Sunday's Hummers Hail Hail! The Gangs All Here!

Everyone is accounted for.

Female Anna's

Male Anna's

Watching over the entire backyard.

Male Rufous

And my newest spring / summer resident.

A female Rufous.

There are enough hummers around now that it sounds like a busy airport with landings and takeoffs.

And I'm having to refill the feeders every 5 days.

Saturday's Critters

It's Saturday.

The Usual Suspects have been active...

...including a bunny or two.

Several deer...

...including fawns.

A group of five.

Another look.

This doe remembers that I used to put out sunflower seeds on the patio for the chipmunks.  She always takes a look to see if I've changed my mind. 

Little Birds Big Birds Birds To Be

Design - "A Little Easter" (kit)

Designer - Lizzie Kate

Fabric - 32 count white linen

Fibers - GAST & WDW -2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 31 March 2013

Completed - April 2013

Little yellow chicks...

Big black Turkey Vultures.

Stretch out that wing!

Another large bird - a Band-tailed Pigeon.

I've counted as many as twenty-two.

With my father's and nephew's help, all the bird houses came down, got cleaned out, washed, and are now back up awaiting occupants.

This is a Violet-green Swallow nest.  Dried grasses and feathers.

Here's a Black-capped Chickadee nest - mostly moss.

Stay tuned to see what happens this spring.

Eggs

Design - "Sampling Easter"

Designer - Lizzie Kate

Fabric - 30 count WDW Parchment linen

Fibers - WDW & GAST - 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 12 March 2012

Completed - 19 March 2012

Note the three colorful eggs in the Easter basket.

And soon this Anna will be sitting on an egg or two the size of tic-tac mints.

I've had two Anna's working away gathering nesting material.

One heads off south down the hillside.

The other zooms over the roof of the house and head north.

Soon a Rufous Hummingbird female or two should start to take advantage of the organic cotton nesting ball. 

Wednesday's Walk

Today's walk is more of a quick look at spring along the edges of my sister's dahlia garden.  I went down to refill the bird feeder there and this is what I saw. 

Trilliums!

Bright green Trilliums unfurling everywhere.

And a really weird fungus on a Douglas fir tree.

Unfurled Trilliums.

Cow's parsnip.

How can you not love the mottled leaves of a Trillium?

Osoberry - earliest shrub to leaf out... 

...and it blooms at the same time.

Great plant for hummingbirds and orchard mason bees both.

A Finish to Share

Design - "Harbinger of Spring"

Designer - Val's Stitchin Stuff

Fabric - 28 count Picture This Plus Jazz Cashel linen

Fibers - WDW & DMC - 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 4 February 2019

Completed - 24 March 2019

So excited to finally, finally, finally have a finish to share with you.  As I still have one small pile of snow in the front flowerbed, this snow guy is not totally unseasonable, and worth the wait I think.  I like his hat and pine bough bouquet.

Besides a bit of snow on the ground, there have been some birds on the ground.

Mourning Doves case in point!

My good fun most days though as been watching a small flock of Bushtits.

I cannot begin to describe just how cute these guys are.

I love how they swarm the suet feeder.

Here's a male.

Male on left, female on the right.

I think she's smiling, what do you think?

Go Ducks!

While watching the University of Oregon men's basketball game Sunday evening I managed a little progress on "Winter's Wisdom" by Cottage Garden Samplings.  I have LOTS of pine branches and boughs to stitch on this big boy. 

The University of Oregon men's and women's basketball teams BOTH advanced to their respective Sweet Sixteen!  Go Ducks!

I haven't seen any ducks lately, but I did see a V of Canada Geese flying northeast early Saturday morning.

A Robin sang as dawn advanced.

I'm seeing my Acorn Woodpeckers in the backyard regularly.

They are such great birds...

..and give me such good looks.

Here are two guys munching down a cylinder of nuts.