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Winter Blah-It Even Happens To Me

Cure for the Winter blahs @handbookfofnaturestudy
Yesterday I decided I needed some outdoor time. Grabbing my camera I went out the door with a feeling of anticipation. I always feel that little spark of adventure even in my own backyard. I know it like the back of my hand, but it always has a way of surprising me

The winter storm we had really took its toll on our plants and trees. I shed a few tears as I surveyed the damage to my roses, butterfly bushes, and other flowering plants. Some sort of rodents have been digging around in my garden and under the birdfeeders…what a mess of holes and tunnels! How could such a beautiful space be so ugly in winter? It really made me sad.

I turned and started walking back up to the house, sort of feeling like winter had let me down. After all my pep talks on this blog about winter and winter nature study, I was the one having the bad attitude.

I noticed that the birdfeeders were getting down to the last few seeds so I stopped by the storage room and filled my seed pail with dinner for the birds. I filled every feeder up and started up the stairs again to go inside.

junco on the branch
This time I heard a little scuffling behind me. I turned and realized that the birds had flocked to the feeders right after I had filled them up. There were juncos, sparrows, my favorite little titmouse, a couple of towhees, a scrub jay, and few finches. These birds did not care that all around them the branches of the trees are hanging down, broken from the winter storm. A few were scratching around under the feeders where the muddy rodent holes and tunnels were just inches away. The birds didn’t see any problem.

I stopped and looked up over the trees and there was a turkey vulture swooping and gliding in the crisp winter air. He didn’t seem to care that the roses were all broken down in my yard…he was just having a good time flying in the afternoon sunshine.

Okay, I remember now…winter just has its own ways of bringing beauty. The clearing of the old is a way of making way for the new. Didn’t I just realize that a few weeks ago?

sky with tree limbs
My tears were dry and I was now smiling at the antics of the birds in the feeders….the scrub jays being such bullies and the titmouse flying in and out like a crazy bird. The sky seemed a little bluer and the bird sounds were like a winter musical concert just for me.

The Winter Series of Outdoor Hour Challenges, starting on January 8th, are going to really get me focused again on regular focused nature study. I know that many of you are planning on following along so I will bring my very best winter nature study attitude with me when I come on Fridays. My boys have already asked about the cattail study and that will be our first challenge…to catch up with our cattails to see how their winter is going.

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Winter Series of Outdoor Hour Challenges-Ebook Now Available!

I am really excited to announce that I have finished writing a completely new ebook for the Winter Series of Outdoor Hour Challenges. This ebook is a unique product that includes not only ten nature study challenges but three months’ worth of art and music appreciation with a winter theme! This is the first time I have combined all three elements into a full length ebook and I am anxious to share it with all of my readers and their families.

I have worked hard to produce an exciting ebook to help you with simple winter nature study and give you some help and direction in providing art and music appreciation. This unique nature study book also includes everything you need to study art and music all winter long. I invite you to download the sample and see how you can get started with nature study, artist study, and composer study this winter!

Here is an overview!

  • 10 Winter Series Outdoor Hour Challenges: winter cattail, winter tree, winter sky, winter weather, pine tree study, salt study, winter bird, small square, winter mammal, and early spring flower study.
  • 13 custom notebook pages to complement those challenges
  • 3 different artists to study-one per month (Caspar David Friedrich, Gilbert Stuart, and Claude Monet)
  • 3 different composers to study-one per month (Vivaldi, Waldteufel, and Dvorak)
  • 11 custom notebook pages to use in following up your art and music study
  • 3 paintings included for you to print or view
  • Ideas for art projects to complete your art appreciation with common art supplies you probably have on hand
  • Resource list
  • Clickable links
  • View a sample: Winter Series Sample

In total, this new Winter Nature Study ebook is 56 pages long. You will have a complete plan at your fingertips for your winter nature study, art appreciation, and music study. All of the art prints are included in the ebook and there are links to viewing them online as well. All of the music planned is available to listen to online. You will need to have the Handbook of Nature Study in order to complete the nature study challenges. I have aimed to keep these challenges and studies as simple as possible with very few additional resources needed.

 

Please realize that the challenges are listed on the winter tab at the top of my blog but the ebook gathers the challenges all into one easy to use resource along with the custom notebook pages.

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Woodpecker Alert!

Nuttall's Woodpecker 2
Today we identified a new woodpecker in our yard…really exciting stuff.

Nuttall's Woodpecker 1
He was hopping between the tree and the feeder, but I was able to snap a few photos to share with you.

