Nathan's New Car!

Nathan just got a new car, a 2003 Audi. It is very fun and really wants to go fast!
He sold his other car just a few days after he bought this, so that was nice. He's been gunning for a new car for a long time, and I hope this one lasts us a while.

My Little Foodie

Ethan LOVES getting into my spice cupboard. So far he's finished an old jar of cinnamon and my kosher salt. He pours them in his hand and tastes them, dumps them into plates and bowls, sprinkles them onto things, ending with "That's Enough!" My sister the chef is really proud of him!

Rainy Morning!

This morning it was raining as we left for church. Ethan was very excited to wear his froggy rain gear that Grandma Deb, Aunt Jessie and Aunt Deedee got for him. Here are some pics:

Do You Remember When....

Do you remember when Ethan was this little? Here are Ethan and his friend Layla at the Boston Science Museum in July of 2007 when they were just over a year old...

Providence Children's Museum

Lona and I went to the Providence Children's Museum this morning, we did manage to get there, and her GPS unit helped, but it still took a few tries! When we finally arrived, though, the boys had a blast! Ethan loved the water room!

More Ducks!

Last week I spotted two more species of ducks that I haven't seen before. The first was last Sunday morning, on Rebecca's pond as I drove to church. Ethan and I pulled over for a few minutes to have a better look. He likes to look through the binoculars after I am done! Anyways, there were a few Ring-necked Ducks. Here is a picture from John Schwarz of birdspix.com

The Ring-necked Duck does have a small chestnut ring around its neck, but you'd have to be pretty close to see it. The ring around its bill is a much more visible field mark.

Wednesday morning we were driving to Putnam to meet Nathan for lunch, and I turned down Joy Road to see what was on the pond across the street from the pond behind Sweet Evalina's. There were a few Common Goldeneyes out on the water. Here is a great photo taken by Christopher Taylor at kiwifoto.com.

Upon seeing that I parked my car and whipped out my binoculars they immediately did what every cool new duck I see does....they retreated to the far side of the pond as quickly as they could. Sometimes the ducks swim there, other times they take off and fly to the far side, unless they are a Canada Goose or Mallard, in which case they stay put or come closer. Its like they're saying "Hey! Look at me! I'm so common! You've seen me your whole life! Want a better look?"

A Crazy Day....or I HATE Providence

This morning began with an unusual bird under my bird feeder:

Turns out my neighbor's rooster is behaving very badly and has started attacking the hens. His days are numbered, I think.

Then I tried to take Ethan to the Providence Children's Museum, armed with 3 sets of directions I thought surely I could find the place. Um, no. I HATE (insert very, very bad word here) Providence. I am following directions, I know where I am, I see Providence Place Mall, Federal Hill, the PPAC, I got off the right exit, and am looking for a specific road to turn on, however there are no street signs. So I end up on 6 West, then I get off to get back on 6 East, and try again. And again. Finally I just take 6 West back home. I am crying at this point, and Ethan is sobbing..."Go Museum Now" over and over.

When I get home its time to start making the frosting for the carrot cake I'm making for my friend Lona's baby shower. I turn around to find Ethan "helping" me. He opened both the sugar and flour containers and is happily using a measuring cup to dump flour into the sugar container. Here he is caught in the act:

Finally I got Ethan down for a nap so I can clean up my house-because the shower is here so I have to clean! So I deep cleaned and finished frosting the cake, and stressed thinking I may have to ask the sisters to use a bucket to flush the toilet because its not all going down, either due to mineral buildup or a loose flapper which Brother Fountain talked me through, step-by-step, how to fix 2 hours before the ladies were due to arrive. Thank you Brother Fountain! So between the chicken greeting my guests(no offense Paige-I love your chickens!) as they walk up to the house, and the possibility of having to hand them a bucket of water to flush the toilet, I am feeling like a hick from the sticks, seriously cue the Green Acres music here. Thankfully it all goes well and here is a picture we took before they all went home:

Lutz Museum

My friend Lona and I took our boys to the Lutz Children's Museum this morning. Ethan and Ammon had a great time running around-but they were running in opposite directions the whole time! So, I have no pictures of the two of them together!
Here is Ethan playing with a bucket on a pulley and munching on some corn.


Ethan had a lot of fun playing in the submarine and driving the fishing boat also.

