Goldfinches and More!!!!

Since the Pine Siskins didn't visit us this winter and take over the feeders,  we have had more and more GOLDFINCHES.  I've enjoyed watching the males as their yellow colors are getting prettier and prettier.

Good Morning Friends and Family.   Happy APRIL to you!!!!!  April and May are always such exciting months for us here in Tennessee  since we get leaves on the big trees,  more and more flowering shrubs  and Trees  (Red Bud,  Azaleas, Dogwoods),   beautiful flowers (Irises, Roses,  Day Lilies,  Lilies,  etc.),  and GREEN GREEN GRASS.

As I write this on Sunday, 3/31,  we are expecting a HUGE FREEZE tonight.   Right now,  our Tulips and Daffodils are putting on a show in our yard...  I'm afraid that there will be damage to them after tonight, plus damage to some of the other new spring growth on our roses, etc.....  It's SO sad --but Mother Nature seems to do this to us almost every year the first of April...  Grrrrrrrr.

Today's post is not about the pretty flowers or the freeze --but is about some of our SPRING BIRDS... When the weather begins to warm up,   the male birds sing their Spring Mating Songs and put on their pretty colors in order to attract that special female...   Our Bluebirds started their mating season early --so they are busy busy busy right now going in and our of the nest box...

Many of you (who have followed me for years) know about my BIRD KITCHEN on our deck.  I have a variety of options for the many backyard birds in my area.  I have suet for the woodpeckers; black-sunflower seeds for most birds;  Nyjer/thistle seed for the finches,; fruit and nuts for the Cardinals and most all birds;  peanuts in the shell for the Blue Jays and Nuthatches;  and  mealworms for the Bluebirds...

My Bird Kitchen:  top left (Mealworms);  Suet Feeder (in middle);  Big Red Roofed House (sunflower seeds);  Plate (Fruit and Nuts, Peanuts, Sunflower seeds)- Bird's favorite feeder!;  Domed feeder above the plate--Fruit and Nuts;   Finch Feeder/Nyjer (on right);  and out of view top right is another feeder for sunflower seeds;

It is so much fun to sit inside and watch the birds as they go back and forth to and from the feeders.   Recently,  I was amused at one of my Blue Jays.  He came to the feeder to get a peanut...  WELL--I guess he is a 'picky' Jay --since he would pick one peanut up,  then drop it,  pick up another one, drop it, etc....  He finally chose just the PERFECT peanut and happily flew away with it....   ha ha... Oh the joys I have from feeding our little birds!!!!

BLUE JAY searching for that special Peanut!!!

He found it!!!!!

Such a pretty  Goldfinch 

Not a great picture --but this Pileated Woodpecker is enjoying some  Suet... Look how big he is!!!!!

Mama Bluebird taking a break from "nest-duty"

Purple Finch --getting his 'reds' (We don't have too many Purple Finches here --so it was exciting to see this one and capture a picture.)

Another Purple Finch below the one in the Plate --eating some Sunflower Seeds

Daddy Bluebird grabbed a nut in the plate!!!!  NOTE:  My Bluebirds are getting PICKY --like the Blue Jays!!!   Walmart ran out of the mealworms I usually buy --so I had to buy a combo package with mealworms and a couple of other things mixed...  Guess what?  The Bluebirds wouldn't touch the new mealworms.  I finally went to Amazon and ordered some...  The Blues are happy with my new purchase!!!!!

I had a hard time deciding what birds these two were...  With some help from friends,  I decided that they are Female Cowbirds... Since they look so much like Bluebirds with different colors,   I wonder if these are two Cowbirds which my Bluebirds raised last year.   Cowbirds are known to deposit their eggs in other birds' houses...Our Bluebirds are nice --in that they will help raise little Cowbirds... Just wondering!!!!!

One more picture of the Cowbirds ---enjoying their breakfast  (all over their faces)... ha

Oh How I LOVE LOVE LOVE our beautiful Eastern Bluebirds!!

I started with the pretty Goldfinch --so will end with them also!!!!   

Happy Birding my Friends!!!!  Have a great week and an awesome Spring!!!!

Hugs,

Emoticons

SPRING has SPRUNG in TENNESSEE (maybe)

Some of the different varieties of Daffodils growing in our yard this year (3/18/19);   The cold, freezing weather  sends the blooms to the ground --so George picks them and I put them in a vase and enjoy them inside....  Works WELL!!!

