The Little Ones..........

Do you wonder how the small birds survive when the weather is so cold. Here in Northern Michigan it has been in the minus degrees this past week. Wind chills bring it further down. I didnt see birds at my feeders for about 3 days and not often in the surrounding days. Then the temperatures went up a bit, the sun came out and all my birds were back. We have 2 pair of Cardinals this year. Both females reappeared. So how do they survive?

The small birds have an easier time because they flock together. There are often gangs of little ones all together at my feeders. Nuthatch, Tufted Titmice, Chickadees and Buntings. I even saw some finches today. (Pictures of those another day)
So how do they do it.? A birds body is a wonderful creation. OK I know a lot do not believe in God. I do. I see this as a master plan. Birds have a higher body temperature than we do. They make use of the sun by turning their back to the sun, it heats a larger area that way (clever aye?) they can fluff feathers to trap warmth in them and heat their inner core. Their feet have scales so that helps them to lower the temperature on them to a different temperature to the body and the scales minimize heat loss.

At nighttime the flocks of small birds will find a place to roost. They like pine trees, up close to the trunk, better yet if its been in the sun during the day. Those places retain some warmth and they can snuggle up together. I wonder who chooses who is on the outside? My son Jason has a bush near his bedroom and the Sparrows roost in it. What a noise at sunup and sundown as they quarrel and chatter getting settled in or getting up.

They can fluff up and sit on one leg so as to warm the other, or put a head under a wing all to keep warm. Bigger birds do the same tricks. I just happen to love the small ones. I feel so bad for them when its so icy and cold. The Chickadees always seem so happy. They call and chat to each other and generally make a racket. They are not afraid either. Unlike the bigger birds they don't scare easy.

Starlings are always being chased off and so I imagine that's why they are so scared easy. I like them. Pretty birds and so boisterous . They have to eat too and they will eat the meat and bread and scraps that the small ones will not.

Still these cocky small fella's win my heart

You can be a big part in the survival of the birds in winter. If its possible have water that does not freeze. Put out food for different kinds of birds. Even meat scraps will feed Crows and Starlings while the sunflower seed are loved by most. Small seeds for tiny birds and corn for squirrels. They will often use old bird houses for shelter and bushes, old wood piles and stacks of twigs. Make your garden a sanctuary and encourage all living things to survive. Besides it fun to watch them all.

Winter keeps coming..........

The temperatures today were in the minus Fahrenheit. In the upper Peninsula of Michigan my granddaughter reported a -15 my daughter in law -11. Wonder what the wind chill was. The schools all closed because they did not want kids out in it, standing at the bus stops. The birds stayed away pretty much. One of the male Cardinals was sitting huddled in the grapevine, he obviously wanted to go to the feeder but......was all fluffed up. He saw me and decided to move but his poor little foot got stuck. He got it free but I bet it hurt. That made me think that so many of the birds and small animals wont make it. So sad. I wish I could take them all inside.

I saw tracks on the front porch, looks like a bunny so I put some seeds out this evening just in case. Could have been a squirrel but not sure. The wind had blown them a little so was hard to tell.

Tristen enjoyed about 1/2 hour helping Granddad outside. He is standing on where the fence should be.

Here they are filling the bird feeders and cleaning the (poop) deck for the poodles.

Somewhere under all that snow is the pond. I sure hope the pump is still running or those poor fishes will be ice cubes.

Tonight the fence looks a little wonky, hope it holds up to the weight.

The front garden has long since sunk under several feet of snow.

Gets deeper every day. The porch looks nice though. The fake holly looks real under the snow.

.......and everyone liked the rocking chair so here it is today.............

Lots of snow right? Well the roads are terrible and so when Tony came to pick up Cooper I advised him to spend the night. He said that it was sheer ice coming in and so was reluctant (I could tell) to go back. So I got in touch with Gabby who only works a few blocks from here at the hospital and she will also spend the night. I will feel better that I know they are safe and not on the roads with the baby. It would not be a good time to end in a ditch with these temps.
The mail man made it early and had to make his own tracks. It was no too bad at 10am but I think the path has filled in now and there is a lot more coming

January 2014........

My garden is full of snow. I mean it, its up to the fences. Last year at this time we had I think they said 16 inches. This year 84 inches. Something like that, in any case. Here is the back garden.

