Bird Festival Art Contest

A few years back when the Dog Walker was trying to finish all the merit badges, we learned about the Great Salt Lake Bird Festival. It's a fantastic way for scouts to earn the Bird Study merit badge, but it is also a fun place for kids to learn more about birds and actually meet some real live birds.

They also have an art contest.

My kids love to enter this one. They pick a particular bird each year that everyone has to draw and then they offer prizes for each category of winners. This year it was the Franklin's Gull. I had never heard of it before, but it is basically one of the smallest seagulls.

We spent a family home evening learning about this bird and then letting each of the kids have an opportunity to draw one. Bossy's kids also joined in as did Princess's boyfriend. Then we stuff them all into an envelope and mailed them in.

We were so excited when the list of winners came out and Baby Doll had won 1st place in the preschool category! So we shuffled our plans for this evening and made a trip to Farmington for the awards ceremony.

Baby Doll was so cute and so confident. When they announced her name, she marched right up there to receive her certificate and an envelope with a check for $50. (When I showed it to her she scoffed a little, I don't think she thought it was real money.)

I don't know if you know anything about birding (I really don't...), but that guy presenting the awards is none other than David Allen Sibley, an artist and writer on the New York Times best seller list. His book, The Sibley Guide to Birds, is pretty amazing. So much so that we bought a copy for Baby Doll and asked him to autograph it for her which he did and then he even posed for a picture.

After we were finished with awards, we visited a few of the booths including the one with the hawk and the great horned owl.

Then to celebrate we went out to Sizzler with some of the free kids meal coupons from the elementary school.

Now we will go back tomorrow and let Bean Dip and Sport earn the Bird Study merit badge. Hey, when it works, it works!