Hello Friends and Family!   Welcome to a little Spring here in Tennessee  (WELL--so far!!! ha).    As many of you know,  I LOVE weather statistics and following the weather.  This past Fall and Winter  were totally CRAZY here.   We had a very late Fall with warm weather staying until November.

When we finally did get some colder weather,  the leaves turned and we did have a few days of pretty Fall Color here in November (VERY FEW)..   That caused us to be outside raking and blowing leaves  through Thanksgiving and Christmas!!!!!   We finally got some professional help getting the bulk of our leaves up--but that was in January!!!   NUTTY!

After such a weird Fall,   we kept wondering what our Winter would look like.   Guess what?  It was equally as crazy as Fall had been.  We had   NO SNOW at all (other than one teeny morning snow in December which disappeared in an hour) --and having no snow was a 'first' and a huge disappointment to a snow-lover like me, since we moved here in 2003....   SAD!

What we did get were warm temperatures and an over-abundance of RAIN and Flooding (all over East TN) in  January and February.  Luckily,  we live 2000 feet UP in elevation here on the Cumberland Plateau, so no flooding here.  BUT--it was sad to watch so many areas in Tennessee having HORRIBLE flooding and so much damage.

The poor Spring Flowers had no idea what was going on  --so they started coming up EARLY,  especially the Daffodils.    When March got here,   we finally did get some COLD weather.   It was not horribly cold the first 3 weeks of March --but cold enough (below freezing) to kill many of our pretty Daffodils this year....  That was a first for us too since we moved here and planted Daffodils.   They are usually very hardy flowers --but  couldn't get through our COLD MARCH without damage.

I heard last night that MARCH has been a colder month than FEBRUARY.....   It's no wonder our poor flowers don't know what to do!!!!!   As the old saying goes:  "Welcome to Tennessee.  IF you don't like the weather one day,  just wait --and it will change quickly"!!!!!! ha ha

NOW---back to Spring!!!!!!   Throughout the past month --we have been watching our flowers grow --and taking pictures throughout the month!   SO---believe it or not,  I do have some pretty pictures to share today thanks to the perseverance of these early spring beauties... I hope you enjoy them!!!!

Pretty Little  CROCUSES  (2/27/19);  These are usually the first to bloom--but the Daffodils beat them this year.

The first groups of Spring Flowers to bloom  EARLY this year were some of the DAFFODILS.   They were so pretty until the March Freezing Weather zapped them...  (2/17/19)

HYACINTHS  (3/12/19);   The cold March weather hurt our Hyacinths a lot this year --but I managed to get this one picture of this little patch. 

I love this little batch of CROCUSES  (3/12/19) 

First Tulip bloomed on 3/17/19

The little Tulip Bed (3/20/19);   NOTE:  There WERE some new Daffodils on either side of the Tulips  --but the freezing temperatures killed them this year!   You can see some of the older Daffodils in the bed above --that are now on the ground due to damage from the recent freezes.

A picture of the entire bed (3/20/19);   In the Summer,  this is our Rose and Day Lily and Iris bed --but in the Spring,  it is our Daffodil and Tulip Bed!!!!

Beautiful Red Tulip  (3/20/19)

Three little Tulips ---all in a row!!!!!!  (3/23/19)

Little Daffodils  3/20/19;   We always call these little guys "Dad Adams"  Daffodils since George's Daddy gave them to us many years ago.

A close-up of one of the different varieties of Daffodils we have  (3/20/19)

Another variety of Daffodils in our yard  (3/20/19)

Periwinkle is one of our Ground Covers.   In Spring we enjoy their pretty little blue flowers.  (3/20/19)

Anyone want some pretty PINK Tulips?????  This little bed through the years has given us some pretty flowers  (pansies,  petunias, vinca,  etc.).. Picture taken 3/23/19;

One of our newest set of Tulips (3/23/19);  Love the colors!!!

Another view of this pretty Tulip  (3/23/19)

Here's one more view of the Tulip Bed  (3/23/19)

WELL--compared with most years,  on this date, March 25,  Early Spring has been very different. BUT---after the crazy Fall and Winter ---we're happy just to have any spring much at all so far....  IF we can now get some warmer weather in April,  maybe everything will start to 'green' up a bit and the big trees will get some leaves on them!!!!!!!

Hope you are having a good March---and hopefully there will be a better April for  all of us.

Hugs,

Emoticons