Baby Robins!

 At the corner of our deck...

Hidden in a planter...

A mother robin built a nest!

July 18th

Over the past few weeks we've had the pleasure of watching baby robins hatch and grow into birds big enough to leave the nest. It took about a month for the mother robin to become an empty nester. And she worked hard during that time! We all enjoying peeking in every day to watch the progress and of course I couldn't help taking pictures. 

July 29th

August 1st

August 3rd

August 6th

August 9th

August 10th

August 11th

I was rarely able to get pictures of the mother as she flew away whenever we got close. Here was the best I could do: a picture from inside the dining room, but not too close, since she would eventually sense us from outside and fly away once we reached the window.

But we had a great view of the babies from the deck!

Between August 6th and August 9th, without seeing it happen, three birds became two. We weren't sure if the one flew away or was eaten, but given that the last two birds flew away within the next couple of days, we assumed it meant they were ready! We just didn't realize how quickly it happens.

  

2nd bird out of the nest

3rd bird out of the nest

And then there were none!

Very cool!

Prison Tour

There are a lot of prisons in the Kingston area, and one that has recently closed is Kingston Penitentiary (maximum security from 1835-2013). They're now offering tours of the prison, so when some friends of mine from Ottawa said they were coming down for a tour, I happily joined them!

I tried to be a little artistic with my pictures to give them an old-timey feel. Mostly I just muted the colours or made them black and white. It also helped that it was a cloudy day!

Visitors' booths

Guard house under main dome

We had a tour guide who took us around, and in most areas they had retired corrections workers who told us stories and explained how things worked. It was all very interesting! We even heard about a few riots, fires, and escapes.

Cellblock

My friends T, L, and D!

Solitary confinement

Solitary confinement cell
(prisoners who broke rules had to spend 23 hours a day in here, plus 1 optional hour outdoors)

Area connecting all the shop buildings

Photo of a prison fire in 1954

Metal shop

Exercise yard

Hearing stories of famous escapes

Basketball court

This was definitely a neat experience! I might have to check it out again with Steve or my parents.

Picture of me from L's phone