Vixen the Reindeer

Vixen the Reindeer

Vixen is one of Santa's reindeer.  She is traditionally a female reindeer.  If you wonder why she has antlers if she's a female then you need to know than reindeer or  caribou are the only member of the deer family where both sexes have antlers.  This is a cartoon drawing so I did not draw the animal like a true reindeer.  In places in far north Asia and Europe the people have domesticated the caribou and that is called a reindeer.  In Europe and Asia the animals is generally called a reindeer and it is called a caribou in North America.  Since they live so far north the caribou are a circumpolar species.  There are several subspecies of reindeer or caribou and two subspecies have gone extinct.  There are millions of reindeer or caribou of some of the subspecies.  These animals include some that migrate and others that do not.   Of course some are domesticated and are thus tame.  That includes Santa's reindeer that have the additional very rare ability to fly.  This ability is attributes to the effect of the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights and their intensity at the North Pole.  In the coloring page consider coloring in the Northern Lights.  Vixen is seen here checking out the North Pole.  Santa's castle can be seen in the background.   

To help you see what the Northern Lights look like I am including a photo taken of us and our tour group in Iceland last year at this time.  They are absolutely amazing to see in person.  I also saw the Aurora Borealis  the year I taught in Alaska.   

Northern Lights in Iceland November 2017

Northern Lights with Terrain Nov. 2017

Northern Lights with Town Nov. 2017

I loved the whirlpool look of this one. 

By the way, a vixen is a female fox so that is why Vixen the reindeer is considered to be female.  

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Common Grey Fox 

(Maybe she is a vixen  . . . This is a very different environment than the environment of reindeer.)

This is an older drawing so it will not be at the bottom of the Animals page or the All Printables page.  The drawing of Vixen the Reindeer is new so it will be at the bottom of the correct pages.  She can be found by clicking on the buttons labeled:  Holidays, Fantasy Myths and Circus, Animals, and All Printables.  Click on the button at the top of this blog page.  You will see the lists.  Just scroll down to find the pictures you want to print.  Again, the new drawings are at the bottom of the lists.

Put Me In The Zoo book review and coloring page

Put Me In The Zoo book cover

The book Put Me In The Zoo is a Beginner Books classic.  It was written and illustrated by Robert Lopshire and was first published before I was born.  It was published in 1960.  This book has fairly simple cartoon-like illustrations but they work for kids.  It has an animal named Spot that wants to live in the zoo.  Ok, he is not really named Spot in the book, but when my wife was reading the book to our daughter years ago she named him Spot.  So I shall call him Spot.  Anyway, Spot is not allowed to live in the zoo.  In fact, when Spot asks to live there the zookeepers carry him out . . . AKA throw him out of the zoo.  Then he meets what appears to be a brother and sister. . . two children and they ask him why he wants to live in the zoo and what can he do.  Then Spot proceeds to do amazing things with his spots.  He can change the spots' color, move his spots to other objects or even people, make them tall or small, make them fly, etc.  In the end he goes somewhere other than the zoo where he is very happy because it is a great fit for him.  Speaking as a former kindergarten and first grade teacher, I think these Beginner Books are excellent and they hold the kids' interest. d The words and sentences are readable by beginning readers.  By the way, I heard that Dr. Seuss edited this book.  

Spot plush or stuffed animal from Kohl's

I highly recommend this children's book.  It is my granddaughters favorite book for me to read to her.  Kohls, a department store, often has kid books and a plush to go with them.  We have purchased these for our grand-kids whenever we see them.  So today I sat with my grand-kids. . . there are two of them, and read the book while my granddaughter held "Spot,"  Afterwards I drew something that looks quite a lot like Spot.  This was for my granddaughter to color.  

Spot, from Put Me In The Zoo

You can color this with the spots all one color or use many different colors.  

The rest of Spot's fur is yellow.   Or do your picture any way you like.  

