One of Lewis' and my favorite bird-watching places is the Quintana Jetty that juts out into the Gulf of Mexico. On this day we both added a purple sandpiper to our life lists. -- Photo by Pat Bean
“Be grateful for luck. Pay the thunder no mind – listen to the birds. And don’t hate nobody.” — Eubie Blake
Travels With Maggie
When I visit my son, Lewis, he and I usually sneak off for a day of birding. While I’ve gotten other family members a bit interested, Lewis, like me, is passionately hooked on identifying every bird that crosses his path.
He and I have spent many an hour enduring heat, rain, cold, wind and mosquitoes, indulging our birding addiction. Our most successful outing was a dawn to dark adventure in which we reached our goal of identifying 100 different bird species. We had 82 different species by noon, but it took right up until dusk to get the final one, a common ground dove that crossed the road in front of our vehicle when we were almost ready to give up and head back home.
Lewis blames me for his bird-watching addiction. All I did, however, was to throw my field guide at him when he asked me the name of that bird over by the pond. It was our first bird outing together, and it was taking place at the Brazoria National Wildlife just 15 minutes from my son’s home in Lake Jackson, Texas.
White ibis and two snowy egrets at Brazos Bend State Park, which is located less than an hour's drive from my son's home in Lake Jackson, Texas. -- Photo by Pat Bean
“See if you can find out.” I told him. I was busy watching my own bird at the time, a yellow-crowned night heron that, back then, was a new life species for me.
A few minutes later, Lewis called out that it was a neotropic cormorant, which immediately grabbed my attention away from the heron. Lewis was correct in his identification, and I had another life bird. All my other birding at this point had been done in Utah, where normally only double-crested cormorants can be found
Every bird, which was about 42, that we saw at the refuge that day were firsts for Lewis newly started life list. I added eight new ones to my personal tally before flying out later this day back to Utah. Before long, Lewis’ list of birds exceeded mine. It was an easy accomplishment for him because the Texas Gulf Coast is one of the best bird-watching areas in the country.
I caught up with again when my dog, Maggie, and I became full-time RV-ers. We now claim the entire country as our birding territory.
Pat Bean's blog 
It’s good to share positive, pleasant addictions with loved ones. I’ve never been a birder, probably because until I got glasses at the age of eight, I’d never seen a bird. A slight exaggeration, but detail wasn’t my strong suit. But in years since, I’ve enjoyed barn swallows nesting for several seasons on my porch, a bluejay moving her babies out of the nest (while my dogs were corralled elsewhere), and a mockingbird that dive-bombed me whenever I walked out my front door. (I finally discovered his partner nesting in a nearby tree.)
As a mom, I’ve always tried to share something special with each of my children. It’s not always as easy, however, so the addiction I share with Lewis is special to me. Thanks for your comment, and I wish you many more feathered visitors to watch. Keep writing … Pat Bean https://patbean.wordpress.com
I think that’s a lovely way to spend time with your son.
I love watching the birds but rarely take the time to identify them. I’ve been trying to do that a little more lately. It’s fun to learn a little something about the birds I see.
You’ll laugh at this story – I identified a black-capped chickadee through a stuffed bird at Whole Foods. Had wondered for years what bird made that pee-willy sound. LOL.
That’s OK. You’re still years ahead of me. I was 60 years old before I knew anything about birds except there were red birds and blue birds and a mockingbird. I knew the later simply because it was the Texas state bird and teachers kept mentioning it. Thanks for the comment. Pat
Keep writing … Pat Bean https://patbean.wordpress.com