It's a veritable baby factory around here!

Surprisingly, I'm not referring to the new MALE addition to the Slovick family. Instead, I'm posting the much-awaited photos of our first brood of Eastern Bluebird chicks of the year. Mama and Daddy bluebird persevered through the predation of their first clutch of eggs laid in March and have successfully hatched a second brood! Three of the eggs hatched on Mother's Day, and the other was hatched when I peeked in Monday morning. On my brief trip out there today to photograph the little runts I could only make out 3 mouths, but they're crammed in there so tightly that #4 might have just been hiding under her siblings. I'll keep you updated on their progress. Based on their hatch date of 5/11 I'm estimating that they'll fledge on or around Wednesday 5/28. I will do my best to get a progression of photos of the little cuties leading up to that time. Here's the family; Papa, Mama, and the kiddos.

Daddy had a grub in his mouth, just waiting for me to clear out of the area before he went in and fed the little chicks.

Mama had just come out of the nestbox in this shot. She was surveying the flower bed below her for more food for the chicks.

Their eyes aren't open yet, but their instinct is to look up and open their mouths when they hear sounds. I guess I sounded like I came bearing mealworms. I decided to leave that to the experts.

Some other yard visitors were feeling especially photogenic today, so I took advantage.


This frog (or is it a toad?) is a resident. I found him today when i was cleaning the bird bath.

The Chipping Sparrow is an unusual sight in my yard. This is only the second time I've ever seen one here. I can't even ever recall seeing one of these at the Nature Trail. I wonder where they hang out?

"I'm NOT Captain Obvious!"

Verbally, I think anyone who knows her would consider Lily advanced. She still has some moments of obvious toddlerdom though, and when she does she's fun to pick on.

A few months ago, apparently in an attempt to express her understanding of the events of the world around her, Lily uttered the following phrase. "When I was a baby in Mommy's tummy, I was a baby in her tummy". The quizzical glance that Mandi and I shot in each other's direction was comical to say the least. I think I actually shook my head unconsciously as if to jolt myself awake from whatever daydream I was having and ask myself, "What did she say?" These proclamations continued on at regular intervals, sometimes they were repeats of previous statements and sometimes they were fresh ideas. Yesterday, predictably, she said "If I have a baby brother, I will have a baby brother!"


Anyway, after the first few repeats of this pattern it started to remind me of a skit I used to love when I'd listen to The Bob & Tom Show on the radio in the mornings. Once a week or so they'd get a 'phone call' from a doofus who'd describe an everyday occurrence in comical detail, acting completely dumbfounded by what was going on. The recipient of the phone call was a character they called "Mr. Obvious". Mr. Obvious would mock the caller mercilessly as he listened to the description, and then he'd tell the doofus what was really going on. He'd say things like, "I don't think you've got a wild animal in your pipes caller, I think that's your garbage disposal." So one day when Lily spouted off one of her little gems, I retorted "That's great Captain Obvious". This did not go over well. Her immediate reaction was to convincingly demand "I'm NOT Captim Oveeous!" The fact that she got so close to pronouncing it correctly just goes to show how truly advanced her verbal abilities are. But I can't help myself when she opens the door for me to give her a little needling in the ribs. It's just too cute to see her get all bent out of shape about it, when she thinks she's saying something profound and meaningful and Daddy's calling her names.

A Big Morning

This morning Lily and I went on a long walk on the Moss Creek Nature Trail. Each subsequent trip on the Trail in the last few weeks has brought about a great variety of wildlife. Migrating birds are plentiful, but it's the other creatures that have really piqued my interest. I'm no expert, but my guess would be that this particular area offers one of the most diverse combinations of habitat in Cabarrus County.


Above is a Blue Corporal (Libellula deplanata) dragonfly. This is a mature male.


Another dragonfly, this one I could not identify.


This one (above) is a Common Whitetail (Libellula lydia).


Another unidentifiable dragonfly.


And another.


As much as I'd like to see Monarch butterflies, this is not one. It is a Viceroy (Limenitis archippus).


Above, the white butterfly with black spots is a Cabbage White (Pieris rapae).