NOTE:  the printable version of the drawing of Spot is found by clicking one of the buttons up top.  It is a new drawing so it is at the bottom.  I decided to put the drawing under 3 buttons:  Animals,  Fantasy Myths and Circus, and All Printables.   Spot is on the Animal page because he IS an animal, although we are not sure what kind.  He is on the Fantasy Myths and Circus page because he (SPOILER ALERT) winds up living and happily performing at the circus. 

Unicorns for young children to Color

Unicorn for young children to Color

This is a simple drawing for small children.  I drew it for my 3 year old granddaughter.  It is not too overly complex on purpose.  This is the only new drawing on this post.  

Unicorn and Squirrel friend hanging out

This is also a simple drawing for kids.  

Unicorn at sunrise by a River

(another fairly simple drawing for kids)

Unicorn mare defending Foal

(This one and the last drawing are more advanced drawing for older kids) 

Unicorn Traditional Look

Types of Dinosaurs worksheet

Dinosaur Types worksheet

(New Drawing)

I drew these dinosaurs a few weeks ago.  I decided tonight to make it into a worksheet.  The answers are as follows. . . I labeled the answers with where to find them on the worksheet. 

Triceratops Adult with forward facing Horns

Top left. . . Horned dinosaurs like Triceratops are Ceratropsians.  This includes Protoceratops that was an early Ceratosian with the hooked beak and frill. . . but no horns.  All Ceratopsians had a frill and the hooked beak.  Triceratops was the largest Ceratopsian at 30 feet or 9 meters long.

T. rex drawing from Skull

Top right. . . Meat eating dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex are Theropods.  At least some of them had feathers and modern birds are considered Avian Theropod Dinosaurs.  Spinosaurus was the biggest Theropod at 55 feet or 17 meters long.

Ankylosaurus vs T. rex

Left side of page middle drawing. . . Ankylosaurus was an Armored dinosaur. . . this particular type is also an Ankylosaur.   There were several Ankylosaur species.   Some had a clubbed tail and some did not.

Stygomyloch and Dawn Draco

Right side of page middle drawing  . . .  Pachycephalosaurs were the "bonk heads" ...as my granddaughter calls them. . . and their 9 inch  or 23 cm thick skull was used as a weapon.   They were herbivores.  Some were 16 feet or 5 meters long.

Patagotitan the Biggest Dinosaur

Bottom left. . . The biggest dinos were the Sauropods.  They had tree trunk like legs and long necks and tails.  They were the biggest land animals ever to walk our planet.  They were herbivores.  Their long whip like tail may have been a defensive weapon.   Some Sauropods were 120 feet long.

Parasaurolophus Mates

(new drawing)

Bottom right. . . Duck bill dinos are called the Hadrosaurs.  Some had fancy crests on their heads.  Duckbill Dinosaurs probably could swim but they were land animals and seem to have even migrated. . . kind of like ducks. . . only by walking not flying.   Some were over 40 feet long.


NEW drawings like Parasaurolophus and the Dinosaur Types Worksheet are found at the bottom of the Paleontolgy list and the All Printables list. 

Captain Moroni maybe part of the Mississippian Culture

Captain Moroni if the Nephites were the Mississippian Culture

So, I did a Captain Moroni as a Mound Builder and I have been researching some and so I decided to do another drawing of him as part of that culture.  It is also called the Mississippian Culture or People.  If you are a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints you have probably read the Book of Mormon.  In that book Captain Moroni is the leader of the people of God who are fighting to defend their lives a people called the Lamanites... who were a people who decended from the brother of Nephi.  That man was Laman.  Nephi and Laman came to the Americas with their father Lehi and his family.  This family had a split and one half became the Nephites and the other half became the Lamanites.  Throughout much of the Book of Mormon the two nations are often at odds.  But sometimes it is the Lamanites who are rightous and sometimes it is the Nephites who are being obedient to God.  And sometimes both peoples are wicked. 

