Ms. Pat's Nature Club

Nature Club, Feb. 15 & 16

2012-02-19T10:15:00.008-06:00

This week our Nature Club theme was Nature Rocks. We talked about where rocks come from and how we use rock and stone in our daily lives. I showed the kids some items from my house made of stone (lava stone grinder, pumice stone, paperweights) and some other interesting rocks, like geodes. I brought my rock collection to school and gave them magnifying glasses so they could examine some of the pretty and interesting rocks more closely. We picked out our favorites and some kids expressed an interest in having their own rock collections! We also built things from smooth river rocks and made patterns with pebbles.

Nature Club - January 31, February 1

2012-02-05T10:04:00.007-06:00

Since I just got back from scuba diving in Mexico, I was inspired to bring my collection of sea creatures for the kids to look at. Some of them had already learned about animals of the ocean and had thoughtful questions. It was very new to others. Everyone was extremely interested in the shells, sponges,corals, starfish and sand dollars they looked at. I think they really appreciated how interesting and beautiful ocean creatures are.

Nature Club

2012-01-19T11:06:00.007-06:00

The Nature Club met on January 17 and 18 to talk about signs of animals in the snow. We talked about how you can tell that animals have been there even though you never see the animals. I read In the Snow: Who's Been Here? by Lindsay Barrett George. We stamped animal tracks on paper, as well as animal and plant pictures. We all enjoyed it and wished we had just a little more snow!

Nature Club

2012-01-11T22:05:00.007-06:00

Nature Club met on January 3 and 4 for the first classes of 2012. I'm sorry to be posting these pictures so much later, but there have been issues with my computer. Hopefully, everything will be resolved by the next Nature Club classes.
On Jan. 3 and 4, we talked about wild animals and tame animals. I explained that tame animals, like pets and farm animals, have people who feed, water and care for them. Wild animals have to take care of themselves and find their own food and water.
We had some very interesting discussions about our pets and about wild animals we've seen. We played a game where we guessed the animal and what kind it was. We also played a game where we acted out different wild and tame animals.
We had lots of fun and I gave the kids some homework: whenever they saw an animal, they should decide if it was wild or tame!

Nature Club

2011-12-15T13:31:00.008-06:00

Ms. Pat's Nature Club met on December 13 and 14 to make Christmas presents for the birds. Although we are having a mild winter (so far) with little snow, the weather will very likely get colder and snowier and we want to help our little feathery friends.
We used little milk cartons for the feeders, and added twigs for a resting place, as well as yarn to hang it all from the tree. We took home wild bird seeds and planned to place the bird feeders in a tree or bush at home.
It was lots of fun and the kids were all excited to help out Nature!

Nature Club

2011-11-18T11:40:00.002-06:00

The Nature Club had a lot of fun this week looking for changes. We went out and checked our pumpkin experiment to see if it had changed at all (it had rotted more). Then we looked around at the grass and trees to see how they had changed since school started. We collected sticks for a project in December and then took advantage of the continuing nice weather by pretending to be trees swaying in the wind, and birds flying south. Some of us just ended up rolling down the hill because it was fun! See our pictures in the following post!

Nature Club

2011-11-18T10:47:00.005-06:00

Nature Club

2011-11-07T09:26:00.007-06:00

The Nature Club met on November 1st and 2nd. Our topic this week was how nature recycles everything natural, and what happens to pumpkins if you leave them out all winter. We began our experiment by taking a jack-o-lantern and a very small pumpkin out to the edge of some woods near our playground. We marked the spot and left a sign that a science experiment was in progress. We also left a plastic bucket beside the pumpkins. Next spring, when the snow is gone, we will check and see what has happened to the pumpkins and the bucket.

Nature Club

2011-10-21T07:35:00.006-05:00

This week in Nature Club, we wanted to find Living Things. They could be plants or animals (including people-we are part of nature, too!). The challenge was that only two out of five classes could go outside, due to intermittent rain showers. We met that challenge by discussing what was alive and drawing pictures of some form of life. The two classes that went out had no trouble finding plants:trees, bushes, flowers, weeds and grass. Animals were harder because it was cold enough that all the insects and worms were in hiding. We looked for squirrels, but they hid, too! We FINALLY saw some birds. An interesting exploration and lots of fun!

