Green Heron

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Joey was asking and asking to go to the Museum of Life and Science in Durham this past week. I felt up to it, and Donnie was agreeable, so off we went yesterday. Darn if it wasn't a cool and cloudy 58 all day but no rain to dampen our visit, so we were able to enjoy ourselves. We spent some time inside checking out the new Math Moves exhibit and then ended up outside going to the barn yard, Magic Wings Butterfly House, and walking the Explore the Wild Loop.  I got lots of nice pictures in the flower garden outside the butterfly house, during the butterfly release, and on the Explore the Wild Loop.  I know some of you will nod your head in agreement that the best bird poses and sightings are always on cloudy days when the light is low and pictures are hard.  Yesterday was no exception with a green heron, red shouldered hawk, and kingfisher all visible in the wetlands.

Here's a collage of the best flower shots I took outside the butterfly house.  Wow, there sure was some great color out there!

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My patient guys enjoying a snack while I got my flower fix.

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Johnny isn't smiling here because he got pushed off the fireman's pole platform on the playground a few minutes earlier by some kid for an unknown reason and fell about four feet landing on his back and had the wind knocked out of him pretty good.  Thanks to the dad that saw it and stayed with him while Joey came and got me.  Bigger thanks nothing broken.  Thankfully after his snack Johnny recovered and enjoyed the rest of his visit.

Here are the butterflies we enjoyed inside the butterfly house.  Johnny was handed a Clipper during the 3PM butterfly release, and we got lots of pics and then passed the butterfly onto a delighted little girl and her family.

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I wish Donnie could tell the part of our daily story when we rounded the corner of the boardwalk overlooking the wetlands and I saw the green heron.  Let's just say I was a tad excited!  Sometimes I go a whole summer and don't get even one green heron sighting.  And it's only April so far!  And I have one!

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Some of these shots are stretching the 140x digital zoom of the Canon SX40 HS which doubles as a great set of binoculars as well as a great camera.

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Such an impressive bird and exciting sighting that I just had to make him my daily!

The Red Shouldered Hawk

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and Kingfisher shots

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were not as good but still quite exciting.

This squirrel can't read:-)

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Thanks Joey!

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Math Moves and Contraptions photos.  The chair shot upper left makes you learn fractions with two smaller chairs 1/4 and 1/6 the seat area.  Or you can just have fun in the mirror like we did:-)

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And the video.