This is a more accurate drawing of Captain Moroni IF the Nephites and Lamanites were part of the Mississippian or Mound Builder culture.   We really don't know where the events in the Book of Mormon happened.  Years ago I studied the possibility of the events taking place in Central America and Mexico.  In fact I went and studied the archaeology in Mexico when I was a sophomore Young University.   That was a looooooonnnng time ago.   34 years ago.   The helmet pictured in this drawing is based on a chief headdress from the Mississippian Culture.

Interesting fact. . . we had our furnace repaired today.  I liked the look of the technician so I got his permission and took his photo.  His name is Dustin.  I based the drawing of Captain Moroni in part on Dustin. 

By the way, the spear is based on a Clovis Point and the sword or war club is based on actual Mississippian or Mound Builder relics.  The sword is a club with obsidian or some other sharp rock embedded in it. 

The new drawings like this are found by clicking on the top buttons labeled All Printables and Religous.  The new drawings are found on the bottom of the correct list. 

Horse and Squirrel Friends

Horse and Squirrel

Here we have a wild mustang horse that has a woodland friend.  The friend is a squirrel.  Both domesticated and wild animals will sometimes make friends with animals of a different species. 

NOTE:  Prinatalble versions of this new drawing are at the bottom of the Animals list and the
All Printables list.  Those lists are found by clicking on the correct button up top.  Newest drawings are always at the bottom of the list.  

Wampanoag the People of the Dawn and Thanksgiving

Wampanoag Man & Woman

The Wampanoag were the Native People who shared the first Thanksgiving with the the Pilgrims in Plymouth Colony.  The Wampanoag had seen other white people or Europeans before.  The European diseases had wiped out many of the their tribe.  When the Pilgrims arrived the Wampanoag were surprised they had brought children.  Eventually the Pilgrims helped the Europeans out.  Tisquantum or Squanto taught the Pilgrims how to plant corn, how to fish, and how to gather berries.  He also taught the Pilgrims how to fertilize the corn by including a fish with the seed(s).  

The first Thanksgiving is rather interesting from the Wampanoag perspective.  The Native American story is quite different from the Pilgrim story.   The tribe was alarmed because that heard gunfire in the direction of the village so they went to help out their friends.  When they arrived the Wampanoag chief. . . Chief Massasoit, saw that it was not an attack but a hunting party out hunting birds. . . possibly turkey.  Since there was not enough meat for the Natives the chief sent men into the forest and they hunted and brought back 5 deer.  Sharing food or food as a gift was a very meaningful thing to the tribe.  So in actuality. . . the first Thanksgiving was a venison (deer meat) feast, and not a Turkey Day feast.  They possibly DID have turkey but the majority of the meat was venison.  They party or feast went on for 3 days.  

The sad thing about this is many more of the tribe would die of European diseases.  The Native Americans had not evolved the immunity to the common European diseases like measles.  The Europeans also violated treaty after treaty.  Many Native Americans consider Thanksgiving a day of mourning.  But it is true that the Wampanoag did enter a treay of peace with the people of Plymouth Colony.  

I learned much of this from an article from the magazine:  Indian Country Today.   The article was called:  The Wampanoag Side of the First Thanksgiving Story.  The article has a lot more to it and I recommend you read it.  The perspective is fascinating.   

So, Happy Thanksgiving... and remember that it can be a time to be grateful for our blessings we have.  Without the help of the Wampanoag Tribe the first Thanksgiving never would have happened.  

On a side note, one of my ancestors was shipwrecked off the shore of the East Coast of North America.  She was wounded by some "Indians" or Native Americans and yet survived.  She was rescued by an older Native American man and nursed back to health.  She was taken to a European colony and she married again.  She and her husband were friends with her "Indian father's" tribe.  It is a long story and very interesting so maybe I will share more someday. 

