We joined a local homeschool group on a field trip to the Fort Fisher Aquarium.   We took the ferry over, which is a highlight, and adds meaning to "getting there is half the fun."

The first part of the Aquarium is a huge area with lots of information and displays about the North Carolina coastal plain/coast and what wildlife can be found there.  Darling Daughter was the first to spy some quail hiding in the leaves and to point them out.  What amazing camouflage these creatures have!

The female has the brown head to help her hide better when sitting on her nest.  Like most birds, the males are more colorful.  Can you spy them all?  Look closely!   From Nature, Winter 2009 Now a wind went out from the Lord, and it brought quail from the sea and left them fluttering near the camp, about a day's journey on this side and about a day's journey on the other side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the surface of the ground. (Numbers 11:31)

Next, we were on to the reptile area where we were able to see huge tadpoles, newts, glass lizards, box turtles, snakes, and alligators.  (You can find gators on the golf courses around here.)  Everytime we are around a display of snakes, I make the kids rattle off the difference between a poisonous and non-venomous snake.  Poisonous have a "spade" shaped head and/or vertical pupils and "pits" between the front of their mouths and their eyes, while non-venomous snakes' heads are a smooth continued form of their bodies and have round pupils.  Living where there are rattlers, cottonmouths, copperheads and coral snakes, I want to make sure my kids are fully aware of the difference and to be looking out for them - not in a paranoid "I never want to go in the woods, near a creek, or through tall grass!" kind of way, but more in a respectful "I stay alert, I know what to look for, and I know what to avoid" mode.

Can you spot the 3 things on the snake that lets you know it's poisonous?  Little Man enjoyed finding out about the alligator & sea turtle skulls, and seeing what the inside of a turtle shell looks like.   From Nature, Winter 2009 The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den. Isaiah 11:8

The coolest part is the underwater "talking diver."  My hubby knows someone at work who is a volunteer diver, so a few months back, we were able to get a behind the scenes tour of the dive tank, the water filters, etc. from the top of the tank.  Little Man, who knows no strangers and loves to ask, "why" raised his hand a few times during the dive show to ask the diver questions.  Darling Daughter, who is a little more reserved and not a fan of drawing attention to herself, especially in a crowd, afterwards bravely asked the aquarium staff person on the outside of the tank, who was relying the questions to the diver inside, why the fish dove to the very bottom, went on their sides along the gravel, and then went back up.  The staff persons said it was called "flashing" and they think that it may be a way the fish communicate.

Clockwise, from top left: hermit crab, lion fish, sting rays (I LOVE their bottom view -- their little "faces" are so cute!). diver and (?) fish, sea horses, moray eel below diver and a shark behind his left hand, jelly fish. From Nature, Winter 2009

These were the HUGEST lobsteres we've ever seen!  The kids thought they were saying, "There, there friend," as one was patting the other on the back, "At leas we are not going to be someone's dinner."       From Nature, Winter 2009

While taking a day trip to one of our favorite places, Middleton Plantation, we spotted a neat track that we paused to take a few quick pictures of.  We were one of the first visitors to the garden that morning, after an evening of rain, so the paths were "clean", which is what made our eyes catch this print. 

From Nature, Winter 2009

 So the question became: "What animal?"  Everyone guessed, and we boiled it down to two: RACCOON or OPOSSUM.  After researching back home, we know now how to tell the difference (Here is a great website that tells your the difference between many species that have similar prints.) 

Raccoon and opossum: A raccoon’s footprints alternate like a dog’s, but the prints look like a young child’s hand and foot with spread fingers and claws. Being fastidious, the raccoon never lets its tail drag on the ground. The opossum has a smaller but similar footprint with its toes held close together. The individual fingers and claws show, but they are not widely spread. An opossum’s tail drags along the ground and makes a line between the footprints.  (The Waterford Times)

These are definately raccoon.

We were also able to see some of the new spring lambs, which are just so cuddly and cute.  We do lament over the fact that they dock their tails, and I discussed with the kids how it is done (with a band; you can see it in black about 1/3 the way down the tail) and how it slowly "cuts off" the tail (by limiting circulation). 

