Stuff I need to write about

So, you may have noticed that I haven't been around here much lately.  It's not that we haven't been doing anything, I've just been too busy/tired to sit down and write about it.  Here are some things I need to catch up on:

• Workshop at local Metro Park where Monkeyman & Shane built me an awesome bird feeder, plus my newfound love of birdwatching
• Our second Kalahari trip
• Medina Ice Carving Festival
• Putting Thru The Ages mini golf
• Great Lakes Science Center
• Monkeyman's birthday
• Cleveland Museum of Natural History
• Making new friends - for both the kids and me 

Since I like things to be nice and orderly, I'll start at the top of the list with the bird feeder workshop.  It was held at the Seiberling Nature Realm which we have visited before, however, I didn't get any pics from the workshop because I forgot my camera that day.  While Monkeyman and Daddy were at work on their project, Bug & I walked around exploring the visitor center.   One end has a wall of windows that looks out on many bird feeders, so we did some birdwatching for a bit.  Another part of the building has a wall of terrariums containing many interesting creatures - turtles, frogs, spiders, snakes, etc.  As we looked into each cage, I helped Bug find whatever it was that lived within, and each time he spotted a creature he would exclaim "Oh, I see it!  He's gonna bite youuuuu!"  There are also lots of taxidermied animals too look at, and lots of hands-on exhibits to play with, so there was plenty to keep us busy.  When we got home, Monkeyman stained the birdfeeder out in the garage with Dad.  I had this shepherd's hook and the white birdfeeder already, but had the long-overdue idea to move the hook to a spot outside my kitchen window so I can watch my bird-friends while I'm doing the dishes.  Can't believe it didn't occur to me to do that years ago!  I cleaned up the neglected white feeder and hung both of them on the shepherd's hook, and right away we started getting lots of hungry customers.  I have since added a third feeder (a thistle feeder) but I am too lazy to go take another pic.

The kids can also easily watch the birds from the dining room window.  Here's Bug doing some birdwatching with the binocs.  I have been keeping a couple pairs of them on the kitchen counter along with a bird guide so we can identify the different birds we see.

So far we've identified cardinals, blue jays, chickadees, nuthatches, tufted titmice (titmouses?), carolina wrens, juncos, goldfinches, house finches, grackles, mourning doves, red-winged blackbirds, and my favorite visitor so far - the red-bellied woodpecker.

 And now here are just a few bonus pics of them being generally awesome little dudes:

 

So, now you know we're still here!  I promise to try to get back with more updates soon!