more birdies

I saw this cardinal this morning. The picture is not very clear as I took it from inside the house. I was afraid if I tried to go outside, he would fly away. And sure enough, he did....

Here are a couple of pictures of one of the hummingbirds that hang out in my backyard. He is perched on the hook holding the feeder.

They are so small! but so cute! It's been so hot, I have to refill the feeder every 2-3 days.

I really need to get a couple more.

trying to keep busy

When Fred got cement for his tower, we had a little bit of lefover. The cement had a bunch of little pebbles, and I went and scooped up a bunch of them, washed them and put them in my little fountain in front of the house.  This is the layout in front....

and here you can see the pebbles in the fountain...

 I am going to buy one of those spray paint cans that gives it the 'stone' look and spruce up my fountain. Poor thing is faded from the sun.

I also took some of the smaller ones and added them to a vase...

I like it.....

Birds

One of the things I am enjoying most living here is the birds around our house. I know I sometimes sound like a total "city girl" when I get all excited about seeing a hummingbird. But I have honestly never seen one in person. I didn't realize how small they are! This plant (don't know the name) seems to be a favorite to the hummingbird. I have a couple of them around our gazebo.

I also got a feeder as a 'gesture of friendship'.  lol

Fred and I sit at the breakfast table every evening to eat dinner and watch 'the show' the birds to put on for us. The hummingbird flying crazy from flower to flower.

 We also have mockingbirds, and they chase each other around in the yard, through the tree. They look like they are having such fun!.

( I stuck an apple in a branch to see if they would like it, and boy, did they!)

This is actually a little cat that used to hold a glass bowl for a beta fish. I broke the glass a while back and decided this was a great birdfeeder. The birds don't seem intimidated by kitty since I am having to fill it up at least once a week!

We also have some cardinals, but I haven't been able to sneak a picture of one yet. Working on it!

Our neighbor told me there are finch around here too. I think I saw one the other day. I am so new at this bird watching thing, I need to get me a book or something.

We have a big oak tree in the front yard and I hear all kinds of birds in it every morning, so I thought I would put a feeder out there too. It's a cute little mesh church shape....

Yesterday I went to see if I needed to refill it and saw this:

Some little booger has ripped the mesh trying to get to the seeds!  Fred said it's probably a squirrel, though I have yet to see one around here. That really bugged me. I need to strategically think of what birdfeeders to put out from now on....

Through all this bird watching and activity, it makes me think of my dear friend, Linda. She loves birds and knows about all kinds of them. I call her whenever I see a new one. I miss her.

That's all I got for now!  :)

changes and more changes....

Well, Mom has moved out.
When we first got here she put her name on a list at the public housing authority. She got a call last Wednesday that an apartment came open and did she want it. She jumped on it.  It is a VERY tiny place. We went to look at it on Thursday and she signed the lease, even though I could see she was very dissilusioned by the size and the fact that the stove, heat, and water heater run on gas. (she is afraid of gas).

So, in spite of the fact that she has not been well for weeks and the apt. is way too small and she has to deal with a gas stove, she was determined to move out and be 'independent'.  That is all fine and good if you CAN be independent. But mom is nearly blind, her health is poor physically and mentally.

This is going to be a trying time for us. Fred and I have agreed that we will help her as much as we can, but we aren't going to be at her 'beck and call'.  I keep reminding mom that being 'independent' means being able to take care of yourself. 
And to top it all off, I was over there trying to go through her many boxes. We agreed after seeing the size of the apt, she needs to put some things in storage. But as we are going through the boxes, I can't get her to agree to store one single thing.  She then says ' I have a 1 year lease here, so I don't want to have my things in storage for a whole year without me being able to see them' .......   So, she plans on moving AGAIN in a year.  I told her Fred was done. He wasn't going to move her anymore. (We have moved her 10 times in 25 years).  She is incredible.

So, now I have an actual guest room. I am looking forward to putting it together. We have a full size bed in the 'radio' room, but I have told Freddy he can have it. I would love to find an old headboard, maybe iron, or wood, but definitely with an air of antique. Just have to convince Fred!  lol

Other possible changes are in the air, but I can't really talk about it right now.  Just know the Nassars could use some prayers!!