take what you get, brush it off, then.....

.....make the most of your day!

I needed a gentle reminder this past short while so made a note to myself!

Some days it takes a little extra effort to go forward but not on this day! Confluence Park looked and sounded inviting!  I wore my real hiking boots for the first time this year, it was time for my feet to get use to them again.  With no ice nor snow, with the creek running freely, paired with the Robins singing loudly, this was a wonderful walk.  If I did nothing else on this day, I would have been content with the fulfilling feeling I arrived back home with! 

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On this day, I bundled up to brace against the cold wind and slight sprinkles of sleet.  Our plan was to cover roughly ten to eleven kilometres while we brain-stormed at solving our world's problems. I tend not to notice my surroundings on these kinds of walks but today was different!  Oh the distractions, of the best kind!  I had my first crocus sighting this season, March 24th, the earliest ever!  This collection was growing on the upper slopes of Hanson Ranch.  These are just two of the dozens of photographs I took.  If I saw nothing else on this day, I would have been content.  We continued on, taking the weather as it came, reaching our goal of eleven kilometres, then going for a reward afterwards. 

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A white out blizzard was what faced me when I opened the curtains on this morning.  There would be no going anywhere!  It was what it was, I brushed it off, then went about my day.  It was the perfect day to turn on my fairy light tree, settle in near it then paint until my heart was content.  With tulips on my mind, I used a tutorial I followed the other day and did a mosaic with a tulip instead of the Canada Goose. This was my third try!  It looks simple but it was not!  This crocus painting was a third try too! I used  yesterday's photo as my reference.  I was happy with how they both turned out. After those two, I was ready for something simple.  The line and wash of birds and flowers took all of thirty minutes and I got it right on the first try!  All these were accomplished while also attacking household chores!   

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After staying inside yesterday, I needed to get out the next day!  After brushing the snow off my vehicle then cracking the ice off, I ventured out onto the roadway but did not go far.  Heading back to Nose Creek would do it for me.  No one had been yet so I broke trail in the deep snow. Thankfully it was more on the fluffy side.  At -23C, the park was quiet, any wildlife had gone back into hibernation.  I saw a flock of Magpies and one.....

.....male Mallard Duck!  It did not matter to him what the weather was like!  He took his bath!

He shook it off!

Then went about making the most of his day!

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Today was on the cold side, but I can take that, so I took it, once again brushed more snow off my vehicle,  cracked off more ice, then went about my day finding a way to make the most of it!  I arrived at Carburn Park to find no new snow and it is only roughly a twenty minute drive down the Deerfoot 500. The Carburn Bald Eagles had been on my mind after all the new snow. I was happy for the Eagles to see this area did not get the snow.

The Bald Eagle is still sitting in the nest. 

It was too when I was there last. 

I chatted with the guys who are also monitoring the activity.  

The other Bald Eagle was grooming on a tree not far away. 

Our chatting came to an abrupt stop when a shift change took place. The split second the Eagle in the nest flew off, the other Eagle stopped grooming and flew to the nest. Here it is coming in for a landing.

It is just about ready to land on the nest! 

When the Eagles are not side by side, 

I cannot tell the male from the female. 

The Bald Eagle settled into the nest and went about its day incubating the eggs. The Canada Geese had been settled but in a flash they all took off to fly to better grounds to continue going about their day!  

That gentle reminder did the trick!  No matter what gets thrown our way, I do best if I focus on finding ways to brush it off, go about my day, doing what I can to make the most of it!  

a wake up call March 22, 2026

I got a wake up call this morning!  I should say early this morning!  In fact, I should say at an ungodly hour of this morning!  When I heard the notification ping, I looked at the clock, it said 2:30am.  Should I?  Shouldn't I? I should and I did!  I got up, looked out the window, sure enough the Aurora Borealis was dancing across the sky.  Time to head downstairs to bundle up then go out onto my deck.  I brought a chair with me. While I was watching the sky, I was also brewing a hot beverage.  It was cold out yet I was staying out! These are two of the dozens and dozens of special seconds in time that I captured while I sat out for just over an hour. This Aurora Borealis dance was not just a one and done, it was full of energy and seemed to last what felt like eternity!  Stars filled the sky too!  

