For the Birds

We’ve seen a beautiful male cardinal in our backyard about 5 out of the last 7 mornings, so and he has sparked an interest in the kids to learn more about birds.  I picked up some library books on birds, and we have been slowly reading through them.  This morning we went on an outing to a local park to feed the ducks.  One of the things we learned is that bread is unhealthy for the ducks.  They eat a diet that is mainly plant-based.  One suggestion I found was to feed the ducks thawed peas.  I had some leftover and decided to give it a try.  It proved to be a little tricky.  The peas don’t float like pieces of bread.  Instead, they sink fairly rapidly.  There is a definite technique to getting the ducks to eat them.  You have to throw them so that they land within about 6-10 inches of the duck’s head.  He then sees it hit the water and can grab it before it sinks too deep.  It was actually a pretty fun way to feed the ducks.  They would stick their whole heads under water to grab the peas.  There 5 ducklings there too.  It was neat to be able to show the kids how they still had a lot of downy baby feathers and not a full coat of feathers like the adults.  Two turtles even came for a visit, a mommy and her baby. 

We also made a clay bird this morning.  I haven’t had a chance to take his picture, but I will soon.  He’s pretty cute.  Once he dries, I think we will paint him red like our little cardinal friend.

I only managed to get a few photos this morning.  I was busy trying to make sure no one fell in the water.  Fortunately, the ones I managed to get turned out pretty cute.  Now everyone is fed and bathed.  We’ll head upstairs, read some more bird books, and take a nap if I’m lucky.