Nature Club

2011-10-06T07:28:00.006-05:00

We had a wonderful time in Nature Club this week! The weather in Minnesota has been too dry, but it makes for spectacular nature watching! Everyone got a paper bag to collect some nature in (nothing gooey or stinky -or alive!). We found lots of sticks, pine cones, rocks, and leaves. A few lucky kids even found feathers. We love collecting nature!

Nature Club

2011-09-22T10:00:00.005-05:00

We had our first Nature Club meeting this week in all the preschool rooms, RRR and Kindergarten. We talked about what "nature" is and learned how to use the words natural and man-made. We played a game in which each child got to pick an item from a group of miscellaneous things, decide what it was, and put it in either the natural wood basket or the plastic bucket. After that, I read Nature Spy by Shelley Rotner and Ken Kreisler. Everyone had fun and got very excited about watching for nature!

Nature Watch- Cozumel, Mexico

2011-07-06T16:51:00.008-05:00

(1)This is bouganvillia in our front yard in my very favorite color.
(2)Palm trees poking their heads out of a palmetto jungle on the east side of the island (the wild side). I think they look like the truffula trees in The Lorax by Dr. Seuss.
(3)You can see a double rainbow over the Yucutan Penninsula if you look very hard.
(4)The hole in the sand is a sea turtle nest- the tracks leading to and from the ocean are made by the turtle. The nests are protected by the government.
(5)Can you find the iguana on the branch? We named him Waldo because he's hard to find. He comes out when the sun is high to warm up his body!

Nature Club- The Last One for the Year

2011-05-27T13:04:00.006-05:00

This week we had our very last Nature Clubs for the school year. I showed the preschoolers how to make bark rubbings and challenged them to find other natural things to get rubbings from. I also showed them how they could try rubbing dandelions, grass, rocks, etc., on their papers to see if some color would rub off. They were very creative in the things they tried AND even got some grass to rub off on their clothes (grass stains- I didn't tell them to do that!)
A fun class time and then we had suckers as an end-of-the-year treat. Have a great summer and...watch for nature!

Nature Nuts

2011-05-23T20:43:00.005-05:00

We had our last Nature Nuts class on May 20. The weather just has not been cooperating with anyone this spring and last Friday was no exception. It rained and since most of the kids did not have raincoats or jackets with them, we had to stay in. We read our two pond books that we didn't have time for last time. We fingerpainted ponds and then made fish prints to go in the pond. We had a great time and everyone agreed they love Nature Nuts class. Thanks to all the parents who believe in nature education!!
Note: I was originally a little disappointed that the fish prints didn't look "fishier", but as I see them in the blog, well, that's exactly how fish underwater look to those of us looking down on them!

Nature Nuts on May 13

2011-05-19T08:27:00.005-05:00

Nature Nuts met on May 13. We stayed inside today mostly because of the weather, but also because I borrowed a microscope from Mrs. Harvey, the science teacher. We looked at slides of pond water, hoping to see something alive and wiggly. One or two of the kids saw a live creature, but most of us did not. I feel that it has been a very cool spring and maybe all the tiny creatures haven't really gotten going. We also created turtles to take home and used pond creature stampers to make pictures.

Nature Club for May 10,11,12

2011-05-19T08:20:00.003-05:00

The Nature Clubs on Tuesday, May 10, were able to go outside and look for living things. We looked for plants and animals. We talked about how to treat any animals we found (gently) and when it was okay to pick flowers and other plants. We found a lot of anthills that we observed carefully without disturbing the ants.
On Wednesday and Thursday, May 11 and 12, it rained so we stayed inside and talked about how we should treat the animals we find. I read Under One Rock by Anthony J. Fredericks and reminded everyone to "Watch for Nature!"

