Idyllwild weekend and weekdays

Sorry I haven't been around for a while (apparently nobody cares...)...We sent to Idyllwild for a few days (5) this last week, Sunday through Thursday morning.  I wanted to be home for the fireworks in case the dogs went ballistic.  Ripley got very hyper for the first few fireworks, then settled down.  Our desert house is only a couple of blocks away from the Palm Desert civic center, where there's a huge fireworks show.  You should have heard all the car alarms that went off!  Anyway, it was at least 20 degrees cooler up in Idyllwild and we both relax in the tall pines.  No, really.  We both notice that we are different people among the trees. Maybe because we both have Viking ancestors?    I loved just sitting on the back porch and listening to the blue jays announce intruders to their forest (usually a crow).  And, EVERYBODY disappeared when a hawk flew overhead.  Two families of quail came to visit.  One had 5 babies.  The other family had 10!  They were so tiny; they looked like little balls of feathers running around!  (so cute!)  There were about 5 squirrels and they, too, had their moments, especially when two of them would chase each other around a tree!  Needless to say, it was very relaxing up there.  Now we're home for a LONG stretch.  Clouds and humidity have moved up into the valley because there is a tropical storm off the coast of Baja California.  Ugh.  It's REALLY humid here and my hair is frizzing!