From Nature, Winter 2009

From Collages

Even though it is fall, the bees are still busy buzzing around our loquat tree and purple pin-cushion flowers (aka Scabiosa).  I found this little guy (gal really, since worker bees are females) early in the morning, still as can be on a flower that was drenched with dew.  At first, I wasn't sure if it was still alive since it didn't move, as it had been a cool night and was still quite cold.  I picked some flowers, including the one on which the bee was perched and brought them into the house.  I couldn't resist this perfectly well-behaved "model" and snapped a few pictures.  After a while, she came around and I gently took her back outside where she could begin her day and take her quota of nectar back to her hive....

From Collages

This afternoon, we took time to go on a nature hike in a neighborhood that has a great trail system.  We enjoyed some wonderful fall colors and sites, and really liked the red berries on this bush that the kids captured in their journals -- they seemed to say, "Winter is around the corner!"

From 2008-09-30 Sept2008

We saw this beautiful Golden-Silk Spider at Middleton Plantation today.  What a huge "lady" this was and her web was a thing of beauty!  She seemed much larger than the 1" e-nature says, but they may just be measuring the abdomen.  An interesting thing we learned as we researched it:  during the day, it will hang , head down, in the center of the web.  We will have to start noting this as we look for other spiders and see if they do the same...

Our garden is still going, producing the occasional pepper, etc.  This year's garden has been a dissapointment, production-wise.   Hubby, ever the man-of-logic, wondered if it really IS cheaper to grow your own veggies, considering we had such low yields and the cost of water, dirt, etc. 

But next year is a new opportunity, and we are going to try to do more of the things that grew well, and to tweak a few things (planting times, natural fertilizer, different veggies) to see if we can't do better.  And after all, our garden was a wonderful nature learning center for the kids and myself -- which is priceless.

Things that did well:  basil, thyme, oregano, parsley and other herbs.  Will plants lots more basil next spring, and will try different varieties.  I made pesto for the first time and our whole family loves it, so that will be a great thing to make more of next summer.  Basil is even a beautiful plant, as I found out when I took the time to photograph it today -- I love the shape of the tiny white flowers on the stalk.   Since herbs do well for us, we are going to add more to the garden; also where we live, some hardier herbs can be harvested year-round. 

Things that were pretty, but didn't produce:  The volunteer squash and pumpkins that popped up in our compost bed in the spring had lovely yellow flowers that are still blooming, as you can see above.  (This seeds came from the store-bought veggies I had purchased and cooked, throwing the "guts" in the compost.)  I excitedly transplanted them, and they had lovely flowers, but must have been asexual, because not a one had any fruit.  Oh, well, you live and you learn, and I can use this learning experience as an example whenever I introduce Mendel & genetics to the kids.

Walking around the yard today, I took the time to slow down and snap a few pictures of some of my favorite plants.  The hydrangea caught my eye, and I did a double-take with this bee which was as still as a statue for several minutes.  Her little "horn" and "lion's mane" just make me smile.   I really enjoy taking close-up pictures of insects and feel a great sense of accomplishment when I get a good photo.   (You can also use pictures to take the time to study and draw critters later without the it flying away, etc.  )  We had so many bees around our flowers and garden this year, that I found a site with great bee links to use for the kids sometime from the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association. 

Here are a few more things that we observed today....

From Collages

Antoinette, of Shekinah Ranch, asked how I do the collage-method for my photos.  (She has one of my favorite blogs to keep up on -- her farm is beautiful, as is her spirit, and she writes in such sweet, friendly, down-to-earth, "welcome to our family's happenings" sort of way.) 

Well, I first have to thank our friend, Monika, for introducing us to Picasa.  It is a wonderful photo program that will take all of your picture files on your computer and store them in a way that makes it easy to access, touch-up, edit, etc.  (Also adds in your new pictures as you download them from your camera.)

You can then easily choose which ones you would like to upload to web albums for family & friends to view individually or as a slideshow.  I use it for adding photos to my blog and have found it easier to use than Flickr or Photobucket.  There is an "embed slideshow" feature that I'm still trying to figure out so I can add them to our blog.  (If someone knows how, I'd love your advice.)

They have a wonderful collage feature that I use to combine photos.  Just choose the ones you like (need to do it in groups of square roots, such as 4's, 9's, 16's ... or the photos will repeat) and click the "collage" button at the bottom of the program's main page.  It turns out beautifully and allows me to have more photos on a blog without taking up so much blog space, download time, etc.

