Grateful

The journey…

NMcAllister Big Year, Grateful, Maine, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

“When it’s over, I want to say: all my life I was a bride married to amazement. I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms… I don’t want to end up simply having visited this world.”  ~ Mary Oliver

This week marks one year since an unprecedented tornado tore right through our backyard. The feelings I experienced during the storm event reminded me without a spec of doubt what is truly important to me.  As my life and the lives of my immediate family members passed before my eyes, everything else simply melted away from my mind. I realized in the end.. it was the journey with the people in my life~ the relationships, the experiences with them, and the connections between us all, that mattered.

Plain and simple as that.

Nothing else.

(Check out my tornado blog post here:  At that moment I knew… It went viral and was the most popular Mom’s Big Year post of 2016!  I gather that people really like tornados or something. lol)

Reflecting on that surreal experience inspired me to write this blog post today, highlighting my gratitude and counting my blessings for some of the deep connections and special new friends that walked by my side during my Big Year.

On my recent trip to Maine, a friend asked me what it is that I miss most about the Big Year.   I can be pretty indecisive, so much to my surprise, it took me only a split second to respond. “I miss the journey and meeting new friends like you along the way.” I answered with conviction.

During Mom’s Big Year I made every effort to grant myself the time, the space and the bandwidth to breathe in every single bird, AND to take time to appreciate every person and vista that crossed my path (unless I was running after a mega-rare bird 🙂 lol!)

And in doing all that..  I loved every. single. minute. of this journey!
I truly felt alive.

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”  

~Howard Thurman

I believe that every person crossing my path has something to teach me… and our meeting is not by accident. I honestly cannot recall a single plane trip during the Big Year where I did not learn the name of the person sitting next to me and some interesting information about them by the end of the flight.

Screen Shot 2017-06-21 at 12.04.53 AM.png

 

Screen Shot 2017-06-21 at 11.32.58 PMMost recently, Don sat next to me on my flight back from Maine June 5th. He was eagerly returning from a 6-month deployment in the Middle East as a radio officer for the Army. He showed me pictures of the classic car he was going to buy when he returned to his home in upstate New York.  We talked about the challenges of raising teens and the ins and outs of setting up radios and encrypted military communications. He was pleasantly surprised when he found out I was a licensed amateur radio operator and could hold my own as he described the technical parts of his job. I told him of my Big Year and why I had been visiting Maine. He told me about the birds he saw in Iraq. We talked the entire flight.  Many folks could look at us and think that we had not a thing in common… but I guarantee we’d prove you wrong in a heartbeat.

Screen Shot 2017-06-21 at 11.22.29 PM

The Mom’s Big Year journey contained many people, old friends and new, that played big and small parts in my travels and simply changed the course of my year for the better. They caused me to stop and take time to savor the journey in the midst of the planning and all the challenges of a Big Year.  Several new friends I met in 2016 come to mind as I write this post and I cannot begin to list them all. (Many of you know who you are.)  Like my steadfast old friends, these new friends made me a better person as a result of their wisdom, their unconditional support (for me and for my family) and their friendship…. Driving me to places when I could not drive myself, spending extra hours hiking miles to reach ‘just one more bird’ 🙂 , giving me little good luck charms to carry, and sending me encouraging messages to get me over that next bridge.

I am… in a word…

Grateful. ❤

It’s my hope that I can give back even a fraction of the love and support that has been granted me on this journey.

I’d like to introduce you to just a couple of my special new friends I met during the course of the Big Year. They are beautiful to me inside and out and I count my lucky stars every day for having people like them (AND people like you) in my life!

