Good Friday Birds and Easter Stitch

 

Design - "Paques"

Designer - Le Chalet des Perelles

Fabric - 32 count unknown linen

Fibers - DMC - 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 27 March 2016

Completed -29 March 2016

I couldn't let March go by without one Easter stitch.  I like the quiet soothing tones of this design. It is a freebie and you can find it here.

And now on to Finley NWR -Part Two!

A Song Sparrow

The back side of a Marsh Wren.

Female Red-winged Blackbird

Male Red-winged Blackbird - they have such a pretty song!

All of the following birds were in the trees or at the feeders at the reserve's headquarters.

Scrub Jay and Starling

There were several houses set up for the Tree Swallows.

When the light is right, they are such a pretty blue.

The headquarters had a feeder for the hummers and lots of wild currents in bloom.

The Rufous Hummingbirds were hap-hap-happy!

It's always a pleasure to watch these guys.

I did not see any females, but the males return first to stake out territory.

The most exciting thing was watching this American Kestrel fly in with lunch!  

The Kestrel was a New to Me bird.

As it turned out, we were able to see several perched on the line along the road out of the reserve.

There were lots of Golden-crowned Sparrows at the feeders as well as Juncos.

It was neat to see a White-breasted Nuthatch too.  I do not often have one come by my feeders.

As we left we were able to watch this Northern Harrier hunting in a field.

A really super day!

Marching Along

Design - "A Bit of March"

Designer - Lizzie Kate

Fabric - 28 count Light Mocha Cashel

Fibers - GAST & WDW - 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 23 March 2016

Completed - 26 March 2016 

As you can see from the finish above, I am still marching along with St. Patrick's themed stitching!

Over the weekend I visited Gossler's Farm Nursery.  

Located along in Springfield, Oregon near the McKenzie River, the Gossler family has a dozen greenhouses of amazing plants.

They also have a lovely display garden.  

We received word that that the Magnolias were in full display.

So we went out to take a look.

Such bold blooms.

It was the perfect time to view them.

Every place of business needs a helpful dog or cat.

Benny was darling! Shepherd and Corgi don't you think?

The gardens were filled with other plants and shrubs and trees, most of which I cannot identify.

This is a Redbud.

Very pretty and it smelled wonderful too!

A wonderful mossy bench.

A hybrid Fawn Lily.

A nice display of plants and a pot.

A conifer with new cones.

And because the nursery is close to the river, I was able to watch this Osprey. Osprey are super fishermen and site their nests near rivers.

Birds - A Stitch and a Road Trip

Design - "St Patrick's Bird"

Designer - Heart in Hand

Fabric - 32 count Summer Khaki linen

Fibers - GAST & WDW - 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 14 March 2016

Completed - 23 March 2016

This was good fun - I like all the shades of green used for the shamrocks.

On Friday my mom and I took a road trip north to visit the William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge. It was established in 1964 to provide winter habitat for the subspecies of dusky Canada Geese.  They nest almost exclusively in Alaska's Copper River delta, and winter in the Willamette Valley. The refuge is large - over 5700 acres.

Winter is the best time to see the largest numbers and varieties of waterfowl, but we still managed to see several 'firsts' for us including the male Green-winged Teal on the right of this photo. 

And isn't this an elegant pair of ducks?

A female and male Northern Pintail.

Here they are again.

This male Hooded Merganser was by far the coolest looking duck. My photo leaves much to be desired.

If you look closely among all the Mallards on the left is the female Hooded Merganser with a fuzzy copper head. 

It was no surprise to see lots of American Coots.

This blurry photo is the best I managed of a pair of Lesser Scaups.

While we were too late in the year to see Tundra Swans, there were Canada Geese everywhere!  In the air...

...on the ground...

...and in the water.

The Northern Shoveler is well-named.  Take a look at that bill.  I'm sure he uses as a shovel to unearth food.

In a pond near the headquarters, we spied a pair of Ring-necked Ducks. 

Here's the female with the bright white ring on her bill...

...the male also has a white band on his bill.

We saw lots of other birds besides waterfowl.  I'll share those on an upcoming post later this week.