Quail nesting in my backyard!

Gambel's Quail, a photo by Elegant Cake Creations AZ on Flickr.

It is not unusual to regularly see quail in my area. What is unusual is that I have discovered a pair nesting on my back patio!!
I had noticed a female a few times running straight to the patio and jumping in to a potted plant. I didn't really think anything of it until yesterday when I mistakenly frightened her out of the pot and spotted her clutch of eggs! This is her mate pacing around in the yard this morning.

We now have a full out red alert at our house to protect the mama and her nest as well as to prepare for the babies!  I have put a barrier around the pot so that inquiring noses of the canine variety can not frighten our mama away. We have purchased a quail block so that food is more readily available for mama and daddy.  I am searching for something to hold water for them.  

I have researched how to make life a little easier for the babies when they arrive.  One thing I must do is to add something to raise the soil level to the lip of the pot.  Apparently the wee ones can only hop about 1 inch to get out of their nursery. I need to add some soft materials around the outside of the pot to cushion the landing.  I also need to make sure that there is plenty of protection around the yard for the little guys to run under as they make their way out into the big world. So much work for the grandparent!!
My best guess is that hatching should occur sometime around the 20-25th of June. Stay tuned for updates!

IMI Design Open House Cake

Winning Auction Cake, a photo by Elegant Cake Creations AZ on Flickr.

Here is the cake for the winning bidder at the Southwest HIV/Aids fundraiser. IMI Design Studio of Scottsdale needed a cake for their new studio open house.

The inspiration was the Andy Warhol flower and A. Calder shapes. Each side of the cake is a different color - pink, lime green, yellow and orange. It's not too visible in this photo but the cake is not straight stacked, it's more geometric.

I completely LOVE the background which is their mascot/logo. Great photo by Luke, the IMI Office Manager.