IMG_20170128_163322.jpg
Patti and I, post-field trip at the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival, Titusville, FL, January 2017

This is the lovely Patti! I met Patti on one of my first local Mom’s Big Year trips. It was a Maryland ‘owl prowl’ and we had a blast!   Her positive outlook and genuine love of our natural world and of learning caused us to hit it off right away! She’s a super sharp birder to boot! Read about our first time out in the field together here

—> Bingo

Since that first day of birding together, I feel so very fortunate that Patti has become a dear friend and an awesome supporter of Mom’s Big Year. We had wonderful opportunities to bird together during the Big Year and also during the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival in Florida this January. I look forward to getting out in the field with her again soon and hopefully for many years to come!

 

IMG_8390.JPG

Deb and I met through my Mom’s Big Year blog and I am soooo glad she reached out to me! She’s truly an inspiration! Deb lives with FSH Muscular Dystrophy and shared with me that Mom’s Big Year inspired her to stretch beyond her wildest dreams and to do her very own physically accessible mid-Atlantic Big Year! She’s in the midst of it right now and I am simply tickled to hear how well she’s doing with it! The picture of us here was taken just after my presentation to the Howard County Bird Club. Deb drove an HOUR each way at night to come see my talk and completely surprised me when she introduced herself and presented me with flowers and the sweetest of notes. I was utterly speechless and brought to tears! Deb started her blog that VERY night after hearing my talk!  I encourage you to support Deb and follow along with her Big Year and check out her super-inspiring blog “Gimpy Girl Goes Birding” here—>Gimpy Girl Goes Birding

 

FullSizeRender (6)

Kim is the most recent of my new friends to cross my path.  After purchasing an organic farm in Pennsylvania on a whim earlier this year, she was nervous she had gotten in over her head. She shared with me that the Mom’s Big Year story empowered her and helped her to realize that she’s on the right path to success with her new endeavor.  We met in person after my keynote at the Acadia Birding Festival and had another unexpected and whimsical meeting in the airport as we discovered we were on the same flight home.  She then shared a more personal struggle and told me that the Mom’s Big Year story had inspired her to finally try to quit smoking once and for all. We exchanged contact info and she has committed to keeping me posted along the way.  Good luck, Kim!  We know it’s not going to be easy.. but we’re rooting for you and all know you can do this!!

I have learned that new friendships, deep connections, and relationships like these feed my soul. I am so thankful to every one of my friends for renewing my spirit and my passion for life during 2016 and beyond. These connections and inspiring and heart-warming stories borne out of Mom’s Big Year were honestly not something I ever anticipated. A bonus! I love that! ❤

In the end, my Mom’s Big Year bird species counts were good and actually much better than I ever guessed they would be.  (Stay tuned for upcoming posts describing the cool ending to the Big Year with all the stats!)

But numbers are simply numbers, my friend..

When all is said and done, what is it that really matters?

Screen Shot 2017-06-22 at 12.14.47 AM.png

Love, Nancy xoxo

 

 

Reentry

NMcAllister Big Year, birding Texas, Grateful, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Well, here we are… several weeks into the New Year!

(2017?!  what happened to 1996??  I clearly recall when that year seemed soooo far in the distant future.)

You haven’t heard from me in a while. I’ll admit, frankly, reentry back post-Mom’s Big Year life has been rough. Like coming off of a high. Last year was the best year of my life to date. So definitely tough to follow that. Many of you saw that glimmer in my eye as I always had another trip around the corner.

Since January 1st,  I’ve been playing catch up in just about every aspect of my life and am a bit overwhelmed… Dishes, laundry, work, friendships, carpools, teaching, etc etc…  catching up on everything except sleep. Adapting back to the way things were before the Big Year. These past few weeks have been a time for me to shift my attention back to matters at home and work. It’s truly been a joy to be back with the family!

Paul just suggested we take our Halloween decorations down. I guess it’s been a little busy. Lol!  So, as you can tell, I’m still playing catch up.. but could not wait another day to update you!

I owe you some very cool posts that cover the final push of MBY!  I head to Florida next week for the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival. I’m super excited to be leading trips for the festival again this year and to be presenting my first MBY talk! Check it out the festival website here:  Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival  And if you’re there, I’ll be at the Wildside Nature Tours booth, so please come by and say HI!