Common Mergansers

This morning I saw both Common and Hooded Mergansers at the smaller beaver pond down Leavitt Road. Last year was the first time I saw the Common Mergansers, they are really a beautiful bird. They are also the most shy of the ducks I've seen around here-if they aren't swimming at the farthest side of the lake or pond, then they quickly swim there as soon as you approach. Here are some pics taken by John Schwarz of birdspix.com.

Besides the mergansers there was also a pair of Wood Ducks. Did you know this species was nearly hunted to extinction 100 years age? They are a conservation success story as we now have over a million of them today. They are quite common in my neck of the woods, and I think the male is one of the most beautiful birds around.

Off topic, but I actually had a baby Wood Duck as a pet for a time in college. Ms. Lampe, the Saddleseat instructor at William Woods University has quite a collection of ducks at Senior Lake in the middle of campus. One summer I worked at the campus barn, taking care of and riding some of our Hunter/Jumper string. Anyways the Wood Ducks had cute fuzzy ducklings that were being eaten by a turtle one by one as they swam in the pond. We decided to intervene when there were only 3 left. Using a lungeline thrown in the water to rein them in, my 2 friends who were working with me and at least 2 of the instructors began operation Baby Wood Duck. Unfortunately the turtle was hungry and snatched 2 ducklings during the rescue, but we saved one duckling and named him-what else?-Woody. He lived in a spacious box in our room for several weeks until he was big enough to release back onto the pond, where he continued to thrive and do well.

Red-Shouldered Hawks!

This morning I was driving down Dodge Road to go up to Southbridge and get gasoline before heading over to the YMCA. Ethan and I slowed down to admire the Frank Lloyd Wright style home, then stopped on the little bridge to see if there was any ducks in the swampy area. Lovely thing about living out in the sticks, I can usually just stop my car and watch a bird for a few minutes. Ethan gets into it also, wanting to look through my binoculars when I'm finished. Anyways there were no ducks, but there was a pair of hawks sitting next to each other on a tree branch about 20 feet over the water. They were a beautiful golden brown color, with white bands on the tail, and light rufous underparts. Here is a picture, again taken by John Schwarz of birdpix.

Happy Saint Patricks Day!

Today we had a few friends over for a small party. We had a baked potato bar, mac and cheese, and a rainbow cake. This was my first attempt using colored icing, I used a small sandwich bag with a corner cut off at first, then I just applied the rest of the icing with a butter knife. Here are the pictures:

After I got the rainbow on, I applied skittles and gold-wrapped chocolate kisses.

It was a beautiful spring day, so after lunch we took the kids outside to run around. I wish I'd taken some pics! Here are some pictures of Ethan after the party, the shirt says Patrick was a Saint, I Ain't!

Hooded Mergansers

Today my neighbor Rebecca emailed me that the mergansers had returned to her pond. She and Michelle live almost right behind us and have a TERRIFIC view overlooking a beaver pond. I hurried over to see what I could see. I love this time of year when the ducks return, because you know Spring is really here. The Mallards, Canada Geese, and Wood Ducks usually stick around, but I don't think the mergansers do. I was pretty happy to see the Hooded Mergansers, as that is a new bird for me and I can add it to my life list. They are fun to watch, they dive a lot and their crests can go all the way up or down, so on the male especially you can watch the white on the crest go from a narrow line to a large patch. Here is a picture of a pair taken by John Schwarz at birdpix. Besides the Canada Geese, Mallards, and Wood Ducks, the beaver was out and about swimming and diving! That was fun to see!

My new workspace!!!

Check out what Nate set up! The monitor times two! Thanks to a trade at work and the purchase of something called(I kid you not) a dongle.

Yes, whatbird really is busy/crazy enough to warrant this extreme set-up. And yes, I LOVE it!!!! The mouse just moves across(seamlessly as Nate would say) from one screen to the other, and I can leave webeditor open while I work and toggle through other webpages, like google spreadsheet, excel, Birds of North America, and any images of the bird I'm working on. How cool is that!!!!

The Children's Museum!