I myself am part Iroquois . . . . a Native American Confederation consisting of several tribes near the Great Lakes.   And studies have shown that perhaps as much as 80% of North Americans are at least part Native American. 

Pilgrim with Native American Friend

(This is an older drawing.)

NOTE  The printable version of the drawings will be on the Holidays page and the All Printables page. . . you just click the button at the top.  The Wampanoag drawing and the Pilgrim and Native American Friend drawing are at the bottom of the All Printables page.  Both drawings are  also under Thanksgiving under the button at top labeled Holidays.  

Iguanodon and Dermodactylus

Iguanodon and Dermodactylus

Iguanodon was a very successful dinosaur that lived at the end of the Jurassic Period and at the beginning of the Cretaceous Period.  It was a precursor or possibly and ancestor to the Hadrosaurs or duck billed dinosaurs.  There are several species of Iguanodon.  They all were herbivores or plant eaters.  In this drawing the Iguanodon is eating monocots or grasses.  New evidence shows that grass evolved earlier than previously thought.  They found grass pollen of 5 different species in coprolites or fossilized dung from Hadrosaurs in what is now India.  Now, that does not neccessarily mean that the earlier dinosaur Iguanodon ate grass, but it is possible.  

As far as size, Iguanodon was 33 feet long and weighed up; to 11,000 lbs.  That is 10 meters in length and 4,990 kg in length.   It probably browsed on shrubs and bushes and grazed on grass . . . IF there was grass yet in the area where it lived.   Of course Iguanodons  were EVERYWHERE. . . almost.  Their fossils have been found on every continent except Antarctica.  

The Pterosaur or flying reptile is Dermodactylus.  Its fossils were found in Wyoming, USA.  It had a wingspan of up to 6 feet or 1.8 meters.  It weighed 3.3 lbs or had a mass of 7.3 kg.  It was one of the first Pterosaurs found.  It was found in the early 20th century by Samuel Wendell Williston and named by the famous paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh.  The name Dermodactylus means "Skin Finger."  This refers to the thin membrane stretched out along the elongated finger to form the wings.  

Since Dermodactylus was small in comparison to Iguanodon. . . think of the drawing as showing Dermodactylus in the foreground. . . that is, closer to you than the dinosaur.  Remember that Pterosaurs like Dermodactylus was NOT a dinosaur.  It was a flying reptile.  

Jesus and His Kindness

Jesus with a pair of Children

(This is the only new drawing in this blog entry...  so it will be found at the bottom of the lists.)

Have you ever noticed that great people take the time to talk to everyone.  They do not consider someone of lesser value because they are poor, or because they are a sinner, or because they are very young.  Jesus was and is the Son of God.  So He was the greatest person ever to live on Earth.  Of course since He was the Son of God he was not just a mortal person.  In His sort of mortal life on Earth He was kind to children, sinners, and the poor.  His disciples included simple fishermen and a tax collector.  Fishermen were rather low on the social status scale.  Tax collectors were generally considered to be dishonest.  I am sure Jesus was also kind to animals.  I also love the story of Jesus being kind to the woman caught in adultery.   He did not condone her behavior, but he did not condemn her.  He told her to go her way and sin no more.   I can tell you that I am personally grateful for the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ that makes it possible for me to repent of my sins.   And by the way, everyone is a sinner.  Some of us have messed up  than others of us. . . but ALL of us need the power of Christ's atonement for us to be able to return to live in eternal life with Him and our spouse and our families for eternity.   We also need to remember that our Savior can save us from some of our mortal trail. . . like healing the lepers.   But some of our mortal trials are ours to deal with. . . but the Holy Ghost or Holy Spirit can help us get through those tough trials.  I myself am living with advanced heart failure and a tracheotomy stent holding my trachea open.   My wife deals with her own severe health challenges.  But we have faith in Christ and we try to serve as we can.  We are limited in what we can do, but this blog is one of the ways I serve.   