Nature Nuts

2011-05-08T10:13:00.004-05:00

Nature Nuts met on Friday, May 6, to start their study of Pond Life. We had lunch, then walked to Wakefield Lake to check out the wildlife. I reminded the kids to use their eyes and ears, not their voices, because we didn't want to scare away any animals. We saw an amazing variety of creatures: great blue herons, red-winged blackbirds, a pair of mallard ducks, dragonflies and a downy woodpecker! The boys and girls had very sharp eyes and saw the dragonflies and woodpecker before I did! It was lots of fun and we can't wait to go again next Friday.

Nature Nuts

2011-05-01T20:57:00.004-05:00

Nature Nuts, learning about Trees, met for their last session on Friday, April 29. We had lunch, then made up tree songs, looked at books and posters of trees and painted clay pots. The pots will hold our blue spruces when they come in the mail. We drew trees and cut out pictures of animals that live in Minnesota trees and glued them onto the pictures. We celebrated Arbor Day with chocolate (from trees) cookies and apple (from trees) juice. It was a lot of fun learning about trees. In our next session, 3 weeks in May, we will learn about Pond Life!

Nature Club

2011-04-29T07:42:00.006-05:00

This week in Nature Club, we talked about eggs and how they are a symbol of spring, as well as Easter. I read "Egg to Robin" by Melvin and Gilda Berger and "Chickens aren't the Only Ones" by Ruth Heller. I gave everyone a man-made plastic egg with some natural items inside, seashells and little pearly rocks, for their nature collections.

Nature Nuts

2011-04-19T08:36:00.007-05:00

Nature Nuts met on Friday, April 15, to learn more about trees. After we ate lunch, we put on jackets and walked across the street to Wakefield Park. We walked through the woods looking at trees and animals that live in them. Because it was a chilly and windy day, we didn't see as many things as hoped. However, we did see some birds, 3 bird's nests, and a squirrel's nest. We found a path and followed it through the woods. We looked at tree stumps and saw rings in it. We found a tree that had fallen down and wondered why it fell. We saw a pair of ducks on Wakefield Lake and picked up a lot of sticks for souvenirs. We came back and I read The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry, pointing out that the animals that live in a kapok tree in the rainforest are very different than the ones that live in Minnesota trees!

Nature Club

2011-04-15T07:55:00.008-05:00

This week in Nature Club, we went outside to search for spring. The classes early in the week had it easy because the sun was shining and a gentle breeze was blowing. We found water in puddles, green grass, buds on trees (leaves AND flowers). We saw a robin. We found some burlap beside a sidewalk where someone is getting new grass to grow. We also found some pansies Ms. Lyn got to beautify our center and, although it's early for them to pop out of the ground, many kids knew that their parents were getting gardens and planting beds ready for flowers. By Thursday, the cold wind was blowing and the puddle was all dried up. But we could tell spring was here anyway! Now we hope the snow that's coming will melt very fast!

Nature Nuts

2011-04-11T08:32:00.004-05:00

The second class of Nature Nuts met on Friday, April 8. We had 3 new members, so we went outside and they picked their special tree. While we were taking pictures and measuring girth, the other kids were examining trees for signs of spring. Were there birds? Were there buds on the branches? Happily, we saw both. Then we headed inside and drew pictures of our trees. I read "Have You Seen Trees?" by Joanne Oppenheim, we sang a song about trees, and we examined the tree souvenirs that we picked up off the ground. Our next Nature Nuts will be April 15.

Nature Club

2011-04-04T16:27:00.006-05:00

Nature Club met on Wednesday and Thursday of last week. Unfortunately, I was sick and missed having the RRR group. We were just not able to reschedule. Because the weather is still so iffy, we played an inside game. I held an animal picture and gave the class clues, beginning with how many legs the animal had. They had to think about animals that had 2,4,6,8, more than 8, or even 0 legs and then guess. I gave them other clues until they guessed the correct animal. Some were hard and some were easy. One of the points I wanted to make was that people are animals and are a part of nature, too. I don't ever want kids to think that we, as people, are separate and apart from nature and the natural world.
We had lots of fun with our game. I reminded the kids to watch for signs of spring!

