Category Archives: Birds

The Robber

I looked out our dining room window in time to see a lot of bird activity in a nearby tree. I was wondering if a nest was being robbed. I went outside and closer to the tree to get a look when I spotted this hawk.

You can see part of a robin (above the hawk’s head) who is trying to make the hawk get away from the nest.

The hawk wasn’t fazed.

The hawk took off with the Robin chasing it.

The hawk flew back to the its nest in the larger trees on the slope behind our home.

The circle of life right before our eyes.

Today the main tree trunk is being cut into 16inch sections and our grands will be here while that is happening so my internet time is at a premium again. The beginning of June has proved to be very busy at our country bungalow.

Hope all is well in your corner.

Hawk Flying and Turkey Strutting

The hawk was too high in the sky for me to get better photos. I zoomed as close as I could.

 

The male turkeys have been strutting about these Spring days.

 

 

Besides hawks and turkeys we have visits from quail and robins and swallows. Hummingbirds are returning, too. Everything has grown quickly and I’ll need to get out to take some photos of the greening of the yard and the peonies about to open. With the heat we’ve been having I’ll need to water instead of counting on the Spring rains to do that for me. We are getting some of the haze from the fires in Alberta. Fires this early does not bode well for our fire season. A peculiar thing that we’ve noticed this year, too, is an abundance of moths flitting about.

Hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Our State Bird

We’ve been enjoying some summer weather here the last few days. Things are growing fast.

It was fun to spot our state bird in the bushes of one of our planters and it stayed long enough for me to zoom in for some photos.

The American Goldfinch was designated as the Washington State Bird in 1951. This beautiful golden bird is found throughout our state and is commonly seen in flocks in fields, bushes and trees.

The state bird proved a point of contentious debate in the state of Washington. After more than two decades of voting and arguing, the state chose the American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) officially in 1951.

We had a good weekend with lots of outdoor work that takes it’s toll on my wrists and back but still gives a measure of satisfaction to get the work done.

We had a nice Mother’s day starting off at church and having dinner at our Colville Kids’ home. Thanks for stopping by.

Hello May

Happy May Day!
“Come, my soul, put on your springtime clothes and gather garlands of heavenly thoughts.”
Spurgeon

Looking forward to our May flowers! Our last couple days of April brought temperatures into the 80’s!

Spring has brought some common visitors back to our yard.

These stay right where they are all year round in all kinds of weather.

Our daffodils came up and they are in their full glory.

Spring Rhubarb.

Soon we’ll be enjoying the Peonies.

For close to 5 years we have been half-satisfied with our internet service. Where we live Satellite service has been our best option. Our plan was expensive and doesn’t deliver for the cost in our opinion. Lately we have another choice for Satellite and we took the plunge and ordered Starlink. Dear is on the roof getting the space ready for the Satellite dish.

That dish moves and finds the optimum position in relation to the Satellites. Very cool. It lets us know if there are obstructions. It also will melt snow that might accumulate on it. Our other service had a data limit and this service does not. We are happy campers. It was expensive for the initial cost of equipment, etc., but the monthly fee is $50 dollars less than our previous provider. We are pleased. When we called to cancel our previous service they offered us more data and a $50 discount on our plan. Too little, too late.

Hope you can enjoy lots of pretty blooms in May and joy in your hearts!

Back on the Trail

Last Saturday we left our house early to see how the Rotary trail had shaped up after our Winter and Spring snow. We were hoping for the trail to be free of mud. We were happy to only encounter a very small patch of mud on our three mile course. It was nice to get out in the sunshine for our walk and we hope for many more early walks to come.

Feed the Birds Hodgepodge

Jo From This Side of the Pond is tweeting out some new questions for us to answer for Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1.  April 26th is National Audubon Day, honoring John James Audubon, the French-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter known for his detailed study and illustration of birds in their natural habitats.

Do you have a bird feeder? 

Yes, several.

Any birds in your home decor?

A few.

Have you ever owned a pet bird?

Yes, and it’s a sad story I’ve told before. In the 50’s our Pop decided he would get pigeons and he built a pigeon cage for them in our back yard. I had 3 siblings at that time and we all chose one to be our pet. Mine was Green Neck. Things got so dire financially that our pet pigeons ended up in a pot of soup. All of my siblings and myself refused to eat that soup. Our Pop couldn’t understand why. OYE!

