Happy Spring!

Today is the first day of Spring.  Friday, March 20 brings with it a celestial showcase, a trio of events that includes a new moon, at 5:36 a.m., a total solar eclipse, at 5:46 a.m. and the vernal equinox, at 6:45 p.m., all Eastern time.  This trio of earthy events has not happened since the 1600s.  For me, today I become the parent of all adult children.  My *baby* is now 21.  He entered the world at 4:50pm.  It feels good to be mom to 4 grown sons who are all making their own way in this world, each so unique and different.  They are all wonderful people.  I am beyond grateful that the universe gifted them to me to raise.  Today marks a big transition for me.  This past week I went though all our family photos and realized that I've been a good mom.  I will no longer beat myself up for anything they choose in life.  I did my very best with the knowledge I had at the time.  Today marks my passage into a new life. 

Tomorrow brings us a sad event.  We will honor my Mother in law who passed away on the 14th.  She and I shared a lot of the same passions.  Animals and nature.  I will miss her beyond words and wish we had more time together.  I am going to read two poems that I feel she would have liked.

Remember Me In Your Heart - Unknown

To the living, I am gone,
To the sorrowful, I will never return,
To the angry, I was cheated,
But to the happy, I am at peace,
And to the faithful, I have never left.

I cannot speak, but I can listen.
I cannot be seen, but I can be heard.
 
So as you stand upon a shore, gazing at a Sparkling sea . . .

As you look in awe at a mighty forest in all it's spendor. . .

As you look upon a flower and admire its stunning simplicity . . . .

Remember ME.

Remember me in your heart:
Your thoughts, and your memories,
Of the times we loved,
The times we cried,
The times we laughed and
the times we danced,
 
For if you always think of me, I will never be gone from your life. 


Winged Jewel
With wings spun of silver and hearts of gold,
These tiny creatures our hearts behold.
With angelic features and colors so bright,
Make even the heaviest heart seem light.
The magical way they flit through the sky,
They appear, then vanish in the blink of an eye.
They're sending a message for us to retrieve,
Anything's possible for those who believe!

Hummingbirds were her favorite, so much so that her boys bought her a tattoo for her birthday one year.  I hope to give her loved ones a connection to nature to help heal their hearts.

My trip to FL with my oldest son is all but a blurr.  During the trip I was told my MIL was ailing, so kind of lost my heart for the trip and wanted to be home with my Bobby.  I did enjoy my  quality time with Jason.  Lots of kayaking, awesome trip to Corkscrew,  Jason let me take my time, and I think he also enjoyed seeing the birds and alligators. Also swam with the manatees, a bit anticlimactic compared to our previous swims many years ago. But always so exciting to be with a magnificent creature.  We had a wonderful time with family and friends.  So blessed to have so many loves in my life.  Came home and went straight to the hospital to help my husband passage into losing his 2nd parent.   And so.......life is for the living, and we must make the best of everyday.  I aim to do that.

Yesterday to heal my heavy heart , I went out to the black dirt region, birding.  I was incredibly rewarded and so happy I went.  Tens of thousands of black birds everywhere and over a thousand Snow Geese, lots of Blue Morphs and a Blue Morph Ross's Goose.  Happy dance....let the birding begin!  WOOP Spring is HERE! 

Long Winter

We are still experiencing lots of snow and sub freezing temperatures despite what the calender reads.  This morning it's 10 degrees out.  We are expecting another storm later on today.  I think it's starting wear on all the wildlife.  I had a Red-tail in the backyard hunting squirrels. We have been out snowshoeing which is a lot of fun, and helps you to enjoy what is. 

Can I just say....

I love Winter.  I really really love our Winter!  I know it's not always pleasant or comfortable, but I love it, each and every moment of Winter.  The cold, the snow, the grey sunless skies, the winter birds, the leafless trees, the quiet seemly empty forests, it's all so precious.  If I disliked Winter I would literately hate 1/4 of my life. Winter is my reality.  I choose to embrase it and look for all the best it has to offer.  This weeks blessing was a trip up to Frost Valley. Beautiful place where my oldest son has worked at multiple times over the last five years.  Wonderful to spend some time with him and meet all his coworkers.  It was ~13 last night and this morning we did a blissful snowshoe walk in 1 degree temps.  Awesome! 

You can't see beauty like this sitting in your warm house.  You have to get out there.  Life is happening now.  Do it! 

Trees

Red-shouldered Hawk

This bird has been around all Winter.  Such a beauty. 

Valentines Day Eagle trip

Today hubby and I went on a trip across the Hudson to look for Wintering Bald Eagles.  We located about 2 dozen birds total.  Always super exciting to see such stunning birds.  We also lucked on 2 Long-eared Owls.  Nice bonus for a wonderful couple of hours. Treated ourselves to a wonderful meal on the way home. 

Gyrfalcon!!!

