I'm truly astounded at the amazing streak of great weather we've been experiencing lately! Just makes you want to be OUT THERE all day!We spent our adventure time today hiking at a flood control area about half an hour from our house. I like this spot because the walking is easy and a lot of the trails loop back to the parking lot within an hour's worth of exploring, so no matter what time Zoo Boy is starting to wear out, we're almost back to the car. It's also a great place to bring a dog or two along, although today we didn't. (No reason really, I just didn't think about it until we were pulling in the parking lot!)
One of the kids' favorite things to do here is to check the Bluebird boxes for signs of use. Quite a few of them are occupied this year, but apparently by Tree Swallows rather than Bluebirds. The same is true with our own Bluebird houses on our farm. But the kids don't care, and neither do I, tree swallows are just as good at eating bugs and almost as colorful. And kind of friendly (compared to a Bluebird anyway).
Speaking of the Tree Swallows, here's one now, peeking out to see what all the commotion is. We were surprised when she flew out, as her mate was in there with her too. We didn't expect another one to come out after the first, and were leaning over to peer in the hole, so he almost hit us in the face as he flew out!
In one of the boxes we were delighted to find an egg! It happened to be the only box that's not nailed shut, so I was able to get a photos of both the nest and the egg. Will be fun to check back in with this box to see how many eggs this couple lays. (The bird who occupies this box returned to the nest as soon as we stepped away, perhaps to lay another egg, perhaps just to make sure we left it the same way we found it.)
We found some wild strawberries growing alongside the trail in one location. I'm making a mental note to come walk that trail in another month to see if we can manage to sample the berries before other hikers or the wildlife does.
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