Nuttall's Woodpecker 3

Nuttall’s Woodpecker

Picoides nuttallii
“The only black and white, zebra backed woodpecker with a black and white striped face normally found in California west of the Sierra. Males have red caps.”
Habitat: Wooded canyons and foothills, river woods, groves, and orchards.

I just love the unexpected nature study that happens along with real life. When you have to observe closely to identify a bird, you learn all kinds of things in the process. We learned that the Downy woodpecker that we normally see is very close to the Nuttall’s woodpecker but he has a big white spot on his back. Now we will be able to tell them apart quite easily.

New bird for our bird list!

 

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Winter Day Hike: Animal Tracks

Taylor Creek 12 25 09  Aspens

It was a day of hiking in the aspens and pines….there is something so refreshing about hiking in the snow on a sunny day. The light must be different or perhaps it is the air. Whatever it is about winter hikes, I feel more alive. The indoor life does not suit me very well and getting the chance to spend a few hours hiking with my family makes me smile even now just thinking about our time outdoors.

Taylor Creek 12 25 09  Animal Tracks
Although there were no other hikers on the trail this time, we knew there were other living creatures near-by. The snow recorded their activity for us. We always have a great time imagining who the tracks belong to and then discussing what they may have been doing out here in the woods.

Taylor Creek 12 25 09 Hiking to the Lake
Many times as we hike along we spread out and have some alone time. I love to walk and pay attention to the crunching of the snow under my boots. There were a few birds that showed their faces while we walked and a few that just let us know they were there by knocking on the tree or whistling a little tune.

Taylor Creek 12 25 09 Ducks on the Creek
These ducks don’t seem to mind the cold, cold water.

Our Bird List for the Day:
Mallard ducks
Ravens
Steller’s jays
Red-breasted nuthatches

Taylor Creek 12 25 09 Creek and Animal Tracks
The creek was flowing along with crystal clear water, much deeper this time of year than in the summer and fall. We observed lots of tracks on the other side of the bank….big tracks where it looks like someone came to get a drink perhaps.

Taylor Creek 12 25 09 Dinosaur prints
I told the boys to be on the lookout for interesting tracks in the snow and if they found some to call me over. These are the “dinosaur” tracks they found….very funny.

Taylor Creek 12 25 09 Animal tracks 4
Seriously though, this photo shows the most interesting and most abundant track we noticed through the trees. It looks like footprints with something that made a line to the side….a tail perhaps? I would love to know what made this track in the snow.

Maybe this is why I love winter hikes so much….there is an air of mystery and awe to them that I love and crave. We are looking forward to more snowy hikes in the near future.

 

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Storm Damage: Good Bye Old Friends

Guys and the down limbs

Here are a few photos from my dad’s house from today. He lost about fifty oaks in the big snowstorm that we had two weeks ago. It is really sad to see them all down on the ground.

trees down behind the house
These big trees just can’t handle that much snow all at once.

big oak down
This one would have smashed their house if it had fallen in a different direction. You can see their roof behind the tree…a little too close. Their neighbor did have their really beautiful old oak split into six pieces and it crashed through their bedroom roof. No one was hurt but it has left them devastated to lose their very old majestic oak tree.

new pine in the stump
Amid all this destruction, I found this pine sprouting in an older oak stump. Life really does cycle around and although it is sad to see the oaks down, it has cleaned out a lot of dead wood and eventually the woods will be more fire safe. For now, we have a huge clean-up job waiting for us.

Anyone need any oak firewood?

Barb-Harmony Art Mom

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The Last of Our Snow: Oaks Falling Down

snow walk with Kona 12 09
We decided we should take our Kona dog out for a proper walk. She has not been out for her long walk in days. She was happy and we were feeling good too. The interesting thing about this walk was how many trees were down all along our regular walking trail. Many were actually across the trail and some were down in the meadows alongside it.

broken oak
Mostly oaks had fallen which makes me sad, but they are clearly not designed for such a great snow like we had this week. The live oaks especially fared badly in the snow because they don’t lose all their leaves in the fall.

oak leaves
The leaves were my favorite part of the walk. The snow was sprinkled with leaves of all colors and shapes and sizes.

lichen
When the oaks fall down, you get to glimpse at what is going on at the top without climbing. The various kinds of lichen were amazing. We really must learn some more about lichens this winter. I will add it to the list.

