THE BLOOD MOON

It's tough not to have a telescope when you want to photo a unique object in the sky. It was tough to get a clear, up-close shot of this unique moon - sitting in earth's shadow for several hours. But I did wake up in the middle of the night (2X) to get the following shots. I share them for what they are.

The moon was really special, and, while I don't think it really looked like blood, it did have a rust-colored texture about it.

This was the coolest!!

Last night, I took a picture of the regular moon.

Here, it looks as if I have captured both moons in one photo. BUT, the photo was taken the night after the blood moon. I took it through the double paned glass in our great room. Interesting effect.

One more photo of the sun reflecting off of the snow. This morning, April 16, it is once again snowing. Even now, I AM BEGINNING TO WONDER IF THE REAL SPRING WILL EVER GET HERE.

JUST WHEN ..........

I thought that all of the snow had departed for parts north, but this morning, I discovered that some had decided to stay - 5 inches of it, filled with a great amount of moisture.

My only regret is that I didn't plant grass seed - this snow would have been perfect to germinate the seed to fill in the lawn. Oh well.....Spring will still come, maybe just one week later.

AND JUST A FEW BIRD SHOTS........

A pair of mallard ducks rest at the edge of the open water on our pond.

There are four different kinds of birds on this feeder. Can you identify each one of them?

Slate-colored junco

House finch or female purple finch.

Downy woodpecker.

American goldfinch - female.

IT'S TIME

The time has finally arrived. The huge snow piles and cover have melted with the warm sun, and only shaded spots of off-color white remain.

And so, you guessed it...it's time to get going on the garden. I've planted onion sets and plants, radish seed and curly kale seed.

It's been fun to get my hands back in touch with the earth. Here I'm planting onion sets. But now, I'm a bit distressed. One weather forcaster said that on Monday night it was supposed to be 14 degrees. I'm thankful that the sets and seeds are underground.

And Sarge just soaks up all the sun. I guess we have officially adopted him now since we paid the $8 for a Town of Sharon dog tag. He's been chasing the smells and foods out in the wild, so I have to keep him on the leash when I can't be watching him closely.

Abram (left) and Asher enjoying the swing set in the back yard (Wexford, PA).

The girls (Taylor -left; Elizabeth - center, and Miriam - right) had a "hoot" painting my toenails.

Karol doesn't miss a trick. Here she's learning a bit about lacrosse, catching and throwing the tennis size ball with the lacrosse stick. We had the opportunity to watch the girls play a game (they won).

NATIONAL AVIARY, PITTSBURGH, PA

This morning on Caleb's second birthday, we had the opportunity to visit the National Aviary and then proceed for lunch to an Indian restaurant. This afternoon is for relaxing.

The largest aviary in the United States.

HERE'S A SAMPLING OF WHAT WE WERE ABLE TO SEE.....

 

 

Hornbill

 

American Kestral

Guam kingfisher - only 100 remain in captivity. They are currently making plans to set aside land areas to again release the kingfishers.

Mice come in the exhibit from the outside. Likeable little guys.

Fruit bats.

Caleb's second birthday was a lot of fun. Here with Grandma as the face of a bat.

Lunch at MINTT, an Indian restaurant. And the food was excellent.

Back home after the morning trip, before Caleb's nap, romping with Sarge.