Oconto Ice Shoves

God sure has a way of making ordinary things extraordinary. A couple weeks ago, my father pulled Luke and I out to the Oconto Ice Shoves, just outside of the Oconto Harbor, on his newly remodeled vintage snowmobile. It was fantastic.

Apparently, an ice breaker went through the bay, and shortly thereafter gail-force winds blew the ice chunks into a huge shelf. We first approached the shoves and were in awe of the variety of ice.

Usually, ice is...ice. Not much to it, not that notable. There are plenty of times that Luke and I went ice fishing and I didn't pay it much attention, other than commenting that ice fishing sure isn't as much fun as regular fishing, due to the ice everywhere.

 In fact, it's hard to do this ice justice through description. The words I would use... solid... hard... clear...clunky... are all the same words you would use to describe ice from your freezer.

But this ice sparkled and shimmered. It was beautifully clear and gorgeously breathtaking. It was so much fun to hold and photograph that I barely noticed my red and hurting hands.

We also found hoarfrost, which forms from crystallized water vapor. It looked like a tiny forest growing up from the ice sheet.

Luke was the first one to decide to climb the shoves. Dad and I watched as he disappeared and reappeared around ice boulders as he climbed to the top.

After a few minutes, we decided to stop letting him have all the fun, and Dad and I joined in on the trek to the top. It definitely wasn't safe to be climbing them, and legally I should recommend that you don't take the risk. 

Our shins got barked a couple times, and it was clear that one misstep would cause a broken limb, but I have to admit that it was worth it. The view from the top was extraordinary

Looking ahead, the daily highs are above freezing for the foreseeable future. I'm not sure that the ice shoves will exist for much longer.

One more thing:

Heaven is a popular lunchtime topic for Grace and I. She is always asking questions about it: What temperature will it be there? Will there be animals? What will we eat? Will you have a garden? Can I live in a castle?

I can answer some of those questions, but for the most part we really don't know the details of Heaven. It's fun to imagine how amazing that place will be, which God, who knows us and loves us more than we can imagine, has prepared specially for us.

When I see amazing moments in nature, it is as if we are getting a sneak-peek at the amazing Heaven Christians can look forward to dwelling in, when we are face to face with Christ.

The ice and the ice shoves reminded me of where the book of Revelation talks about New Jerusalem. It is described in verses 10 and 11:

"And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal"

An inadequate comparison, of course, but it cheers me to have it.

Have you seen any glimpses of Heaven recently?

Year in Review + A Look Ahead

Wow, 2017 was such an amazing year. I have been especially reflective the past few weeks, and I feel absolutely charged up when I look into what 2018 will bring.

The end of 2016, we found out that we would be introducing a new little life into our family, so 2017 was full of preparing to bring in a boy to the mix. We enjoyed some extra special time with the girls before the inevitable chaos of a newborn, camping at Peninsula and on a whirlwind Chicago trip.

Life slowed down substantially when Jack joined the family, and we found a completely different rhythm and balance to give everyone the care and attention needed... Honestly, we're still working on that. Simply put, we're outnumbered and outgunned, and that's not going to change anytime soon.

This fall and winter have brought more inside time than our family is used to. Luke and I love being outdoors, and we love winter adventures. Ice fishing and hiking are some of our favorite activities, but they definitely aren't baby/toddler friendly. So our yaktrax, otter sled, and auger have been momentarily replaced with play doh, spit up clothes, crayons, and flashlights. Boy, does our family like flashlights. And lanterns. And glow in the dark perler beads. And candles. They transform the mundane into the magnificent.

I think the mandatory inside time is what sparked my 2018 Word. I've seen several bloggers and friends embrace the "word of the year" for a couple years now. For those unfamiliar, this trend promotes picking a word or phrase to provide clarity and inspiration through the year. It's not a resolution, just a focus.

So, my word for 2018 is:

I've enjoyed giving some extra thought to how the word light is used, not just in the Bible but also in our everyday lives. Light is necessary for clarity, plant growth, discernment. It is directly given from God. It's the opposite of heavy. There can be "false light" in our lives. It's the first thing God talks about in the Bible!

