May 6: Where I stand
Cortney
Calvin
May 7: Love
Cortney
Calvin
May 8: Demin blue
Cortney
Calvin
May 9: Fastened
Cortney
Calvin
May 10: Wearable
Cortney
Calvin
May 11: Can't live without
Cortney
Calvin
May 12: Distressed
Cortney
Calvin
365_2016 His pants are too short, his sleeves are too short, his shoes are too small. Every spring I find myself hoping he can just get through the last few chilly weeks and avoid the extra shopping trip before the cool weather returns in the fall, so if you see him wandering around in flood pants it's likely April or May. And he can now reach the top shelf of the refrigerator himself, too, which means that this horrible habit he has of growing is only going to continue, if not increase.
But the one big shopping trip that can't be skipped every spring is the new bike. When I was young, my grandparents were in charge of bike replacement. It was a tradition. I remember one particular spring well: our shopping trip, the ensuing frustration of assembly, and an evening ride on my new mauve ten-speed before a grilled family dinner. These are fond memories, strengthened by the annual repetition of the ritual, and they are precious. So when my parents offered to continue that tradition with Calvin, we gladly took them up on it, and today we set out to procure his new two-wheeled transportation.
I'll tell you first that we tried shopping at our little local bike shop before we entered any big box store. But, while they had a very nice bike that would have suited Calvin well, they didn't have the one feature he wanted most of all: the color purple. So when we walked into Toys-R-Us and there, on the bottom rack right in front, was a purple bike with teal accents, it was love at first sight. He rode it once around the store and declared it perfect. Of course he'd likely have given the same verdict even if a wheel had fallen off, but it received a grandparent seal of approval as well, so home came the new purple racer, and even a chilly, rainy afternoon couldn't keep the kid from giving a spin. Over and over again. Many spins, really. And the first of many more.
family, growing up, traditions April 29: On my table
Calvin
Cortney
April 30: Curly
Calvin
Cortney
May 1: Self portrait
Calvin
Cortney
May 2: Adventurous
Calvin
Cortney
May 3: What represents me
Calvin
Cortney
May 4: Whimsical
Calvin
Cortney
May 5: An athlete
Calvin
Cortney 
The bird migration seems to be slow to start this year. Athough we were surprised by some beautiful spring days and haven't had the big late April snow dump I fully expected, we haven't really had much of a spring, either, and the freezing night temperatures seem to be sticking around. So maybe that, or maybe the stormy weather in the south, is holding some of the migratory species. But many of the species we watch for each spring are obligate migrators, meaning that they migrate annual based on genetic obligation—because they're intenral clock is ticking, not because they are following seasonal weather changes.
That's not to say that we havne't seen any of our favorite migrators. In fact, the Baltimore Oriole, our favorite feeder bird, is back and singing up a storm. They are almost comically chipper, insistantly calling out their territorial song before and after every blossom they rob.
American Tree Sparrow (winter resident)
Canada Goose (resident)
Palm Warbler (migrator)
Black and White Warbler (migrator)
Blue-headed Vireo (migrator)
Gray Catbird (summer resident)
Baltimore Oriole (summer resident)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (migrator)
Carolina Wren (resident)
Eastern Bluebird (resident)
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (summer resident)
Nashville Warbler (migrator)
Black-throated Green Warbler (migrator)
bird watching, nature April 22: Light and bright
Cortney
Calvin
April 23: Magnify
Cortney
Calvin
April 24: Rule of thirds
Cortney
Calvin
April 25: Standing
Cortney
Calvin
April 26: Retro
Cortney
Calvin
April 27: Well-loved
Cortney
Calvin
April 28: Looking down
Cortney
Calvin 
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