We confine the poodles to the deck (now its the poop deck haha)else they could walk right over the fences. They would too. It's been so cold they have not wanted to stay out more than a few moments. Bodicea really likes going out and burying her face in the snow.

Isn't she cute?

Apart from poodles, the birds and squirrels still come around. We have two sets of Cardinals who are regulars. Here we have a confrontations.


The lady was also around, there are two of the girls too.

As cold as it has been, I am surprised that we have just the regular birds come around. Blue Jays, Chickadees and the small birds we always get with them. Nothing new and I have not even seen some of the usual ones. I am putting out all kinds of treats. The Cardinals are enjoying the apples rotting on the tree out front. It was sunny this morning and I got this shot.

This is a rather boring post, but really nothing is going on. Nothing...........hope I get some visitors soon or I will have to begin thinking of other things to post.

Winter Poem..........

Robert Louis Stevenson (from A Child’s Garden of Verses, 1885)

Late lies the wintry sun a-bed,
A frosty, fiery sleepy-head;
Blinks but an hour or two; and then,
A blood-red orange, sets again.

Before the stars have left the skies,
At morning in the dark I rise;
And shivering in my nakedness,
By the cold candle, bathe and dress.

Close by the jolly fire I sit
To warm my frozen bones a bit;
Or with a reindeer-sled, explore
The colder countries round the door.

When to go out, my nurse doth wrap
Me in my comforter and cap;
The cold wind burns my face, and blows
Its frosty pepper up my nose.

Black are my steps on silver sod;
Thick blows my frosty breath abroad;
And tree and house, and hill and lake,
Are frosted like a wedding-cake.

Winter in the garden...............

Today is Winter solstice. The first day of Winter.

My garden is sleeping under a blanket of snow. It's already deep. It will be a long winter I think.
The pine trees are beautiful and where they lay on the ground they provide a warm place for the bunnies out of the wind.

The sky is so blue on this day.

Beautiful sky and white white snow.

My street has a lot of snow, and everything is covered and clean for today.

My garden is asleep.

My porch is in winter mode now

Tristen is enjoying shoveling snow, and making pathways out the back. His play house is covered in snow now. Its been so cold he does not stay out long. He takes his trucks out and comes back with them full of snow, yup, my floors are full of snow and I keep a mop by the back door for now.

Yes it is beautiful, but I look forwards to Spring. This is just the beginning.


Happy Winter Solstice...........

The snow is so beautiful.................

I love the look of snow. No so much the reality of it. When I worked I really didn't like it at all. The roads around here can be treacherous, it is after all Michigan. We live in the great white north.

Well there is Canada further north but they don't get much more snow than we do, it lasts a little longer maybe but we have our share. I remember when we first came here, some winters were 6 months long to me. I mean, when it snows in October and lasts till April thats pretty long. I am counting flurries and not deep snow but back then I could not get over it..............I would call mum,"hey we are in the Upper Peninsula in September and I saw snow in the rain." ......we would get Indian Summer but still we knew what was coming.

It took a long time for me to get used to it. When I turned 40 I got a horse. Well, that was great in summer (another story) but once that snow started to come down and I had a 20+ mile drive it was a bit dodgy. I do remember one evening when my friend Mary (was driving) we got almost to the barn and there was a tree across the road. There we were in a blizzard trying to move the dang thing. Well some guy stopped in a big truck and pushed it away far enough so we could get by and the barn was just down the road from there. We went thankfully into he barn, gave our horses carrots and apples, made sure they were snug and comfy and headed home. By then the guy had that tree all cut up and stacked by the road. It was a small tree.

At first I loved the snow I had fun blasting through drifts, wooooo hooooo and was not afraid at all. Then one day coming down a hill I lost control. That did it. From then on I really did not care to drive in the snow. Its all about the what if's....well sometimes "What if" can keep you safe. So I was more cautious after that. There were many times over the years when Mary and I would take a quick trip out to the barn, bring in all the horses because no one was there and set them all inside in the warm. Then leave and start home again. We got in some pickles out there, that much I can say. We rode out in the snow back in those days. The horses loved it. Then one day coming back Lady and I got out onto a sheet of ice. She froze, I was scared witless. I was afraid she would fall and break a leg (to say nothing of me) so I let go of the reins, let her figure it out and stayed as still as I could as she picked her way over the ice. My heart thumping. The other two, Mary and her son, they found a way around it after we made if over. She was a good old girl that horse.