Nature Nuts

2011-03-26T11:27:00.007-05:00

We had our very first session of Nature Nuts on Friday. We walked around the school to see what different trees were there. We each picked a tree to be our own "special" tree to watch for the next month. We measured the distance around their trunks and felt their bark. When we came inside, I read "Are Trees Alive?" by Debbie S. Miller and we looked at the little pine cones and bits of bark that we found on the ground. Everyone had a good time and is excited for our next Nature Nuts class on April 8. I am really, really hoping that by this time next month, the trees, the ground and the air will be very different (warmer and no snow!!).

Nature Nuts

2011-03-24T14:41:00.002-05:00

Nature Nuts will start this Friday with posts following in a day or two. This class is an extra at PCLC. There will be four classes on Fridays and we will begin learning about trees tomorrow!

Critter Watch

2011-03-24T14:38:00.002-05:00

Two days ago (before the latest snow storm) I saw two sandhill cranes flying over and clacking excitedly. I hope they are doing all right with the snow on the ground. I also hope the great blue heron that I saw fly across the road today is finding enough open water and food. I feel bad for the summer animals when they arrive and it's still winter here.

Nature Club- March 1,2,3

2011-03-03T16:34:00.005-06:00

This week's Nature Club was the sequel to looking at sea creatures last week. We got to see a video of a coral reef and how those creatures really looked underwater. We saw nurse sharks, a seahorse, an octopus, reef squid, a sea snake, two kinds of eels (spotted and green morays), sponges,sea turtles,sting rays and spotted eagle rays. We saw many kinds of interesting and pretty fish. In the background always, but probably the most important thing in the video, was the coral reef itself. The coral takes many unusual forms and different colors, but without the reef, none of the other animals would even be there- including us divers!
The kids really liked seeing those things and I think they liked the fact that Ms. Pat went underwater to see them.

Nature Club: February 22,23,24

2011-02-25T08:59:00.006-06:00

This week's Nature Club was a look at sea creatures. I brought in my collection that included the following: corals, sea urchins, sand dollars, a sponge, starfish and many interesting and beautiful shells. We talked about what the animals did underwater and how they looked when they were alive. The preschoolers were extremely interested and many had shells of their own at home. Some of the kids had been or were going to Underwater World at the Mall of America and knew about the sea creatures because of that.
It was a fun class. Next week I'm going to bring some video of sea life underwater so they can see what coral and sponges really look like in the ocean. They will also get to see Ms. Pat scuba diving!

BE SURE TO SIGN UP FOR NATURE NUTS SOON!

Nature Club-Feb. 8,9,10

2011-02-21T12:19:00.006-06:00

Our theme for this week's Nature Club was School of Rock. I brought a collection of various pretty and interesting rocks for the boys and girls to examine. In addition, they got to take river rocks and build towers, as well as take shiny white rocks to make patterns- ones they followed or they could make their own.
The preschoolers learned that rocks are created in several different ways: from heat or pressure deep in the earth, or from sand, mud or plant/animal material being laid down by lakes or seas and then, over millions of years, hardening into rock.

Critter Watch

2011-02-10T13:13:00.001-06:00

I've been watching two coyotes hanging around the marsh just outside our horse pasture fence. In spite of the deep snow, they've been there off and on most of the day. I hope it's the two that raised a litter of pups not far from that spot three years ago. I love having them around as long as they stay away from my yard!

Coming Soon: Nature Nuts! Watch for it next month!

2011-01-27T15:01:00.000-06:00

Nature Club, January 25,26,27

2011-01-27T14:46:00.007-06:00

This week in Nature Club, we started out learning about snow and ice as weather, but ended up really learning about the seasons. The name of the lesson was What's Up with the Weather? As we began talking, I realized that they wanted to talk about all the seasons. I read books called "Seasons of the Year" by Margaret Hall and "Snow" by Helen Frost (great name, huh?). By Thursday we ended up talking more about the pattern of seasons and also on Thursday we talked about fog because with the weather a little warmer, there has been a lot of fog. Then we drew snow pictures. I was impressed with how they thought to draw icicles and blizzards.
This is a perfect example of what we call a "teachable moment," where you scrap your other plans and teach about what the kids are really interested in!