So, going back to start bringing you up to date…

The rest of my Texas trip in November was FANTASTIC!

We met up with friend, Scarlet Colley to take her magical pontoon boat trip for a shot at Wilson’s Plover.  Anyone who has been on Scarlet’s boat knows that ‘magical’ is the only way to describe it. Scarlet talks with her dolphin friends that surround the boat. When I asked her how close they get to the dolphins, she told me, “We feed them our joy…We touch them with our hearts… And we swim with them in our dreams.”

dscn6313
Scarlet and Nancy, post-Wilson’s Plover #493!
dscn6280
Scarlet and Gabriel

 

Here are the highlights of my last days in Texas in pictures:

 

dscn6407
Plain Chachalaca
dscn6406
Olive Sparrow
dscn6340
Gabriel Mapel and Gabriel Lugo= Gabriel squared! 🙂
dscn6334
Greater Roadrunner
dscn6267
Nancy at Sabal Palm Sanctuary
dscn6339
Always love running into Superstar birder, Gabriel Mapel and his dad, Daniel!
dscn6392
Groove-billed Ani at Salineno

My next trip held a big change in temps for me!

MBY headed NORTH!

Check back soon for the last of the MBY adventures. The last weeks were full of surprises and some were ‘beyond birds!’

xoxo, Nancy

 

 

Back in the nest

NMcAllister Big Year, Birding with Kids, Grateful, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Well, momma bird is back in the nest!

There’s SO much to share from these last few weeks, I don’t even know where to begin. It’s been a whirlwind of travel, final exams, family, friends and holidays. BIG fun!

After an amazing trip to the Rio Grande Valley in November, I stepped up the birding again in mid-December to finish the year strong.  With the immeasurable help and support of family, colleagues, and friends at this crazy time of year, I felt so fortunate to squeeze in trips to Minnesota, Southern Maryland, Virginia, South Carolina and an unplanned trip to my childhood home in New Jersey… all before the ball dropped. I closed out 2016 with some very exciting hits, some tough misses, and a rather exciting finish to Mom’s Big Year!

dscn6757
Sneak preview of my trip up north to Minnesota! Evening Grosbeak. Tick!

Now, I’m getting back to reality.. unpacking my suitcase and starting the laundry.  I just submitted semester grades this morning.. so, this month I’ll have more time to blog and recap on what I would consider to be the best year of my life so far! It was certainly a huge year of birds.. but as you all know, for me, it was much more than birds… It was a year chock-FULL of learning, growth, love, healing, travel, adventure, new friends, old friends and family.

I am grateful. I simply couldn’t ask for more.

Speaking of which…Here’s one of my favorite songs, by Sara Evans, I Could Not Ask for More. I’ve posted it before and I’m posting again as I love it so much. I sing it to my kids and hubby all the time. It really captures how I’m feeling right now about them, and you, and my entire support network for Mom’s Big Year.

“These are the moments
I know heaven must exist
And these are the moments
I know all I need is this
I’ve found all I’ve waited for, yeah
And I could not ask for more
I could not ask for more than this time together
I could not ask for more than this time with you
And every prayer has been answered
Every dream I’ve had’s come true
Yeah, right here in this moment
Is right where I’m meant to be
Here with you here with me”

Click on the link below for the youtube video:

Sara Evans, I Could Not Ask for More

I am so happy that you’re a part of my Big Year. And I cannot WAIT to share more with you!

But for now, it’s back to mom duties today.

I must head to the grocery store now, or we’ll be eating candy canes off the tree for dinner…

Though, I’m sure the kids wouldn’t mind… right?. 😉

More soon, xoxo,

Nancy

img_6836

Switching Gears

NMcAllister big year, Bird Chase, Cape May, Grateful, Job, Uncategorized , , , , , ,

You may recall that I headed to Cape May on my last MBY trip  just over a month ago.  I’ve been doing the mom/work thing big time ever since. I took a break in the action to chase a Vesper’s Sparrow a few times and to bird our local landfill.  Before I switch gears back into full-time birding mode, I thought I’d share a few pics that give you a glimpse of the “mom/work” side of Mom’s Big Year from these last few weeks.