Click on logo above to take a "cyber-tour" of these beautiful gardens & to do an "on-line nature study" with your kids.  Until then, I hope enjoy our little "blog tour."

Every time our family has passed this garden during to one of our daytrips to Charleston, SC., we've said, "We really should go there sometime."  So, this spring, our family finally made it a point to stop by Brookgreen Gardens for a few hours on a Friday afternoon as we were headed down to Charleston for a long weekend.  We were amazed at the beauty of this spectacular place and were very appreciative that the tickets were good for SEVEN days!  The children and I went back the next week and enjoyed having the whole day to walk around, attend the programs, and learn about the garden's history, flora, fauna, and art.

DD & DH stroll through The Palmetto Garden, named for  Sabal palmetto South Carolina’s state tree.

The history of Brookgreen is one that makes you appreciate its caretakers throught the centuries.  Formerly four rice plantations, it was purchased by Archer & Anna Hyatt Huntington in 1931.  The Huntingtons created a nature preserve on the land that is over 6,000 acres and also filled the gardens they created with sculptures by Mrs. Huntington and many other famous artists.  300 acres are open to the public.

The Lowcountry Zoo on the grounds houses animals native to the area.  The blue herons were regal and ruled the bird aviary; the otters were playful and ready to go into their new exhibit habitat that was almost finished; a lame fox found a safe abode where he could live out the rest of his days safely; and deer grazed in a large herd without fear of preditors.

At first, we only saw two owls, but as we walked further down the path and our angle changed, we saw 3 sleepy little owls enjoying their perch!

This little cross-eyed possum melted our hearts.  She was found as an ill baby in a parking lot and taken to Brookgreen.  She was part of one of their educational programs that we attended and the kids enjoyed petting her surprisingly soft fur.

 Below are just some of the many sculptures we saw throughout these miles of gardens.  (The garden has workshops & exhibitions regularly.)

Top Row:  "Presidental Eagle", "In Memory of the Workhorse" (one of my favorites, as I grew up on a farm), "Springtime Frolic."

Center Middle: "Low Country Harvest" (includes the crops of the area -- corn, cotton, rice & indigo)

Bottom Row: "Mongoose & Cobra" (the subtitle was "Hold-on-Rikki-Tikki-Tavi"  -- this was favorite of our kids, as they had just heard the story a few months before our trip to Brookgreen), "The Lion" (there is a matching one on the other side of the path as you enter one of the gardens), "Diana" which is in the middle of the pool (she must be a favorite of artists, as many different renditions can be found of her as you stroll throughout the gardens).

 If you are ever in the area, I would highly recommend a day at this relaxing, beautiful place.  They have a Junior Detective program that kids will enjoy.  (You can see DD &DS in the 2nd row above filling in the answer to the question, "What animals are in the sculpture, "Springtime Frolic.")  Our kids completed their booklets the second day in which they were asked to fill-in facts about the animals, art, plants and other things that they saw throughout the gardens.  It was like a giant scavenger hunt that helped them observe and retain the information and memories from these beautiful gardens. 

Please join the rest of the crowd for Show&Tell every Friday! Get all the information over at:

This morning we began our first day of school, already behind schedule a bit, but taking it in stride.  Suddenly, Little Man looked out the sliding glass door and said, "Mama!  There is a HUGE bug outside!"

Indeed there was!  A cicada (click to see wikipedia's great page on them -- they even have a movie on an adult molting) was on the patio, so we scooped it into our bug catcher and brought him in.  Darling Daughter declared him "too disgusting" to draw, while Little Man gleefully went to work.  (I'm so glad I have a kindred spirit in him, as he thinks the bugs we find are cool too.)  We gladly rearranged our morning schedule to do a little Nature Study, especially when we went out a little later to release Mr. Cicada and found another critter with a name that begins with C... (go to Part 2).

When we went outside to release our cicada, we found another interesting insect against the base of the house, resting on an empty orange juice jug that I use to water plants with.

Imagine our delight when we saw it was a very unusual cricket (another "C" word!), lovely light-brown with long, drumstick-like back legs, long antenna, and a slender, long "tail.".  We quickly snapped some photos, because that little guy could JUMP, and then headed inside to look him up on the internet.  He is a member of the Rhaphidophoridae family, and is known as as a cave or camel cricket, which is also known as "spricket" or "spickets" (words melded from the words spider -- whose legs they resemble -- and crickets), or "hopsies" due to their erratic hopping, which we can attest to.

