A Closer Look

Every year scores of Washingtonians make the pilgrimage to the Skagit Tulip Festival, and this year we joined the throng. Though the fields were full of color, none of it came from tulips. A cold spring delayed the blooming of the tulips, but the daffodils were out in full force. From a distance the fields seemed like they were covered in white or yellow tarps, and the distinct beauty of each individual flower couldn't be appreciated, but when viewed up close, each flower had its own look.

Andrew, being the photography hobbyist that he is, took the time to search for the perfect flowers and the perfect camera settings with which to capture the awesome scene.

The kids thought the flowers were pretty cool too, the only trouble was keeping Clancy from picking one, since he's learned the value of giving flowers to girls at an early age. FYI: Chloe was smiling, if there was a question.

We ventured into La Conner to watch the mid-afternoon parade (always a favorite with me) and found a really cute and quaint downtown. Andrew loved the jazz band playing in a public square, and I loved the shops, galleries and cafes. Clancy loved the dogs, firetrucks, and of course the candy being hurled at him from the paraders. Chloe was just happy to be held. La Conner is definitely a perfect retirement town (if anyone is looking). There Clancy found his match ...(pointing at himself and the fire hydrant), "look, we're the same!"

After driving all around the Mount Vernon/La Conner area, we found our favorite field and returned several times to get "just one more" shot. Finally, when our camera's memory card was full and the batteries drained, we called it a day and headed home.

On the way out of town, we saw this field of white. Much to the farmer's displeasure, the white in this field was not due to daffodils, but to birds eating his seeds. When the birds flew off, the ground was no longer green but a barren, seedless brown.

The rising of the birds was like a huge tidal wave, and the sound was incredible. I have never heard such a chorus of cawing and cooing. When we saw the massive flock heading our way, we scrambled to shut the sunroof and windows so we wouldn't get nailed with "bird splat" and grabbed Andrew's phone to catch the craziness of the moment. After the birds circled around and landed in the neighboring field, we left La Conner for good, feeling sorry for the farmers, but grateful for what we had witnessed.

Well, with thousands of birds overhead, we were a prime target, and our car was "bird splat"-ted on, so we headed to our local Brown Bear Car Wash, where the workers dress like missionaries and the parking lot is surrounded with brown bear statues. After an exciting, 7-minute power washing (Clancy's first carwash experience), our car was returned to its sparkling state (which it achieves very rarely) but with a lot of hubcap paint missing. Oh well, at least we still have four hubcaps...for now!

All in all, the Tulip Festival was a hit. We hope you all join us next April when the fields are full of flowers and the birds are in flight.