I was so happy I went with "I should and I did"! The only thing now was it was still an ungodly hour of the morning yet I was wide awake and the hot beverage didn't help with making me drowsy.  It was time to unbundle and settle into another chair, inside, at the table, with my watercolour paints.  Should I?  Shouldn't I?  I should and I did!  I began to paint, or I should say sketch first then paint.  I saved a tutorial showing how to paint mosaic style.  This is my version of the video I followed on how to paint this Canada Goose. It was a fun project.  I was pleased with the outcome. I was so happy I went with "I should and I did"!  The only thing now was it was still early, very early, but it was not an ungodly hour of the morning by now.  Yet, the sun still had not come up.  I looked outside and could see nothing, thick as soup fog rolled in.  Should I?  Shouldn't I?  I should and I did!  

I bundled back up again, headed off in my vehicle to the Nose Hill parking lot with hopes I could hike up the hill before the sun came up. I made it!  What was strange was I drove up out of the fog along the way.  There was so fog up on Nose Hill yet I looked back at it hoovering over the area below as the sun came up. 

following the path

Bundling up was necessary, it was cold!  A light layer of frost covered everything, even this deer.  This one along with a few others were settled in a sunny spot.  Soon the frost would melt.

The resident Northern Spike!

The backdrop is the snow-covered Rocky Mountains. 

a left covered in frost

The backdrop is the tarn filled to the brim yet frozen.

a few twigs covered in frost frozen to the ice

the trail back to the parking lot

It was such a gorgeous early morning up on Nose Hill. The weather was fresh and clean and invigorating.  It felt peaceful.  I was so happy that I went with "I should and I did"!  The only thing was, it was now still only mid morning.  I drove home, unbundled, got cozy on my sofa and fell asleep!  All in all, I am so happy I answered that wake up call!

wonderfully wide-eyed

A simply painted cheerful daffodil was the task accomplished before heading out the door to find even more cheer.  Just like the tulip, daffodils represent re-birth and new beginnings. It's that time of year as spring has sprung, where everything seems to come alive.  Before heading out the door, I took a quick glance at the flower and thought while it looks lovely on its own, there does need to be something else with it!  I will think again about that another time!  For now..... 

.....it was time for a visit to the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary!  What a difference a week makes!  Last week's visit to the Sanctuary was like full on winter!  This was my view on this morning as I turned the corner onto the main trail. WOW! I was wide-eyed! I see new beginnings with all the open water in the lagoon and the trail clear of ice and snow! 

How wonderful!  This was my first sighting this year of a Bohemian Waxwing!  I did see where many have been sighted.  It's that time of year where they are passing through this area heading up to the far north where they will spend spring and summer. 

Well, the male Wood Duck sure looks wide-eyed!  

I was when I saw it, being my first sighting of one this season. 

Some Northern Flickers spend the winter here, but over the past couple of weeks they have been arriving by the dozens. Their calls echoed through The Sanctuary while their frolicking added entertainment which was wonderful to watch.  

"What are you looking at?" says the White-breasted Nuthatch!

It is all relative, while its eyes are tiny, they are still as wide-eyed as can be!

The Mountain Cottontail had a buffet for breakfast!

The Richardson's Ground Squirrels were out in full force. This was the first time I saw one this season. They are a rodent which gets a bad rap! They are cute though! AAAAH!  I just had a thought! I know what this Squirrel needs, it needs..... 

.....to be in the painting with the daffodil! 

I knew there was a Squirrel there yet it took a bit to fully find it!

WOW!  It perfected the art of camouflage!  

The male Mallard Duck was a bit more skittish than the female 

as they worked their way from the ice to the water.  

This is my favourite photo!  Talk about being skittish!  It was hilarious watching this deer cross the ice. Do you see what I see? Just be a little more wide-eyed and you will spot the deer at middle left watching.  It watched and it waited!  I wonder what a deer sounds like when it laughs! Instead of crossing the ice, it just needed to walk the short distance along the edge.

This was a day where I was bug-eyed and wide-eyed for the entire visit here!  

As each day passes, there will be more and more reasons to be wonderfully wide-eyed!

time for tulip thoughts

With official spring so close that I can almost taste it, my mind is drifting towards thoughts of tulips!  It is said that the tulip is an ideal match for those with an artist personality type. I would like to think of myself as being an artist, of some kind, at some level. I like the bright, cheerful, colourful shades of tulips and also what they represent. They are one of the first flowers to bloom in spring.  They stand for new beginnings and for hope. The Netherlands have been sending Canada tulip bulbs annually since 1945.  This gift symbolizes a deep rooted friendship between the countries.  This is a gesture of gratitude to Canada for helping to liberate The Netherlands.     

During my visit to Amsterdam in June of 2024, I purchased a bouquet of wooden tulips. 

