Deegan Family Blog: Christmas Bird Count... and SNOW!

It's been awhile since we've done a Christmas Bird Count. Since Aiden is now a pretty decent birder (for a 7 year old, certainly!) and there is a local count circle that literally includes our house, we decided to participate in the Sunapee Xmas Bird Count last Saturday. I knew we wouldn't likely be in for full-day outdoor slog in single digit temps with two young kids, so we concentrated on watching our yard feeders (from the comfort of bedroom windows) and a short trip up to the Colby Sawyer College campus to scan for any interesting birds. Sometimes there are snow buntings or turkeys in the fields near Windy Hill School in winter... no such luck this afternoon, but we did find a nice flock of 55 cedar waxwings gorging themselves on fruit from the ornamental crabapple trees on campus. No bohemian waxwings mixed in, but it was still an exciting find for Aiden's first CBC. He's joined a NH Young Birders Club (the Harriers) and Andy and I are secretly really excited to do some real birding again, even if this involves shorter or less involved field excursions to accommodate the pace and interests of children. That is better than no birding, which is basically what we've been doing since Haley was born :)

We also got our first big dump of snow for the season this weekend- 14" of powder. Even though it was bitterly cold on Sunday, the kids were still desperate to get outside in the white stuff, so we all went sledding at Twin Lake Villa (aka Suicide Hill). The snow was fast under the sleds, and so light that it blew up in clouds around the sleds on the way down, coating everything (including faces) in a white rime. But still, it was fun. After a half hour of pulling Haley doo up the very steep sled hill on the snow tube, though, Andy and I were about to drop. Aiden is blessedly big enough to climb back up himself, the snow only reaching to about his knees... instead of mid-calf for Haley. Looking forward to our first skiing of the season (and boarding for the boys) once we return from our Christmas vacation!