Jesus teaches about Forgiveness

Jesus calling His Apostles by the Sea of Galilee

Jesus visits a Leper Colony

Jesus cuddles a Lamb

 I think of Jesus as having big kind eyes.  .  .  like I drew them here.  Can you guess what the bird in the sky represents in most of my drawings of Jesus?   It is the manifestation of the Holy Ghost or Holy Spirit.  Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints believe that Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are three separate personages.  Jesus  is our elder brother. . . the first of Heavenly Father's spirit children.   He, Jesus is therefore our elder brother.   Satan was also one of Heavenly Father's children.  But Satan or Lucifer rebelled against God's plan for us to all come to Earth to be tested.  Lucifer wanted us all to be saved and he, Lucifer, would get the glory.  Lucifer led 1/3 of Heavenly Father's children astray and he and his followers were cast down to Earth without bodies.  So they are constantly trying to tempt us and lead us astray.  They don't have a body so they are jealous of us because we DO have a body.   Eventually Jesus Christ will return to Earth and Satan and his followers will be bound and powerless.  Those mortals who seek to keep the commandments and take advantage of the Atonement of Jesus Christ will be able to be resurrected and live with Christ on the Earth for 1,000 years.  

Jesus at His Second Coming

Captain Moroni as a Mound Builder

Captain Moroni as a Mound Builder

If you are familiar with the Book of Mormon then you know about Captain Moroni.  He was a great military leader who was also a Christian.  He fought for a Republican form of Democracy that included the election of Judges as the people's leaders.  He opposed groups of rebels who wanted to establish a monarchy.  He also fought against the neighboring people, the Lamanites, who at the time wanted to enslave his people, the Nephites.  

The Book of Mormon is the story of God's  people in the New World.  They had prophets and, like the people in the Bible, sometimes they followed the prophets and other times they chose to be wicked.  Captain Moroni was basically a general and he was a righteous man who followed the prophets.  He was, as previously mentioned, a good man and a Christian.  He was also very clever in tricking the enemy and defeating the enemy.  The Book of Mormon tells of how Captain Moroni led the people to victory as well as being a good example of a Man of God.  The Book of Mormon also says:

      ... if all men had veen aned were and ever would vbe like unto Moroni, behold were like unto                  Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever, yea, the devil would            never have power over the hearts of the children of men.   

         - Alma 48:17  

  The key question about the Book of Mormon is "IS IT TRUE?"  We members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints consider the Book of Mormon to be true.  In fact, we consider it the only book ever written with a promise that if you read it and pray about it God will reveal to you that it is true.   But a secondary question is "Where did it all happen?"   The fact is, I studied this in Mexico, when I was attending Brigham Young University.  We studied in Central and Southern Mexico and a lot about the Guatemalan ruins using  the theory that perhaps some of the early Mexico and Central American peoples were the people of the Book of Mormon.   So, perhaps the Mayan, or / and Toltecs...maybe the Olmecs.   Or maybe it all happened in South America, so maybe the earlier Incas.   Or maybe it happened all over the North and South American Continents.   We just don't know.   

A new theory has emerged rather recently that maybe the Nephites and Lamanites were the Mound Builders.  Now, you may wonder who the Mound Builders were.  They were a civilization in the Mississippi /River Valley area of North America.  They are not generally as well known as the Aztecs or the Mayan, but they were a prominent civilization with cities etc.  The Book of Mormon talks about a major river that is called the River Sidon.  According to this new theory this river is possibly what we call the Mississippi River.  One piece of scientific evidence that supports this is that DNA tests have shown that some of the Native Americans in the Eastern part of the USA...not in the Western Rocky Mountain region...

have a DNA marker that is only found in the  Galilee region of Israel or Palastine.  You see, the Book of Mormon says that the Lamanites and Nephites came from what is now called Israel or Palastine.  They came from the then kingdom of Judah. 