One of the many virtual Challenges I completed back when our world changed was The Flower Route. The route began in the centre of Haarlem The Netherlands. The first postcard that popped into my mailbox was this one showing the tulips at the famous Keukenhof Gardens.   

This is the medal I received for completing that challenge. I donated most of the medals I received from the challenges I completed yet I kept this one.  The windmill spins and as it does the back view of the colourful buildings along the canal changes from day to night. I am not sure why I choose to keep this one but I am happy I did especially with my thoughts turning to tulips these days.  

On this page from that book 

(which I turned into a watercolour sketchbook), 

the tulips talk about Easter coming.  

This was the perfect page to paint tulips on.  

After completing the practice session of painting tulips on the above page, I then felt ready to do a watercolour painting of tulips in my other homemade sketchbook. I used a tutorial to follow. I like the look of the soft blended shades and I needed to be shown how to get that look.  

After all these thoughts of tulips, I headed off to purchase a bouquet for myself! 

I am ready to ring in spring with thoughts of hope and for new bright beginnings.   

🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷

where I wandered this week

Oh where should I wander?  It depends on the weather and the driving conditions, what else I have going on during the day and most importantly I listen to what my heart and soul tell me!  I am not much for routines yet I do like to get up and get out to some place every day.  There are times I end up at a parking lot with no plan to follow any particular trail, I just wander off!  

On this day this week, I wandered off along this trail up on Nose Hill.  It was a snow free day, a wild wind day, a day where I collected ten kilometres on my winter hiking boots.  Those boots were needed for warmth not for traction.  During the majority of my wander, I was in the wide open yet I could see wildlife hunkered down where there was shelter.  The wildlife know when there is wild wind, it is not the time to wander!  Should I learn a lesson from them? I say no, just wander if you wish! 

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While on my most recent wander to monitor the Carburn Bald Eagles, a fellow told me about the two Bald Eagles at the Douglasdale area near Fish Creek Park.  Oh, my curiosity kicked in!  I monitor the Carburn Bald Eagles along with the Inglewood Bald Eagles, do I really need to monitor another set of Bald Eagles! Yes I do! So off I went a wandering to Douglasdale near Fish Creek.  It was a snow free day, as calm as could be and warm too. I still wore my winter hiking boots which on this day I added twelve more kilometres to the soles.  While wandering along, I spotted this coyote who had already spotted me.  I saw an unusual looking Goose to the right of the Canada Goose.  It is a Cackling Goose.  Then!  Do you see what I see?  The two Douglasdale Bald Eagles were sitting on the top of the tree on the far left.  I was too lazy to go back and cross over the bridge to get closer to them.  I captured this close up of one with my great zoom lens. On this day it worked to wander further!

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On this day with the snow pelting down, I still wandered out the door for the drive along Deerfoot to The Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.  I hoped the Inglewood Bald Eagles would be in the area.  Upon arrival, I could see nothing through the snow that was falling.  A little while into my wandering, the sky began to clear to where I had wonderful views like this.  So pure! So fresh!  So white!  I was thankful to be wearing my winter hiking boots for both warm and traction and to which I collected eight more kilometres to the soles.  The deer were nestled in the bushes under branches.  A pair of Canada Geese snuggled into themselves along the edge of the inlet.  Two Seagulls curled up for shelter against the cold and snow.  Then, there they were, the Inglewood Bald Eagles busily building their nest through the cold and snow.  When the blue sky appeared so did a few Robins.  I was happy to be wandering through the cold and snow to see sights like these!  

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When I was done of my outside wandering, I returned home to let my mind wander!  I have been enjoying painting in my new home-made watercolour sketch book.  I wondered what to fill the pages with. I accidentally happened upon a theme which is paint the main subject on the right and let portions trickle over to the left.  This is no specific species of bird, what is specific about this painting was just laying colours then letting them blend together to see what transpires.  Oh how I like where wondering and wandering takes me!  

I have never seen a Snowdrop!  I should say I have never see a live Snowdrop but I have seen numerous  on many of your blog posts.  I wondered what were these sweet little flowers all about!  Once again, off a wandering my mind goes again!  I followed a tutorial using a scrap piece of watercolour paper.  I was happy with the outcome.  Using what I just learned, I created my own version of Snowdrops amidst a flurry of snowflakes falling!  I wonder will I ever see a live Snowdrop!   

Now time to wander outside for a little while this morning to swish through the snow in a blizzard then I'll be wandering off to meet a friend to watch her daughter in a live musical performance. What a wonderful week filled with wandering and wondering!