Springtime in Ohio

 

It has been a warmer than usual April in Ohio. 

We have had beautiful, warmish weather to encourage the flowers to bloom, spring to come to life, and temperatures that persuade one to walk outdoors to enjoy it all.

 

 

Sunday we walked a trail along the Greenville Creek. 

Not much rain lately, so a nice calm view made for a peaceful scenic walk.

 

Lots of spring flowers.  Mostly whites, blues, and purples. 

Of course, the hearty dandelion is in full bloom as well.

 

These adorable beauties remind me of small versions of what we call Johnny Jump Ups. 

So tiny and precious.

 

This large rock (longer than this angle makes it look)

beckons one to settle upon it for an afternoon snooze.

 

One of my favorites - the violet.

 

All kinds of pretties in full bloom.

 

A little button of a mushroom growing off a log.

 

At the other end of the same log this moss is sprouting.  Looks like a little grassy village.

 

--

 

Thanks for letting me share and thank you for reading.

I have been WAY lax in sharing my musings.  I was recently asked to do a little writing for someone and it got me questioning why I'm not writing and sharing on my own. 

Things get busy and life gets in the way.

So, I am working on taking time again to stop and smell the flowers, photograph the creek and fungus, and take time to share with my friends.

 

Take care everyone and take time to enjoy the spring moments.

Great Horned Owls

These photos were stored in a draft.  Looks like I started this at one point and never got back to it after I loaded the photos.  These are probably from 2011.  Great Horned Owl babies at a local park.

The last photo shows the parent owl at the nest spot.  This was the first and only time I have seen a parent at the tree in the 3 years I've been watching this family.

It's amazing and fascinating to see them grow up and leave the nest.  Exciting too because the babies have no fear of you.  They sit on the limb and stare back all the while I am clicking photos.  These photos were before the babies were limb walking.  I have some shots not yet posted of that.  Plus should have pictures of the 2012 and 2013 families.  More for another day perhaps.

Return to Blogging

I cannot believe it has been so long since I posted.  Other social media options plus not being online as much in the evening cramped by blogging :)

A new friend brought to my attention that I have been lacking in providing "great stuff" which was all "fantastic".  So, I am getting updated and going to make an effort to start blogging again.  I enjoyed it and if others enjoy reading it - I need to do it.  So, feel free to keep me on track and remind me if I get lacking again.

I'll have to go through my summer photos and see what I need to share.  The image at the top of my Blog is from Summer 2012.  A fabulous opportunity I should have shared in that we watched and photographed baby green heron at a lake in a very populated area of Dayton, Ohio.  They were fascinating to watch and very cooperative in being photographed.  I didn't make it back this year to see if there was a new family.

 

A collage print of the Green Heron babies.

 

I hope to get back in the habit and blog something a few times a month,  I am always up to something so there will be plenty to chat about.  Thank you BM for the gentle positive nudge in getting me back online.

Birders Field Trip

On February 19 I headed west with some members of our local bird club to spend a few days birding in west central Indiana. We spent Saturday and Sunday exploring the areas of Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area and Greene-Sullivan State Forest in Linton, IN.

One our first sightings of the trip were Snow Geese. The ones we spotted were Blue Phase (their coloring). First time I had seen these beauties. The next day we would see some in White Phase.

Someones quick eye noticed something rustling in the ditch along one of the drives. We paused and witnessed 8 Bobwhite crossing in front of us. I was only quick enough to catch one of them.

This hawk perched long enough for us to get a good look at him. Possibly a Red tailed Hawk.

It was a surprise to see the following and I was thrilled to witness it. Sandhill Cranes were migrating in by the dozens. I had never seen this bird before. After this trip I can happily say I say hundreds if not thousands of them.

A very pretty bird. Mostly grayish with a red patch on it's head. At night they rest in the water but during the day we saw them feeding and flirting in the fields. You will notice the one bird towards the left is hunched down a bit - he was "dancing" to impress a potential mate. This was fascinating to watch.

The weekend we were there two of the volunteers for the area were there counting birds - tracking the species migrating through. They recorded 7,200 Sandhill Cranes on one day. Another species they were counting were the geese. Below a group of mixed geese were spotted. I forget how many hundred are in this picture.

It is mix of Snow Geese, White Fronted Geese, and Canada Geese.

This beautiful pair of Mute Swan flew in while we were watching some ducks and geese.

Across the lake is a Bald Eagle perched in it's nest. This picture is not very good - but for the distance it turned out decent. With the eagle's head being white it's hard to see - but you can barely make out the 'shoulders' and head.

In a different area there is an abandoned Bald Eagle nest.

This nest was built and used 3 years ago. It has been abandoned since. It's somewhat close to the road and attracted too much attention. Spooked the pair from returning the following year.

We came along a resting deer. I wish this had turned out clearer - it's definitely a Kodak moment. We saw many deer during our trip.

During our two day trip at Goose Pond and the Forest we saw approximately 50 species of birds. Between our drive there, two days there, one day around Indianapolis for our drive back, and our drive home we saw 64 species. Many of which were new to me. It was a fascinating and refreshing weekend.

The end

Buried Treasure

My sister now resides in my Grandparents home. Gradually we've been going through things to see what they left behind. My sister got curious and decided to check out the basement - we've know there were vending / peanut machines down there - just hadn't yet checked it out. She's had a week of adventure and unearthed the following...
Advance Machine Co. Chicago, U.S.A.
Pat'd 11-5-12 4-24-23

Otherwise known as the

"Big Mouth" 1 Cent Peanut Vending Machine

It has the original AMCO lock with key.

A box of parts revealed what we think may be gumball inserts for the machines...

Part Number B 2173

Part Number V8ax

This machine she cleaned up a bit - it's nice and shiny....