The rains are coming and that will be the end of the Really Big Snow for us. My youngest is the one who will miss it the most. He was sick most of the time we had our big piles of snow to play in and he really needs to get in some more snow time. Perhaps it will snow again in the months to come and then he will be able to build his big snow fort and have snowball fights with his dad and brothers. It seems that snow is the great equalizer…..all my men love to get out and play in the cold stuff no matter their age and dignity level.

Looking forward to our next snow….

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Winter Birds – So Lovely

My oldest let me play with his camera yesterday and I took a few bird photos out the window.

Birds make me happy.

Watching birds makes me happy.

Taking photos of birds makes me happy.

junco
Junco in the tree.

towhee
Spotted Towhee in the feeder.

My favorite of the day…
Titmouse
A titmouse right outside the bedroom window.

See me being happy?

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What a Difference a Week Makes!

Backyard in the snow 12 7 09
Our first winter snow! This is the most snow we have had in December ever!

Garden in the Snow
Here is my garden all covered in a blanket of snow. Last week I was hopeful about the broccoli but even the protective frame that I built over the top is covered in snow…..seems like winter has arrived.

Snowshoe
We took off on our snowshoes to see what the neighborhood was like on this first snowy morning. Here I am about 1/4 mile from our backstreet. There were a few children out throwing snowballs and a man walking his dog but we pretty much had the whole street to ourselves. I always forget how quiet it is when there is snow.
Leaves in the snow

We lost a few big branches from the trees that still had leaves on them. The evergreens held up pretty well but the oaks and sweet gums just aren’t built for this much snow.

Snow bear and Kona
Later on in the day, we all built what ended up being a snow bear in the front yard. Even our Kona dog “helped”.

The next morning we had icicles like never before.
Icicles
Today is really, really cold for our area….15 degrees. The ice is thick on the roads and I am hoping my husband is careful on the way to work. He has to travel over the river and then climb up into the mountains to get to his station and yesterday it was treacherous. I can only imagine today’s drive. He has chained up the truck and he assures me he will be careful. I will be waiting for his call once he arrives.

Sunset in the snow
Amanda hiked up to the top of our hill to see the sunset. The sky was pink and lavender and after such a stormy night and morning, it was great to see the sun again.

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We’re Still in the Garden

We had freezing temperatures last night but by mid-morning it was at least sunny and up into the forties.

“Out-of-door life takes the child afield and keeps him in the open air, which not only helps him physically and occupies his mind with sane subjects, but keeps him out of mischief. It is not only during childhood that this is true, for love of nature counts much for sanity in later life.”
Handbook of Nature Study, page 2


I was out for my morning walk in the backyard and I was amazed at how many honeybees we have left around on the last day of November. They were busy in the marigolds, the cyclamen, the alyssum, and the snapdragons. I love the way it looks as if he is going to burrow right down into the middle of this marigold! (You can read more about honeybees in the Handbook of Nature Study starting on page 391.)


The peas are all nice and green with lots of tendrils everywhere. I am not sure if the weather will hold out long enough for us to harvest some pea pods but we will keep our eye on the box.


Our broccoli is finally looking like it might survive the weather and bugs and give us a crop to enjoy. I can’t tell you how happy that makes me since I love home-grown broccoli and it has been a number of years since we have been successful at getting the plants all the way to maturity. I have five plants that look hopeful.


The millet fell from the birdfeeder this past summer and it sprouted and is now bearing its fruits. The finches are loving the bonus of the meal *under* the birdfeeder. I also harvested the last of the giant sunflowers and the seeds are now safely stored in a sack for winter meals for the birds.


Up on our deck the potted plants are blooming again and the snapdragons are attracting the hummingbirds and the bees.

We are taking advantage of every sunny day to go outdoors for long periods of time. Taking long walks with the dog have been such a great source of refreshment to us all….helping us to keep our sanity.

 

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Visiting the Big Trees

Visiting the Big Trees Sequoias and Photography @handbookofnaturestudy
It seemed that everyone was behind a camera on this particular trip. It is a lot of fun to share hobbies with your children and photography seems to be a interest for all my kids.


We picnicked, we hiked, and we craned our necks to see the tops of the sequoias.


Here are the bottoms of some sequoias.


Here are some tops.


It is our tradition to take a family photo in this particular part of the forest. Using a tripod, we set up the camera with the timer. We did get some great family shots with the six of us, but I think this one is my favorite shot of all the kids.

Here she is. The grown up girl having a little time with her brother’s camera.

At this time of year, the forest is a delightful place to take a hike and spend family time. As my family grows up, I am appreciating more and more the time we all spend together exploring and making memories.

Thanks for the fun day everyone.