit, the snow started once again.

But the wildlife watching hasn’t ceased.

When you’re in Minnesota, you’re never safe from snow until summer! And even then…

But that’s alright because that’s what comes with living here! It keeps things interesting. And the snow is beautiful.

We’ll stay snuggled up inside with the dogs and wait for our next adventure — and we have quite a few fun things planned in the near future!

 

If you haven’t noticed by now, I am very interested in wildlife photography and wildlife in general. I recently started a website that features wildlife articles, photography, and information about what’s going on in the world of wildlife. Check it out at www.wanderingwithwildlife.com or follow it on Facebook @wanderingwithwildlife. Please share with those who might be interested. Thank you for your support!