Just landed in San Diego Friday! Three full days of birding ahead including a pelagic! Then it’s down to the Rio Grande Valley of TX for a boatload of birding, friends and hopefully BIRDS!

Stay tuned,

Nancy

Did you say TEST ?!?

NMcAllister big year, Cape May, Grateful, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

dscn5509
Here’s my favorite poster I hung on the classroom wall during my first year of teaching, 1993

Well, it’s exam season in the Environmental Science class I teach.. But this round, the students aren’t the only ones being “tested.”

I’ve been wanting to tell you my MOST exciting news about my recent excursion to Cape May for the pelagic trip!  I’m sorry to leave you hanging for so long. I’m sure many of you understand what I’ve been doing since my last post… I’ve been doing the ‘mom thing’ and the ‘work thing’.  Next post about that coming soon. And sooner this time.. I promise!

I cannot tell you how much the texts, prayers, messages, calls, and emails of support have meant to me as I attempted this challenge and as I navigate through this year.  I truly believe that the deep level of support I feel from all of you is a critical part of the healing I’m experiencing on this multifaceted ‘Big Year’ journey.

I headed back to Cape May September 17th for the rescheduled pelagic trip with See Life Paulagics out of Wildwood Crest, NJ. With a handful of exciting target birds as my carrot, this time I decided to drive a bit out of my way to attempt… <insert drum roll here>  the Chesapeake Bay Bridge… AND…the Delaware Memorial Bridge before ducking my way down to Cape May.

Now, time is short and it’s getting late, so I’ll cut to the chase….

I passed my BIGGEST test of Mom’s Big Year so far….. and I did so with flying colors!

dscn5177
My view just after crossing the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. I stopped dancing and clicking my heels just long enough to take this picture 🙂

How did I do it?

My original plan was to bring a birding buddy and ask them to drive me over the bridges and highways (I had been avoiding) to get me to Cape May. But, much to my alarm, there was only ONE spot left on the pelagic when I signed up and I had to make a huge split- second decision. The one open spot was mine for the taking and would be gone in the blink of an eye. So, sweaty palms and all, I took a deep breath and went ahead and booked the reservation. As my palms got sweatier, my anxiety level increased and I started getting short of breath on the phone while reading my credit card numbers aloud to finalize the reservation. My next question was no surprise to me.. I asked about last minute cancellations and refunds.

I was looking for my exit… just in case I chickened out.

But, at that particular moment I resolved that I was not going to let my driving/bridge anxiety keep me away from the birds I wanted to see SO very much!

So, when the time came and I actually approached the bridge, I had my eye on the prize. I played my favorite music, put in bird song practice CD’s, donned my new ‘good luck’ ring, gnawed on some gummy bears and just. did. it! I crossed the Bay Bridge without any issue and a short time later, did the same over the Delaware Memorial Bridge!

Wow!

And that was just the beginning. The weekend was chock full of rewards, that’s for sure!

Within a couple hours of arriving in the Cape May area, I ticked piping plover (#418) at Stone Harbor, NJ .

dscn5207
Piping Plover #418, Stone Harbor Point, NJ

The overnight pelagic trip was amazing. Several folks commented that I was very brave to do an overnight trip as my first pelagic. It was ‘camping style’… so you boarded at 10:30 pm, found a spot on the deck, laid out your sleeping bag and supplies/food for the next 20 hours and “slept” until they started chumming around 4:30 am. I was super excited about the trip, but with everything I have going, I fell asleep within about a minute of my head hitting the pillow. The trip in short was awesome! I ticked 11 new species for the year and made several new and awesome birder friends to boot!

