I Love Birding Challenges

Besides the annual reading challenge I'm doing, it is another year for a birding challenge through Utah County Birders. Books and birds. Aren't they great? And yes, I will sometimes listen to an audiobook while I'm looking at birds.

Jeremy and Nichole (who are also doing the birding challenge), got out one evening for some bonding birding time to the Provo River Delta and saw a barn owl among a few other birds.

Jeremy and I decided to go the next week for a morning birding adventure to see if we could find the owl.

We got there nice and early. You know I love mornings in nature. It was cold, we didn't see the barn owl, but we saw so many other birds. It was worth it.

And somehow I turned the exposure way down on the birding camera so all the bird pictures we took are dark. Sigh.

Oh well. We still enjoyed seeing them... together.

 

I love bonding time! 

 

That day, January 17, was Popeye Day and Hot Heads Chili Day so we had spinach salad and chili on cornbread (I added hot sauce on top of my chili).

The next day, January 18, was Winnie-the-Pooh Day. We had foods with honey: Honey garlic chicken, salad with honey mustard dressing.

It was also Thesaurus Day so we had fun figuring out different way of saying things. Lucky wanted to make Kool-aid. I corrected him and told him it was "Colored Flavored Sugar Water." He needed to put crystalized sweetener in it (aka sugar). The funny thing is the honey I used for dinner was crystalized (crystalized sweetener) so I had to heat it up in order to use it. Heh Heh Heh. 

Tick Tock Tick Tock- Time to Talk about Christmas

Since it's Tick Tock Day (December 29), I might as well catch up on the last few days. I said the days around Christmas Eve/Christmas Day were pretty big days so I didn't really blog much because of the busyness then the next few days were kind of chill so I didn't blog then either because I wasn't doing much productive. Today I'm being productive, including blogging so here we go.

 

Jet: My turn!

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Christmas Eve, I got my morning walk in and Jeremy and I spent a lot of time in the kitchen and spent a lot of time trying to catch up on last minute things. I didn't get everything done I wanted to both with food and other stuff so we ate late and I just had to scrap some of my ideas.

Jet: My turn! 

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Jr. Jr. and I did manage to finish and wrap juggling balls for everybody in the family so we all got to open those on Christmas morning.

 

Jet: My turn!

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Before bed Christmas Eve, Jet set out cookies for Santa.

We hung our stockings by the fire- the Darth Vader Yule Log this year. 

I got out for a walk Christmas morning because Jeremy needed some sleep that morning so we got a late start with everyone coming out to the living room. 

Some year's past, Jet has been still asleep when it was time to go out or just slow going. This year, though, he was so excited and was the first person to run out to the living room when it was time. He was very excited about everything. He is so cute.

The week before Christmas, Jet came home from school one day after Santa visited and let us know Santa was going to bring him a scooter for Christmas. That's what he told Santa he wanted and wow, that was the first we'd heard about it.

Apparently Santa delivered and he got that scooter for Christmas with a Spider-man helmet. That little boy got several Spider-man things for Christmas or around Christmas. Christmas Eve the kids opened up pajamas from grandparents (Jet's were Spider-man pjs). 

A few days before Christmas, each family member came to Mom and Dad and we talked about spiritual gifts and let them know what gifts we saw in them. Then they opened up a present from grandparents- this time, a blanket (Jet's was Spidey and His Amazing Friends, of course).

The day after Christmas, December 26, was Wren Day and it was National Candy Cane Day. Jeremy, Nichole, and I took Jet to the Provo River Delta so he could try out his new scooter on the trail and we could look at birds. I thought Jet would be slow but apparently he picked up on riding a scooter really quick and zoomed along the trail.

I did take a moment to capture a picture that celebrated both holidays. Birding on Wren Day with a candy cane.

Jet was content to go home when it was time. He got hot chocolate with a candy cane in it. 

Saturday was a lazy day and it was so nice. I didn't even go out for a walk.

 

Sunday, December 28, was Stan Lee's Birthday so I wore my bow earrings. It was also National Chocolate Candy Day. We definitely ate chocolate candy. It was also Card Playing Day. Jeremy and I played a card game. 

This morning, I went for a walk in the park again with the lights. It was cold.

And since it's Tick Tock Day, I'll also mention that we celebrated Lucky's birthday earlier in December.

For the balloons for Lucky's class, he decided on penguins, narwhals, but couldn't figure out the last design. Jeremy made his suggestion. Everyone was confused (a rocket?) until he called me over.

Ohhhhh. Missile-toe! Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha!

