KETTLING KITES

Leaving the soccer fields tonight I spotted a couple dozen Mississippi Kites kettling (the soccer fields are at the top of one of the bigger hills in Vicksburg). I'd never seen kites kettle, so I made the kids stand there with me for a LONG time while I watched them - it was super cool!

ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK

My first ever sighting of a Rose-breasted Grosbeak in my very own yard!

CAMP MORNINGS

Camp mornings are just some of the best mornings... Waking up to the sound of the birds and the wind in the leaves, sitting around a campfire with coffee, playing games, and just being with each other without other distractions. Yup, the best.

 Somebody lost her 4th tooth this morning. It had been super loose for a long time, but she definitely caused that looseness herself (trying to keep up with big brother...)

 Rollerz is pretty fun (and easy to set up and play).

 Just a little pier walk to check out the lake at Lake Chicot and use the monoculars they got for Christmas in their fort building kit.

A BIRD IN THE HAND...

 We went out the front door to take pictures of the kids' jack-o-lanterns and later discovered that it's now the time of year when we can't use the front door after dark. We have a wren that roosts in our wreaths during the fall and winter, and apparently it flew in unseen as we scooted out for photos, because once James was tucked back in his bed to read himself to sleep he called me down the hall with a "Mama, there's a bird in my room!" So we quickly shut his bedroom door to prevent it getting loose in the house, and the kids sat on the floor and watched as I jumped on the beds and over toys to catch the rudely awoken (and thus pretty confused) Carolina Wren. Once I had it in hand, I showed them how to properly hold a songbird and let them inspect it, then walked it outside. Before I could release it though, both kids wanted to pet it's head, then Cora asked for a turn to hold it. After a quick explanation and a reminder to be gentle, she proudly held that bird while I snapped a couple photos. And then it flew off. And I showed the kids the other Carolina Wren that was roosting in the corner of the carport above our heads. Fun end to the evening!

TREASURE HUNT

We spent time today hiding some of Christopher's treasure at a couple of his favorite spots. It felt really special to get to experience those places, and find out what his favorite zoo exhibit was and where he liked to play at the aviation museum.

I know it doesn't count because they are captive, but I saw my first Condors!

SEARCHING FOR SNOWY

The ice storm brought a snowy owl way off course down here to Mississippi and we learned about it yesterday. It was spotted for multiple days just 30 minutes north of us, so we set off on an adventure this morning to see if we could spot it. Turns out we were too late (not surprising, since the weather cleared up and then really warmed up yesterday), but it was still fun to take the kids birding and let them experience the chase. Plus, we got to see a hunting dog competition of sorts (they were flinging dead ducks from behind blinds and the dogs were taking turns fetching them, being timed for their retrievals - never seen that before) and LOTS of hawks. James said he had fun, so hopefully we can do it again soon. It's always nice to get out of the house and go for a drive to new locales!

GOING ON A PUFFIN HUNT

Our last morning at the beach was a bit hectic with a quick run to grab the 6th car parked off-site at the casino (only 5 cars were allowed in the rental house driveway), cleaning the house, and packing cars. I missed saying goodbye to Jamie, Tyson, and Ally because they left really early and I unexpectedly slept in, but we got hugs from everyone else before they loaded into their vehicles for their respective long drives home.

The kids were so adorable snuggling together (they shared a bed 3 out of the 4 nights we were at the beach house) that I couldn't resist a few photos before waking them up.

Our first stop en route to Portland was Pacific City, where we took in their gorgeous beach view (in the rain...), then headed into the Pelican Pub and Brewery for brunch and beer.

So, I wouldn't normally think "beer" when I think "brunch" (mimosa, sure), but it was almost 11:00am anyway and we were, of course, interested in sampling their award-winning brews. We decided that ordering the Scottish Style Ale Pancakes (with hazelnut butter and blackberry syrup) would be a good pairing. And we were right.

Of COURSE we ordered a side of bacon!

As we traveled north on the VERY slow and winding highway 101, we checked our BirdsEye app to find out where the latest sightings of puffins had been. Turns out Canon Beach, our goal destination, was where we needed to go. Unfortunately finding parking near the famous beach where portions of Goonies was filmed was extremely difficult, but after a bit of frustrated turn-arounds and loops, a pair of birders appeared at the top of the stairs, gave us their parking spot, and told us exactly where we needed to look on haystack rock to see the pair of puffins. Cha-ching!

