Backyard Bird List Up to 20 Species

Are you taking Desert Survivor's Backyard Bird Challenge? How many bird species have you seen in your backyard?

A friend asked me how many we have, and I realized we are up to 20 species already! Our list is over in the sidebar to the right, and also below (because that's what will print out when we print our blog book):

1. European starling (1/1/2015)

2. Dark-eyed junco (1/1/2015)

3. Black-billed magpie (1/2/2015)

4. Eurasian collared dove (1/5/2015)

5. House finch (1/5/15)

6. Canada goose (1/5/15)

7. Great horned owl (1/6/15)

8. Northern flicker (1/9/15)

9. American goldfinch (1/11/15)

10. Mallard (1/11/15)

11. Chickens (1/11/15)

12. Red-tailed hawk (1/9/15)

13. Common raven (1/14/15)

14. American Robin (1/24/15)

15. Red-winged Blackbird (1/26/15)

16. Northern harrier (1/27/15)

17. Killdeer (2/13/15)

18. Western meadowlark (2/13/15)

19. White-crowned sparrow (2/13/15)

20. Sandhill crane (2/22/15)

Don't you just love #11? The kids insisted we add that. 

I was very excited to hear the killdeer (photo above) and sandhill cranes, as they were gone for part of the winter. The meadowlarks are already singing their mating songs. Some birds we had in the yard last year but haven't seen yet this year are Cassin's finches and pinyon jays. I think with the really warm winter they have stayed up higher on the mountain.

Desert Girl is getting very good at some of the most common birds we see, like dark-eyed juncos and black-billed magpies. The next few months will be a lot of fun as the list grows quickly. Will we make it to 50 species this year? I've got my fingers crossed!

Sledding!

 We sure haven't gotten much snow this year, but finally we got some. March is coming in like a lion, we'll see if it goes out like a lamb! We weren't about to miss the opportunity to enjoy the snow, so we packed up the sleds, invited friends, and went up into the mountains.

On the way we saw some turkeys cross the road.

We paused to take a closer look. They sure are funny looking birds.

As we got higher, we found more snow, well over a foot deep. Hurray!

The kids were all suited up to make the most of it.

But just getting up the hill proved to be difficult!

We tried out a sledding hill that had some big rocks covered with snow. And then sometimes they weren't covered. It made the sledding extra exciting (or for me, scary!).

We also tried sledding on the road, but it was pretty warm and the snow was sticky.

Nevertheless, when you don't get much snow, you're going to enjoy it, no matter what the condition is.

I love Ava's expression.

Some folks joined us on skis. The wind didn't blow at all, making it a great afternoon to be outside.

Then it was time for the all-important hot chocolate. A sledding trip doesn't quite seem complete without it!

Here's hoping for more winter adventures!

Wild Goose Chase 2015

Every February for the past few years we've had the tradition of going to Delta, Utah for the Snow Goose Festival. Thousands of snow geese are migrating, and this is one of their favorite stops. They hang out for weeks, finding food in the fields and resting on the nearby lakes and reservoirs. Delta has made the event an occasion for a festival with many events. Our favorite event is the Wild Goose Chase, a 5k/10k with kids' races.

My husband and I ran the 5k and both were pretty happy with our results, especially with the very limited training we've gotten in.

Then it was time for the kids. Desert Girl was all ready for the 1/4 mile run.

It was a very wet snow coming down with a slight wind, which made it hard to stay warm. The kids lined up at the starting line. Desert Girl isn't too aggressive, so she hung out in the back.

Ready, set, go! She took a few steps and one of her shoes fell off. Oh no! I helped her get it back on and secured the other one. She was crying, so I held her hand and we ran the race together.


Once she got close to the finish line, she felt better and raced ahead of me, finishing dead last in three minutes and something. She got a medal, so she was happy.


Then it was Desert Boy's turn for the one-mile race. Except they made it a little shorter, which kind of surprised the race director.

Desert Boy did a great job, with dad running with him for a good part of the race. He finished and was also very happy with the medal.

We were all quite cold, so we decided to forego other outside activities and had a lunch of champions. Then we went to the swimming pool and had a great time.  We went to the grocery store and got a couple weeks worth of groceries. Finally it was time to head home. 

But I still hadn't seen any snow geese, and since this was the Snow Goose Festival, I thought we really needed to see some snow geese. My husband rolled his eyes but managed to find some. I took photos and was happy.