An oriole sighting is exciting for all birders. A singing male Orchard Oriole is even more uncommon. At this particular spot on the Trail, I've seen as many as 5 of them, 3 males and 2 females.


I went further down the Trail today than I've gone recently, and I was rewarded for it. I saw a Ruby-throated Hummingbird near the stream, and this male Prairie Warbler.


Taking cover in this tree is a Brown Thrasher. This isn't an uncommon bird in Cabarrus County, but it's the first one I've ever seen here on the Trail. I saw a total of 2 today.


The Killdeer was leisurely strolling along the trail just ahead of us.



The Indigo Buntings were singing loudly this morning. There were at least 15. I also saw a pair of Blue Grosbeaks, a first for the Trail. In all I recorded 40 species of birds on my walk this morning. To date I've ID'ed over 60 species at the Moss Creek Nature Trail since December. The count for my Big Year count now stands at 107 species identified, with a trip tentatively planned this weekend to a migratory bird walk held by the Mecklenburg County Parks & Recreation Department at the Evergreen Nature Preserve. I hope to be able to add a good number of migrants to the list at that time.


Apparently Lily was comfortable in her new jogging stroller. She napped for about 30 minutes while I birded.

This thistle flower, the particular species of which I can't determine, was a very bright spot in an otherwise leafy landscape.

Happy Birthday Princess

My baby girl turned 3 years old yesterday. It sounds completely implausible to me when I say it out loud. Lily has gone from sweet sleepless baby to mostly-sweet sleepless big-girl, and it seems like it all happened overnight.

We spent the day at Dan Nicholas Park in Salisbury, NC with Mandi's sister Emily and her daughter Taylor. The girls love spending time with Taylor, she's such a fun little girl. Ever since I can remember, she's always gotten so excited when Avery comes in to the room. She gets a big old smile on her face and squeals with delight.


Among the activities for the day were a ride on the carousel, a trip through the petting zoo, and of course, a stop at the concession stand for some ice cream.




Avery and Lily wore their new matching dresses.


Lily made sure she wore her "I'm 3!" ribbon all day long.

Then, as is her style lately, Lily passed out on the couch before I even had a chance to put her in the bath tub. Of course, she was in full Princess-gear getup at the time. I did manage to get the shoes off of her before I put her to bed, but the dress stayed. I didn't want to risk her waking up before I got her in to bed, you know?



With that, I leave you with a song I can't help thinking of when I think about my girls and how quickly they're growing up.

Who Needs Sleep?

Allow me to paint you a picture, if you will, of an active toddler's sleeping "pattern". If you can call it that.

Tuesday, 8:30 P.M. - Bedtime goes surprisingly well. The screaming lasts only minutes, before a bedside book calms her down and she goes down without a fuss. She insists that I leave the bedroom light on, and I comply. It's a small price to pay.

Wednesday, 5:50 A.M. - The sound of Mandi leaving for work wakes Lily. She's up and at 'em.

1:30 P.M. - Lily passes out on the futon in the playroom. She sleeps for about an hour.

8:30 P.M. - Bedtime, again without incident.


Thursday, 1:30 A.M. - Mandi hears Lily's bedroom door open and sends me to interfere. I arrive to find the child in a ball on the floor, still mostly asleep, but completely in the hallway. I return her to the bed, again with the light on, but without further incident.

5:20 A.M. - Wide awake, this time before I'm finished making our breakfast. She joins us and has some waffles.

9:00 A.M. - Lily falls asleep in the car on the way to the gym. Her nap lasts less than 10 minutes.

12:15 P.M. - On the way home from running errands, she falls asleep in the car. The grocery store, where we had been, is less than a mile from the house. Bringing her in to the house wakes her up and she does not nap again.

6:45 P.M. - After her bath, wrapped neatly in her pink bathrobe, Lily falls fast asleep. She would sleep through being carried up to her bed.

Friday, Midnight. - Me talking in my sleep wakes Mandi, and as she rolls over she sees Lily's door open. She asks me to go find her, and I do, again asleep on the floor in the hallway. I put her back in bed without further incident.

