What We Saw while at the Tetons and Yellowstone -August, 2015

Beautiful female ELK

I have so many great memories from our latest Western Trip to the Tetons and Yellowstone in August, 2015... With so many pictures to go through and so many wonderful memories ---it is HARD to pick and choose what to feature on my blog.

Today I will share some of the wildlife we saw along with a few more 'purdies' for you.  Hope you enjoy!  Be sure to click on the pictures for enlargements.

Lots of pretty wildflowers in bloom, and this one also included a BUTTERFLY

BISON/Buffalo---having a 'staring contest' with ME!!!!  I think he won!

A MAGPIE --dancing a jig for us!

A close-up of some of the 'wheat-grass'-looking stuff!

Some PRONGHORN Antelopes

Some kind of fancy Dragon-Fly

A zoomed-in photo of a OSPREY nest --high on some rocks in the Canyons area of Yellowstone;  A man pointed it out to us since it was hard to see with the naked eye.

I don't know what this wildflower is/was --but the colors reminded me of Autumn (even though it was only the end of August).

A Beautiful Mountain Bluebird;  I love 'my' Eastern Bluebirds here at home,  but seeing these guys in Wyoming was a FIRST for me.

BISON-TRAFFIC-JAM;  On two different evenings,  we drove on this road (Mormon Row Rd) to see the HUGE herds of Bison (at sunset).... On this evening,  we also enjoyed a gorgeous evening sky!

My favorite capture of the entire trip:  a MOOSE

I saved the best 'til last since seeing a MOOSE was my goal before taking this trip... Not only did I see one Moose---but I saw two!!!!!  I was a very happy camper--as my Facebook friends can tell you!

WELL---I could go on and on --with more pictures... BUT--I'll stop for now!  Compared with our September trip here in 2012,  seeing the Moose was great --but we didn't seen nearly as many Elk as we did in 2012.  We did see more Bison --and getting to see the Osprey and its nest and the Mountain Bluebird were very special this year.  BOTTOM LINE:  Each time we visit,  we make more and more great memories.

Have a wonderful week.  After lots of rain and gloom here,  we are finally getting some sunshine this week.  YEAH!

Hugs,

Winter Bird Photos of My Backyard Birds--Part 2

That Mockingbird looks rather disgusted with all of the ICE around.  Poor Thing!  (Photo taken on 2/17/15)

Last Thursday I showed you the first 10 photos of my Backyard Birds which I took the past few months... Click HERE   to see that post if you missed it.  Today,  I'll share 10 more with you.   Hope you enjoy the pictures... The poor birds really struggled here this winter after the horrible ICE, snow and frigid temperatures we had... I love feeding them year-round --but especially during a cold winter.  Be sure to click on the pictures for enlargements.

I kept having to break the icicles off of the domes --so that the birds could get in there for some food.  (Photo taken on 2/16/15)

I love this photo showing the Northern Flicker at the top suet feeder,  the Finches in the plate feeder in the middle,  and the Robin on the deck rail at the bottom....The Robin was trying to find a way to get his LARGE body up to the house feeder.... Not sure he ever made it to that feeder!!! (Photo taken on 2/26/15)

The Pine Siskins flocked to the feeders (and deck) during our harsh winter.  (Photo taken on 2/18/15)

Love this picture of a Tufted Titmouse grabbing a peanut!!!  (Photo by 2/17/15)

I have a 'heated' Birdbath ---and the birds love it especially when they can't get water in other places during an icy/snowy winter.  (Photo taken on 2/26/15)   (NOTE:  I told you that our 'resident' Robin was here most of the time... He seems to be in most of the pictures... ha)

Our little Carolina Wrens are such cute little birds... They are always around ---and LOVE to 'sneak' into our garage and try to build a house in there (which is a NO-NO).....ha   (Photo taken on 2/17/15)

I seemed to take alot of pictures of the Northern Flicker Woodpecker (but they are such gorgeous birds).   (Photo taken on 2/16/15)

I love this picture of an Eastern Bluebird on the tree --waiting to come to the feeders.  (Photo taken on 2/18/15)

Always a favorite bird at our feeders!!!!  (Photo taken on 3/28/15)

I didn't see our Pileated Woodpeckers when the weather was so bad --but after it began to warm up,  they began coming back to have a snack at the suet feeders. Like the Northern Flickers,  the Pileated Woodpeckers are so gorgeous.  I never get tired of seeing them.

Now that Spring is here,  some of our winter birds are moving on (like the Pine Siskins).  There are now some new birds at the feeders (Brown Thrashers,  Blue Jays) ---and I hope to see the Rose-breasted Grosbeaks when they come through here while migrating... AND--of course,  we are looking for the Hummingbirds to return.

Happy Spring to YOU ---and Happy BIRDING!!!  Sorry I haven't been around in Blogland much lately.  We've been out having fun ---searching waterfalls and doing some hiking!!!!!

Hugs,

Emoticons

Winter Bird Photos of my Backyard Birds --Part I

A very cold and ICY Mockingbird;  See the ice on his tail?   (Photo taken on 2/16/15)

Off and on the past few months,  I have been taking pictures of my Backyard Birds...AND--I haven't taken time to blog about these birdies yet.   SO---today I will share 10 of my favorite pictures of my sweet little Backyard Birds who visited the Bird Kitchen...

Hope you enjoy the pictures... I have one more bird post to share soon..Be sure to click on the pictures for enlargements...

