Cliff seems to be the "fun one" of the parents, usually doing a lot of the playing, wrestling, silliness, fun hikes and goofy internet searches. I've been struggling to figure out how to be more fun and make memories that the kids will have with me that don't revolve around laundry, dishes, and chores even though those are awfully fun!
So in an attempt to find something fun to do with Mason that didn't involve backpacking into the forest or getting too dirty, I realized birding is perfect! We picked a day for just the two of us to go and (after eating lunch at Panda Express, which Mason has been dying to try and really enjoyed, even though he was a little disappointed upon learning we wouldn't be eating Panda Bears)
we set out for a local park on the top of a huge hill with great views, tons of wildlife and several nature trails.
The trails were quiet and there were hardly any birds for the first half of our hike. So we took several pictures. I took some super close ups and some with zoom lens as well. Thankfully Mason enjoys a good picture and he didn't get too disappointed with the lack of bird activity.
Then we found a little pond with all kinds of wildlife!
Water snakes, tadpoles, frogs, polywogs, salamanders.
We started to head back and just as we were about to wilt in the summer heat, God blessed us with a few birds!
One we haven't identified yet.
One we almost stepped on and had never seen in the wild before (The Grosbeak).
And one circled above our heads for several minutes was the namesake for the park! The Cooper's Hawk.
One we almost stepped on and had never seen in the wild before (The Grosbeak).
And one circled above our heads for several minutes was the namesake for the park! The Cooper's Hawk.
This was a fun and inexpensive date to take my little guy on. We both had a great time! I love to see him develop a love of nature and I'm so thankful to experience things like this with him. He's growing up so fast. Sometimes the laundry, dishes and chores can wait :)
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