Today we went to this museum in West Hartford with the Elliots. Ethan had been looking forward to this for days, especially when he learned we were Anna Elliot was coming also. He declared his love for Anna during sacrament on Sunday. Anyways, it was a blast! Except for Ethan taking off when my back was turned and having the museum staff notified to help look for this missing child who was found down three flights of stairs having a great time exploring the museum with us. That was scary for a few minutes. Here are some pictures!

Ethan and Nathaniel driving a safari jeep.

Ethan and Anna playing with water. Better than fire, right? ; )

DINOSAUR!

Ethan in the belly of the beast below! Just like Jonah in the book we've been reading!

Please pass the salt

Ethan likes salt. Can you tell? He loves to pull a chair over to the counter, climb up and open the spice cupboard, and go to town opening the spices up, sprinkling them on his palm, and licking it off. I do not condone this behavior.

Red Lentil Balls

Last weekend I met my friend Hilal at the Putnam Science Academy. She and her friends are organizing a cooking class and invited me to join them. Here are Ayesenur, Eman, Hanim, me, and Hilal. Today I learned how to make Red Lentil Balls, which is something I've had with them before and enjoyed. They were simple to make and I can't wait to try them on my own! Here is the recipe if you're curious...
RED LENTIL BALLS
Ingredients:
2 cups red lentils, rinsed
4 cups water
1 cup bulgar
1 onion, finely chopped(or green onion, used raw)
1 Tbs pepper paste
1 Tbs tomato paste
1 bunch parsley, finely chopped
Paprika, cumin, salt, pepper
1 head romaine lettuce, washed and separated
Lemon

1. Boil lentils and water, covered, till soft and lentils easily mash, 15-20 minutes. Turn off heat and add bulgar, mix well and leave covered till bulgar is soft.
2. Sauté onion in olive oil till soft, add pepper paste and tomato paste, add to lentil mixture.
3. Add chopped parsley, salt, pepper, and spices to taste.
4. Use your hands to form the mixture into oval shapes, place in lettuce leaves arranged on a plate. Sprinkle lemon juice over all.

TAG!

I have been tagged by my friend Lona!

I'm supposed to list 5 non important facts about myself...

1. I wish I could sing. I just move my lips in church...

2. I would be happy as a nudist. Maybe a reclusive solitary nudist. I am VERY uncomfortable talking to people. I try though, so if I've ever come off rude or short with you, its not you, it's me. Really.

3. Sometimes I love my son the most when he is asleep.

4. I wonder why God made me so not pretty, seriously beautiful people who can also sing make me sick. Don't you think He could have spread the pretty/talented genes around a bit more?

5. I HATE to sleep. I would love to take a pill so I didn't have to, because then I could maybe get everything done.

Okay now I tag 5 others...

1. Afton S
2. Jenny C
3. Jenny E
4. Jessica W
5. Andee B

Think Spring!

Today I am on the porch working while Ethan naps, and I am not freezing cold! What a difference 15 degrees outside makes. The dripping of melting snow everywhere is beautiful music. I thought this wreath of little eggs was very springlike...

Nathan hates it! Well it'll only be up for a few more weeks. I think it'd look really good against a colored background, maybe I'll paint the door rich navy blue or mossy green this summer. I've been wanting to do that for a while. What do you think? Anyways Nate, these are for you....

Snowy Owl!

Usually when I'm driving at night and I see some sort of owl fly up from the side of the road, by the time my brain registers what it was and to stop and look at it, I've already driven past. Tonight though, as I drove home from Book Club(Jeanette Walls, The Glass Castle-loved it!) a large white bird flew over the road and landed just ahead of me. Since it was almost 10:30 and, since I was driving home I was on a back road, I stopped my car and turned it slightly so the headlights shone where I estimated it had landed. Several seconds went by and I didn't see anything. I was about to drive away when out from behind a tree trunk appears a large, white owl. We gaze at each other for 10-15 seconds, then he spreads his very large wings and flies into the woods across the street. Wow! I am really excited-we hear owls quite often where we live but I've never had a good look at one! I'm pretty sure its a Snowy, but I rush home and use the visual search feature at whatbird.com (clicked on CT, owl shape, primary color: white) and it told me it could have been a Snowy or Barn Owl. Definitely the Snowy. Here is a picture of what he looked like:

photographs courtesy Philip Greenspun
You can learn more about this bird here.
(I wrote the interesting facts on this page-whatbird is my part-time job!)