a tale of three doves...

One of my very favorite times of the day is having my morning coffee while watching the birds out the window. I cannot wait for warm weather so I can be back out on the patio enjoying this time of solitude amongst the birds, enjoying their songs and not being hindered by the sheet of glass. This morning, my highlight was watching as several doves groomed themselves on the big rock. A mourning dove doing what appears to be "the twist"...and this one looks to be taking a nap...

before plucking out some of that extra winter down.
This is the one that really captured my attention. I have never seen a white one...is it another species of dove? Edited: I just looked it up and it is a ringed turtle dove.
He was gracious enough to come out from behind the water bowl so I could get a better look.

Oops, I was spotted at the window...
and only got in one more shot before they all flew off. Later, he landed on the birdhouse tree and in the reflecting sunlight he shone a brillant white. I sure hope this one decides to stick around for the summer.

out like a lion...

March had one more heavy snow in store for us before we could start dreaming of April showers. The only good thing is that it has already started to melt and probably will be gone in a day or two.
The robins sought warmth on the big rock...
and Mrs. Hairy had to peck through snow to reach the peanuts.
I had to get out the bird book for this one and I believe it is a song sparrow. It has gray stripes on the side of it's head and is not as russet colored as a fox sparrow. Correct me if I am wrong but it is hard to get a good shot with the white snow glaring.

The hen pheasants continue to feed daily. Joseph is still here and struts through the backyard once in a while but the hens are capturing his interest more than the corn.

brrr....another sign of spring!

It's 43 degrees & windy today but I just saw another sign of spring :-) Brave soul rode 6 1/2 miles to town to get a new front tire put on. After all, it might it 60 degrees one of these days and we have to be ready to RIDE!

The Springtime Fairy...

She was wafting pretty robins
And provoking their sweet song;
Though the air was still quite chilly,
She assured me not for long.

She bid all the clouds be fluffy,
And she painted skies so blue;
I just saw the springtime fairy,
I have seen her, haven't you?
(Georgia Adams)I saw my first robin last Thursday before we left for vacation but it has taken me till this morning to capture one on camera. Other bird signs of spring have been the red wing blackbirds, a lone mourning dove, a few house finches and a huge flock of grackels. But, for me the "true" sign of spring is not the robin's arrival but the juncos leaving and there are still many here so I am afraid we are in for a few more bursts of winter before we can welcome springlike weather for good. Though I am not anxious for them to leave (they are one of my favorites), I am ready for the beautiful birds of spring/summer, warmer temps, green grass, flowers and open windows!

Five days of fun...

Last Thursday's snow predictions were correct. This is what we saw as we woke up on Friday am and it was still coming down as we headed to the Mpls airport.A 3 hr flight later we were in sunny FL ready to have a fun family vacation with Jayme & Scott at the Royal Pacific resort.
Spring was in full bloom...
and the gardener in me just had to stop and admire all the many flowers.
My family was patient with me until I realized they were everywhere and I didn't need to stop and look at every one.
We packed our days full of fun and excitement. We watched whales dance...
and barely escaped the jaws of a great white shark.
We helped the Men in Black save the world from aliens...
and flew to another world with ET.
We saw dinosaurs on the loose in Jurassic Park...
and screamed and hung on for our lives while we plummeted down to a pond and safety.
It was a fantastic time of family fun and we only wish we could have convinced our son to come with us. So on our last day we all ate hot dogs in his honor...
Back to the garden and the birds tomorrow.

Spring...

When springtime slowly wakens
In country woodlands fair,
I hear the rustle of the breeze
And smell spring in the air.
(Jennie Buteyn)
Spring is officially here! This morning I saw my first geese flying overhead and a few grackels have arrived but so far no robins or other migratory birds.

The forecast is for up to 6 inches of snow in the next 2 days so it may be a "white Easter" as well.

It is a busy week for our family so I am sending out wishes to all my readers for a Blessed Easter!


I love all things vintage and we recently aquired a box of family treasures. These postcards were all written by Jeff's great-great grandmother to his great-grandmother. The first one is from 1911, the second one is from 1912 and the third one is from 1914. Happy Easter!

Happy Birthday, Scott

From the garden of life today...Happy Birthday Scott! You'll always be our favorite son-in-law and we hope you have a wonderful day!
Even though we were not creative enough to put your day on a sign and Jeff, Nathan & I couldn't be with you to celebrate your special day today...your father-in-law managed to have a green one in your honor anyways :-)

the eyes have it...

