Sunday Blessings

I have more shots of hummingbirds to share with you.

I hope you won't get tired of them because I have more and more

hummers showing up at the feeders even while I'm sitting

in a chair maybe five feet from one of the feeders and I

can't resist the challenge of capturing them with my camera.

A female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird...

One question I want to ask the Lord when I meet Him one day, is why

He made the male birds so much more colorful than the females.

Inquiring minds would like to know!  (Or at least mine would!)

Silhouette of a male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird...

See the splash of red on his throat?

I posted this one earlier in the week but you can see the ruby throat much better in this photo.

It amazes me how those tiny wings can go so fast literally making a

humming sound letting me know one is approaching the feeder.

My God and Heavenly Father, the creator of heaven and earth, is truly amazing!

20And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life,

and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

21And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth,

which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind,

and every winged fowl after his kind:  and God saw that it was good.

22And God blessed them, saying,

Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas,

and let fowl multiply in the earth.

23And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.  Genesis 1:20-23

Thank you for stopping by.

Have a blessed Sunday!

Sharing with

Till next time,

The Hummers Are Here

I know Spring has sprung when the hummingbirds show up.

I set a new feeder out by the front patio where I like to sit

and take photos of the birds and squirrels on their feeders.

It didn't take them long to find the new feeder.

Another plus to this location, I can see it when I'm on the computer

and can still enjoy watching the hummers on the feeder even though I'm indoors.

Not to leave the squirrels out...

 

Only one squirrel at a time is allowed on the feeder.

The rest have to stay on the ground and eat what has fallen out of the feeder.

Silly squirrels!

There's a bird that I've seen a couple of times around here.

I have no idea what kind of bird it is and I'm hoping one of you can help me identify it.

Any ideas?

It's such a pretty bird.  I'd love to know what kind it is and maybe attract some more somehow.

Has Spring sprung in your neck of the woods?  

    

Till next time,

This n' That

A quick post to say Hi!  It's been a busy week here at the homestead... first, the kitchen floor project is STILL not finished *sigh*... we need one more box which we will use under the stove.  Other than that, it is almost done! It looks really good!  I can't wait to show y'all the before & after!  Second, Country Boy installed the molding in the living room today.  That room is finally finished after two years!  Yay!  Third, I've been sorting through the remaining items that did not sell at the flea market a couple of months ago and putting it into boxes to take to the thrift store.  Some items I am keeping and will try to sell on craigslist.  If they don't sell, then I'll donate them as well.  More projects are in store this week like reorganizing the pantry and photographing and listing the items I want to sell.

On a much more exciting note... I read some tips on The Pioneer Woman's blog about apertures and I took some time (OK, I was procrastinating) to sit on my front porch steps and shoot some photos playing around with different settings.  I still have so much to learn about it but it's slowly sinking in and hopefully it will be second nature one day!

So, let me show you what I captured...

I set this bird bath out the other day with lots of squirrel food in it and word has gotten out!  A couple of them ran off when I stepped outside but these brave souls remained!

This one is underneath the feeder station and pondering how to get on the feeders from below since he hasn't had any luck anymore from the roof!  The determination of a squirrel is incredible!

I heard a loud whirring sound and saw this female hummingbird land in the tree at the base of the steps...

Such tiny feet!

I managed to capture one while it was at the feeder but it was a bit underexposed.  I still like the image so I'm going to share it with you anyway (another learning moment on aperture vs. shutter speed!)...

A male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird.  I didn't get a chance to capture another image with different settings before my bum started hurting!

Then I heard some loud flapping noise and a Red-Bellied Woodpecker landed in the tree that is on the other side of the porch stairs...

He caught a bug further up in the tree and the feast began...

Yay that he caught a bug, but Ewwwww!  I'm so glad my diet does not consist of bugs!

By this time, my bum was really starting to hurt so before it went numb on me, I went back inside.  After all, I could only procrastinate for so long from sorting through all the stuff to donate!

Oh yea, and can I just tell you how BAD a steam burn hurts!  I was taking the aluminum foil off a baking dish in the oven the other day and when I lifted the corner I didn't get my hand out of the way fast enough and the steam burned my index and middle finger on my right hand.  Mercy, it hurt!  I managed to get through supper and then I went outside and snapped a piece of aloe off my aloe plant and promptly applied the gel to my fingers.  I was worried that it would keep me up all night but it only hurt for a few more minutes and then, all of a sudden, the pain disappeared.  I mean it was completely gone.  Yay! I put the gel on several times throughout the following day and my finger was looking really good.  You could hardly tell it had been burned.  But, today, I had to tighten one of the hoses to the washing machine and I scraped my burn on the threads of the other hose. OUCH!  The burned skin ripped off and was hurting all over again.  Needless to say, I applied more gel and a bandaid immediately.  It feels much better.

Okay, so I just realized that I can't keep a post short... teehee!  But, I hope you enjoyed my pictures and my stories!  You guys and gals that faithfully read my blog and so often take the time to make comments are awesome and are what keeps me pursuing this blog.  Many hugs and thanks to you!