UPDATE:  Ok, I think I even more excited now about our nature finds today after visiting Barb's "Handbook of Nature Studies" where this week's challenge is crickets!  We will be spending time this week using her lesson plan, and I encourage you to get out there and to the same..Check it out!

And, as a special surprise, Darling Daughter spotted a Blue-Tailed Skink, and due to his quick scurrying for cover, this is all that we were able to we capture of him...

DD called me over one morning to a part of the yard where she was intently working on something. 

"Look at the Mushroom Island I made!" 

She is such a creative kid.  We have mushrooms popping up all over our yard, and they change in the way they look throughout the day & week as they sprout, grow, and "fade" into the most beautiful colors.

And we have a new little friend.  When the Padems were here, their children spied the little tree frog that hangs out on our sliding screen door that opens onto our patio in our back yard.  While I still need to take a picture of him, I was surprised to see yesterday morning this other, even tinier little friend, that had taken Mr. Tree Frog's spot on the screen.  

What a delight it was to have this little SPRING PEEPER visit.  They are named so as they "usher in" spring with their mating calls.   We love to hear them in the lakes and marshes around our house as winter comes to an end and spring is around the corner.  We have only heard them, so it was a delight to actually "meet" one in person. (They only get 3/4 -1 3/8" long, so you can see the comparison next to the milk jug cap.)

Please join the rest of the crowd for Show&Tell every Friday! Get all the information over at:

Proverbs 30:24-28

24 There are four things which are little on the earth, But they are exceedingly wise: 25 The ants are a people not strong, Yet they prepare their food in the summer; 26 The rock badgers are a feeble folk, Yet they make their homes in the crags; 27 The locusts have no king, Yet they all advance in ranks; 28 The spider skillfully grasps with its hands, And it is in kings' palaces.

We were poking around our compost pile in June and noticed this little mama wolf spider protecting her egg sac.  I ran and got the camera and tooks some pictures of her so we could observe her without actually getting too close.  For those of you that don't find spiders too appealing (like my hubby, who doesn't mind them from afar, but finds no need to see them super close-up), you may want to skip this part.

The egg sac is the white object behind her.  She scooted around pretty good and always kept her babies safe, as her egg sac is attached to her spinneretes.  She can even hunt with it attached.  Once her babies hatch, they will climb up and get a free ride on their mama's abdomen.   Little Man thinks that "she looks a like a bear" this close-up with all her hairs.  Her eyes and fangs are also neat to a little boy.  They have excellent eyesight and if you look closely, you can see her four small eyes on the bottom row, then 2 very large eyes, and on the top row a set of 2 medium-sized eyes.

I share about using our garden for nature study in a chapter I wrote titled "Nature Study in Likely & Unlikely Places" for a new The Old Schoolhouse Store ebook that is scheduled to come out sometime next month.  Here are some little friends we made as we sacrificed our parsley to be their little eating place while they were growing up to be Swallowtail Butterflies.  They were indeed, "Very Hungry Caterpillars!"

Chowing down to the very "nubbins"

A few siblings at the buffet table -- notice the middle one has orange stripes, meaning he is younger.

Big brother getting a mouthful

Can you count his feet?

Baby brother -- they start out almost black, then get orange stripes, and finally yellow.

Please join the rest of the crowd for Show&Tell every Friday! Get all the information over at:

We were at Creation Camp last week and enjoyed taking in all of the nature on the site.  Tadpoles, lizards, frogs, toads, box turtles, bugs, and more!  Our friend had a king snake he allowed the kids to hold, which Darling Daughter willingly did.  We even were surprised to find out that "it" was really a "she" when we found 4 eggs in her terarium one morning.  King snakes are named so, as they eat other snakes, especially the poisonous kinds like cottonmouths, rattlers, etc -- they are immune to their venoms!  Some people think that the snake from Aaron's staff was a king snake, since it devoured the Eygtian magician's snakes in Pharoah's court. (Genesis 7:8-13)

I just love the smell of lavendar.  When we moved into our home, there was no landscaping in the back.  So when I designed a border around our patio, I thought of sitting out there on warm spring days, relaxing as I enjoyed its sweet smell.