It was finally decided that the last design would be a mouse with a Santa hat (not the missile-toe). It was a popular design.

 O.K. Enough of blogging.

The Big Sit

It has been years since I participated in The Big Sit. The Big Sit is where a group of birders gather together in a 17 foot circle and see what birds can be seen from that circle in a 24 hour period- usually birders don't stick around that long, it's usually dawn to dusk (because that's when you can see the birds). It also doesn't have to be the same birders all day, just the same circle. This year for Utah County Birders it was at the end of the Provo River Delta. Nichole and I went in the morning and stayed for a few hours. First bird of the day we saw cross the road in front of us while we were driving- skunk. Okay, not a real bird but it was fun to see. We saw plenty of real birds, the highlight was a peregrine falcon that flew by. No longer my "nemesis bird." I've seen a few in the wild since then.

The Big Sit is done all over at least the United States. I'm not sure about other countries. Lots of groups do it. The bird count (species and how many of each species) is put on an ebird record and that's how the information is logged for the annual event.

Nichole and I enjoyed ourselves. There was plenty of birdwatching as well as socializing. You know I like both. It's always good to catch up with other birders.

Our birding friend who helped us jump our van in St. George was there and of course he brought some things that someone else forgot. Always to the rescue, always the hero.

Nichole and I stayed until almost noon when I got stung by a bee so we decided it was time to go home even if we would have stayed a few more minutes. It had climbed on my shirt and I didn't think it climbed up my shirt sleeve so I was patting my arm hard "just to make sure." I felt the sting and felt really bad for it because it was my fault and it was an actual bee and not a yellow jacket. I would have felt worse for me if it was a yellow jacket. One of the other birders used her long fingernails to get the stinger out of my arm. See? Birders are helpful people. So, it was too bad that that happened but other than that it was a good day. I love sharing things like this with my daughter especially since October 11 was International Day of the Girl Child.

I did not have my camera to take pictures because it was in South Carolina with Jeremy. I would rather it be with him there. Binoculars were plenty good for me.

 

A few days before The Big Sit, Nichole and I went to the Bean Museum at BYU for the monthly UCB meeting. Jeremy joined from South Carolina on Zoom because two hours ahead, he was done with his balloon building for the day. 

I don't have a picture but the day after The Big Sit was International Moment of Frustration Scream Day on October 12. I didn't feel like screaming again this year (I'm fine with that), but I had one child almost scream when I tried to wake him for church.

I actually had a good day. I got to teach Relief Society. After church I got a long nap. It was a pretty good day. 

 

Walk with a Friend

I'd been meaning to get out with my friend for a walk to introduce her to the Provo River Delta and we finally got together on September 19. 

I wore my Jurassic Park shirt because the elementary school was doing "kindergarten color days" and encouraged people to wear the color for the day so the kindergartners could see them wearing the color they were learning about. This day was Black/White.

I wore my pirate necklace because it was International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Yes, our family talked like pirates, too. I even had Jet saying, "Arrrgh," before heading into school.

If you use your imagination, you can imagine we're on a pirate ship for the pictures we took on the viewing tower at the Delta. 

I wore my bow earrings because it was Hermione Granger's Birthday and Slimey the Worm's Birthday. The earrings and necklace did not relate this time.

As it was Butterscotch Pudding Day, I made butterscotch pudding. 

Walks

I have been enjoying getting out for walks in the mornings when I can. I've done a lot along the lake. It's been fun to see the changes in the lake from Winter to Spring, from frozen to unfrozen.

Here are some of my morning pictures from my walks or brief stops by the lake to get a look.

 

January

 

February

March 

Sometimes I take walks along the river or the Provo River Delta.

This wildlife viewing tower is where I was in the last picture. I took the picture of the tower from over by that tree way behind me.

Sometimes I walk at local parks. I love living in a place where there are mountains all around.

 

While we're talking about the lake (or let's go back to talking about the lake), Jeremy and I went out to Utah Lake State Park one day and got to see some cool ice stacks. Here are some pictures of them.

I already mentioned ice stacks I saw on Valentine's Day.

 

And while I'm going back to talking about things, somehow I missed mentioning on my blog (probably because I was falling asleep while trying to catch up) that on March 3, besides being National Cold Cuts Day and Soup It Forward Day, it was also World Wildlife Day and I went to the Provo River Delta for a walk but also got to see a long-tailed duck, a duck I don't see that often. Yippee! 

Another day, Jeremy and a couple of the kids were able to go see it. Also yippee!