Critter Watch

2011-01-19T09:20:00.002-06:00

Piper the Sheltie likes nature, too! He loves the snow!

Nature Club- January 11,12 & 13

2011-01-19T09:07:00.007-06:00

It took me a long, long time to get this posted because I left my camera at school and couldn't download the pictures from last week's Nature Club until today. I read a favorite book of mine: "In the Snow: Who's Been Here?" by Lindsay Barrett George. We talked about looking for traces of the animals that are awake and moving around in the winter when the ground is covered with snow.
Then we made animal footprints and nature prints with stampers. Okay, so some of the animals and plants are not around when there is snow and ice! We didn't care- it was fun anyway!
I was really impressed with the knowledge that many of the kids had about animals in winter. They are very excited about watching for nature!

Critter Watch

2011-01-06T14:01:00.002-06:00

A beautiful clear winter day in Minnesota. The temperature is about 12 degree, but the sun is shining, the sky is blue and the snow sparkles white. I just saw a bald eagle in a tree, sitting and watching the world. Lucky to see it and lucky to live here!

Critter Watch

2011-01-03T11:25:00.002-06:00

The road to my house is not very busy and I'm glad because for the last three weeks, someone has put corn by the side of the road. I see deer there frequently, but the squirrels are having a corn party every time I drive by. Today there were 4 adults and 1 young squirrel stuffing their faces. I hope this helps them get through a very snowy winter!

Nature Club- December 7,8,9

2010-12-14T07:20:00.007-06:00

Our lesson last week was "Snow is part of Nature". We began by looking at how some animals adapt to living where it gets cold and snows. I showed them articles in Your Big Backyard magazine: one showed birds finding food in winter, some from bird feeders, and one showed snow monkeys in Japan. We had a nice discussion about how other animals handle snow. The kids learned that there are three ways to deal with it: sleep through it (hibernation), go south where it's warm (migration) or stay and try to find enough food.
Then we had a very lively discussion of what they liked to play in the snow. They drew pictures of themselves playing their favorite games. These ranged from sliding to sledding to building snowmen (snowwomen, etc.) and snow forts to making snow angels and throwing snowballs. Lots of choices out there and lots of snow, too!

Nature Club, November 22 and 23

2010-11-29T13:55:00.007-06:00

We began Thanksgiving week with a Nature Club theme of Endangered Animals. We had to talk about what those words meant, as only a few kids knew already. We discussed the dinosaurs and the word extinct and then I pointed out that we didn't want our endangered animals to go extinct, so some people try to protect them. We put together a large jigsaw puzzle of endangered animals. After that, I let each preschooler pick from a selection of endangered animal coloring pages. I reminded them to have a great weekend and to "Watch for nature!"

Nature Club- November 9,10,11

2010-11-11T17:08:00.006-06:00

We had lots of fun in Nature Club this week with a project I did last year that was very successful. The kids loved it this year, too! First I read Nature Spies, a book about watching things in nature closely. Then we put on jackets, I gave each kid a paper bag that said "Nature in a Bag" and we went outside.
Everyone was very excited to find a funny-shaped twig, a sparkly rock or a pinecone. Other things we found were red and yellow leaves, dandelion flowers, sand and tiny berries from an evergreen.
We had decided before going out NOT to pick up anything gooey or stinky, and no animals, alive or dead.
It was fun to see how enthusiastic everyone was and I hope they took that home with them and added to their nature collections at home!

Critter Watch

2010-11-01T14:52:00.002-05:00

I was surprised to see two Sandhill cranes still in our pasture on Sunday! They were clacking away just as if it were July. Why haven't they gone South yet?
It was fun to see the cranes, seven wild turkeys and our three horses all sharing the same space!

Nature Club, October 21,22,23

2010-10-30T11:20:00.003-05:00

Since it was Halloween week at school, I dressed up as Mother Nature to play a game. Most of the preschoolers had never heard of Mother Nature and, when asked what they thought I was, came up with a flower girl, a bride, a fairy, a witch and a flower. Our nature game consisted of 12 different natural items that they were supposed to find in the classroom and then mark off the picture of the item. When all items were found, they brought the sheet to Mother Nature, who gave them a piece of Halloween candy.
It was lots of fun and an interesting reminder of what things were natural. I made sure to have some people on the sheet, so the kids would remember that people are part of nature, too!
Happy Halloween!