These plants are 3 years old now and produce a purple wave of flowers every April through June.  Honeybees cover the flowers, much too concerned about gathering nectar to be bothered by us observing them fly from flower to flower.   This year, I harvested the blooms and am drying them to use in creating gifts for this upcoming Christmas.

	She maketh herself coverings of tapestry; her clothing is silk and purple. Proverbs 31:22
	These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season.  That thou givest them they gather: thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good. Psalm 104: 27-28

Birds come every day to our yard to feed at our bird feeders.  The mourning doves have been interesting to watch, as they come in pairs and search for their seeds on the ground under the feeders.

One day when we were outside, we saw a lone mourning dove near our patio -- they have never gotten that close.  As we watched nearby, it just sat there, looking back at us.  We wondered if it was injured, as it didn't fly away, but walked a few halting steps and then stopped. 

Darling Daughter went closer to investigate.  As she drew nearer, the bird looked hesitantly at her, but didn't move.  Finally, when DD got too close for comfort, he ran a few steps, stopped, ran some more, and finally flew away.

They are such pretty birds and their sound "Òcoo-OOH, Ooo-Ooo-OooÓ" is beautiful and yet sad, as if they were indeed mourning something.

Our "Mystery Tree" has been revealed!   Ever since we moved into our house about 3 1/2 years ago, we've wondered what kind of tree was planted in the front garden bed next to our house.  It greeted us when we moved in with clusters of lovely scented white blossoms -- in October!  Quite unusual.  But how I delight in this fabulous tree every year as I look at it out my kitchen window or walk by it on my way into our house.  I smile every time I see bees busily gathering nectar during the warm fall/early winter days in our mild coastal low-country area.

The leaves are evergreen and almost magnolia-like, even having the similarity of dropping its old leaves in the spring.  Other neighbors have the same tree, but no one knew its name.  But during a recent trip to Brookgreen Garden, we think we've discovered what it is...

A Loquat Tree!

(aka: May Apple, Japanese medlar, and/or Japanese plum)

  Taken 4-26-08 @ Brookgreen Gardens

Ours hasn't ever had fruit on it, but hopefully, if it is not merely ornamental, it will soon like this one that helped us solve our "mystery."  It is supposed to bear fruit when it is about 5 years old. It is simillar to the size and taste of an apriocot.

We enjoyed watching this video that told us more about loquat trees.  But unfortunately, it can get up to 30' high and 10' wide.  Will have to research how to prune, but I have a feeling that we will need to sadly transplant it to another part of the yard and hope that it can make the move ok.  (It was planted too close for the house if it truly does get that large.)  Any tips?

When my sister came out in March for spring break, we enjoyed our first long nature walk of the year.  We went on a nature trail that meanders through a maritime forest near a tidal marsh.  The trail is a raised boardwalk, which makes it easy walking and allows us to go over streams and through the dense woods.  My soul feels such peace there!

This beautiful "bloom" caught our eye.  It is a Loblolly pine's pollen cones.  (The word loblolly means "low wet place," which is definately where we were!)   The glory of Lebanon shall come to you,the cypress, the plane, & the pine,to beautify the place of my sanctuary,and  I will make the place of my feet glorious. (Isa 60:13)	A gathering a beautiful seeds, etc from maple trees that were scattered throughout the trail.  I love the deep rich red color and how brilliant it is -- the hue is one of my favorite colors.   "Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD:though your sins are like scarlet,they shall be as white as snow;though they are red like crimson,they shall become like wool. (Isa 1:18)
Little Man enjoyed "racing" many of the 13 Carolina anole (aka: green anole) lizards we saw sunning themselves on the trail. The lizard you can take in your hands, yet it is in kings’ palaces. (Prov. 30:28)	These are Bald Cypress knees.  Since these trees grow in swamps/wet areas, it is believed that these root parts help the tree get oxygen and other nutrients. O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols?It is I who answer and look after you. I am like an evergreen cypress; from me comes your fruit. (Hosea 14:8)
For his entry, Little Man did leaf rubbings.	Darling Daughter admiring a handful of Carolina Jasmine blossoms, which is also known as Jessamine & grows wild where we live.  (Is also the state flower of SC.)