Perseid Meteor Shower

Our really bad selfie at 1:00 am

Every year, my girls and I try to stay up late and watch the Perseid Meteor Shower.

This year was pretty awesome.  We grabbed some pillows and blankets and headed out to lay on the trampoline.  We were out at about 11:45 pm-1:15 am.  The moon didn't set until around 1:00 am, and there were a couple neighbor's lights and street lights giving off distracting light. The best time to see the meteor shower this year was between 1:00 - 4:00am.  We are more willing to stay up a little late at our house, then get up early.  So, we weren't in the best situation to see them.  We each saw about 12 in a little over an hour.  You should still be able to see them tonight, but the peak was last night.  They predicted about 200 an hour this year, double then the normal 100.

Check out EarthSky.org for the dates of upcoming meteor showers.

A summer bucket list must.

It takes about 20 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark. 

So, don't keep looking at your phone or other light sources.

We took a few selfies when we were done,

so it wouldn't ruin our dark adjusted eyes. 

The kids freaked out a little from the flash, lol.

It's better to go out into the country or up into the mountains to get away from the city's light pollution.  However, we usually just lay on the trampoline or on the front lawn whichever happens to be the darkest.

I love this quality time with my girls.  It's become a mother/daughter tradition.  They think it's something special to get to stay up really late.  I love the alone time and the fun conversations that come up.  Gives the camping feel without all the work.  Plus, it's free!

Don't forget to wish upon a shooting star!

Two weeks ago, I was staying at my parents house in the mountains.  I just happened to get really hot and went outside to cool off around 4:30 am, and immediately saw a meteor cross the sky from the tail end of the Delta Aquarids.  I was so excited, because I didn't even realize there was suppose to be a meteor shower.  This got me super excited to watch the Perseid shower again with my daughters.

Start a new family tradition or just add this to your summer bucket-list for next year.

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Feeding the Ducks

My kids still love to go and feed the ducks.

We have gone to the same pond/creek since they were babies.

This is a free or super cheap activity. 

You can bring duck safe leftovers or you can buy duck safe food.

BREAD IS NOT RECOMMENDED TO FEED DUCKS!!!!

The best option is picking up duck pellets at your local farm/feed store.

They also do great on raw unsalted seeds, grains, peas, and corn.

We like to pick up a bag of cat food at the local dollar store.

It's only a dollar, so super cheap. 

This bag was the perfect amount for the family. 

When we decided we were done, there was a tiny bit left.

Cat food has a lot of the nutrients for ducks, not found in bread.

The size of cat food is easy for the ducks to eat.

The pond area was full of seagulls.

It's not a good idea to feed the seagulls,

because they poke out the eyes of baby ducks!

I love this ducks afro!

We decided to leave the pond and walk the trail to find the ducks.

This juvenile duck wasn't afraid to eat straight from our hands.

(Yes, we washed our hands before and after.)

To feed from your hands keep them flat and hold still.

*Beware, the duck might bite you! Or be sick!

**Do not pet or pick up wild animals. For your safety and the animals.

Found some juvenile geese.

Then, JACKPOT!  Baby Ducks!

They were so cute!

When feeding babies, be very respectful of their space and the mother duck.

*Do Not pet them or pick them up!

*For ducks still with their mother, don't feed from your hand.

They went swimming and we threw the cat food upstream so it would float to the baby ducks.

This kept them from swimming away.

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