The armor of thick material and the unique war club or sword are based on what a Mound Builder warrior may have looked like.  The sword is made with sharp pieces of rock . . . like obsidian... embedded into a piece of wood so it acts like a sword.  The trees in the drawing are mixed deciduous and conifer forest and the close up leaves are from a River Birch. . . a common tree along the Mississippi River.  The catkins are the fuzzy seed fruit of the Birch tree.   I think that they look like a fuzzy cat tail. 

The printable version of the drawing is found by clicking on the top buttons:  All Printables . . . or
the Religion button.   Scroll down to the bottom because newer posts are on the bottom of the list.  

Young Dragon on First Flight

Young Dragon on First Flight

Dragons would have to learn how to fly.  With that thought I drew a close up of a young dragon who is excited by his first flight.  You can see his mother flying off in the distance but still keeping an eye on her offspring.   The mother would be anxious to have her young one learn to fly because then she would not have to carry food (dead sheep...cows...horses...deer etc.) back to her lair to feed a grounded baby dragon.   Baby dragons would eat a LOT!  You might notice that the baby dragon has larger eyes in comparison to the head.   It also has a larger head in comparison to its body.  These traits are part of the "Cuteness Factor" that most if not all young vertebrate animals have.  It identifies them as young to the adults.  .   .   .  so the adults will care for them.  

NOTE:  Like always, the newer drawings . . . like this one, are on the bottom of the lists.  This drawing in printable form is under the top buttons that say:  All Printables and Fantasy Myths and Circus. 

Bailey the Mermaid

Bailey the Mermaid

I came across the idea that mermaids would use natural things found in the ocean for their clothing.  Therefore I drew this mermaid with woven kelp or seaweed as her clothing on her torso.  This kind of makes sense. . . after all, in the Bible, Adam and Eve wove fig leaves together to make their clothing after they partook of the forbidden fruit.  

Today I met a helpful young woman named Bailey who is the basis for this mermaid drawing.  Of course, Bailey is not really a mermaid.  

Hagerman Horse

Hagerman Horse

The Hagerman Horse lived millions to thousands of years ago in what is now South Idaho.  There are many other fossils of animals located at the Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument in Hagerman, Idaho.  The Hagerman Horse was the size of a modern Arabian Horse. . .  243-849 lbs or 110-385 kg.    It had small hooves.  It was striped over part of its fur.  It had a short donkey shaped skull or head.  So if the drawing looks funny, like I did not know that horses have big heads, realize that the heads of the Hagerman Horse really were smaller than a modern horse.  The Hagerman Horse stood around 57 inches high or 147 cm. . . at the shoulder.   It was stocky as well.  

The Hagerman Horse National Monument is located in Southern Idaho by the town of Hagerman.  We were there just a few days ago.  I also did a study on the Hagerman Fossil Beds as a part of my Masters in Geoscience.  

Hagerman Horse Skeleton 

The following are photos of a Painting at the Hagerman Fossil Beds Visitor's Center.  

My drawing was inspired by. . . but not copied from this wonderful painting.  As you can see the area had lots of different species besides the Hagerman Horse.  

I highly recommend a visit to this National Monument.  

We are going back this summer.  

Fairy among the Roses

Fairy named Tru among the Roses

We went to a wedding in Idaho this weekend.  I drew the bride and groom as fairies last week.  It was a beautiful wedding We believe that marriages can last for all eternity.  We stayed at a new type of hotel called Tru by Hilton.  It was rather unique.  One of the clerks was kind enough to let me draw her as a fairy.  I don't remember the clerk's name, and as I have said before, it is hard to capture a person's true beauty with a fine point felt marker.  I only took a picture of the woman's face so the body is based on a fairy statue.  I chose to put this fairy in front of a rose bush.  I am working on my drawing of humans. . . and fairies and mermaids etc.  I am trying to get better at drawing the human form.  Of course on this blog I would not post drawings of nude people or nude fairies etc. but I do believe that the human body can be portrayed nude but in a respectful, artistic, and non-pornographic way.  I drew this fairy from a statue and the statue is clothed.  I guess I added some curves to this drawing.  I believe that all forms of beauty are acceptable.  Most artists draw fairies extremely thin.   I think that sends a wrong message.  People come in all different shapes and sizes so I think fairies would too.   Therefore this is not a type A body or very thin fairy.  I am not bashing thin people.  Many of us could be healthier if we lost some weight, but it is unrealistic to draw all people in one way.  Again, I think all types of bodies should be celebrated.  Our bodies are a gift from our Creator.  He would want us to accept our bodies and yet try to take care of them as best as we can.  