There are so many amazing Bible verses that talk about light, and I'm hoping to focus on those especially for 2018. For now, I'll leave you with one that's especially "enlightening:"

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him, 

and without him was not any thing made that was made.

  In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 

And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not." 

John 1: 1-5

So, in the next 10 months, if you find yourself stuck in an elevator with me, waiting beside me for supper, or just wanting to strike up a conversation-- ask me about light! Or better yet, tell me about YOUR light. What blessings have you gotten lately? Where have you learned something new? Do your light bulbs need replacing? Watt-ever it is, I want to know.

Illuminate me!

Jennifer

Update- Our Balcony Garden

Hello, Friends!

It's been nearly a year since my last update. I don't have a good excuse for this, except that it turns out two kids are more work than one (who'd have thought, right?).

I've had a couple blog-related conversations lately, and that led me to fondly remember this little blog. Here are some of the highlights from life around our apartment lately.

The Garden: Lilies, Eggplants, Aphids, and Ladybugs (Er, lady beetles)

Calla Lily- I love the shade of pink they turn
after the initial white bloom.

This year, we've added calla lilies, lilies of the valley, an eggplant, and a climbing rose to our patio garden. They are all doing very well, but the eggplant and rose are especially susceptible to aphids. I've never dealt with them before, and let me tell you, I hate them NEARLY as much as I hate ants.

Aphids are tiny, so you won't know what you're dealing with unless you closely examine your plant leaves. They do a massive amount of damage for being so small, however.

Luke and I were mainly concerned with keeping the eggplant healthy. We really love eggplant, and if we are actually able to grow some, I'll share my eggplant recipe. We've been avoiding spraying it, instead picking off the aphids one. at. a. time. as we find them,

Aphid damage on the eggplant

Initially, it was an annoying and time-consuming task. But, we've found that if we check daily, it only takes a few moments to clean up the two or three we get.

Asian beetle on our climbing rose (Photo- Luke Cortright)

Then, on his way in the house, Luke made a welcome discovery- an Asian beetle was crawling on his arm. Asian beetles, like their ladybug doppelganger, eat smaller bugs like aphids. Hopefully we'll get more of them to help us get rid of those pesky plant eaters. I know most people are very annoyed with those beetles, but they are great for tiny pest control (not that one dropped temporarily on our rosebush makes that much of a difference).

We have lots of eggplant blossoms right now.
Hopefully a few of them develop!

Another garden addition was totally spur of the moment. I was getting ready to cook supper, and I realized that my onions had sprouted. I was about to toss them out, when Luke asked for it and planted it in an unused pot. Well, fast forward a couple months, and we have these huge fun onion flowers coming up!

Onion Blossoms

Lastly- R.I.P. fig tree. Someone (me) left the garage door open one cold night during the winter, and it never completely recovered from its short time as a popsicle.

Rather fittingly, Luke and I are reading in Ecclesiastes right now (part of a year-long Bible reading challenge), and I came across this verse today:

"To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under the heaven:

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;"

~Ecclesiastes 3:1-2

Enjoy this season of planting and being outside!

Jen

Sensiba Revisited

Well, Clara is here and beautiful and amazing and perfect. We're already almost past the newborn phase. They're tiny for such a short time!

That means that life is beginning to return to normal, and though I'm not close to getting a full night of sleep, we are starting to have a decent routine during the day.

For these final weeks of summer, we've been on the go a bit more and enjoying the outdoors again. We went on an evening walk at Sensiba State Wildlife Area (which I also discussed here), and were yet again impressed by the beauty, serenity, and diversity of wildlife found just outside the city.



It had a totally different feel to it than earlier in the year, when we were watching blackbirds fight over nesting territory. This time, we observed lots of different frogs, wrens, and even a baby bird that hadn't quite figured out how to fly.

We got pretty close before he scampered and flapped his way into the grass. He didn't look hurt, just inexperienced. I'm not sure what type of bird he is. Any guesses?



 

Grace was excited to put on her ladybug boots.
In her mind, boots = adventure, and we've had far too few of those lately.

