hawk alley - maugerville to Jemseg on the old hwy road.

So after church yesterday, we went over to Kitt's parents for lunch....it was a good lunch sandwhiches and chocolate with coffee...who could complain when it's good eh!!!!

Then with it being a good day for driving we went up to Hawk Alley to see what was around, our goal was to hopefully see at least some cool hawks and at best an owl.  Kitt has never seen an owl in it's one of her bucket list items.     No we aren't dying soon.

So not only did we get some good views of a couple of hawks and some eagles but this great little barred owl that just sat there and let us watch him and get some photo's .  wish i had a telephoto lense. someday.

Anyways , here are the shots.   Enjoy.

Our Pets

So our appartment building won't let us have pets, so we bought some bird feeders, which works well, cause our window in the living room looks out to a wooded area.   With a black oil sunflower and 2 suet feeders we get a variety of birds coming to the feeders.  Kitt calls them our pets, which is great cause we don't have to clean up their poop, bonus!!!   So on those days when getting out isn't an option, we can just look out our window.

sightings;  Black Capped Chickadee, Dark eyed Junco, Blue Jay, Crow, Raven, Hairy and Downy Woodpecker, Gold Finch, Common RedPoll, Tree Sparrow, Cardinal, and Mourning Doves.

Choosing to stay healthy

Okay, so we are at Kitt's sisters , and she has a weigh scale in her washroom, and I'm thinking "hmmmm, I wonder how much I've gained?"  now I was at 230lbs when I met Kitt, and she is an amazing cook.....do you see where this is going.....at her sisters there is a ton of food, mmmmm food!!   So I decided to try out the scale "arghhhhhhhhhhh!!!! "  I didn't weigh 230lb anymore, its like closer to 270lbs.......lol...Kitt is wondering why I torture myself....

So one of our new year resolutions....want to guess...........................

Yes , your right, lose weight, the good news (not Jesus, he's amazing news and it is The Good News,but i'm just talking uncapitilized good news...)  is that Kitt and I love to get out and explore and enjoy nature.  So hiking, snowshoeing, and maybe skiing are in the close future.  

So New Years day, we decide we should go for a walk , her daughter said it was tee shirt weather out....lol....it was nice, but still cold , especially with the wind.   So choosing something close to Hampton, we went out to the road by the highway that goes to McManus Lake, good beaver lodge in there, plus a nest from Osprey (sometimes used in winter months by either a Great Horned Owl, or a Red Tailed Hawk)

We saw a red tailed hawk soaring, plus a solitary black capped chickadee and a couple of hairy woodpeckers.  Also a flock of geese, the snow was knee deep so most of the time we stayed on a skidoo trail since we don't have snowshoes for Kitt yet....soon baby ,,,soon!

The Little White Bird

Well it was Boxing Day , and Kitt and I decided we were going to go into Saint John and Help Lise clean out the building Joshua Group is using.  (joshuagroup.ca)
Though on the way into help, we wanted to stop off at Marsh Creek, people who follow along with our adventures must really wonder about the dates I take Kitt on since I take her to places like marshes, sewage lagoons, and now Marsh Creek (it smells....really bad.....like a sewage lagoon...really really bad smell....)      Our reason for the detour, THE SNOWY EGRET!!!!

Marsh Creek is a great place to check out , especially in winter for water fowl, waders, shore birds, and gulls, since it is mostly open year round, and the stinky sewage stuff is actually yummy for the birds or what they might be chewing on.    So here we were sitting out in the cold, it was cold, brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, lots of ducks and some gulls but no egret.    We were there for about 45 minutes, and had decided to get going, when I was telling Kitt about how there has been sightings of gulls not usually seen often like the black legged kittiwake, and then I saw this really white looking Gull.  "Look Kitt there is a different Gull, lets see what it is".  As it flew in , Kitt first and then myself, noticed the legs.  "Oh My Gosh!!!!!"   It wasn't a gull but our Snowy Egret, a first for both Kitt and I, I've seen a Great Egret, and a Cattle Egret, but this was my first Snowy.

So we sat back, took some photo's , watched it for awhile , and then heading over to help out Lise.
It was good to help out, our volunteering that day likely saved Lise and Joshua Group a couple of days work.  I'm not saying this for a pad on the back , I'm saying this to point out that anyone can be a help to them.  If you don't feel you can help hands on with the Kids, there are plenty of other things they can use help with, and I can tell you from experience that it is rewarding and seeing these kids smile, laugh, and live is even a bigger reward.   So how about it, will you choose to try it out?

joshuagroup.ca

Till next time, lots of hugs

Paul & Kitty