4:50 A.M. - Lily is awake, comes downstairs and turns on the TV while Mandi gets ready for work. I'm still asleep.

5:25 A.M. - I'm working on breakfast, Mandi's back upstairs finishing getting ready. Lily is asleep on the futon.

5:45 A.M. - As Mandi gets ready to leave, Lily wakes up, apparently hungry. She has some waffles and we walk Avery to school (not at 5:45).

9:00 A.M. - As we leave for the gym, Lily yawns and says, "Daddy, I sure am a sleepy Beanie!"

11:45 A.M. - After the gym, a stop at the library, and some playing at the park, we load up in the car to head home for lunch.

11:47 A.M. - A few bites of trail mix and Lily's asleep in the carseat.

12:10 P.M. - Carrying her inside wakes her up, and she is demonstrably cranky.

12:12 P.M. - Lily goes into a full blown crying tantrum because Daddy doesn't want to "come upstairs and see my magical room." What was I thinking.

12:14 P.M. - Crying subsides, and then dies.

12:15 P.M. - I investigate the silence, only to find Lily asleep on the second stair.


12:25 P.M. - Lily tumbles harmlessly down the steps and wakes up. I arrive to find her on her knees, just looking at me silently.

12:27 P.M. - Daddy carries her to the futon and covers her up with her fuzzy blanket, where she falls asleep again within the minute.

12:35 P.M. - Hunger apparently overwhelms exhaustion at this point, when Lily wakes once again and makes her way to the table to get her lunch.

Our story concludes at this point, but I leave you with the following song, which ironically came on in the shuffle sequence right as I'd sat down to type this story. Just press play.

Girls Rule . . .

. . . and "Boys Drule." I'll bet you didn't know that. However, I have irrefutable visual evidence of this little factoid. Notice that she took care to cross out the "Daily" in Daily Reminders, as if to say that the fact that boys drool is to be a permanent reminder, not reserved solely for this week.

It's just so funny to me to see stuff like this from Avery. Despite my having grown up with two younger sisters, this is completely foreign to me. I mean what's next? Boys are icky? Boys are gross? Or does the pendulum swing the other direction . . do boys become cute soon? Oh God, please tell me they don't.

Love Is In The Air

Spring is most definitely in the air. There might be something in the water, too, because it seems like everywhere I turn these days I'm watching wildlife copulate. Specifically, as it turns out, woodpeckers.

Last Sunday, after dinner at Mandi's parents' house, she and I went for a walk to Latta Park, where I hoped to see some good spring migrant birds. I think we saw 2 squirrels total and, ironically, one male Downy Woodpecker. I was disappointed, but as we walked back I heard an exceptionally loud call from a tree in front of me. I looked up, focused my binoculars, and just as I did I captured two very loud Northern Flickers making whoopee on a branch. Did I say very loud? These two birds were LOUD.

Then, as a little change of pace for the story, Mandi, Lily, and I went to Frank Liske Park for a picnic lunch on Thursday afternoon. As we approached the pond, there were two different pairs of Canada Geese leading little goslings around the grass and into the water. Baby ducks and geese are as much a true sign of spring's arrival as this Iris is, which blossomed in our back yard this week.


As it happens, there was also a female American Robin sitting on her eggs in her nest almost directly above the shady spot where we chose to have our picnic. She was aware of us, but not intimidated. She turned methodically from one direction to the other, both watching for predators and keeping even warmth on her clutch. Mercifully, she did not poop on our lunch.

Last night I took the girls to a park in Highland Creek where I was planning to play basketball with some friends. We got there early because Avery wanted to go for a walk in the woods behind the playground, and as we traversed the fallen trees we heard more boisterous bird calls from above. I looked up to find a pair of Red-headed Woodpeckers doing the dirty-dirty on the outstretched limb of a pine tree, and I was thankful Avery was looking innocently at a half-built nest in a tree in the other direction. As much as I think she's too young for the birds-and-bees talk, it would have somehow been appropriate to have had the subject come up over actual birds instead of people. Maybe the woodpeckers are trying to gently coax me into having "the talk" with her. That, or they're just especially horny this time of year.