Saturday in Parishville

We got to spend part of this past weekend at the old farmhouse in Parishville, NY. As usual Aiden woke us up at 5:50 AM on the dot and wanted to play, so we handed him over to Timber (and my mom) who also likes to get up at 5:50 AM (Timber, not my mom), and Andy and I sneaked out for a little walk in the fields and forests. It felt more like Fall than the last day of June on Saturday- the air was crisp and dry and chilly and perfect for hiking. There were lots of birds singing, though nothing too unusual except a Blue-Headed Vireo and an Eastern Bluebird pair nesting in one of the boxes in the meadow, and a few Broad-Winged Hawks calling and circling overhead.

We did see lots of butterflies as it warmed up a little, mostly monarchs (and their caterpillars on the milkweed) but also viceroy, common ringlet, skippers, white and red admirals, and a few interesting dragonflies. We hiked out to the old fishing shack in the woods, and then around to the top of the hill for a nice view of the farm below before joining Aiden Aiden Poop for breakfast.

Some scenes from the farm: the old fishing shack is the upper left

Above is a nice view of the farmhouse. Sadly, the big cottonwood tree in front of the house is really starting to rot at the base, especially on the house side, which isn't a good thing. This tree is so enormous- it was planted in 1912 by my Grandma Dean and Uncle Elwood, and its growth has been fed by springwater pumped up to just in front of the house. The fact that the pump is no longer running could be contributing to the cottonwood's decline, but cottonwoods don't live all that long anyway and this one is probably in its old age by now. It will be a shame when it goes (or, more likely, it comes down because it's a safety hazard) because it's so much a part of the farm.




We had to put Aiden in front of the tree so you can see the scale! Aiden's not a small baby but the old cottonwood definitely dwarfs him.

Time to Play!

So now that Aiden is completely mobile and your basic terror-on-all-fours, we realized we needed to give him a bigger space to play than the 4 square feet in our living room between the TV cabinet and the coffee table. We tried that for about a week and got tired of shouting "No!, that's not to play with" and dashing in with a save just before Aiden would crash to the ground after pulling himself up on the coffee table. So we made our slate-floored room (which we really haven't had a true use for yet) into a playroom for Aiden. It's quasi-baby-proof at this point but its a work in progress. Aiden seems to like it, and we're rescuing him a lot less.

Yay! A room for me!

Would YOU like to play?

We also dug a small pond in our backyard this weekend, which I am sure will make the blog soon but at this point it's not camera-ready. I'll just say that digging a pond is a lot of work, and I will probably be in bed by 9 PM tonight due to the effort expended in creating what will probably look like a small puddle to most of you! Stay tuned...

Shockingly pink peonies

We also did some gardening this weekend, and had a nice visit with Grandma Dean on Saturday evening while Mom and Dad were at a wedding. Oh, and we also have ants. We think they are carpenter ants...anyone have a good method of getting rid of these suckers? HELP!!

Trumpet Creeper- the hummingbirds love it!

Dad's Day

Happy Father's Day!

to my wonderful dad (a.k.a. grandpa Dean)...

to Andy's wonderful Dad (a.k.a. Grandpa Deegan)...

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and to the newest Dad (a.k.a. Andy)...

and to all the other Dads out there!

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It has been amazing to watch Andy become such a caring father to Aiden... Andy definitely gets out of bed more than I do in the middle of the night these days, and is always there to feed, change, bathe, read to, entertain, comfort, or tickle the little guy. Aiden always has the biggest smile for Andy- maybe it's because he throws Aiden up into the air and catches him (what can be better when you're 9 months old!), but I think he also knows how much Andy loves him. Happy Father's Day!!

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We had a good Father's Day- did a little fishing, a little hiking, got some batting practice, watched the Sox, and had a BBQ feast with Mom, Dad and Great Grandma Dean.

In honor of Father's Day, Aiden has finally started to crawl!! He only takes a few steps forward before he chickens out and decides to sit, but he's finally reaching those toys we've been putting a few feet away from him!

A Weekend at the Lake

We spent last weekend at the Rising family camp on Lake Champlain- we feel very lucky to have this relaxing spot to come to that is only 40 minutes away by car, and we know that Aiden will grow to love it as he gets older. There is a lot of family history at the camp (it turned 100 years old last year!) and my mom and her brothers and sister have been coming to this spot on the lake since they were very young.

Timber begs for a stick

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Looking across the lake to the NY side

Aiden's new swing! Thank you Gerritt!

The weekend was beautiful - sunny and warm, though not warm enough yet to swim since the lake is still numbingly cold (apparently unless you are a black labrador). We woke up early Saturday morning and drove the short distance to Dead Creek (sounds like a horrible place but it is one of the best birding locations in Vermont, and actually very alive with wildlife at 7 in the morning). The highlight was an immature bald eagle perched on a dead snag over the marsh. The state is running a captive eagle breeding program and has released young eagles in the area for several years in a row. We're assuming the eagle we saw must be one of the releases. Vermont is the only state in the contiguous US that does not have a breeding pair of Bald Eagles. I learned that statistic last year and still find it really hard to believe. There seems to be good habitat for eagles in Vermont, and I can think of plenty of other states where breeding eagles seem less likely...Kansas? Nebraska? Who knows? I'm not an eagle.

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The marsh at Dead Creek

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Song Sparrow, Dead Creek

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Andy checking out the creek

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Dead Creek

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Barn Swallows at the Addison 4 Corners General Store

Great Grandma Dean made the trip to the lake house too, and enjoyed sitting out in the sun and watching the lake go by. When she fell asleep, not even the circa 1940s, diesel fume coughing Lawn Boy mower woke her up!

Dad had to leave a small unmowed square around Grandma's chair

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4 Generations, plus a dog...its debatable whether Grandma is awake yet!

In Search of a White Whale...

There are a few birds that Andy and I have tried over and over again to see, but they always seem to elude us. Once this happens enough, we joke that the bird has reached "white whale" status, as in we're as loony as Captain Ahab crisscrossing the ocean to find Moby Dick. This past weekend we located one of our white whales of Vermont, the Bicknell's Thrush! The silly bird only lives on remote mountain tops over 3800 feet in elevation, and you can only reliably find it for about two weeks of the year (the first 2 in June), when it is singing. Otherwise it's drab and brown and secretive and you'd better not bother.
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The best "view" we could find on top of Mt. Mansfield

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This year we hit the jackpot though, on a foggy, drizzly morning on the top of Mount Mansfield, the highest mountain in VT. When we got to the top, we immediately heard several singing (which does count as "seeing" the bird, according to birding rules (and yes, there are birding rules, but don't get Andy started about those...)). Luckily, after about a half hour of following flute-like songs around, we got a great (though foggy) view of a Bicknell's thrush, singing from the top of a stunted spruce tree. We got ABSOLUTELY NO sweeping scenic views, but you can't have everything!

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This is right about where we heard the first thrushes

. Carrie and Aiden in the fog

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Kind of an eerie morning
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We also got two other lifers last weekend, which I think qualifies it for the best birding weekend we've had in Vermont, probably ever. We got a great look at a singing male Golden-Winged Warbler, and heard many Alder Flycatchers in a shrub swamp in South Burlington.