I Heard A Bird Sing

I love this little poem.
The words are just as true in January as December.

I heard a bird sing

In the dark of December.

A magical thing

And sweet to remember.

"We are nearer to Spring

Than we were in September,"

I heard a bird sing

In the dark of December.

–Oliver Herford (1863–1935)

The robins, cardinals, jays, doves and sparrows have been busy singing.
Thanking me for putting extra food out for them on these cold days.

I thought the cold winter days could use a little cheer.
Cassie helping me with this little still life,
Yellow is such a happy color!

Meanwhile, my tree is still up.
It's hard to take it down.
It's so pretty and twinkly -- everyone needs more twinkly!

The snowmen will have a place of honor throughout the month of January.
It is winter -- even on the Gulf Coast.

Wishing YOU well and much joy in this new year!

Make It Pretty Monday

Keep In Touch

Share Your Cup Thursday

Willy Nilly Friday

SaveSave
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The best cure for boredom is crayons!

From the Fortune Cookie Journal
"The Best Cure for Boredom is Crayons"

Today is National Crayon day!
Crayola has announced that one of their colors is going to be retired!

In the spirit of crayons and art ---
Liberate Your Art 2017 is underway.
I received my first postcard last week --
all the way from Ireland -- Connemara Cottage, an acrylic painting.
The artist is Jacinta Moore.
You can find more of her artwork and photos here.

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It's been busy around here.

Spring cleaning outside.

The last of the freeze damaged plants are gone.

I found some very old flower and veggie seeds 

that I've "thrown" out into the bare garden spots.

If they come up -- great -- if not -- that's okay, too.

The pond/water garden has been cleaned.

All the water out, the fish out, the plants out.

Power wash and then everything back in.

Two pretty, new water lilies.
One pink and one purple.

Some fun floating grass for the fish to play in.
Now I'm waiting for the fish to spawn.

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The balcony is ready for spring and Easter.
The Gerbera Daisy and geranium are blooming.

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A  very handsome visitor stopped by.

At least once a year there is a hawk in the backyard.
They know I feed the birds in the morning.
No critters were harmed during his visit.

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I've been busy weaving in the ends on the Cottage Charm lapghan
and trying to decide what I might like to tackle next.
I have yarn for more shawls.
Never too early to make Christmas/Birthday presents.
Be prepared!

These are also calling:

I enjoyed the Cottage Charm lapghan.
I found another pattern with similar flowers.
Or
Some cute potholders.
Both projects should be good stash busters!

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

Five On Friday

Willy Nilly Friday

Mosaic Monday

Monday Social

Craft On

SunLit Sunday

It's that time again.
Time to bring a little Sunlight into our lives during the dark days of winter.
I'm joining Karen for the first SunLit Sunday for 2016.

I see Daddy Cardinal more often than I see Mom.
His color is so striking against the green fan palm.
All my bird friends seem to be enjoying the new garden.
No one has fallen into the water garden since their own bird bath was added.

Little Robin and his Robin buddies come by -- not necessarily to eat,
but to take a bath.
Where did I put those tiny towels??!!!!!!
No matter how many pix I took of this little fella,
he was always standing on one leg. 

Happy Sweet '16.

Wishing YOU well and much joy in the new year. 

Thanks, Karen!

Walking Down The Street

I try to walk every morning just before sunrise ...

before it gets too hot and humid.

I was on the home stretch ...

just a few houses from mine ...

when I stopped ...

I wasn't the only one out walking.
I was on the sidewalk

and he was walking down the middle of the street.

Yellow Crowned Night Herons roost in oak trees 
on the Rice University campus and surrounding neighborhoods.
This was the first time for me to see one of these beauties
in my area.

I zipped home quickly, grabbed the camera 
and walked back down the street.
Would he still be around?

 Yep!




I told him he shouldn't be in the street ...
Folks would be leaving for work soon ...






I'm hoping he'll come by and visit again one morning.

Wishing YOU well and much joy!


Thank you to the hosts of:

Mosaic Monday.

When The Red Red Robin

On the first day that the sun made it's reappearance,
after 8 days hiding away in the clouds,
this fellow appeared at the bird bath.
I think he was as happy as I was about the sun's return.

"My favorite weather is bird chirping weather."

~Loire Hartwould

Animal Sprit Guide

The Robin

If a Robin shows up, it means:

it’s time to let go of anything in your life that’s outmoded and stagnant and plant the seeds for the new by setting your goals and intentions for the coming year. 

Let go of your attachments to drama and allow as much joy and laughter into your life as you possibly can. 

Your spiritual path is steady and slow, with challenges along the way, yet it inevitably leads you to your achieving your spiritual ideas. 

You have a beautiful song inside you, so do whatever it takes to share it with the world. Expect new growth in a number of areas in your world. 

Make a wish, be patient, and watch how it comes true.

From the Handbook: Animal Spirit Guides by Steven D. Farmer

Thanks, Kim!

Thanks to Karen for hosting Sun Lit Sunday.

Wishing YOU well, much joy, and beautiful songs.

Chilean Flamingos

Today I'm taking you to the Houston Zoo and the newly refurbished
Chilean Flamingo Habitat.

The Chilean Flamingo pool and waterfall opened in 1926 and it became
the centerpiece of what was then the Zoo's main entrance.
At the time, the exhibit and pool design were state-of-the-art for zoo exhibits.
Failing infrastructure of the pool, new innovations in avian husbandry
and a desire to enhance guest viewing of the flamingos prompted the recent decision
to perform a complete renovation of the area.

The updated space features a 20,000 gallon filtered pool, 

a separate feeding pool,

new animal holding facilities,

and lush new vegetation. 