A Northern Flicker Woodpecker at the suet feeder on one of our rare sunny days;  (Photo taken 3/06/15)

Lots of ICE around ---and MANY BIRDS;  I always feel so sorry for the birds in weather conditions such as this.  (Photo taken on 2/18/15)

Our 'resident' Robin ---who was at the feeders most all winter,  and is still around in spring (even though he can now dig for worms);  I'll bet he thinks he OWNS the Bird Kitchen!!! ha  (Photo taken on 2/18/15);   Our big Rhododendron was damaged by the ICE STORMS.

The male Eastern Bluebird sitting on an icy branch --waiting to get his turn at the mealworm feeder;   (Photo taken on 2/19/15)

I love this little Downy Woodpecker... But---doesn't he look COLD?  (Photo taken on 2/17/15)

Another picture of a PUFFED UP Robin  sitting in the plate feeder;  I think he was there to keep the other birds away!!!!!!  Like I said,  he thinks he is in CHARGE... ha  (Photo taken on 2/17/15)

Another picture of the beautiful  Northern Flicker Woodpecker at the Suet Feeder;  (Photo taken on 2/16/15)

A beautiful male Northern Cardinal sitting on an icy branch;  (Photo taken on 2/1915)

George took this picture of a Sharp-Shinned Hawk --which visited the Bird Kitchen on 1/10/15.  Hawks are beautiful birds --but I am thankful that we don't have many around here.  Most of the time,  our crows chase the hawks away --and warn the little birds when a hawk is nearby.  BUT--I just had to share this picture since he is sitting on the top of our arbor.   Isn't he beautiful?

That is all for today.  I will show you more soon.  I am still so glad that I am able to feed the birds ---especially during the winter.  As you know,  we had a wicked winter this year,  so those little darlings were eating and eating ---trying to keep up their energy I'm sure...

Have a wonderful week/weekend.

Hugs,

Emoticons

Our Ice Storm 2/16/15 (Part 1 of a Weather Week to Remember)

The little cascade behind our home is totally frozen.

On Monday,  Feb. 16, 2015,  we thought we were going to get a very nice snow storm.. However,  that didn't happen... Even though our temperatures were below freezing all day long,  a warm wind aloft came from the south ---and what did we get instead of snow????  We had an ICE STORM.... Yipes!!!!!  The weather people called it everything from ice pellets to freezing rain to sleet.... Whatever it was,  we had almost an inch of ice all over our yard!  Everything glistened and turned white....It was WEIRD...  (Not sure I have ever seen this much ice at one time --at least not here.)

A close-up of the Frozen Cascade behind our home

George,  who doesn't like snow,  said that he'd much rather have a foot of snow than an inch of ice..... We were concerned that we would lose our electricity ---but luckily,  that didn't happen.   We did lose our satellite dish (DirecTV) due to the ice for awhile ---so George had to get the hairdryer out and blow the ice off of the dish....(That worked!!!!)

The Mealworm Feeder... The Bluebirds were able 'somehow' to get into the feeder to eat--but it wasn't easy!

We put our bird feeders out at 7 a.m. before the storm began... I was SO glad I had some food for those sweet little chilled birds... It's so sad to see them (any of the outdoor critters) during weather like this... The poor little birds were at the feeders most all day long... Poor Babies!

Lots of Ice on one of our Redbud Trees

Since we have a lot of trees around our yard,  we were concerned that some limbs would break... Luckily,  other than a few small limbs---we didn't have any damage.

Poor Rhododendron Bush;  Looks SO cold!

But--our wonderful Rhododendron near our deck is struggling and 'bending over'.... Hope the limbs don't totally break... I love that big bush. Many trees and bushes in our area have either broken or are damaged... SAD!

There were Icicles like this ALL around the house.

Close up of one of our icy branches

Our 'resident' Mockingbird stayed at the feeder for a long long time.  I guess --besides eating---he had a little protection under the dome.

SO--what did I do all day on Monday??? WELL---I took pictures and shared them with many friends on Facebook... I did other computer work --such as blogging.  Neither George nor I went outside other than on the deck to put up and then take down the bird feeders. George also worked on the satellite dish from the deck.  I did not go outside ---and decided not to go out at all... All I needed to do was to re-injure that bum knee (which is gradually healing). Yipes!   SO----I was a good girl and took all of my pictures from inside!!!!

That night, we also sat by a warm fire and ate a big bowl of home-made CHILI for dinner....  How's that for my first post from this crazy week,  dealing with this weather????   Guess it could have been MUCH worse though--so we are thankful.

The good news for us is that we truly were lucky---compared to many others in Tennessee (and other areas).  Tennessee was under a state of emergency with lots of trees down,  power lines down and power out for many,  etc....  SO,  even though we were lucky, to tell you the truth,  this was NOT FUN.

ALL of these pictures were taken on Sunday and Monday (Feb. 15 and 16, 2015)...The top two were taken on Sunday --before the storm, when I was outside.    WELL--this is only PART ONE of our "Weather Week to Remember".... I will share more pictures and posts upcoming...  We have had a week of Ice, Sleet,  Freezing Rain,  Snow (yes,  we finally got some snow on Wednesday),  a tiny bit of sunshine,  AND frigid temperatures all week....

AND--the forecasters are predicting another ICE STORM possibility on Friday/Saturday for US... That will be Storm Number Three just this week.  I hope they are WRONG about the ICE....

Hope you are all okay wherever you are.  As bad as this has been for Tennessee,  there are areas around our country/world that are having MUCH WORSE weather than we are having.  Prayers and thoughts for ALL.

Hugs,

Emoticons