Nature Club -October 12, 13, 14

2010-10-15T08:19:00.007-05:00

We all went BATTY this week in Nature Club! Since it's only a few weeks until Halloween, I borrowed a Bat Kit from the DNR so we could learn about those much-maligned little animals. We learned that bats are not birds, they are mammals. They fly at night using echolocation and eat many, many mosquitos. We looked at bat books, played bat games, played with toy bats and got to see a real bat and a real bat skeleton encased in plastic. Great stuff and the preschoolers loved it!

Critter Watch

2010-09-30T12:15:00.002-05:00

I just had to post this- it's an eagle sitting on a fence post in our horse pasture. It's a young one, probably 2 years old. It's hard to tell from the fuzzy picture, but it IS an eagle. We watched it with binoculars for about 20 minutes. It was watching the grass for mice and rabbits. Very cool!

Week of September 27, 2010

2010-09-30T11:57:00.006-05:00

This week had absolutely perfect weather for our first week of Nature Club. The kids were as excited as I was to get outside and look for nature. But first we had to talk about what natural and man-made meant, some terms I will use all year.
It was very easy to find a lot of natural items on the ground and happily, not so easy to find man-made items (trash). We had fun taping things to a poster and very quickly picked up the idea of what was too big or heavy to tape down. Also, we decided NOT to tape live insects to the poster because we didn't want to kill them.
P.S. I'm sorry Starla is upside down! I can't figure out how to turn it over or delete it! Will learn by the next post!
Gorgeous days like these make -20 degrees more tolerable!

August 27

2010-08-27T08:49:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was Dragonfly Day! Are dragonflies lucky? I don't know, but they are beautiful and somehow mysterious. It was probably a coincidence that yesterday I mailed a manuscript to a publisher involving dragonflies, and all morning I saw dragonflies everywhere I went! I must have seen 50. So was it a coincidence or do the dragonflies know something....?

Much later...Sept. 30- Yeah, it was just a coincidence! I received an extremely nice and complimentary rejection letter...but still a rejection.

Critter Watch

2010-06-24T09:56:00.002-05:00

I love to watch the barn swallows swooping in and out of our barn. They don't look like they are catching insects, they seem to be flying for the sheer joy of it.
The barn swallows make nests that look like little cups of mud and straw, with horsehairs woven in that hang down.
We also have cliff swallows nesting under the eaves of our house. Those nests look like gourds made out of clay. Those swallows like to swoop around the house also. And, of course, they leave droppings all over my deck! Luckily, those wash off pretty easily with water. I don't mind the clean-up too much because the birds are so much fun to watch.
I saw a coyote out in the horse pasture. I don't know if it was a male or female, but it was taking a roll in the grass and just kind of chilling out there. I'm glad they are back.

Critter Watch

2010-06-02T09:19:00.004-05:00

Last weekend was fantastic! I watched a hummingbird eating from my shrubs in the front for several minutes before he flew away. The deer are moving all around at all times of the day. We can watch egrets and blue herons in our marsh every day. My bluebirds like to come up to the house and sit on the deck. They make a mess to clean up, but they are so pretty it's worth it. There is also one aggressive male bluebird that fights with his reflection in our windows. Yesterday he was attacking our truck windows! What a fighter!

Critter Watch

2010-05-13T13:44:00.002-05:00

Rain, rain and rain! We are finally caught up and it's STILL raining! This is a good thing- the past two summers have been extremely dry. I saw two deer this morning, as well as pheasants and turkeys. The eagle flies by regularly. I think it lives nearby. Have not seen any coyotes this spring, but we hear them sometimes at night. And with the two bears seen in the suburbs recently, I keep thinking I may see one of those someday. Not that I really want to!