 It was also the perfect weather and time of day for taking pictures, so I couldn't resist snapping a few of the girls. (Girls! I'm still getting used to saying "girls" instead of "girl." What an amazing thing! I still can't believe it!)
 


 



Clara's blog debut. Warm, snuggly, and ready for a nice long walk.

Let everything that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.

Psalm 150:6

 



 

Praising God for the incredible, unbelievable blessings in my life and all around us,

Jen

Our New Pets

Our newest project is the result of several culminating factors.

1-Grace has a pair of pajamas that she's been obsessed with lately. Honestly, if she sees them, they're the only thing she wants to wear. They aren't anything fancy- just an old pair of frog pants that I got out of a bin for a quarter at a rummage sale.

2-I had a pet salamander for a while growing up (a tiger salamander, which I caught in our sprinkler system in Utah).

3-Luke has, throughout his childhood, raised many different critters, fish, and bugs in his aquarium.

4-Luke and I talked about -someday- growing tadpoles into frogs, in order to teach our children the life cycle of amphibians.

5-We had an empty fish tank that we weren't using for anything.

6-We were Up North, near Luke's favorite childhood place to catch frogs.

So have you guessed it yet?

We're growing tadpoles. Oh, and salamanders.

The salamanders were a bit of an afterthought. We caught some tadpoles, and then while Luke was wading around the pond, he found a gelatinous blob of eggs. He wasn't sure exactly what he was scooping into the pail, but he figured it was worth checking out.

A little bit of research showed us that they are probably blue spotted salamanders and wood frogs. That's our present guess, at least.

The larger one is a wood frog tadpole, and the smaller one is the salamander.

Wood frog tadpole

A view of our tadpole nursery from above. Sphagnum moss, a moss ball, a bit of fish flakes, and tadpoles.
The stripes are from a dish towel underneath the aquarium.

Another view of our new pets

Grace loves the tadpoles, and it's remarkable how quickly they're growing. According to Luke's calculations, they should be fully transformed around July 1st (also my due date!). Once they turn into frogs, we''ll release them back into the wild.

It's crazy how quickly the tadpoles have grown! And the set up was remarkably easy. They eat fish flakes, so we didn't even need to buy anything different to feed them.

It's so neat to watch the animals changing each day, and every time they change, they grow and take a step away from being a baby. Obviously, once they're frogs they aren't going to go back to being tadpoles; that life will be over for them, and they'll be a completely different animal. They will live out of the water, breathe, and eat a completely different diet.

It reminds me of 1 Corinthians 5:17, which I know I've posted on here before:

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Has God ever changed you into a "new creature"?

~Jen

Sensiba State Wildlife Area and the Search for Yellow-Headed Blackbirds

We've been really interested in the Wisconsin section of the Brown County Library lately. There's something exciting about reading books specific to your local area; it's nice to find out what experts think about areas you've overlooked only a stone's throw away.

Well, Luke was reading about birds in Wisconsin and Minnesota, and specifically he found out about yellow-headed blackbirds. Of course, most people are familiar with red-winged blackbirds, their populous, slightly smaller, and less awkward relatives. However, everyone I talked to had either never heard of yellow-headed blackbirds, or (in case of older generations) had seem them when they were kids some 30+ years ago.

The book recommended Sensiba State Wildlife Area in Suamico, WI, as an ideal place to find these birds.

Luke and I like marshes (you may remember my previous blog post about the Oconto Marsh). They're the perfect places to visit if you only have a little bit of time but want to see a wide variety of wildlife. In this case, the yellow-headed blackbirds like the security of the deeper marshes, and they kick out the red-winged blackbirds to the perimeter of the marsh.

My favorite bird watchers

Okay, so what makes these birds especially interesting? Their crazy bird call. It's a metallic, grating, strange, and a little pathetic, really, but it's an awesome and unique sound to hear. It sounds a bit like a parrot imitating a squeaky screen door. It also does this harsh "buzz saw" noise as well. Either way, it's not pretty, but it's unique.

