Friday February 15, 2019
The sun was out and it was a balmy 11 degrees first thing in the morning. There was birdsong in the air and there are flowers and daffodils and all kinds of flowering cabbage and kale in the flower beds. Plus tons of pansies which like cool weather.
I took Lu to school this morning and stayed in his class for about 1/2 hour. Lu and I sat beside each other on the carpet in his class and the kids, including Lu all sang some songs for me in English, Spanish and Hindi. They also went through the date, the weather and the year, the months and the days of the week in sing song. It was wonderful and so good to see Lu in the classroom environment. The Montessori teachers have excellent teaching skills and the children were a delight.
I will always remember the singing and the morning.
From Montessori I drove on to the Fort Worth Wildlife Center and Preserve. I have been birding there many times and it was a hot day. I had taken a snack from home and lots of water and by the end of the day, that was not enough water. I usually go to the Visitor Center to start but this time I thought the March Boardwalk and viewing area would be good as it was early and there was only one other car in the parking lot. I slowly walked down to the huge viewing deck. I saw Carolina Chickadees, Carolina Wrens, a Common Yellow Throat couple, Tufted Titmouse and many American Coots. There were Pied billed Grebes and a Loggerhead Shrike.
On the branch of the Trinity River there were more Coots and some ducks which were so far enough away that I could not ID them. Maybe Northern Shovelers as the front and the sides looked as if this was the ID but I could not make out the bills from the great distance. I only have my travel binocs with me. I did not check in any luggage so all the good optics stayed home. My bags were all soft and just in case there were to be put in a pile, my optics would not be able to take the weight of bags on top. So that is a bit of frustration but not too bad. On the water there were Black crowned Night Heron, Great Egret and Double crested Cormorants. The day was hot.
Along the road I met a birder who had worked in the center for 15 years and he told me all of the places to bird at this time of year at the center. John was going on to Greer Island and I was going on to the Visitor Center and then on to Greer Island. The visitor center feeders were pretty quiet around noon. I did talk with the park staff and I asked about alligators there as FW is pretty far north and I thought alligators were not found that far north. Last year while birding I did see little two foot ones along the dyke. The park fellow said that there were 11 footers at the center but I would not see any at this time of year. This was useful information. I went and hiked Greer Island and did not meet up with John until the end. I told John I had seen a Brown Thrasher, Golden crowned Kinglet and American White Pelican. Afterwards, I also went looking for Eastern Bluebirds along the maintenance road but no luck this time.
The Bison were not seen either. They are not in the main fields as they have been moved to the winter pasture but still they can show up at the fence. They are quite impressive.
I set out homewards around 3:30 with a stop at a gas station for drinks as I was so thirsty. I should have known better that three 8 ounce bottles of water were not going to be enough on a hot day.
I picked Lu up from school on the way home and he was in a good mood and ready to play some more. Once home we had lamp chops and vegetables for supper with some splash. It was a terrific day that I am thankful for. Lu is a lot of fun with his ideas and his funny ways. Lu has these magnet pieces kits that one can do a lot with. Either one can build something, make a design or play a game with. After supper we all sat and watched the movie, First Man. It was a good movie.
I took Lu to school this morning and stayed in his class for about 1/2 hour. Lu and I sat beside each other on the carpet in his class and the kids, including Lu all sang some songs for me in English, Spanish and Hindi. They also went through the date, the weather and the year, the months and the days of the week in sing song. It was wonderful and so good to see Lu in the classroom environment. The Montessori teachers have excellent teaching skills and the children were a delight.
I will always remember the singing and the morning.
From Montessori I drove on to the Fort Worth Wildlife Center and Preserve. I have been birding there many times and it was a hot day. I had taken a snack from home and lots of water and by the end of the day, that was not enough water. I usually go to the Visitor Center to start but this time I thought the March Boardwalk and viewing area would be good as it was early and there was only one other car in the parking lot. I slowly walked down to the huge viewing deck. I saw Carolina Chickadees, Carolina Wrens, a Common Yellow Throat couple, Tufted Titmouse and many American Coots. There were Pied billed Grebes and a Loggerhead Shrike.
On the branch of the Trinity River there were more Coots and some ducks which were so far enough away that I could not ID them. Maybe Northern Shovelers as the front and the sides looked as if this was the ID but I could not make out the bills from the great distance. I only have my travel binocs with me. I did not check in any luggage so all the good optics stayed home. My bags were all soft and just in case there were to be put in a pile, my optics would not be able to take the weight of bags on top. So that is a bit of frustration but not too bad. On the water there were Black crowned Night Heron, Great Egret and Double crested Cormorants. The day was hot.
Along the road I met a birder who had worked in the center for 15 years and he told me all of the places to bird at this time of year at the center. John was going on to Greer Island and I was going on to the Visitor Center and then on to Greer Island. The visitor center feeders were pretty quiet around noon. I did talk with the park staff and I asked about alligators there as FW is pretty far north and I thought alligators were not found that far north. Last year while birding I did see little two foot ones along the dyke. The park fellow said that there were 11 footers at the center but I would not see any at this time of year. This was useful information. I went and hiked Greer Island and did not meet up with John until the end. I told John I had seen a Brown Thrasher, Golden crowned Kinglet and American White Pelican. Afterwards, I also went looking for Eastern Bluebirds along the maintenance road but no luck this time.
The Bison were not seen either. They are not in the main fields as they have been moved to the winter pasture but still they can show up at the fence. They are quite impressive.
I set out homewards around 3:30 with a stop at a gas station for drinks as I was so thirsty. I should have known better that three 8 ounce bottles of water were not going to be enough on a hot day.
I picked Lu up from school on the way home and he was in a good mood and ready to play some more. Once home we had lamp chops and vegetables for supper with some splash. It was a terrific day that I am thankful for. Lu is a lot of fun with his ideas and his funny ways. Lu has these magnet pieces kits that one can do a lot with. Either one can build something, make a design or play a game with. After supper we all sat and watched the movie, First Man. It was a good movie.
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