Critter Watch

2010-04-22T14:10:00.004-05:00

Happy Earth Day! The daffodils are blooming and so are the dandelions. The lilacs have buds; the loons are back and calling in the morning. My hostas are beginning to peek out of the ground. Spring is always lovely, but it's especially sweet when it comes early, as it has this year. The chill in the air this morning (it was only 40) reminds us that we still live in Minnesota and we shouldn't get complaisant.

Critter Watch

2010-04-04T12:13:00.004-05:00

Happy Easter! This is Bird Day! I heard a loon when I woke up this morning. I'm so glad they are back and living close to us.
We've been seeing sandhill cranes for a week or two in the pasture. They clack and clatter like crazy.
There was one big tom turkey strutting around with his tail feathers displayed and 12 hens wandering around. He kept herding them where he wanted them to go.
Best of all, we saw two eagles circling each other and going higher and higher into the sky. I got dizzy watching- they were directly overhead. Hope there's a nest nearby!

Critter Watch

2010-03-25T08:26:00.003-05:00

There are hoards of crows in the trees across the pasture. Lots of cawing and movement. Are they breeding? We wonder what is going on in Crow World.
We have also been seeing a lot of a young bald eagle and hope he is a resident now. He has a white head, but his tail is not white yet.

Quote of the Day:
"I believe in God, only I spell it nature"
-Frank Lloyd Wright

Critter Watch

2010-02-02T15:12:00.002-06:00

It's cold and snowy again today. I've seen the following feetprints
in my yard: deer, turkey, mouse and rabbit. They are all out and about- I just don't see them too often this time of year. Overrunning those footprints, of course, are those of Piper, my Sheltie, who thinks the wild footprints are incredibly interesting.

Critter Watch

2010-01-05T09:41:00.001-06:00

January 3, 2010

We saw 2 bald eagles, 4 deer and a flock of trumpeter swans this morning. What an amazing place to live!

Critter Watch

2009-12-21T11:18:00.002-06:00

It wasn't wild, but I saw a one-horse open sleigh dashing through the snow on the road in front of my house yesterday!

Critter Watch

2009-12-06T11:36:00.002-06:00

This morning, Jim and I saw two bald eagles high in the air above our house. They soared in slow circles for a few minutes and then dropped lower over a nearby lake until they were out of sight. How cool!

Critter Watch

2009-11-05T08:02:00.001-06:00

The deer are really restless this morning! I've seen two trotting down the road in front of the house and two more wandering around in the horse pasture. They look alert and nervous.

Critter Watch

2009-10-20T11:21:00.002-05:00

My bees came out of their nest when it was so cold last week! I found many bees dead on my front porch and many more just very sluggish. Are they moving out for the winter? I hope so!

Critter Watch

2009-10-10T16:32:00.001-05:00

We saw a bald eagle this morning! It was soaring way high, up above the trees. We saw eagles a lot this summer, but haven't for over a month.

Critter Watch

2009-10-08T11:59:00.003-05:00

I have a nest of bees (or are they yellowjackets?) living in my front porch. I checked with the extension service and they should move out when it gets cold and then we can seal up the hole. Let's hope it works! People are afraid to come to my front door!

Critter Watch

2009-09-20T12:00:00.003-05:00

The crows were cawing and the geese were honking when I went outside to get the paper today. I saw a big V of geese in the air, heading toward Texas, or maybe Mexico. Some of the trees are starting to change color. Even though it's still warm, Fall is in the air!

Critter Watch

2009-09-02T10:05:00.004-05:00

It's a sparkling, cool morning in early September. A family of wild turkeys wandered past our yard and I saw a flock of birds flying South. Are they leaving early, or just going to the Fair???

Critter Watch

2009-08-28T14:47:00.001-05:00

A doe with two fawns was in our horse pasture yesterday morning. The fawns were dancing and jumping around like crazy things. I think they must have felt good!

Critter Watch

2009-08-13T11:35:00.002-05:00

This morning I saw a mother wild turkey and her seven babies. The babies all ran out of the road when they saw my car, but the mom stood in the road watching me for a few minutes.

Critter Watch

2009-08-10T17:25:00.001-05:00

We have Sandhill Cranes in our horse pasture! You can hear them clacking before you see them. There are two large grey adults and one smaller reddish young crane.