Jr. Got Artsy

While we were in the Pacific Northwest, Jr. got artsy with photography. 

 

 

Nature Photography Day

June 15 was Nature Photography Day so I took the good camera down to the Provo River and got some pictures of the June suckers. 

It's been a few years since any of us specifically went to see them even though we know the Provo River Delta was specifically made to help those fish.

While I was there, I made sure to get some juggling pics and videos. 

 I also took pictures of birds.

The cliff swallows and house sparrows were nesting under the same bridge. The sparrows were probably using the swallow nests.

 

Later I stopped by the Orem Library and helped take down the balloon triceratops skeleton and pick up the framing materials for it. It was definitely time. 

I had a good chat with the librarian who was taking it down as we worked together. She is also a birder. A few of the librarians at Orem Library are birders. I love it. It makes me smile, which is appropriate since June 15 was Smile Power Day.

You know what also makes people smile? Balloons. 

 

Lucky Shot

 

Rationalizing Birding

I mentioned in January that Nichole was taking digital photography again. She entered several (about
11) pictures in a photography show at the high school. She got honorable mention for a Photoshopped photo of her brother as fairies.

 

That picture and one she took of a burrowing owl were on display in the art hall for a while before the show.

 

Here are some of my other favorites from the photography show:

 

One morning, Jeremy and I took Nichole out to Manila Creek Pond. You know... so she could get some photos of Common loons and Caspian terns. We just happened to enjoy watching the birds, too. The terns are so fun to watch as they dive in to get fish in the pond. We were there early enough to hear the loons calling, too. I loved it.

There were also Canada geese and mergansers and mallards and cormorants and a killdeer I kept hearing and finally spotted.

 

The things we do to support our children.

But Before Friday the 13th...

I told you it's been chaos.

I failed to blog about Peculiar People Day which was on January 10. When I told everyone that holiday was coming up but I only had orange soda on the menu plan so far, Jr. jumped in suggesting we have green jello with carrot shavings. Nichole suggested we have honey garlic chicken for our main dish. She pointed out that we always happen to have that dish when she has an event so she either has to eat it later or only has time to eat a small amount. Well, it just so happened she did have something going on that night but I was able to make dinner early enough she was able to get enough to eat before she and I left.

She was getting recognition and a certificate for having some art up in the school district offices. Apparently it was a piece she did in art class her sophomore year that her teacher submitted to the district art show.

We had quite the weather on the way up (luckily we made it in time) and on the way back. It was a very rainy night and reminded me of Oregon Winters. 

Nichole is taking digital photography again so she's supposed to be taking pictures. She used my phone to get some pictures as we traveled home in that weather.

Prehistoric Creatures Day

Everybody say, "Dinosaurs."

Last Wednesday we headed to Dinosaur Island at Ashton Gardens at Thanksgiving Point. "Escape to Dinosaur Island." 

We've been planning this for months since we knew they were going to have dinosaurs all over the gardens (it turns out they were animatronic dinosaurs). We were especially excited to bring our dinosaur loving youngest child. 

That face says it all.

 

It was awesome. We loved it. It was fun to guess the dinosaurs we could see in the distance before we reached the informational signs. Some we got right, some we didn't.

Pachycephalosaurus I recognized since that was my brother's favorite dinosaur growing up. He was so into dinosaurs when we were kids. Being around my own children right now reminds me of that. They've all kind of gotten into it with Jet.

I guessed Edmontosaurus for these dinosaurs up ahead. As we got closer and saw the informational sign and the "nest" with hatchlings, both Nichole and Jr. said, "Of course, because Maiasaura means 'good mother'." Told you they've gotten into it.

 

Jet recognized several dinosaurs. Not surprised. We brought along some of his toy dinosaurs as well. Triceratops, Brachiosaurus, and T. rex.

I love this picture that Jr. Jr. got. It totally reminds me of the first Jurassic Park movie. "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear."

Look, it's my favorite dinosaur, stegosaurus.

We even got to see a stegosaurus plate fossil and Jr. Jr. got into a nice discussion with the lady holding the plate and talking to us. She was impressed that our family already knew so much.

As June 15 was Nature Photography Day, we photographed not just dinosaurs (check out this picture of Lucky hiding behind flowers to get pictures of a Utahraptor- nature photography, tee hee).

We also photographed flowers and birds, especially a Cooper's hawk.

 

And Lucky got pictures of the nearby windmills for Global Wind Day.

There was lots of smiling for Smile Power Day. I love dinosaurs! They make me smile. So does my family.

Dinosaur Island was awesome!

Later that day, Jeremy and I watched The Meg to celebrate National Megalodon Day. My mom recommended the movie to us and when she found out we were going to watch it to celebrate the holiday, she watched it, too, in her own home. So fun. Definitely need to suspend your disbelief with that movie and understand that it's so predictable but it was not nearly as gory as Jaws so that's something.

I love how it worked out to watch a movie about a prehistoric shark on the same day we went to see prehistoric creatures at Thanksgiving Point.