It was that same ride that earlier Mary fell off. Mark and I were out ahead chatting. Mary was riding our shared horse named Spyder. Well Spyder was a slow poke and they were hanging back. Mark and I were side by side and rounded a corner in the woods. All of a sudden Spyder with Mary clinging to his side came bounding around the corner. We stopped and watched as in what seemed like slow motion Mary ever so gracefully got lower and lower on his side until she plopped off into the snow bank. Spyder stopped and munched on a branch. Now I would have thought that Mark would have stopped and helped his mum but nope, he just carried on as she dusted herself off and clambered back onto good old Spyder. Not a word was said.

Well winter holds its wonders, it is not all bad and it is certainly beautiful. It's just so dang long

A band called Angel.......

A band called Angel that I liked many years ago. The song is hauntingly pretty. After all these years it sounds rather tinny. Still I have some fond memories and thats what songs do isn't it? Reminds us of times gone by, of people we once knew, some we may have loved. Times that were good or bad. Well this one doesn't mean much except that I used to like it.......many years ago.
The Winter Song by Angel

Songwriters: EDWIN L. MEADOWS, FRANK DIMINO, GREGG GIUFFRIA

Winter is here, and it's cold this time of year.
There's snow everywhere in sight, falling on this winter night.
By candle light, we share this chilly night.
There's frost on the window pane, winter nights are here again.
There's a feeling in the air, feel the spirit everywhere.
Winter winds on heaven and earth.
By the fireplace, there's a smile on every face.
The ice begins to cling, listen to the children sing.
Looking outside, the city lights all come alive.
People running all around, they fill the streets with a happy sound.
There's a feeling in the air, feel the spirit everywhere.
Winter winds on heaven and earth.
Hear the Angels join the choir, let them take the music higher.
Through winter days on heaven and earth.
There's a feeling in the air, feel the spirit everywhere.
Winter winds on heaven and earth.
Hear the Angels join the choir,let them take the music higher.
Through winter days on heaven and earth.
There's a feeling in the air,feel the spirit everywhere.
Winter winds on heaven and earth (heaven and earth).
Hear the Angels join the choir, let them take the music higher...
Through winter days on heaven and earth.
There's a feeling in the air, feel the spirit everywhere.
Winter winds on heaven and earth.
Hear the Angels join the choir, let them take the music higher...
Through winter days on heaven and earth.

Language of flowers..............

I really dont know too many people who do not like flowers, or like to be given flowers. Traditionally men give flowers to women but really what could be nicer than to give a man a plant for his garden. If he is a gardener. Or has that like everything else come to an end.
In Victorian and Edwardian times it was an art, the giving of gifts, of giving flowers. It also could have meaning............. A rose, we all know signifies love. I could get more complicated if you break it down by colour but............a red rose is love.

Victorians were all about appearance, about formality and romance. Visitors cards delivered on a silver platter. Or a flower for the lapel, did it have a hidden meaning? They liked intrigue. Forget me nots.........obvious right. OK so these are not real forget-me-nots but they are so pretty can we pretend they are?

Bluebells are for Humility

Violets are for modesty

It seems the simple flowers have the most desirable of attributes, at least to me they are. My favourite flowers I am happy to say have meanings that I like.
The blue violet is for faithfulness.
Sweetpeas are for goodbyes..........I dont like goodbyes.........

Well I could go on but you get the idea. Today, in today's world, we seem to have lost so many of the little niceties of life. No May Day any more where we deliver baskets of flowers to hang upon the door. Or here in America, we don't even celebrate May Day. The May Pole and Apple Blossoms I miss that.

It was a tradition to go A Maying for centuries......again in Victorian days and maybe Edwardian times too, people were more inclined to show in small ways how they felt. They tried to please. to show off their romantic skills for want of a better word without loosing face if the feelings were not reciprocated. They took time for the small things. Probably because it was a more refined and prudish society. Oh just as much hanky panky went on you can be sure of that, but on the surface they were gentile and refined. Besides they didn't have emails and the internet. I don't think I would want to go back, but I can still think its beautiful and that we have lost something.