The highlight of the trip for me was Black-capped Petrel.

dscn5362

Here’s the list:

Screen Shot 2016-10-22 at 4.42.21 PM.png

Special thanks to See Life Paulagics for one amazing overnight trip! The full moon, awesome birds, excellent guides, and really cool marine mammals made it particularly memorable!

 

And special thanks to Bill and Karen for hosting me again in Cape May for a second weekend in a row! As if that wasn’t enough to make it the perfect weekend….two more dear friends, Tom and Connie Halliwell, happened to be in Cape May, visiting from northern NJ for a butterfly field trip. They stopped by on their way out of town to say hello.  It’s always a treat to see them, as Tom gets full credit for getting me hooked on birding back in 1986!

dscn5430-1
Tom & Connie Halliwell and me

As I headed out to start my trip home, it was raining cats and dogs! Many of you know that is not enough to keep me from making one final visit to the Meadows before leaving town.

Just before the rain got really heavy and as I pulled into the lot at the Meadows, I ran into Pete Dunne.  To those of you in the birding world, Pete needs no introduction..  When I was knee-high to a grasshopper and a budding environmentalist, Pete helped me pull together testimony for a public hearing in my attempt to save last tract of untouched forest in my hometown in northern NJ.  To see him this morning and thank him for his support and inspiration was simply ‘icing on the cake’ to what proved to be an *unbelievable* weekend for me!

A weekend with wonderful people and amazing birds in my *favorite* place…And all this, after facing some of my demons HEAD ON!

Priceless.

Definitely THE highlight of Mom’s Big Year for me.

Here’s my song (see below) that gives you a slice of how I’m feeling at this incredible and pivotal moment in my Big Year journey.

More soon,

Lots to do now as I leave for San Diego on Thursday!

— xoxo, Nancy

On Top of the World – click here to play

“I’ve had the highest mountains, I’ve had the deepest rivers
You can have it all but life keeps moving

I take it in but don’t look down

‘Cause I’m on top of the world, ‘ay
I’m on top of the world, ‘ay
Waiting on this for a while now
Paying my dues to the dirt
I’ve been waiting to smile, ‘ay
Been holding it in for a while, ‘ay
Take you with me if I can
Been dreaming of this since a child
I’m on top of the world

I’ve tried to cut these corners
Try to take the easy way out
I kept on falling short of something

I coulda gave up then but
Then again I couldn’t have ’cause
I’ve traveled all this way for something

I take it in but don’t look down

‘Cause I’m on top of the world, ‘ay
I’m on top of the world, ‘ay
Waiting on this for a while now
Paying my dues to the dirt
I’ve been waiting to smile, ‘ay
Been holding it in for a while, ‘ay
Take you with me if I can
Been dreaming of this since a child
I’m on top of the world”

~On Top of the World, Imagine Dragons

 

The good, the bad, and the amazing!

NMcAllister Big Year, Cape May, Grateful, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
img_1465
One. happy. girl. in her absolute favorite place!

Time is short this week, but I’ve been itching to share this post with you all! Thank you for the calls, messages and emails inquiring about how my trip to Cape May panned out.

Here’s the scoop… Bad news first..

I found myself 9 minutes outside of Cape May mid-day last Saturday and received a call from long-time friend, Bill Boyle, informing me that the Sat-Sun pelagic trip (the main reason I had done the trip) had been postponed due to high seas. 😦

<<Insert crying-like-a-baby sounds here>>

So,  I may have traveled 4+ hours to get there prior to hearing this…

BUT the really good news is that I drove to Cape May…

ALL. BY. MY. SELF!

Those of you who have been following along know.. That’s a HUGE check for the MBY bucket list!

There unfortunately were not any birds I needed to chase for Mom’s Big Year in the area.. BUT I was thrilled that I had the chance to spend some time in my *favorite* place with some of my *favorite* people.