It was colder and more rainy here than anywhere else we'd been. The kids were NOT impressed. So, being the awesome parents that we are, we tucked them into a wind break under the lifeguard stand and told them to sit tight for 5 minutes while mommy and daddy ran out to the rocks to sight the birds and grab some photos. We are lucky to have such patient kids...

Getting my pair of Tufted Puffins. And a pair of Harlequin Ducks. And some Surf Scoters. Not bad for 5 minutes of work (and 3 hours of driving - it's cool though, at least the kids got their first solid 2-hour nap of vacation).

SUNROOM OR ZOO?

Everyone knows we've had a kitty in our sunroom for some time now. Maxine comes and goes as she pleases (we leave the door ajar most days and nights), even though she wishes more than anything to be a house cat. If anyone is looking to adopt a loveable 2-year-old beauty, here she is (and by the way, she's slim and trim now that's she back to being an indoor/outdoor cat - she had put on some serious weight after her kittens were born and she was locked in the sunroom for a couple months until we could get her fixed):
Due to our leaving the door open, our resident pair of Carolina Wrens decided to build their nest inside this year, in one of our hanging plants. So, no more closing the door at night...
Then we found a snake in the sunroom. Maxine was scared, so we don't think she brought it in. When we told my mom she asked whether we had a sunroom or a zoo...

WINTER BIRDS

Although temps are still in the upper 60s/70s, our winter birds have arrived! For the past week we've been enjoying the goldfinches on the thistle feeder, then this weekend, the juncos showed up and we noticed the leatherleaf mahonia blooming and covered with bees (and yes, we know it's nonnative, but we didn't plant it, and it smells sooo good).

BABYMOON/BIRTHDAY/ANNIVERSARY CRUISE

That's right, we're going to be parents soon, so we figured we better get some practice at multi-tasking! We will be celebrating our 5th anniversary this December, my 30th birthday is coming up this weekend, and all the pregnancy books we've read recommend taking a "Babymoon" before the baby arrives. So, in the interest of saving time and money, we decided to combine all these celebrations in a fun cruise to the Bahamas with some friends and family (not necessarily our family, but our family by choice, if we could have a 3rd - the Birdsong Clan!)

We set out from Jacksonville on Thursday for a 4-day cruise to Nassau and Freeport, taking advantage of the federal holiday on Monday for Columbus Day (see, aren't we good at multitasking already?) Here are Jay, Jackson, Betsy, and John boarding the ship:

The cruise was a perfect getaway. We did a great job handling the buffets. We swam in the sea-water pools on the ship and even hit the hot tub the first night (before the water temperature got too hot for this Bahama Mama!) We went on a 2-hour birding tour where I saw 11 new species (including the Smooth-billed Ani and Bananaquit, the species I was most hoping to see). I even got my first pregnancy comment from someone who didn't know that I was pregnant... our tour guide looked me over as I was staring up into the trees and said "Oh, I see you two are making a baby" in her English accent! I absolutely LOVED it and almost cried I was so happy (what a pregnant sap I am!) Anyway, on with the details... We made it to every sit-down dinner and heavily enjoyed the Captain's Dinner menu (mmmm... lobster). We went to a couple of the on-board shows. We ate at Senor Frogs and snorkeled in Nassau. Jay played in the Slot Tournament, but wasn't a big winner (it's the fun that counts though). I spent a lot of time reading my first book on how to take care of a newborn (I'm getting tired of the pregnancy books, and it's about time to start planning ahead anyway). And there was lots of time to catch up with our friends. They even threw us a surprise Baby Shower during our day at sea! Thank you all (especially Betsy, for putting it together), again and again, for the lovely baby boy gifts, the delicious blue chocolate suckers, and for making us feel so special! We are so lucky to have friends like you guys! All in all, we have to say it was a great vacation! On with the photos! Here is Jean waving farewell from the dock at Mayport as the cruise ship passed by (2.5 hours later than we thought it would!)

Here we are passing underneath the Dames Point Bridge (also known as the Napoleon Bonaparte Broward Bridge), which is America's longest cable-stayed bridge, spanning the St. John's River

Dianna took a lot of photos at our surprise baby shower (Thank You Dianna!), so here is just one, where the two of us are actually looking at the camera!

