Syrup Time

Its that time of year again...as the weather starts to inch above freezing during the day the sap in the maple trees starts to run. This past week, we taught a group of school kids about the process. Then Saturday was the big Pancake and Syrup Day. Here are a few photos...and factoids for your entertainment :)

It takes about 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup!

At the Audubon, there are more than 700 trees tapped this year.

The pancake syrup you buy at the grocery store has less that 1% real maple syrup.

VIOLA! Mittens!

Well, I started these mittens back when there was snow on the ground. They are cut from old wool sweaters and turned out really cute. Fortunetly, I will have to wait until fall to enjoy my nice and cozy creation.

Spring is in the Air!

I am really REALLY excited that there are signs of spring. Today I caught a wood frog and heard the chorus frogs calling. Me and Isis spent the afternoon outside, in the sun,helping to sort mealworms.

It was fabulous - and I have got to break out the sandals this week. YAY!!

Salt Lake City - Day 4

Today, it was off to see the Dinosaurs at the North American Museum of Acient Life. They claim to have the largest collection of dinosaurs fossils in the world. The website also says  that they have a megalodon (which I was super excited about!). Mindy and I explored the museum for most of the morning and they were not lying about the fossils - there were 100's. The fun part was you could even touch a bunch!! I really enjoyed all the fish like fossils....no surprises there :)

I went the entire time looking around corners to spot my favorite ocean critter of ALL time. However, I am sad to report that this was the most lame and sorry megalodon I have come across (see below).

At the end, you could even pretend to be a paleontologist!

The rest of our day wasn't nearly as exciting. We went to Barnes and Noble and I got a Starbucks. For me though, living in the middle of no where, this was quite a treat. For dinner, we went out with a bunch of the Aviary interns and then met up at a coffee shop. It was nice and relaxin - exactly what I needed.

Unfortunetly, tomorrow I go back to Minnesota. I will be sure to post more pictures soon!

Salt Lake City - Day 3

Today, we went to the Tracy Aviary where Mindy works. This served 2 purposes. First, Mindy got to show me around where she works. Second, I got one of my interviews done for my Hamline Classes. What we thought was going to be a quick morning turned into four hours of wondering.

After the morning we grabbed a quick lunch and headed off to the library. I know this seems a bit silly but the Salt Lake City Library is HUGE. (One picture is the outside and the other is the inside of the library.) It is 5 floors with a garden roof and stores on the first floor. The views from the top were stunning!! (as you can see from the picture below)

This evening we went to Alice in Wonderland the movie in 3D. It has been a long time since I saw anything in 3D so it was interesting to see it again. The movie on the other was a little disappointing.

Thats all for now....tomorrow its off to see the dinosaurs! :)

Salt Lake City - Day 2

After getting up at the crack of dawn yesterday AND staying up seveal hours past my bed time, I managed to sleep until 10! This is amazing for me since I normally get up at 7 everyday of the week. Once we got moving, it was a rather busy day.

First up was the Hogle Zoo. We enjoyed a lazy and another beautiful day wondering around looking at the animals. I did see a male American Kestrel - however I am going to say that Nero is way cuter....not that I am biased or anything. :)

Next up was a quick walk by Olympic Cauldron Park. This is where alot of the stuff took place when the Olympics were here. In the photo I am standing under the arch where some of the medal ceramonies took place. It seem that I have a problem. This is the 3rd Olympic park I have been to...only about 8 years too late. Maybe some day I will get to go to an actual event!

Last stop of the day was Antelope Island. This is the largest island on the lake. We say quite a bit of wildlife. Bison, antelope, birds and I am 70% sure I saw a burrowing owl. It just moved a little too quick for me to properly ID it. The views were amazing here and we got to see the sunset on the drive back to mainland. If anyone is planning a visit here soon, this would be one place you can't miss!

Until next time....

Salt Lake Ciy - Day 1

I got up at 4 am to make it to my way early flight on Saturday. It was so early that I got to see the sun rise from my window seat. After a quick layover in Denver, I got on another plane to get to Salt Lake. Flying over the Rocky Mountains was beautiful!

Mindy and I were off and running. We went to the capital building and Temple Square. The architecture is amazing and eveywhere you look are the mountains. The nice thing is that even though Salt Lake is  big city, it doesn't have the big city feel. This makes it rather relaxing.

So far, I am really enjoying the nice mild weather. I will be sure to post more from my visit soon :)