And the ‘always a treat’ flight of migrants didn’t happen the one morning I was there.. But special thanks to Vince Elia for being so very sweet to come out to meet me to go birding, even when there weren’t any birds! Depite the quiet morning, we all *beamed* ear-to-ear, as we were simply happy to be out birding Higbee together once again. 

dscn4961
Dear friends, Bill Boyle, Karen Thompson and Vince Elia
dscn4957
Above: Birding Higbee Beach, Below: Karen & Nancy in the Meadows
dscn4974

Special thanks to my dear friends, Karen Thompson and Bill Boyle for always serving as the most gracious hosts during my visits to Cape May.  It’s such a treat to catch up with them and hear about all of their latest birding/nature travel adventures!

Here’s a cooperative Northern Waterthrush we enjoyed for a bit in The Meadows.

dscn4986

I just can’t even begin to tell you how TICKLED I was to reconnect with all the great folks from Cape May. Some of my friends there have been fixtures in the community for decades, while others are new on the scene. I even got to meet up with a local birding friend from Maryland, Kurt Schwarz, who kindly joined me to chase a salt marsh sparrow. Alas, no sparrow this time.. but smiles and laughter nonetheless.

It was super fun for me to get to spend time with Brett Ewald and Erik Bruhnke on Saturday.  I knew both of them from different chapters in my life, and they both have relocated to Cape May!  And to have us all meeting up in Cape May at the same time…

Well, that’s simply MAGIC to me!

Based on the concert of big smiles in this picture below…

can you see how much each of us simply loves Cape May to pieces!!!???!!

dscn4933
Nancy with Brett Ewald (Left), the new Program Director for Cape May Bird Observatory (CMBO)  and Erik Bruhnke, CMBO’s 2017 Hawk Counter

 

Erik, Hawk Counter extraordinaire
Nancy & Erik

I cannot close this post without telling you about the traveling part of my trip TO and FROM Cape May. I mentioned in my last post the large amount of anxiety I was feeling about doing the drive for this trip.  The major highways, the bridges, the Saturday traffic… all not sitting well with me. At all..

How did it go, you ask?

Well, I was feeling some stress about the highways on the way there, so I took back roads to the Delaware Memorial Bridge.  And then, when I got to the bridge…. I sailed my way over like it was NOTHING.

After 11 years, it was an anticlimactic pile of nothing.

Unbelievable.

I floated through the rest of the trip, without issue.  And the trip home was even easier for me than the way over.

AMAZING!

How did that happen?

I have absolutely NO idea, my friends.  It just DID!

I’ll admit, during the last hour of my trip home, I sobbed like I haven’t sobbed in a very long time.  The enormity of the transformation that had happened during my trip this weekend had finally hit me.

And this is the incredible scene I was treated to just minutes before I arrived back home.

img_1586

Can I do it again this weekend for the rescheduled pelagic trip?

I have NO idea!  I know this journey of healing is not over. I have felt the gnarly tendrils of anxiety creeping back as I’ve been driving highways near home this week.

BUT I do have a feeling there’s nothing…

Absolutely nothing…

that can keep this girl away from Cape May. 🙂

Special thanks to all of my dear family and friends who are carrying me through this amazing Big Year journey of birds, travel, self-discovery and healing.  It’s not over yet and I’m certain there’s still some incredible adventures ahead. I am grateful to every one of you for following along and can truly feel the unconditional support of all my friends and family, old and new, near and far.

Special thanks to my dear and most wonderful husband, Paul. (It’s good he’s sleeping now.. because he’d never let me post this about him if he saw it…He’s so humble.) Many of you have heard me say he’s a living saint, who has made me realize this Big Year story is about SO much more than the birds.  It’s truly a love story. A story about a love of birds, friends, travel, family, and an incredibly deep love between a husband and a wife. It’s a story in which a husband loves his wife so very much, that he has made a huge sacrifice in giving his wife a gift that no one else on the planet could ever give her….

the gift of a Big Year.