Playing with Ice

It seems so crazy for it to be the middle of January and we've had weeks of good weather, sometimes in the 50s during the day. Nevertheless, we do have some small patches of ice left, like in the swimming hole. 

Desert Girl and I went and checked out the ice the other day, noting how the darker leaves had melted deep into the ice--and if they had holes in them, little ice protrusions stuck out of the leaf.

So I proposed an experiment. How about we made our own designs on the ice and come back in a couple days and see what happened? Desert Girl agreed and worked on spelling her name.

Well, the wind blew a little, so we didn't get perfect results, but we did find some letters and semi-letters in the ice.

The mud we put on the ice turned out even better, melting about an inch down.

I let Desert Girl take some photos. She likes to do that a lot.

Another favorite activity is breaking ice.  

Or throwing huge chunks of ice onto other ice or into water so you can get splashed with ice cold water. Who says we don't know how to have fun out in the country? Ha, ha

While the kids kicked and threw and splashed, I took photos. Ice is fascinating.

Enjoy each season to its fullest!

School Christmas Plays 2014

 Desert Boy goes to a one-room school with ten kids total in grades kindergarten through second grade. Every year his teacher picks a different theme for the year, which is an excellent idea to keep things fresh and the kids engaged. This year the theme is different countries, with each student picking one. Desert Boy chose Norway (I think at least partly influenced by the movie Frozen, which he honors frequently by singing the songs from it). The teacher writes the Christmas play, and this year the students were visiting the International Space Station and telling each other about the countries they came from.

They made such cute astronauts!

It took me a little while to get my manual settings correct for the indoor lighting. I was doing better by the time the next group came on stage, the 3rd-6th graders, who also attend a one-room school (actually the school has more than one room, but all 15 kids are in the same classroom with one teacher). They took us to the tropics for a pirate-themed play with lots of song and dance numbers.

They had obviously put in a lot of time to get the choreography right and memorize all the songs and lines.

Afterwards Santa arrived, and my kids ran to get in line to visit them.

Desert Boy had no qualms about sitting on Santa's lap. He asked for a toy light saber. But later, in the retelling, it sounded like he wanted a toilet saver. So now that's a family joke.

Desert Girl wasn't at all certain about sitting on Santa's lap. She couldn't think of what she wanted. She got uncomfortable.

I thought she might cry. Finally she got her bag of candy, peanuts, and a Cutie, and quickly departed.

Most of the kids enjoyed their visits with Santa, though, including this little guy whose father was afraid that his child might recognize Santa. I think he was safe.

Merry Christmas! The excitement is building in our house.

The Nativity Play--Dress Rehearsal

The kids will be in a Nativity play on Christmas Eve, playing an angel and King Herod. We had a dress rehearsal the other day, which is one of my favorite times to take photos because I don't have to stay in my seat. The play begins with Gabriel announcing to Mary and then Joseph what is to come. Then they sing O Come Emmanuel (with the help of the Innkeeper).

Meanwhile, the Wise Men were busy finding wise things on their smartphones. Ha, ha.

 The kids were really into singing. Desert Girl added a little stretching. She has a really hard time sitting still for 20 minutes. I'll just pretend she's fluttering around like an angel.

The little kids always add some comedic relief to the play. Thank goodness they have the older kids to hold it all together.

Of course, sometimes the older kids have their fun too. Mary decides her feet are sore, so she puts them up on the makeshift manger. I remember putting my feet up a lot when I was pregnant.

Later, Joseph and Mary had a little tussle over who got to hold the improvised Baby Jesus. It was funny to watch.

My angel!

The shepherds hung out on their hill, tending their sheep. Actually all their sheep were missing (the cast is a little small due to families being out of town), so they just played with their imaginary sheep.

And tried out some wrestling moves. The angels didn't approve.


Meanwhile, King Herod waited patiently on his throne, running shoes ready to make a mad dash if need be.

The three Wise Men came to visit him and find out where the newborn King was.

Later, King Herod died.

And the play ends with Joy to the World. It is so joyous to see the kids better understand the Nativity play and the true meaning of Christmas.

We'll see what interesting expressions transpire on Christmas Eve as they do the play with a big audience and lights and microphones. It's always good for a few chuckles. Thanks so much to Sharon for organizing it and directing the aspiring actors.

Wishing you a joyous Christmas!