By the way, this is not a  sponsored post.  None of my posts are sponsored.   I liked the hotel I mentioned and I mentioned it because I also liked the name.   I am naming this fairy Tru. 

Vegaceratops by a Pond

Vegaceratops by a Pond

(This is a new drawing.)

Vegaceratops toy or model by Safari Ltd.
(I own this toy and I highly recommend the company.
 In fact I have a collection of this company's toys.
 The toys are hand painted and of very high quality as well as being very durable.)

Vegaceratops was a large Ceratopsian dinosaur from around 72-84 million years ago in North America.  It was found in what is now the USA State of Montana.  It had a large nose horn and a bunch of tiny horns on the top and sides of its somewhat flat frill.  It was around 20 feet or 6 meters long.  It weighed around 1-2 tons.  It was named by Dr. Scott Sampson and several other Paleontologists.  If you are a fan, like my grandkids and I are. . . of the show Dinosaur Train, you will recognize Dr. Scott Sampson as "Dr. Scott" who teaches paleontology at the end of each episode. 

The tiny horns on the top and sides of the frill were probably for attracting mates and species identification.  So, a Vegaceratops could recognize its own kind by the pattern of the horns on the frill. . . and the short nose horn.

By the way, Ceratopsians are the horned dinosaurs that were herbivores (plant eaters) and had a frill or a kind of shield that seems to protect their neck.  Some Ceratopsians did not have horns but a kind of battering ram or no horns at all. 

If you are wondering about the flowers in the picture. . . know that there is firm evidence that flowering plants. . . including lillies . . . existed during the Cretaceous Period and even before.

I have drawn Vegaceratops before, however this new drawing at the top of the post today is a bit more carefully done and more correct.  The older drawing is below.  Try and see how the two pictures are different and how they are the same.   This would be a good activity for young kids.  I'm doing it for my 3 year old granddaughter.

Here are some questions to help kids find the differences in the two drawings:
1.  What is the Vegaceratops (or dinosaur) doing in each picture?
2.  Where is the dinosaur in each picture?
3.  Which picture has water in it?
4.  Which picture has a volcano in it?
5.  What is the same in each drawing?
6.  How are the flowers different in each picture?
7.  How are the Cycad trees in the drawing different?
8.  How are the Cycad trees the same in each picture?  (NOTE:  Cycads LOOK like palm trees... but they have cones.)
9.  Which picture has ferns?
10.  Which picture has grass? . . . or do they BOTH have grass?
11.  Which drawing has pine trees?
12.  Which picture has a Vegaceratops with Spots on its side?

Vegaceratops

I am including some drawings I did in the past from Dinosaur Train.  The show is now cancelled so they are not currently making more, however, KIDS Network is still showing it and it is an excellent educational and FUN program.   Remember that my new drawings, in printable form, are at the bottom of the lists.  The lists of printable drawings are found by clicking the buttons up top.

