I am therefore getting excited by putting together a little slideshow from some of the pictures I took last year... :)
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Christmas 2010
This is the posting that SHOULD have been this past Christmas..... unfortunately that didn't happen, but better late than never, right?! So here it is, Christmas in July! ;p
Birthday Bash
In January there was a girl who had a birthday and this is a very very short blog about that day!
Falcon Babies Update....
Earlier tonight, Mary, Livie and I went down to Temple Square to attend the falcon field trip and volunteer orientation meeting. We were able to hear a lot from the people who work with these wonderful creatures on a daily basis.
The fledgelings are now about four weeks old, and are showing signs of being ready for flight training. A week or two called “Hell-week” by the experts and volunteers, due to the speed and lack of control on the part of these youngsters. With them hatching on a building in Down-town Salt Lake City, there are many and varied dangers.. Including but not limited to shiny windows, cars/trucks and physical hurt due to falling. These birds are pretty high on the food chain as far as other animals go, no other animals really prey on them. But many times they can attract illnesses from the food they are fed (such as city birds/small rodents) Fortunately pesticide that put them on the endangered-list have been banned for years and the population is now healthily climbing.
So the meeting tonight was basically to petition for and inform volunteers to help keep an eye out for these four.
In our family we’ve named them of course, and they are in order of birth: Junior, Turkey Basting, Nameless (adapt. from “Toothless”) and bibi-bibi (aka. the baby or the runt).
Basically they need help with paying attention to these four when they start flight training, by watching them and following them, if they fall to the ground; to catch them for release on top of building, or if hurt, hand them over to the rehab. people. With four young it might be a little busy too keep track of them all, so they were asking for more volunteers this year.
Rob Walters of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, has worked with these birds for many many years (since the mid ‘80s I think) and is in charge down there on Temple Square. He is expecting “hell-week” to start around July 4th which I think is fitting for these majestic creatures. :D
The fledgelings are now about four weeks old, and are showing signs of being ready for flight training. A week or two called “Hell-week” by the experts and volunteers, due to the speed and lack of control on the part of these youngsters. With them hatching on a building in Down-town Salt Lake City, there are many and varied dangers.. Including but not limited to shiny windows, cars/trucks and physical hurt due to falling. These birds are pretty high on the food chain as far as other animals go, no other animals really prey on them. But many times they can attract illnesses from the food they are fed (such as city birds/small rodents) Fortunately pesticide that put them on the endangered-list have been banned for years and the population is now healthily climbing.
So the meeting tonight was basically to petition for and inform volunteers to help keep an eye out for these four.
In our family we’ve named them of course, and they are in order of birth: Junior, Turkey Basting, Nameless (adapt. from “Toothless”) and bibi-bibi (aka. the baby or the runt).
Basically they need help with paying attention to these four when they start flight training, by watching them and following them, if they fall to the ground; to catch them for release on top of building, or if hurt, hand them over to the rehab. people. With four young it might be a little busy too keep track of them all, so they were asking for more volunteers this year.
Rob Walters of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, has worked with these birds for many many years (since the mid ‘80s I think) and is in charge down there on Temple Square. He is expecting “hell-week” to start around July 4th which I think is fitting for these majestic creatures. :D
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Dinner Night...
Tonight's been my dinner-night and I decided a few days ago I wanted Hawaiian Haystacks... So that's what I made... Unfortunately I didn't take a picture of it before it got put away, so you'll all just have to deal with other people's pictures.... *giggle*
Haystacks (as we call them for short) are quickly becoming a family favorite here at our house. It's delicious, it's nutritious and everybody gets to build it to their taste.
There are a multitude of recipes, all as different as our personalities. BUT the basics are the same.
You start with your regular sticky rice... and shredded chicken in a white sauce, but here the variables and changes start.... I've found the easiest way is to just put pieces of chicken in the crock-pot and let them cook for a couple of hours. Right after they are cooked enough to cut easily, shred the pieces with two forks and put them back in the Crock Pot. Then make a white sauce, I season with salt, pepper, onion powder, ground ginger, a little oregano and a LOT of Basil. When your white sauce is thick add it to the chicken and let it simmer for a little while. In the meantime, cut up your onions, green onions, cashew nuts, mushrooms, olives, tomatoes, pineapple, whatever you want and feel like... I also shred cheese, put out a bowl of craisins, open a can or two of canned mandarin oranges....
Basically from the white sauce out you're looking at a hodge-podge of whatever your taste buds desire. So you start by putting the rice on your plate, add the chicken "sauce", and then add the toppings as much or as little as you want. In the end dig in and enjoy!! :)
ALOHA!! :)
Haystacks (as we call them for short) are quickly becoming a family favorite here at our house. It's delicious, it's nutritious and everybody gets to build it to their taste.
There are a multitude of recipes, all as different as our personalities. BUT the basics are the same.