Till next time,

Taxing the Brain

I've been working on a project all day today that has been quite taxing on the brain!  I took a short break to grab some supper, write this post then it's back to work!  It's not finished so I'm not going to give it away but I hope to have it finished by tomorrow and can't wait to show you!  And no hints either!

But, I will leave you with some hummingbird photos!  Boy, these little ones are fast!  The same hummingbird is in all the following photos.

Hummingbirds are so fascinating!  Sometimes I think they drink twice their weight!  And those little wings buzzing so fast!  Amazing!

I hope you're having a great Wednesday!

Till next time,

Good News, Critters & Such

Happy Friday everyone!

Country Boy and I finally got word that our RV was fixed and running great.  Whew!  Nothing like cutting it close especially since we took it in a month ago... we leave Monday morning for a vacation.  A lot of things were wrong with the engine all at once and a lot of work had to be done to it.  We were dreading the total tally of parts & labor.  But, the Lord blessed us and they kept it right at the quote that they gave us!  Yay!  I'm a happy girl!

~~~~~

I went grocery shopping this morning and got all the yummy food that you just have to have when you're camping... hot dogs, chips and dip (a personal fave of mine!), meat for hamburgers, makings for a fish fry, baked beans, potatoes, eggs & bacon.  OK, you get the idea!  We don't usually have any hot dogs or chips in the house so I'm really excited about that!  There's nothing better than a hot dog roasted over a fire!  A weenie roast!  And I have always loved chips & dip.  There are movie clips of me as a toddler dipping a chip into the dip.  OK, so maybe I was 'scooping' the dip instead of dipping; what can I say, I LOVE French Onion dip!  It's a good thing there are hiking trails around the campground because I'm gonna need to work off this yummy camping food!

~~~~~

This afternoon, I took a book and sat on the bird-watching patio.  Not a lot of action today but I managed to get some reading done and get a couple of decent shots!  The orange tree saw more visitors than the feeders!

The squirrels love to hang out under the feeder.  Lots of goodies there!

So far these guys haven't figured out how to get onto the feeders but this one sure is pondering a way!

He saw me looking at him and taking his picture so he's trying to blend in... 'you don't see me lady'!

I liked how the wings showed up on this guy.

Mourning Doves

And there ya have it!

I hope you have an awesome weekend!

Till next time,



The Beauty of Nature

It's been a busy and productive day.  I love these days where I have an abundance of energy and motivation and can get things done without running into snags!

I did have a relaxing morning with Country Boy before he headed off to work some overtime at our local fair.  We sat on the front porch and watched the birds swarm the bird feeder station.  It seems more and more are arriving daily and sticking around.  That makes me very happy!  I really enjoy hearing all the different chirps and songs from the various birds and watching them.  The hummingbirds are also arriving and it looks like I'll have to change their feeder every couple of days!

I was able to capture these two different hummingbirds the other day.  They're grainy but I wanted to share them with you...  Jim, these are for you!

One day I hope to get a clearer image for you.  It's a challenge I've put upon myself!

After Country Boy left for work, I picked up a neighbor friend and we went out for some lunch, visited the local library and then did some grocery shopping.  Oh yea, can't forget the trip to the ice cream shoppe!  Yum!  It took me five trips from the car to the house but I finally managed to get everything in the house and put away.  And I didn't even buy that much!  Oh well, I can always use the exercise (especially after eating Cappuchino Crunch ice cream!  Maybe that's why I have so much energy *smile*).

I started some supper (I had to cook tonight so that Country Boy would have something to take to work tomorrow!).  I made meatloaf, mashed potatoes and corn.  While that was cooking, I spent some time catching up on Facebook, email and the blogs I follow.

After I ate, I mixed up the ingredients for Dutch Oven Bread courtesy of Jayme the Coop Keeper.  For the recipe and bread tutorial click HERE.  I've never made it before but she made it sound so easy that I just had to try it.  I've been wanting to make my own bread for quite some time now but I haven't found a recipe that I like.  This sounded good and easy.  I'll let ya' know how it goes!  It's rising now.  It does have a long rise time but you can mix it up at night and let it rise overnight - perfect!

Hmm, what else did I do today... oh yea, I had to mix up some insect repellent to spray on our flowering pear tree, apple, orange & tangerine trees to keep the little black worms off.  I found a recipe online.  If it works I'll share it with you!

On our 'after morning coffee stroll' to check on the crops, I came across this beautiful sight!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did...

These are our grapevines coming back to life after winter.  I walked over to the arbor and saw these beautiful dewdrops on the edges of the new leaves.  So cool!  You can even see the reflection of the grapevines in the dewdrops.  Of course, I had to go all the way back up to the house to get my camera!  I should just start carrying it with me at all times!

I guess that about sums up my day.  I have a date with my photog buddy tomorrow!  We're going to meet our husbands (who work together) for breakfast and then we're going to a couple of locations to shoot some photos!  Should be a nice day for it!

So what do you think about my hummingbirds and grapevines?

I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!

Till next time,