02.18.2025 A Flurry of Activity after a Winter Storm

 Winter snowstorms come in many varieties. There is the one with just a few flurries and then it is done.  There are those storms with feet of snow, no school for days and maybe no power either! But this last snowstorm was a mix of the worst conditions. I don't mind shoveling snow - it actually is quite therapeutic. No one outside to bother you, just peace and quiet with the exception of the shovel scraping the driveway. 

But this last storm left us with almost 10 inches of snow, then it started to rain, then freezing rain, then more snow and freezing rain. I started shoveling early but I could only clear the snow done to the ice from the last storm. Now we have ice on top of ice, some of the gates are frozen shut and the main gate does not close, and one must walk very carefully in the driveway and on the sidewalk. I used all of my ice melt and it doesn't seem to make that much of a difference. Was able to clear some of the sidewalk and after much effect managed to get the double gate closed - with rope! Cannot wait until the next storm this week!

On the bright side of a winter storm is the flurry of activity at the bird feeders. Three was a flock of male and female bluebirds, my winter favorite dark-eyed juncos, black capped chickadees, my little all time favorite Carolina wren, cardinals, tufted titmouse, white throated sparrow, white breast nuthatch, hairy woodpeckers, blue jays and our little red squirrels. They shared the feeders with constant activity. Most of them are very timid, so even opening the door startles them and they fly away. And most of them do not like cameras. So I had to carefully open the kitchen door and stay as still as possible with the camera lens in a very small opening. It was cold, but not too bad. I love watching them but also really wanted to see if I could get any nice photographs.

Here are a few photographs showing a variety of birds. 

      

A bluebird and a female cardinal share a perch in the freezing rain.

Goldfinch and house finch share the globe feeder.

 

More bluebirds.

   

Hairy woodpecker.

 

Dark eyed junco. The eye is really hard to see as it blends with its black coat. Back, front and side views! They do not hold still for very long!

A little Carolina wren. They nest on the Christmas wreath and we found nests between the gutters and the house! Looks like they will be here for the Spring!

A bit blurred as she would not hold still, but this is the white throated sparrow. They are a bit shy.

A tufted titmouse. 

Male house finch.  They also nest around the house.  Beautiful little birds. He has a sunflower seed in his bill.

A black-capped chickadee shares the globe feeder with a house finch.

Chickadee at the suet feeder.

The birds are not very territorial right now. It is cold and they seem to allow birds from different species to feed. But in the Spring during breeding season, we don't observe sharing like this. Generally, it is one at a time - quick grab a seed then out of the feeder. 

I had noticed that some days the feeder is empty almost as soon as I fill it. Then I found out why! The little red squirrel could squeeze into the globe - you can see how small the space is from some of the pictures. I found him sitting inside chomping away on the sunflower seed. His little cheeks were as full as they can be. As soon as I opened the door I saw how he got there as he tried to escape. He squeezed out of the globe, jumped onto the baffle that is supposed to keep him from climbing up to the feeder, then he jumped onto the dumpster, scampered along the edge and jumped over the fence to the garden. Clever little one. He has a lot of practice running fast since the dogs bark at him when they see him feeding at the bottom of the feeder. He usually picks up what the birds drop but now he has figured out how to enjoy a feast! No pictures, sorry - I was too captivated to watch him and there just was no time to get the camera.

For most of the winter the boys did not need their puffer vests. But because it was so cold I got them all dressed. First they assess the steps - I can almost hear them discussing strategy!

Fionnegan jumps off the porch first. He is having a good time!

Gunnarr is right behind him. 

It would not be snow without a chase!

Shorty was a bit late to the party but once down the steps he had fun.

Shorty is getting old so I let him just take his time.

Gunnarr was having a good time!

No outing would be complete without a group photograph.

There were sent back into the house to warm up and I needed to shovel. I don't let them in outside when the gates are open - learned the hard way that Shorty is very stealth!

Shorty in his green puffer vest. Goes well with his natural coat color.

Fionnegan is always in blue.

And Gunnarr is in a red puffer vest. They do not mind getting dressed.

How did you weather the winter storm? Any problems? Do you have ice problems like us? Am just riding this out - Spring will be here soon!

