Happy Birthday, Emma! And, thank you to Nana Bee for reminding me of that delightful poem by A. A. Milne. Today was an outstanding day for the Bee family. I think we're all on the mend from our Oklahoma fever, just in time to celebrate the baby bee's first birthday. Emma's Mom and Dad hashed out the day last night, plotting our course from morning to noon to night, so as to make the most of every minute.
The morning started the same as any day, as we lulled the bee into a false sense of normalcy. But, little did she know, we had much in store after her first nap. By 11 am, the balloons were ready, the presents wrapped and the cards signed. Thank you to everyone who sent cards and presents! Emma woke up just before noon and was greeted by a smorgasbord of colors, textures, sights and sounds. The balloons immediately held her interest, as well as her new ball, which she hugged protectively all during her party.
After presents, we packed up our things, grabbed our map of the base and went searching for an animal sanctuary our neighbor had told us was nearby. A few wrong turns later, we arrived at the fort's Wildlife Conservation Education Center, which didn't look like much at first, but turned out to be absolutely wonderful.
Our first animal was a big, beautiful turkey, who bravely approached us, clucking and gobbling. Emma's Mom and Dad were surprised by how beautiful the turkey's plumage was. We had no idea!
The next inhabitants were a pair of bobcats - at least that's what the sign said. So, if anyone looks at these pictures and says, "Great Scott, that is so not a bobcat," I humbly apologize. The cats were, well, cattish. They lazed about in the sun, deigning to look our way occasionally. But, all in all, they weren't very interested.
To our shock and delight, the conservation boasted a gray wolf. We tentatively approached, not sure what to expect, but the wolf was all smiles...just kidding...just seeing if you're still reading. The wolf was politely interested in us, but then resumed his/her pacing of his enclosure.
After the wolf, we proceeded to the deer enclosure. We spied two white-tailed deer, looking for all the world like celebrities who have been spotted in sweats and Crocs at the local market. They both froze, then slowly edged behind a tree, all the while keeping their eyes fixed on us. Funnily enough, after they had manuevered behind the tree, it looked like there was only one deer, because you could see only one head and one tail.
Finally, we headed down to a dam that ran parallel to the conservation area. It was quite a nice spot to catch some shade and watch the ducks. Emma got her feet wet and pointed wonderingly at the ducks, which were so much bigger and
duckier than the ones in her bathtub.
It started to get very warm at that point, so we drove to the commissary to get ice cream treats and then went home for a much needed nap. Naturally, Emma, the one in most need of a nap, decided to sing in her crib for forty minutes, instead of sleeping. Oh well.
We finished the night with dinner and cake - all in all, a glorious day! Happy Birthday, Baby Bee! If you'd like to see all of the birthday pictures, please click
here to go to my Flickr page!