You start with your regular sticky rice... and shredded chicken in a white sauce, but here the variables and changes start.... I've found the easiest way is to just put pieces of chicken in the crock-pot and let them cook for a couple of hours. Right after they are cooked enough to cut easily, shred the pieces with two forks and put them back in the Crock Pot. Then make a white sauce, I season with salt, pepper, onion powder, ground ginger, a little oregano and a LOT of Basil. When your white sauce is thick add it to the chicken and let it simmer for a little while. In the meantime, cut up your onions, green onions, cashew nuts, mushrooms, olives, tomatoes, pineapple, whatever you want and feel like... I also shred cheese, put out a bowl of craisins, open a can or two of canned mandarin oranges....
Basically from the white sauce out you're looking at a hodge-podge of whatever your taste buds desire. So you start by putting the rice on your plate, add the chicken "sauce", and then add the toppings as much or as little as you want. In the end dig in and enjoy!! :)
ALOHA!! :)
Saturday, June 25, 2011
FANFICTION
Normally I'm super super picky when it comes to my favorite stories/novels... and so fan-fiction is a delicate area for me. But my very very dear friend has written a fan-fiction of Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice that is really good, and I highly recommend it to you all. If you're into this sort I would be delighted if you would check it out!!
One Thread Pulled Chapter 1: The Assembly Ball, a pride and prejudice fanfic - FanFiction.Net
One Thread Pulled Chapter 1: The Assembly Ball, a pride and prejudice fanfic - FanFiction.Net
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Our new Pets....
Okay so the title is a bit of a tease.... To clarify, we don't have any new pets at our house, (Hilda is very,VERY allergic and sensitive!!!!)... We get to enjoy them 24/7 (if we want to), and we don’t have to clean up after them or feed them or anything!!! In short they are the PERFECT PETS (for this household at least).... So wanna meet them???
Here they are... our babies.... Peregrine falcon cam It’s actually quite funny.... the kids crowd around the computers, we have the falcon cam running on at least ONE computer every hour... and we all watch mesmerized... Even the boy!!! :) We love these little tykes, AND their parents! The services provided by the state, with the cameras and all the info, not to mention all the hours of service that goes on in regards to these beautiful creatures, is quite amazing!! To be able to see these wild animals up close and personal... and the fact that they’re thriving in such an urban community is awesome.... A TRUE DELIGHT!!!! :)
Here they are... our babies.... Peregrine falcon cam It’s actually quite funny.... the kids crowd around the computers, we have the falcon cam running on at least ONE computer every hour... and we all watch mesmerized... Even the boy!!! :) We love these little tykes, AND their parents! The services provided by the state, with the cameras and all the info, not to mention all the hours of service that goes on in regards to these beautiful creatures, is quite amazing!! To be able to see these wild animals up close and personal... and the fact that they’re thriving in such an urban community is awesome.... A TRUE DELIGHT!!!! :)For more see also this blog by Liz Schubert...
More Peregrine falcon facts
- Scientific name: Falco peregrinus (In Latin, peregrinus means wandering.)
- Distribution: Cosmopolitan, but mainly in arctic to temperate regions
- Status: Formerly listed by the U.S. government as endangered, but recently delisted
- Life span: 10 to 12 years; 20 years in captivity
- Length: 10 to 20 inches (females are larger than the males)
- Wingspan: 36 to 45 inches (females are larger than the males)
- Weight: 1 pound 4 ounces to 2 pounds 12 ounces
- Plumage: In most plumages, the dark head appears hooded; slate grey-backed (dark brown-backed as juvenile) with cream-colored underparts, thick dark "mustache" (malar) mark below eye
- Eyesight: Up to eight times better than human vision
- Song: In protest, a loud, rapidly-repeated "kak, kak, kak"
- Flight speed: Clocked at 175 to 200 mph in vertical stoop or when diving from great heights upon prey
- Appearance in flight: Active flight is with shallow, but stiff and powerful wingbeats; soaring is on flat wings and a widely fanned tail; gliding is with wings level or with writs below the body and the wingtips up
- Abundance and seasonal status: Nests in Utah; occasionally seen during fall migration and sometimes is a winter resident
- Nesting habits: Tall, sheer cliff faces, often within 14 miles of water; occasionally on bridges, buildings and towers
- Number of eggs in clutch: Typically three to four
- Wintering habits: Southern North America, Central America and South America
- Food: Almost exclusively birds, nearly always caught in mid-flight; fledglings often chase after and catch flying insects, such as dragonflies
- Factors responsible for decline: Pesticides, habitat loss, pollution, poisoning and shooting
- Factors responsible for recovery: The ban in the use of the pesticide DDT in 1972 is believed to have contributed significantly to the recovery; in recent years, the outlook for the birds improved enough that they have been delisted from the federal endangered species list.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)