Dressed up for the Captain's Dinner

Pulling into port in Nassau, we spied a pair of rainbows

In front of the Cloisters on Paradise Island, on our birding tour

Jay, Jackie, Jeff, Jay, and Eric at Senor Frogs in Nassau

John and Betsy joined us for lunch with a sleeping Jackson (not pictured)

There were 4 cruise ships in port by mid-day. Ours is the white one (hee hee). And yes, Jay is enjoying cheap beer before getting back on the boat...

While in Nassau, Jay found us a beach for swimming and snorkeling. We saw a lionfish, a damselfish, a big red starfish, and lots of other little silver fish. Jay and John jumped off the sea wall. Jackson found lots of seashells and Hunter practiced his doggie-paddle skills. That's Betsy with Jackson and Scott with Hunter in the photo below:

Last night of the cruise... the Birdsongs all got together for some family photos, and we decided to take some of all us "kids" while we were at it! Here are Jackie, Scott, Hunter, Jenny, Jeff, Betsy, John, Jackson, Jay, Denise, Jay, Dianna, and Greg (and yes, most of the Birdsong Clan is clad in Jaguars apparel or colors, and they won!):

Luckily, we flew out of Orlando, so we had some quality time in the car with Jean to tell her all about the cruise. Here she is with Jay at the airport:

THE GREENING OF ARIZONA

This is the 8th wettest monsoon in recorded Arizona history, and it's showing on the hillsides. Everything is green and there are more flowers in bloom than I've seen on any other trip (most of them are small and low to the ground, under the grass, but they're there). Even with all the rain we got on our July sampling trip, it's like night and day from then and now. There is so much green it's shocking!

The hummingbirds are out in force in our sample plots. Anywhere there is an agave blooming, there are at least 2 hummingbirds fighting over the nectar. I can't tell the species from my photo, but here is a female hummingbird pollinating a Palmer's agave. The only bad thing about all the new growth we're seeing is the pollen, and the resulting allergic reactions we're all having. I'm not allergic to ANYTHING, or so I thought... apparently, I am highly allergic to the invasive Lehmann lovegrass (from Africa). As we wade through our plots that have a high density of the lovegrass, we just watch as the pollen blows up into our faces (the many many many grasshoppers that are out now are not helping, every time they jump they knock more pollen into the air). Claritin seems to be helping a little. Our helpers from NAU have taken to wearing face masks to try and block some of the pollen...

TROGON TRIUMPH!

I can rest soundly tonight because I have finally seen an Elegant Trogon! And he was just as fancy as I had anticipated!! Here he is in all his glory (sorry about the dark lighting in the photo, but I was dodging storms to search Huachuca Canyon for the trogons late this afternoon).

FLORIDA CAVERNS

So, even though the trip started off shaky, we stuck to our plans and stayed the night in Marianna, FL, and the next morning we went to Florida Caverns State Park. FYI, even though it opens at 8:00am, the tours don't start until 9:00am (so sleep-in that extra hour and save yourself some frustration). They also happened to be one tour guide short that day, so the first tour didn't get started until after 9:30am. To pass the time, we went up to the Blue Hole swimming area (yeah right, like I'd ever get in that opaque gator pit) and walked around.

This snake (we think it's a Florida Pine Snake) was being attacked by a Mississippi Kite and a Red-shouldered Hawk (at the same time!), but we inadvertently scared them off.

On the other side of the pond, we saw this Cottonmouth curled up at the base of a Cypress. Jay walked within striking distance, then turned to point at a nearby caterpillar when I looked at him like he was crazy (he's Captain Obervant, so I figured he had seen the snake).

The caverns themselves were pretty cool (65 degrees, he he)... if you aren't someone who lived at Carlsbad Caverns National Park for 8 months! The tour was short (45 minutes, maybe a quarter mile long) and shallow (most of the caverns are at 30ft, though they go as deep as 50ft below the "wedding cake") with far too much lighting (they had algae growing everywhere)! The tour guide was OK... he knew his stuff, but he kept it really basic and left a LOT of silence hanging around. Anyway, here are a few photos from down under (and we'll do another blog later with some of our better pictures from Carlsbad, so you can see what a REAL impressive limestone cave is all about).

One cool, unique aspect to this cave was the number of shells and fossils we could see.

This bullfrog, who took up residence at the "South America pond" about 6 months ago, was pretty unique too. The rangers say he must be happy eating cave crickets...