Apatosaurus  Dinosaur Train

Eoraptor from Dinosaur Train

Forest Fairy Wedding, Alishia and Kameron

Alishia and Kameron Forest Fairy Wedding

Forest Fairy weddings or "Bondings" are beautiful.  They sometimes decorate an area of the forest and other times they just have the wedding in the natural beauty of Nature.  They take their vows and they are then considered "Bonded."  Fairies who are bonded rarely split up.  They do not stop loving each other.  They remember that each of them keeping close to The Creator will help them be close to each other.  In fact, they have a saying:

       

          "The closer you are to The Creator, the closer you will be to each other and the better

           will be all aspects of your life together."  

There are more fairies out there than you realize.  They keep hidden though because there are billions more mortal humans than fairies.  Fairies and mortals CAN marry.  They only marry after the mortal spouse is deemed trustworthy and worthy of marriage to a being of light.

FYI:  There is another wedding of one of our Grandnephews this weekend up in Idaho, USA.  We are going to this wedding.  This couple's names are not exactly what I put on the picture of the Fairy Wedding.  On a more serious note:   We believe that marriage can last for eternity.  We believe in being sealed for Time and All Eternity in one of God's Temples by a sealer. . . a man who has authority to bind on both Earth and in Heaven.   Of course each member of the couple must honor their covenants and keep God's commandments.  That means to be totally faithful to their spouse.  They also must be honest, kind, giving, loving, and unselfish.  

Bumblebee Bat and other Small Mammals

Bumblebee Bat 

(only new drawing in this post)

The Bumblebee Bat is the smallest mammal in the world.  That title kind of depends on how you define size.  The Bumblebee Bat is only 1 1/8 to 1 3/8 long.  It weighs only .071 ounces or a mass of 2 grams.  That is about the mass of two paperclips.   It really could fit on a finger like this drawing shows.  It lives in Thailand and Myomar where it lives in limestone caves near rivers.  It also is called Kitti;s Hog Nose Bat because it has a snout like a pig. . . a very tiny pig.  

Kitti's Hog Nose Bat feeds on insects and arachnids a few hours near dawn and dusk.  This includes beetles, spiders, bark lice, small flies and wasps.  It finds prey via echolocation.  It emits a high pitched sound and finds the prey by the sound bouncing off.  Those big ears are like radar antennae, only for receiving sound not radio waves.  

The habitat of the Bumblebee Bat is threatened by human development.  The bats live in colonies of only about 100 individuals and they only breed once a year and the female or mother produces only one pup with each pregnancy.  So they can not rebound like a species that produces more young more often like a field mouse or a kangaroo rat.  

Kangaroo Rat realistic

Kangaroo Rat in Desert

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Plants and Animals

(Pinyon Mouse and Antelope Squirrel)

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Plants and Animals 2

(A common Grey Fox with a Kangaroo Rat booking it for cover)

Bunny under a Bush

African Elephant on the Serengeti
(I know.  This is a huge mammal. . .NOT a small mammal. . . but compare it to the Bumblebee Bat.  It would take 2.929,577 million Bumblebee Bats to weigh as much as ONE African Elephant.)

Indricotherium

(OK, I know, I know, again, this is not a small mammal.  In fact THIS is the BIGGEST land mammal to ever live.  I thought I would also add it here to show the contrast between a Bumblebee Bat . . . that shows how small land mammals can be. . . and this huge animal that was.  Indricotherium could be 16 1/2 feet or 5 meters tall.  It weighed around 30 tons.
 Compare that to the .071 ounce or 2 gram Bumblebee Bat.
 It would take 13,521,127 Bumblebee Bats to weigh as much as ONE Indricotherium did.)

Sperm Whale vs Giant Squid

(Of course the whales or Cetaceans are are even bigger.  The sperm whale isn't even the biggest whale, but it is still 67 feet or 20.5 meters long and weighing up to 63 tons.  So think about this:  It would take 28,394,366 Bumblebee Bats to weigh as much as ONE Sperm Whale.)  

NOTE:  All these animal drawings are found in printable form by clicking on the top buttons.  Either click on Animals  . . . or . . . All Printables.  The new drawing, of the Bumblebee Bat,  will be at the  bottom of the list.