An eye can threaten like a loaded and levelled gun, or it can insult like hissing or kicking; or, in its altered mood, by beams of kindness, it can make the heart dance for joy.... One of the most wonderful things in nature is a glance of the eye; it transcends speech; it is the bodily symbol of identity. (Ralph Waldo Emerson)
We've all seen the emotions in the eyes of our loved ones...the looks of love, compassion & kindness...the sparkle of mischief and the steely gaze meant to put us in our place as in the "evil eye". Just like REW says...it transcends speech.
We've had spring like weather all week so I went outside this morning to take some shots rather than shoot through the windows like I have been all winter. I was looking for signs of spring in the garden when I noticed this little chickadee resting.
He allowed me to get closer and closer until I was 2 ft away so I just kept snapping away. I don't think I have ever taken a chickadee shot where the eyes showed so clearly as they usually blend into the black cap.
He turned around a few times all the while keeping "an eye" on me as if to say..."I'm getting a little uncomfortable with you getting this close, but I trust you" He stayed on the branch while I walked away, what a wonderful patient little guy he was to let this old lady get such joy from taking his photo.

Caw, Caw, Caw...

When I hear the caw, caw, caw of the crows circling the yard, I usually know there is a hawk nearby. I don't know why the crows love to chase the hawks but after hearing the loud raucous, I glanced outside and saw 4 crows chase this hawk and he landed in the middle of the grove. These are not great photos and I hestitated to post them but they tell a great story so I labeled them.




After the first hawk landed, there was still lots of cawing going on so I looked above my viewfinder and lo and behold they were chasing a second hawk in and guess where he landed? If it is what it looks like...isn't it a little early for mating season already?
Next, one hawk took off followed by the crows and they chased him over the house. By the time I went to the front windows, he was flying south off of our property but soon the crows came flying back for the second one. I managed to capture some mid-air sparring between a crow and the second hawk before he took off and flew to the west of the house.

First I spotted the hawk high up in a cottonwood tree but what happened next was pretty neat. The crow landed on the hawk's back and pecked at him until he flew off our property as well. Looks like the crows are watching out for all my little songbirds!

Corn...

I received a comment from scats42 asking about what kind of corn I put out for the wildlife. I use corn screenings a by product of corn harvest. It is a shelled corn & cracked corn mix with some waste product(cob bits & chaff). We get it from my BIL who is a farmer. So I imagine if you purchase dried shelled corn or cracked corn it would be the same thing. The bluejays, juncos, sparrows, pheasants, rabbits and squirrels all love it.

Joseph...

I look handsome, I look smart
I am walking work of art
Such a dazzling coat of colours
How I love my coat of many colours

It was red and yellow and green and brown
And scarlet and black and ochre and peach
And ruby and olive and violet and fawn
And lilac and gold and chocolate and mauve
And cream and crimson and silver and rose
And azure and lemon and russet and grey
And purple and white and pink and orange
And blue
(lyrics from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat)Last night, just as the sun was low on the horizon the rooster pheasant came into feed. It was amazing how his feathers brillantly reflected in the sunlight and Joseph's coat of many colors popped into my head. He is now named Joseph and it is about time I named him as we see him 4-5 times daily.
I am anxious for spring but I will miss Joseph as I imagine he will move on once the dogs are outside more. Three hens continue to be around so Jeff thinks Joseph will have a wonderful spring even without a steady stream of corn.

Hairy woodpeckers...

We have lots of downy and hairy woodpeckers in the backyard. The hairy woodpeckers love the peanuts and will scare off most others and stake the feeder as their own. Today, I watched a male & female vie for the feeder (they don't like to share) and the female ended up flying off. Less than a minute later she was back and they went around and around the feeder trying to scare the other off. I had plenty of time to grab the camera and get a few shots.

a change of scenery...

He rode through the woods on a big blue ox,
He had fists as hard as choppin’ blocks,
Five hundred pounds and nine feet tall ... that’s Paul.

Talk about workin’, when he swung his axe
You could hear it ring for a mile and a half.
Then he’d yell “Timber!” and down she’d fall ... for Paul.
(author unknown)
We are back from a few days up in Paul Bunyan territory. It was a nice change of scenery...
woods and frozen lakes but I think I would have rather had warm sandy beaches.

In like a lamb....

March is an in between month,
When wintry winds are high.
But milder days remind us all,
Spring's coming by and by.
(author unknown)

March came in like a lamb...but I needed more than the calendar to remind me that spring is on the way so I pulled out a shot of the lilacs from May 2007.Not too much happening in the garden...

the bluejays are still letting me know when the peanuts run out...

and this little guy thinks

he's hiding from me.