I was able to get a video of them, though I couldn't get as close as I really wanted to. The sound quality isn't the best, but you should be able to hear the call as well. Please excuse my excited whispers and Grace's commentary. :)

I was pretty excited to upload my first YouTube video. Yup, call me tech-savvy! I've joined 2001 (or whenever YouTube was created). Maybe I'll even join Twitter and Instagram someday, heh.

Although the head looks a little more golden-orange in this picture,
it was about as close as we could get.

If you look closely, you can see that there are two yellow-headed blackbirds in this picture.
One is in the middle near the water, and the other is toward the upper left (click on the picture to enlarge).

We had such a lovely day watching these birds and enjoying the perfect weather! Hope you get a chance to get out and enjoy nature in the next week as well.

"Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your Heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

~Matthew 6:26

~Jen

10 Early Signs that Spring has Come to Wisconsin

Ashwaubenon Creek at the De Pere Preserve is losing its ice.
Here comes spring!

Lately I've been reading Wild Wisconsin Notebook by James Buchholz, a 20-year park ranger and DNR Superintendent. His collection of essays is grouped by month, and it’s been especially fun to read about the upcoming changes in March, April, and May. It has me very excited for warmer weather!

If you get a chance to go for a walk in the next week or two, keep your eyes out for some of these early spring changes.  These encouraging plants and critters are some of the earliest indicators that spring has sprung in Northeast Wisconsin.

10 Early Signs that Spring has Come to Wisconsin

Geese: I've already heard one or two flocks honking around. Pretty soon they’ll be lots more on their way. Before you know it, they’ll be staking out nesting grounds and getting grumpy and territorial.

Skunk Cabbage: I’ll be honest- I’d never heard of this. However, this is apparently a very common plant that is able to survive the frosty nights of early spring. When squeezed, the leaves emit an unpleasant smell (hence the name). The most amazing thing about this plant, though, is that despite the outside temperatures, skunk cabbage is able to maintain a 70 degree “body” heat, melting the snow around it. I’m thinking I’ll need to bring along a thermometer on my next hike to check this out.

Skunk Cabbage

Photo Credit

Pussy Willow: Each year, I can’t resist bringing some inside to put in a vase. And each year, Sunny tears them apart. It’s one of the few plants that the DNR doesn't seem to mind you trimming (according to Buchholz), as long as you don’t take too much from one plant. When cut responsibly, it prunes the plant and helps it grow even better. If you put the branches in a vase and wait long enough, you’ll be rewarded with yellow flowers from the fuzzy buds.

Mourning Cloaks: This is one that was new to me, too. Buchholz described that the butterflies like to drink tree sap, so they can be found even if the snow hasn't completely melted.  

Mourning Cloak

Photo Credit

Robins: Apparently, 2% of robins stay in Wisconsin year round; therefore, this isn't always a reliable spring signal. However, when you start to see more than one bobbing for worms, you know that winter is finally releasing its grip.

Bees:  You’ll spy a few of these out and about not long after the weather is reliably above freezing.

Crocus

Photo Credit

Magnolias: All right- so these come a little later; it’s one of the first trees to flower.  I had to include them, though, because they always surprise me with how soon they produce flowers.

Crocus: My favorite early spring flower. I love the beautiful purple poking up from the ground. These, along with daffodils, give a great first splash of color.

Steelhead: I’ve written in the past about the fisheries facility in Kewaunee. Luke and I will be going there again soon, as watching the steelhead spawn is a spectacular (and free!) show. They run before walleye, suckers, and sturgeon, and it’s great to see them up close at the fish ladder.

Red-Winged Blackbirds: Some people love them and some people hate them, but their unique song is a sure sign of warmer weather. I went for a hike yesterday at The Preserve in De Pere and heard a few already.

Of course, there were many other items that could have been included on this list: maple sap running, gall flies, hyacinths, snow fleas, sandhill cranes, and turkey vultures to name a few. The changes will come quickly and often in the coming weeks; keep your eyes peeled!

"Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created; and thou renewest the face of the earth." 

Psalm 104:10

Happy Spring!

Jen