ICE ON THE POND...



Greeted this morning by hungry Blue Jays, freezing temperatures and Ice on the Pond!


It looks warm, but it is not!!  No aquatic bird visits today with the ice on the pond.  I miss the Swans, Egrets, Great Blue Heron, who all hang out at the larger lake in our community where it is not covered with ice because it is deeper. And yet there is beauty in the ice with it's bluish color and stark whiteness...

My little frog figures that my cousin painted for me are a comical contrast to the ice in their skimpy bathing suits-Ha!

I am so wanting our usual, more normal SC temperatures for this time of year to return!  I know that Global warming is a real problem looming over us but it is hard to believe it exists with the whole U.S. having freezing temps and only Florida without snow!  Hmmm!

Thank you for visiting and come back soon.  I miss you when you do not come.  We can have a nice hot cup of coffee, cocoa or tea and chat awhile.  And I can always find something to giggle about, how about you?

♥KERRIE♥
My heart to yours...    

Blue Jay Dilemma continued

SO HERE WE ARE AGAIN!  The little Blue Jay that fell from the crow's beak, is a little lame but hopping and exercising his wings.  He is able to get around to all of our yard and the neighboring yards to find seeds, bugs and his parents are still tending to him.  His sibling was also around all day yesterday and was flying just enough to explore the bench, the little lily pond, etc. when he FELL IN!

So of course we dried him off and wrapped him in a kitchen towel where he stayed until he was dry.  As you can see, he was quite content.  The parents kept feeding both of their little adventurers and by supper time they were off on their own again!

We just feel so blessed this year with all the wonderful observations we are able to make with the birds and fowl.  Nature is so amazing!

I had trouble posting comments today and now it is working again, I know many others were experiencing this also when I posted to Blog Forum.  Hope this is all corrected by now but if you do not see your comment posted as yet, that is why.  Thanks!

Don't forget to visit my other blogs-the links are in the left sidebar

 Kerrie

BLUE JAY DILEMMA

This morning the baby Blue Jay had a harrowing experience!!  A huge black crow was being chased and screamed at by 2 adult Blue Jays.  My hubby and dau. went outside to see what the commotion was about and followed the sky chase around to the front of the house.  When the crow got over the pavement, he dropped something.  They went to investigate and it was a baby Blue Jay!  They picked it up and put it under a bush and the parents tended to it.  He amazingly hopped to the back yard of the neighbors and finally snuggled in at the base of the house and snoozed, seemingly no worse for the wear!  I never knew that crows would do such a bold thing, I only knew they stole eggs but this was shocking!

Can you just imagine being picked up by a crow and taken away??  The poor parents were in a panic!

On a happier note, we have Orange Crowned Warblers (if identified correctly) taking up residence in the bird box/Squirrel box remodel!  They have been so busy and we read that if the nest is too deep that they will fill it with anything to get the height and then build the nest.  And that is exactly what they are doing.

This is the male

This is the female

View from inside the nest box through the wide hole made by the gnawing Squirrel.  The squirrel came to look and the Warblers dive bombed him and he left immediately- ha!

We are just so blessed to be able to see all of this wonderul wildlife and birds in our own backyard.  Hubby enjoys it immensely and takes an abundance of pictures.  He is napping now as his back is really giving him pain and we are wanting to catch it before it becomes a Multiple Myeloma Pain attack.  He is having a rest from chemo for the whole summer hopefully, depending on his lab tests every month.  Keep those wonderful prayers coming, they are greatly appreciated!

Kerrie ♥

THURSDAY, AM I BLUE?

Absolutely not!  But this Blue Jay that was visiting is:

I love the Blue Jay so much and he is really hard to catch in a photo!  He does not light for long.  He is sitting on a broken branch of the Bradford Pear tree in our back yard.  My hubby puts peanuts in the shell out for him and he will swoop down to the Umbrella table, grab one and off he goes!  He holds the peanut with his claws on a branch and breaks the shell with his powerful beak to get the meaty nut inside.  His distinctive call alerts us that he is out there in the yard and by the time we grab a camera, he is usually gone.  I take pictures through the window by my computer desk to catch him and it works pretty well--at least this morning-ha!

   Thank you for the comments regarding the artist bloggers I featured yesterday.  That was so gratifying to show off friends photographic and artistic ability.  I plan to do it again soon.  Beverly at How Sweet the Sound also features and encourages all of us to introduce other blogs each week, it's a great idea.

   Today is treatment day for my hubby so we will be off to the cancer center at noon.  We bring books to read and Bill is such a wonderful patient even after 5 years of this.  His nursing staff loves him and they are like family now.  We have a site at Caring Bridge where we post his progress or lack there of.  It is a free site for anyone who is going through crisis with illness, terminal or temporary and is a great way to keep all of your friends and relatives informed without having to e-mail or call each one.  Please visit the site and donate if you can.  They do this completely free and depend on donations to operate.  A very worthy cause, I truly can attest.  Visit: www.caringbridge.org/visit/billmarquart  to see photos and journal.  I will be posting after our visit to the cancer center today.

    Have a most wonderful Thursday with showers of Spring blessings!

Sunday's Birds of the air....

AND GROUND!  This morning I was graced by the Bluebird, Blue Jay, Cardinal, Several Flickers, and several species.  I kept snapping pics through the den window like mad!  The novelty never wears off for seeing God's wonderful winged creatures!  I feel so blessed that we get to see them right in our own backyard every day of the year!  His eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me......

Everywhere I look there is a picture!  My Dad belonged to the Audubon Society.  All of his life he loved and studied birds and I often think of how he would have loved living here with all the wild birds!  He also was an artist and drew birds all the time.  I loved seeing his creations that he would draw from life looking from his kitchen window and porch.  One time I visited him and he had a cage full of finches!  I don't have a clue how he captured them but he drew them in different positions and then let them go again.  I miss comparing notes with him on what I have seen and he has drawn.  I have very few of his sketches and some are not complete but I do love and treasure them. 
Please pray for my husband who is in a great deal of pain today with his Multiple Myeloma. God Bless, Kerrie