Monday, February 22, 2010

A Rainy Birthday in Sycamore Canyon

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Gila Woodpecker eating bark butter 2-22-10

A rainy day always brings the birds out to feed. Before the storm rolls in the hungry birds gather at my feeders. They particularly like this new bark butter feeder I purchased with a gift card from the Wild Birds Unlimited store on East Tangue Verde. I did not even know this store existed here in Tucson until I was given a gift card and looked it up online. Since then I have been back three times. The birds really seem to like this bark butter, which is a combination of suet, ground peanuts and cornmeal. You can spread it directly on the bark of a tree, but I happen to like this little feeder. I have seen woodpeckers, wrens, and finches all feasting form the feeder and my only complaint is that they eat it up so fast! However, on a cold day like today, I know they need this extra fuel to stay warm.

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Gray skies over Mt. Fagan 2-22-10

When I lived in the northeast I would get tired of the gray skies in the winter, but here they are a welcome relief and I am enjoying this stormy winter birthday. It is a perfect time to stay inside and drink a cup of tea from the mug my sister sent to me for my birthday. It was a total surprise when I received it in the mail this weekend, but it is especially significant because of the bird on the mug. My grandmother loved cardinals and my mother has carried on the tradition of using them as a theme in Nana’s house where my mother now lives. I knew my sister liked cardinals also and so I sent both her and my mom kitchen towels and potholders with cardinals on them for Christmas. I kept a set for myself so we could all feel connected so far away. To have her send me this cardinal mug is just one more thread in our family fabric and I am enjoying steamy hot cups of Earl Grey Tea on this cold and blustery day!

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To add to the fun of my birthday, my sweet husband bought me this wonderful birdbath/fountain that I have been coveting ever since I first saw it at the Wild Birds Unlimited Store. Right now it is sitting on my kitchen counter while we decide where it will go, but I am hoping it will be a great attraction for the birds as well as a soothing sound for us when we are outside. Yeah, it’s a fake stump, but I like it!

DSC_0015Lesser Goldfinches in mesquite tree 2-22-10

The lesser goldfinches huddle in the naked branches of my velvet mesquite tree trying to decide if it is safe to drop to the feeders. They appear as bright yellow blossoms against steel colored skies here on this rainy birthday in Sycamore Canyon.

A Note from Kathiesbirds: Come back tomorrow for a My World Tuesday Post about Cienega Creek Preserve. I spent the day with Jeff and Dawn Fine there on Friday and what fun we had. Many thanks to Dawn who taught me how to use Windows Live Writer which should make blogging so much easier for me than before. This is my first attempt at using it. I hope it works!

16 comments:

Dawn Fine said...

Happy Happy Birthday Kathie! I love rainy, overcast days like this..makes me stay inside and get work done..blog reading and such.

So glad you r using live writer..Looks good!
If you need more lessons come on over...
Looking forward to your Cienaga post..my pictures came out strangely pix-elated and i have no clue why.

Again..Have a great day and Birthday..I am hoping a life yard bird comes to say hello!

Kathie Brown said...

Hi Dawn! Thank you! I may need some more help but I am trying to figure a few things out here. Where are you now? A life bird would be great! I haven't seen one since last year!

Dawn Fine said...

hee this is like doing a chat..but via your blog..
We are at a campground south of Gilbert Ray..Desert Trails.
will be here till Thursday..then go back to Catalina for a week.

bobbie said...

Kathie, Happy Birthday! A nice, cozy way to celebrate!

Anonymous said...

Many happy returns Kathie.

Celeste said...

Happy Birthday Kathie I will raise a cup of Earl Grey to you on your special day :)

Ruth said...

Happy Birthday Kathie! I am glad to know there are Americans who enjoy a hot cup of Earl Gray tea! We are preparing to shovel 6 inches of "cold and blustery" out of our driveway. :-)

Tony Adams said...

happy birthday Kathie!!
Tony Adams

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday, Kathie! It sounds like you had a good day.

Carolyn Ford said...

Happy Birthday to you! I am glad you enjoyed your rainy day at home on YOUR day! I really do like desert storms. The cloud formations are like none other at these times. And, I really like that sticky goo for your feeder. That must be quite a treat for them. I just might look that up online myself. Nice post, as always!

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

Happy Brithday to me eBird mentor and friend!

Kathie Brown said...

Dear Everybody,

I have to tell you that I have had one of the Best Birthdays of my life! How nice to see all of you here. I hope to get better at Live Writer which will leave me more time for visiting all of you and then I might even get to FACEBOOK!

Thank you Bobbie, Roy, Celeste, Ruth, Father Tony, Wren, Carolyn Ford, and Lynne!

Tony, what a surprise and delight to see you here!

kayleen said...

Happy birthday Kathie! May you have many more!

Dan Huber said...

Happy birthday; a very nice post... I like the look of that feeder and may get one myself. very nice pictures too.

dan

Birding is Fun! said...

Feliz Cumple!

Gaelyn said...

A Big Happy Birthday Hug your way Kathie!!!

Love the cardinal mug and the connections. Plus the bird bath/fountain is very cool. So what it's a fake stump.

I just started using Live Writer on the Netbook and it works like a dream. Your post looks great.