Nature Connections - May Edition

We celebrated Memorial Day by visiting The Hermitage, home of President Andrew Jackson. An observance of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War was held near the Tulip Grove home on the opposite end of the property. We attended a part of the memorial ceremony and toured the home and gardens at The Hermitage.

 

Herding Ducks

Dad alerted us to the presence of a duck in our neighbor's yard. This news required immediate confirmation.

We tracked it to its temporary lair and attempted to lure it out. No dice.

Stronger measures were required. Do you know of a duck who can resist croissants?

I do.

No worries. We had an appointment to keep anyway.

Strawberry Girl

I remember reading Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski when I was just a few years older than DD. I remember thinking how wonderful it would be to belong to a family of migrant fruit pickers whose children attended school spottily at best. Well, spending 30 minutes in the blazing heat of May (insert caustic global warming comment here) disabused me of any romantic notions about picking fruit (or anything) for a living. The spotty school attendance still sounds pretty good, though.

Flat Rock Cedar Glades and Barrens

Today we visited Flat Rock Cedar Glades and Barrens in Rutherford County with friends. If you go, be on the lookout for a gravel lot next to Rickey and Pam's house. Seriously.

Once we found it, though, we had a wonderful day exploring the cedar glades. It really put me in mind of the desert in some places. We even saw cacti. Afterward, we went to the creek to cool off, and at 93 degrees, it was necessary.

This is a frog sitting on a log on his way back to the bog.

Sellars Farm

Today we had the opportunity to spend the day at Sellars Farm Archaeological Site with Ranger Tyler. He led the kids on a hike to learn how to identify various trees, and he also pointed out several edible plants. The kids had such fun finding and eating wild strawberries, onions, sassafrass. They had the most fun, though, splashing in the creek; it was a perfect day for a creek hop: sunny with temperatures in the mid-80s. I came home and ordered new water shoes for us both. I see lots of creek time in our future.

Why I Should Carry My Camera AT ALL TIMES

If I lived by this simple rule, I wouldn't have missed the opportunity to document, with a photograph that would live forever and always, DD's fairy house that she built on the edge of Stones River while we were walking the trail. It was such a beautiful afternoon, and she wanted to build a fairy house, a la Twig. I, being the labor force, gathered sticks in varying shapes and sizes, most of which were discarded due to inferior quality. Then, the stick house was scrapped altogether in favor of a more permanent rock dwelling, complete with cattail broom, leaf bed and a stick door. We're planning to go back, in case a fairy has moved in.

Celebrating Spring at Cheekwood

What a gorgeous day it was Friday, and we were able to spend the whole of it outside (except for the briefest of interludes at Trader Joe's, but we needn't digress).

Everything is in bloom, a new modern art exhibit is hanging in the museum, and they even have trains. If you're in the area, should schedule a visit.

Luck was with us that day.

This frog is giving me the gimlet eye.

A contemplative moment