Until next time........................

12.25.2024 Merry Christmas

 May you all enjoy the blessings of this Glorius season. 

We are having a bit of a subdued holiday this year so only a few decorations and a small tree. We are doing construction on the front room of the house and everything is now in out dining room and living room!  Even the run area for the pups is now limited. 

Angels from American Samoa. Yes, I bought every one of them in the gift shop - there were only four! They reminded me of the angels from Yap.

Christmas Village.

It doesn't seem like Christmas without a tree. This is my little table top tree,

Nativity from Honduras.

Our Christmas holiday portraits of the pups - Fionnegan, Shorty, and Gunnarr. It is unbelievable that they will jump on the couch and pose for the picture. 

We did our outside photographs yesterday. There is enough snow to call this a white Christmas!

I had to put up a temporary barrier to keep the dogs safe mostly to safeguard against nail punctures of the paws and to keep them off the street when the gates are open for the workers. They do not like the confined space and my little Houdini Gunnarr had managed to escape twice. I now boarded up the gaps between the banister and steps. No more escapes.

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No one is really happy with this arrangement. That is Fionnegan barking to get out. 

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas, from my home to yours.

Until next time..................................

08.07.2022. Summer, Gardens, Sailing, my boys, and the locals

What we really could use now is a nice, long and steady rain. Not only is it hot and humid, but the earth is parched, and the gardens are dry and some of the well established plants are struggling. Fortunately I did not plant many new shrubs or flowers. We had a sprinkle of rain yesterday, not even enough to call the dogs inside the house. 

We are seeing the last of the daylily blooms. This one is delicately colored but quite large.

The last tiger lily bloom.

Stella d'ora reblooms.

The star gazer lilies survived the bunnies!

We have quite a few little grasshoppers that seem to like the daylilies.

We have a resident Mr. Toad to add to our menagerie of animals around the house. He stays on the kitchen porch, quite often just under the kitchen door step. He also sleeps in the flower pot that contains a large rosemary plant. On occasion he has been "watered" before I notice him half buried in the soil! He doesn't really seem to mind. But I have to teach the boys "no touch" as they are very curious about him. Fionnegan in particular keeps a close eye on him. While Gunnarr and Shorty will ignore Mr Toad after a minute or two, Fionn will recline on the porch and just watch him.

And I have mentioned the bunnies. They are voracious eaters and have enjoyed all of my black eyed Susan's and daisies. Last night we watched one on the other side of the fence nibbling away at the leaves on a low branch of an azalea. The dogs were all excited and barked but settled down on command. Leave the bunny alone, I tell them repeatedly. Leave the bunny alone. So Fionn and Gunnarr just sat in the driveway laser focused on him as he happily nibbled  his dinner.

We have planted flowers to attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. We do have all three is the gardens and it is especially enjoyable to watch the hummingbirds. No good pictures yet, but here are some of the bees and black swallowtail butterfly. Maybe the butterfly is just as happy on the grass!

Happy bees.

The boys are staying cool with ice cream and watermelon treats.

Nice, cold watermelon hits the spot.

We have one new visitor to our yard. There is a barn owl that has been here at night and in the very early morning hours. One night it was calling and woke me up. I had never heard of such a call and thought it was the snoring of one of  the boys. An online search brought me right to the bird. One night it perched on a tree along the driveway. So I was able to get a good look at it and watch it fly from one tree to another. Fortunately it did not bother Fionn or Gunnarr as they were just outside for their late night excursions.

And yes, my girl Mimi has stretched her sails and had some nice adventures in Boston Harbor. Here she is on her morning. It is also enjoyable to just sit on the deck and watch the sun set. I now have an electric motor for her. It does make it easier to get to the mooring. 

We also have early morning walks when we can. I was trying to get Gunnarr to look at the camera, promises of treats and kisses didn't work. So I asked them if they wanted to go for a walk. That got their attention, so we did. After the photography session, of course!

. So off we went, walking in the cool of the forest.  They love the walks. And it is refreshing. And they love the cool of the car air conditioning when we are done!

How have you all been? Are you surviving the heat? What do you do to stay cool? 

Stay cool.

Until next time........................