I don't often get new birds on my life list.  Two days ago while on Face Plant I saw a post on a NY Bird group of pictures of a Gyrfalcon, at first I couldn't believe my eyes that the pictures were from  Wallkill NY!  Yesterday was out of the question for me to go and look for the bird as I had Nancy's funeral.  My friend Matt Zeitler got the bird at 3 pm.  These pictures are his.  I woke up this morning and decided I'm was out to find the bird.  Hubby and I drove around the area for a while, no one had seen the bird yet.  After about an hour I told hubby he can leave and he said no, he wanted me to see the bird. He parked the car where the bird was observed yesterday and not 5 minutes later we see the flock of ducks in the field right next to the car lift up, I knew in my heart that the bird was coming in.  He did!  We watched him dive bomb the ducks two times, and had amazing looks and he flew only ten feet over our heads.  Such a crazy adrenaline kick!  

Photo by Matt Zeitler

Photo by Matt Zeitler

Photo by Paul Bourdin

Today ranked as a top 10 birding moment.  Right up there with seeing my first Bald Eagle in Florida in 1978.  An adult and a juvenile on a nest, shown to me by my Grandpa.  Seeing a California Condor two times at two different visits to  the Grand Canyon.  Seeing Scarlet Macaws in Costa Rica.  Watching the class of 2002 Whooping Cranes flying behind an Ultralight. Last Winter seeing my first Snowy Owl. Birding never gets old, always something to look forward to. 

And can I add?.....I LOVE MY LIFE!  TRULY BLESSED TO GET TO DO WHAT I LOVE ON A DAILY BASIS! 

Full moon

This inspirational idea came from Fullmoon.info.

Dear full moon friends,

The full moon will be on Wednesday (or Tuesday for certain time zones).

Almost all people are searching: for happiness, for love, for fulfillment, for success, for recognition, for healing, for peace … for the unnameable something, which seems to be missing. This search leads us further away from ourselves, because we are looking outwards and hope for the fulfillment of a truth, that is inwardly already perfect. The less we search in the outer world, the more we will discover inside us.

NEW YORK = Tuesday * 3rd February 2015 * 06:08:54 pm (EST)

Winter storm Linus!

Winter storm Linus brought us about a foot of gorgeous snow.  The storm had perfect timing,  it started as the the Superbowl ended.  People knew it was going to be a bit of accumulation, so many had work called early, so most party goers could enjoy the game and the party. I already had all the essential food we needed in the house, and our Superbowl party hosts gave us a couple dozen eggs for breakfast as a party favor.  Their chickens are laying more then a dozen eggs each day. We enjoyed waking up to our world looking all bright and beautiful.  I filled my feeders and watched the action begin.  Hundreds of birds and more then a dozen squirrels kept me entertained the entire day.  It was ground hog day and he saw his shadow, so six more weeks of winter, which makes sense as we are six weeks away from the first day of Spring!  The boys went snowboarding and I made my annual Ground Hog day brownies, this time a paleo version.  After returning from Snowboarding, they gobbled them up in no time at all.  We had a table full for dinner, while watching the Rangers win.   All in all....a terrific way to spend a post snowstorm day.

The Black kids look GREAT!  2 females and 1 male were all here at the same time today.  The females were at the feeder together.  I'm assuming they were mother daughter or sisters.  When we move from our home of 26 years what I will miss is my wild creatures.  I will miss my flock of 2 dozen cardinals who visit during snow storms and my black squirrels.

It's time to get back on track

It's been a really tough couple of days for me.  It was time for hubbies cancer testing and I was walking a dog for a women who was actively dying from cancer.  It was super traumatic for me to watch her decline over the last 7 weeks.Being the caregiver I am, I wanted so badly to just take care of her. To do anything I could to help her and make her feel better.  I tried my best to surround myself with positive thoughts and to stay in the moment. I did pretty well over the last couple of weeks. I knew in my heart last Monday when I picked her little dog up and took him for a hike that I would never see her again.  I fell apart once I heard she had died on Sunday. Hubbys test results came in Tuesday night,  our news was good,  his scans were clean!  Today is a new day, a new fresh start for me.  I aim to stop worrying about everyone else and get to work on my own peace of mind.  I need to get back to living in the moment.  Pick myself up and get living this precious life.  ENJOY today!

This is a picture of my client and her precious little dog.  I will keep her memory close to may heart and try to live my life to the fullest like she did.  She chose to spend everyday right up until her last month out there in nature hiking with her pup.  She hired me when she got too weak,  so that her dog could continue with his wonderful life outside.  I think the dog gave her much more quality time then she would have had with out him.  Another case of who rescued who?  He came into her life when her cancer battle began.  May the four winds blow you safely home again Nancy.  May Niko bring your family comfort during this tragic time of mourning your untimely passing.Your strength and love of life will forever be an inspiration to me. 

Backyard birds

Winter storm Juno

First snowshoe of the year!