Hide-and-seek, Part 3

I spy something up in the Sumac tree - is it a bird? A little brown bird? Usually I see birds in this tree. No! It's Chipmunk.
Chipmunks live in the ground. What is this one doing up a tree?

Playing hide-and-seek, I guess.
Time to go back down.I expect to see Squirrel and Raccoon and Possum up a tree. I didn't expect to see Groundhog or Chipmunk. I suppose you too will want to climb a tree when you visit me!

Lizard Finds Some Mushrooms

Dear Old Wren,

Today I found some mushrooms, but I won't eat them for breakfast. They are not the kind of mushrooms that you can eat. They are the kind of mushrooms that are just beautiful to look at.

Also, lizards don't eat mushrooms.

Love,
Lizard

HIde-and-seek, Part 2

Peek-a-boo, little Bunny - I see you!

The grass is tall and the bunny is small, but you can't hide those big ears!

It's not what it looks like

Isn't this grass a lovely green?

Doesn't it look soft? Want to take off your shoes and walk on it? SPLASH!

Did you see the bubbles floating above the grass?

This plant is growing on the bottom of the pond.

Iris

Did you ever sing this song:

"One of these things is not like the others,

One of these things does not belong,

Can you tell which one is not like the others

By the time I finish my song?" Do you see why I was thinking about that song?

Hide-and-seek, Part 1

Time to play hide-and-seek!

I see someone hiding up the Mulberry tree. Does he think I can't see him?
Yes! He thinks he has found the perfect hiding place.
Who would think of looking for Groundhog up in a tree?

Spruce Fruit

The Spruce tree is growing little red things at the tips of its branches. We'll watch them get bigger and bigger as they grow.

They won't be ripe for a long time.

We won't eat these fruits, but someone will eat what's inside them.
Chickadee loves the seeds when the spruce cones are ripe.

A nighttime adventure

Listen!
I hear something outside? What is making so much noise at bedtime?
It's really dark outside, but let's go out anyway. Let's see what is making that noise.

Bring your flashlight. Let's get close to the sounds and shine our lights around.

Did you see that? Did you see how its throat blew up like a bubble? That loud noise is a little tiny frog singing.

Shine your flashlight over there - there's something swimming. It's another frog.

And there's another one, sitting over there - they are tree frogs but they are pretty far from the trees.

Everywhere you turn your flashlight there are more and more little frogs! No wonder it is so loud out here!

Oops, now it's starting to rain. We'd better go back inside.

The frogs won't mind the rain. They'll just sing louder. Maybe they will sing us to sleep.

Mayapples

If it's May, we should look for Mayapples!

The Mayapple plants start coming up in April . Some people call them "umbrella plant" because they look like umbrellas unfolding.

You would have to be pretty small to get under one of these umbrellas!

Now that it is May, the leaves are all unfolded and it's time for the flowers to bloom.

These plants in the back yard aren't old enough to have flowers yet.
When we go out in the woods we'll find some older Mayapples and look for the little white flowers hidden under the leaves. We'll remember where the Mayapples are growing. We'll come back in a June to look for the Mayapples on the Mayapple plants. They aren't real apples. They just look sort of like apples.
You can taste the Mayapples but don't nibble on the leaves.
They are poison!

Happy May Day!

This is the first day of the month of May. We should make a little basket out of paper and fill it with flowers. Then we should take it to someone's house and hang it on the door and run away. Surprise! They have a May Basket and they don't know who left it. What flowers would we pick today? Some apple blossoms.
Some redbud.
Maybe a bluebell or two.
Some vibirnum, it smells so sweet.
and a bright yellow poppy.
I wish I could leave a May Basket on your door!