Here’s a link to a song below that seems fitting for how I’m feeling about you all.

xoxo, Nancy ❤

You Raise Me Up- Josh Groban

When I am down, and, oh, my soul, so weary
When troubles come, and my heart burdened be
Then, I am still and wait here in the silence
Until you come and sit awhile with me
You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
I am strong when I am on your shoulders
You raise me up to more than I can be

img_1672

 

 

 

 

Take it from where you’re at…

NMcAllister Big Year, Grateful, Job, Uncategorized , , , , , , ,

 

Breton Bay, St. Mary’s County, MD
My middle enjoying himself!
Yours truly having a blast.

We had a super holiday weekend playing, playing, playing on the water in Southern Maryland and reconnecting with dear family. We took time to share memories of my father, who passed away on Labor Day in 2002.  My dad loved water sports (sailing, boating, waterskiing), so all of the super fun times on the water this weekend were a great way to remember him!

14225433_10209536532703081_6429716770470883814_n
My Dad

Then, Tuesday, it was ‘off to the races’ as it was the first week where my banding lab job overlapped with my university teaching job as well as the school year for my three kiddos.  Believe it or not, all went great! So far so good!

I’m beyond grateful to my mentor, Danny Bystrak, for tapping me for the banding lab position.

img_1290-1
Danny Bystrak and I at the banding station

And we had a Connecticut Warbler while banding this morning!

img_1274
Connecticut Warbler

Now that everything’s hitting me at once..I went from ‘smooth sailing’ to ‘rough seas’ in less than 24 hours. I’m feeling the heat with all the things I need to get done before I even think about packing for a trip to Cape May this weekend. Everything I said I’d do for friends, school, work, the kiddos and hubby… all needed to be done..like yesterday. And, oh yes. .I’m thinking creatively as I start to pack for Saturday’s Pelagic trip where I’ll be sleeping on the top deck of a boat to wake in the morning out at sea amongst the seabirds (new ones for Mom’s Big Year!). Yup.. all that packing/planning still needs to happen too!

Cape May is at the top of my list when it comes to Mom’s Big Year destinations. It’s such a very special and sentimental place to me. But the thought of driving to Cape May and over the Delaware Memorial bridge stops all my happy thoughts right in their tracks and my hands are now breaking out into a cold sweat because of this. 

 

B9317680605Z.1_20150610144050_000_GE7B1R9BK.1-0.jpg
Delaware Memorial Bridge

In the flurry of it all, I talked with my mom on the phone, looking for some consoling words as I explained the crazy nature of this week and the drive ahead of me on Saturday.  She reminded me of something my dad always said…

“Just take it from where you’re at…”

Well, I started my day today at the banding lab with this…

img_1282
American Redstart

and ended the day in my yard with this…

14233245_10209556476561665_7169516148720516931_n
Monarch larva

So, if I “take it from where I’m at”..

…”where I’m at” doesn’t seem like such a bad place to be 🙂

I am grateful. ❤

 

 

 

The right words at the right time

NMcAllister Big Year, Bird Chase, Grateful, Job, Uncategorized , , , , , , ,

 

FullSizeRender (2)

I’m two weeks into the new job and there’s so much running through my weary head, I’m honestly having trouble choosing just one tidbit for this post.

It’s been a fulfilling and busy time couple of weeks. I’m grateful for my family and friends who are making this journey a lot less bumpy for me. A shout out to dear friends, Jill, Susan and Jenny for taking such fabulous care of my kids on short notice during my first days at work. And extra special thanks to my mom for coming to help us navigate my entire first week of work. I found this card to send to her as a thank you and she loved it!