The photo above is of our Pop, my older sisters Kathy and Vera and that’s me with a pigeon on my head. I’m guessing it’s Green Neck.

What’s your favorite bird? 

This is tough. I love many birds. The majestic eagle and the hawk are special. I love the look of owls. Hummingbirds are adorable. I’m not a fan of pigeons and won’t let them find a place to roost.

2. What’s something you took to ‘like a duck to water’? 

Blogging.

3. Empty nest, nest egg, proud as a peacock, free as a bird, birds of a feather flock together, or the early bird catches the worm…choose one and tell us how it currently applies to your life. 

I’ll go with the early bird catches the worm because lately I’m finding myself awake at 5am and by 9am it seems like I’ve gotten all I need to get done, done.

4. Pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds, sesame seeds, poppy seeds…your favorite seed and a favorite food or dish made with that seed or topped with that seed?

Sunflower seeds first and pumpkin seeds come in second, roasted and lightly salted in the shells.

Have you tried all the seeds on the list?

I don’t think I’ve tried flax or chia.

Any you don’t care for? 

All are fine in limited quantities, except for sunflower seeds. I can crack and eat a whole bag of sunflower seeds!

5. Something in the past week that made you ‘happy as a lark’?

We took the plunge and are trying out a new satellite internet service. Waiting for one last mount before we are good to go. If you don’t see me next week you’ll know something went wrong. Where we live in the country our only good option is a satellite service.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We are warming up the rest of this week and finally have mornings above freezing. We had our first walk on the Rotary Trail on Saturday morning and are looking forward to this trek a few times a week.

Today is a busy day with a 7am appointment for new tires on the car, an 8:30 appointment with the doctor, 9am Prayer meeting and then the window washers are coming in the late afternoon. Hooray for clean windows!

Our shadows on the trail last Saturday.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to be around to visit soon.

Wait for the Lord…

While we were outside during our granddaughter’s birthday celebration this eagle graced us with it’s circling flight above us. It stayed for a while and we were thrilled.

Isaiah 40:28-31

Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.

He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.

Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;

but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;

They shall mount up with wings like eagles;

They shall run and not be weary;

they shall walk and not faint.

Psalm 103:1-5

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and all that is within me bless his holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed
like the eagle’s.

 

We celebrated Palm Sunday yesterday as we enter Easter Week culminating with celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ next Sunday. As Christians we celebrate Christ’s resurrection every Sunday and it’s because He lives that we can have peace and joy in our lives everyday with a special hope for our future with Him in heaven. I pray that those who read this post will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be born again. Jesus died in our place for our sins and because of His perfect sacrifice we can have all our sins forgiven and be at peace with God on earth as we grow in the grace and knowledge of the One who sacrificed His perfect life for us.

Welcome Back Robins

 

Piping Robin

by Annette Wynne

Piping Robin, piping so,
Tell the snow
It’s time to go;
Tell the rough winds not to blow
Any more through field and glen;
Call the bluebirds home again,
Tell the little flowers to grow,
Piping Robin, piping so!

I was happy to see the first of the Robins return to our yard this past Saturday. We still have not seen daffodils pop up. As you can see the snow has not all melted in our yard. The roads and fields are brown and muddy looking as are parts of our acreage. How is your corner of the world?

HT: Discover Poetry

Feather Variety

Wednesday Hodgepodge is taking the month of January off. It will resume on February 1st.

I’m going to speed up the rest of my England posts and finish them off in the month of January.

We continue to enjoy our bird sightings.

This was our first viewing of the House Finches this winter. The others have been daily visitors.

It was fun to see the red feathers thrown into the mix.

January has started very quiet around our Country Bungalow. That suits me fine. I’ve started another puzzle, much harder than the one we put together on Katie’s birthday. We enjoyed watching the Rose Parade on RFD TV. I found their coverage so much better than the major stations. The college games droned on in the background as I worked on the 1,000 piece puzzle.

Hope 2023 has started kindly in your corner.

All Creatures Great and Small…

 

 

What a treat to view this kind of critter wonderland out our window sitting on our couch and recliner on Sunday afternoon.

Earlier on this Sunday we enjoyed our Children’s Musical and Play, It All Happened in the Country, for our church service. The presentation was so well done and so much fun with the meaning of Christmas presented so well. My photos aren’t the best but they will help me remember.

 

We sat in the front row with our two little grands to enjoy the presentation.

It was a good day all around with God’s goodness showering down on us.