The renovated habitat also includes a large nesting island that

will allow the Zoo's flock of flamingos to grow into the future.

The original exhibit concrete decorative work was designed and built by

Mexican-American artist Dionicio Rodriguez.

Mr. Rodriguez specialized in "faux bois" artwork, which is the use of cement to create

the look of wood.

During the renovation of the Zoo's flamingo exhibit, 

the artificial trees that were designed and built by Mr. Rodriguez have been cleaned and repaired.

I hope you enjoyed this visit to the Chilean Flamingos at the Houston Zoo.

Detailed information about the Flamingo exhibit provided by WILDLIFE published by the Houston Zoo.

Thank you to Misty for hosting

and to Mary for Mosaic Monday.

Thanks for stopping by.

Wishing YOU well and much joy.

This and That

It's Friday!

Time to reflect on the week ... or not! 

Thank you Nancy for hosting.

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Hard to believe that the merry month of May is at an end.

Tomorrow June starts and so does ICAD -- or Index Card a Day.

ICAD is Tammy's wonderful idea.

"Buy a pack of index cards.

Cheap ones.

Draw, doodle, write, collage, paint, haiku, stamp -- whatever.

One index card each day -- June and July.

61 days = 61 cards."

I played last year starting on June 1 and made it all the way through.

The year before I didn't start until July 1.

It is fun -- you can start at any time.

No pressure.

Fun Facebook and Flickr groups too.

You can find out all the details on Tammy's Daisy Yellow Blog.

ICAD from July 2011


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My Rice University Owl baseball team won the Conference USA tournament
and the automatic bid to the NCAA baseball tournament.
They are off to Eugene Oregon to the regional playoffs.
They start play today.
Good luck!

***

This is birthday week.
Lovely lunches with family and friends.
Today a trip to the Natural History Museum to see the newly opened, remodeled, Egypt galleries.

****

You are going to get tired of me saying it is hot and humid, but it is!
I try to get my outside garden work done early and my away from home errands done by 10 am
spending the rest of the day with the kitties, books, crafty stuff and lots of iced tea.

*****

This little guy came by this morning to try out the buffet.
When we lived on Galveston Island we saw the little Inca Dove almost every day.
In the big city, I don't see them often, but always smile when I do.
Such a cutie!

Thanks for stopping in.

Don't forget my Blog-o-Birthday celebration!

Have a lovely weekend.

Wishing YOU well and much joy.

Cocktails With An Owl

The Houston Zoo had a cocktail party to celebrate the reopening of the

Sea Lion exhibit -- a new pool, covered areas for the public, new paint job.

When the zoo celebrates they bring out their Ambassadors and one of them is

this beautiful, female Great Horned Owl.

It was a fun evening.

Thank you to Misty for hosting Camera Critters each week.

Wishing YOU well and a joy filled weekend.

The Great White

The Great Egret (Ardea alba), 

also known as Great White Egret, 

Common Egret, or Great White Heron.

 Photographed in the Japanese Garden, Hermann Park, Houston.

I'm joining Misty for Camera Critters.

Wishing you WELL, JOY and a CRITTER filled weekend!

Yes, They Do Whistle!

One of the joys of walking in Hermann Park is watching the ducks,

especially my favorites, the Black Bellied Whistling Ducks.

They are so un-ducklike!

They have long legs.

And, they whistle.

Really.

They are so much fun to listen to ... especially when they are eating.

They make me smile and it's hard to beat a smile!

This fella took off just as I clicked.

I'm joining Misty for Camera Critters

And Mary for Mosaic Monday.

Wishing YOU WELL and JOY!

Pygmy Falcon

The elephants weren't the only critters I visited with during

Pancakes with the Pachyderms at the Houston Zoo.

 

This is the African Pygmy Falcon ... the smallest raptor in Africa.

What a cutie!

Very photogenic and patient with everyone who came up to see her.

But, she did get fluffed up when the sparrows started to

bug her. Sort of: "Ha, Ha ... you can't get me!" 

Many thanks to Misty for being our hostess for Camera Critters. 

Wishing YOU well and a JOY filled weekend.

Healing After Loss

Mockingbird in the Japanese Garden



"You cannot prevent the bird of sorrow from flying over your head,
but you can prevent it from nesting in your hair."
~Chinese proverb

It's a Bird!

BGD (Beautiful God Daughter) and I visited the zoo on one of the last

days of truly nice weather ... not much heat and very little humidity.

Days like that are few and far between this time of year.

We got to the zoo when the gates opened at 9:30 AM.

Had lunch at Twiga in the African Forest.

Walked and walked and walked

(and I had been to the gym that morning).

We visited with this fellow.

Amazing, isn't he?!!!!

Shoebill at the Houston Zoo

 

The Shoebill is named for its clog-shaped bill, which is an adaptation for catching and holding the large, slippery lungfish, its favorite food. This big bird (standing about 3.8 feet tall) also eats turtles, fish and young crocodiles. 

They are entirely gray, with broad wings and long legs. The head is large in proportion to the body and the eyes are large.

The Shoebill is a solitary species, rarely found in groups. 

Other common names for Shoebills include Shoe-billed Stork, Whale-headed Stork, Bog Bird.Though most consider it as a stork, the Shoebill's antecedents are unclear, and no relatives are known. Shoebills have their own family, Balaenicipitidae. Although they share some characteristics of storks, they are more like the herons in many of their behaviors and physiological features, yet also share common characteristics with pelicans. The population of Shoebills is thought to number 5,000-8,000 but is difficult to estimate given the swampy/marshy habitat in the Sudan, Africa. 

The Houston Zoo is well known in zoo circles for its bird collection.

Misty is our hostess each week for Camera Critters.

Enjoy your holiday weekend!

Wishing you well.