IMG_0135

Continue reading →

Two steps forward…

NMcAllister Big Year, Bird Chase, Birding with Kids, Grateful, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , ,

It had all the elements of a great family trip. There were college visits for my oldest, days at beach, golf outings, tennis matches, chats with locals, shrimp and grits, cooking in, eating out and plenty of ice cream runs. Last week we took a family vacation to Charleston, South Carolina. It wasn’t strictly a birding trip, but I, of course, had to squeeze in at least a few good-sized dollops of birding. (My chat with some local watermen while out in the field one morning is worth a post all its own, so stay tuned!)  

Pre-ice cream selfie
Dawn on the Pitt St. Causeway
Pitt St. Causeway
One of three college visits for our oldest
Beach boyz – Folly Beach

Now, you may recall that I am trying to nip my issues with bridge/driving anxiety during my Big Year and I am using birding in my attempt to do so.  Well, this entire week I had Charleston’s beautiful Ravenel bridge staring me in the face. I honestly didn’t give it much thought.. but I’ll admit my mind did occasionally wander to images of the day I would sit in the driver’s seat while making my way over that bridge.

DSCN3848
Charleston’s Ravenel Bridge

One afternoon, while perusing the downtown Charleston shopping district, I ran across this book.

IMG_9623I am not lying to you when I say I picked it up and put it down 10 times. I was trying to decide whether I wanted to stop right there and read the whole thing in one sitting or put it down and never ever pick it up again.

I figured Mom’s Big Year is already more than half over and it was time to add a whole new dimension to this Big Year thing!  Gull-billed tern, Sandwich tern and Least Bittern were all seen in the last couple weeks at the Pitt St. Causeway on the OTHER side of the Ravenel Bridge.. so the choice was clear…THIS was my ticket.. These target birds were my carrot to get me over that bridge.

Well, by golly, without giving it much thought, I just buckled down and DID it! I took the helm and sailed my way right over that bridge with my hubby in tow! And we missed our target birds, so I did it AGAIN the next morning at sunrise.. Out and back. ALL. BY. MY. SELF!  I could hardly believe it.  Now, it wasn’t without anxiety, but it was a feeling I hadn’t ever felt before.  I was getting better, I just KNEW it. Eleven years I had been avoiding bridges like this one and I did it!  Two days in a row!  I didn’t care one little bit that I missed my target birds those days (ok, maybe I cared a teeny bit), but birds aside, I drove over that bridge!

IMG_9410
Birding with my honey on the OTHER side of the bridge! (Note the bridge photo-bombing us in the background)
DSCN3778
Tri-colored Heron – Pitt St. Causeway, Mt. Pleasant, SC

After eleven years, the whole experience was less climactic in the actual moment than I expected.  I dropped the family off at the beach in the afternoon, so I could chase a Wilson’s Plover that had been seen recently a few minutes away. Then suddenly, the magnitude of what I had just accomplished finally hit me. As my youngest closed the car door behind him and ran out to the beach, I started to cry.  Mom’s Big Year had yet, once again, gotten bigger… and this time it wasn’t about the birds.

Now, Saturday was travel day back to Maryland and with my newly found ora of confidence I decided to take the wheel and give Rt. 95 a whirl as we made our way home.

How did that go, you ask..?

NOT well.

In complete contrast to my masterful driving the day before, I felt like I was on a roller coaster spinning out of control and dizziness and panic started to show their nasty countenances. My legs and arms started getting numb, and my lips tingly.. After 30 minutes of attempting to power through my driving anxieties like my counselor had taught me, I decided that for everyone’s safety, it was time to pull over.

The tears this time weren’t the happy tears I had cried the day before.  They were tears of frustration and feelings of failure as I hung my head and pounded the steering wheel. I thought my issues were over and that I had entered a completely new era. The reality was there plain and simple… I had not.

Fortunately, my kids and husband quickly reminded me of how far I had come in just a few days and clamored with words of support and comfort from the back seat.

Two steps forward, one step back… These seas are going to be tougher to navigate than I could ever have imagined.

I recall when I first started the Big Year, my very wise and dear friend, Marcia reminded me that I can’t eat the elephant all in one bite.

She was 100% right.