Warbler at the Wetlands!

A bird for my "life list"! This is a Prothonotary Warbler.....such a big name for such a pretty little bird! I've never seen one before, but was walking the wetlands and there one was and it really was pretty cooperative in posing! I couldn't wait until tomorrow to post it. Saw other neat stuff, too, but will get to it later :-)

A couple shots I thought were going to be really good, were out of focus....drat! I'm just happy to have gotten these!

Indigos and Red-Wing Blackbirds

The molting Indigo stayed around all day yesterday, but every time he got comfortable at a feeder this Red-wing Blackbird decided to come to the same feeder. It was sort of comical to have them keep switching back and forth. I have 2 Red-Wing blackbirds that are hanging around all day right now. Usually, I don't have them at the feeder except in the coldest of winter.

I've never been able to figure out how to have all of my photos so they can be pulled up larger. With some hints from Bruce, I am trying something different with this post, so we'll see if it works. I don't know why Blogger makes things so difficult. Putting together a post is hard work at times.

Mayapples, moss, and lily of the valley...

If I tire of color, there is plenty of green......

While I was walking around the yard taking pictures of the blooming trees, I also checked on my Mayapples. I have a nice patch of this wildflower growing under the trees along the "creek" a.k.a drainage ditch. They grow together with some violets and a bunch of Surprise Lilies. The Mayapples are just beginning to get their flower buds.

I wish that our creek had water all the time, but being just a drainage ditch in reality it will dry up when the rainy season is over and summer gets here. I saw a cardinal drinking the water, so I know the birds would like it to stay wet all the time, too. This creek runs right behind the ranks of Forsythia bushes where they like to nest and hide.

When we have storms the water really rages in this ditch and has eroded the earth around a lot of the trees roots. I wonder sometimes what keeps them all from crashing down into our yard like the Redbud I posted! I like the way this tree had a hole to look through and it made me think of Alice in Wonderland :-)

I don't know what these plants and mosses are, but I like them. I like the wild green look of the creek area after all the colorful trees in the yard.The Lily of the Valley are beginning to unfurl next to the garage. Their "rolled up" look was interesting :-)

Indigos! More summer visitors!

You are going to get tired of my gushing excitement, but when these colorful out-of-town visitors begin showing up I really want to leap for joy! First the Rose-breasted Grosbeak showed up yesterday.....haven't seen it again yet....and now the Indigo Buntings! They are sooooo blue, they just take my breath away!

There are at least two because one is totally blue and the other one is molting! I won't post any more pics, because I'm still having internet trouble and it shuts down every time I click on "done" when I load a picture! I'm about to tear my hair out over this!

The flowers that bloom in the spring...tra la!

If it wasn't for my dead Dogwood, everything else is so lovely right now! Spring is busting out all over! I have so many violets, I can't get enough of just looking at them! The Redbuds are blooming. I have one that fell over in a storm a few year back and lays in the yard.....but it is still rooted and still blooms! So....of course I leave it there and just mow around it :-) It has so many little clumps of blossoms on the trunk and limbs this year that I was fascinated by how they looked.

Makes it real easy to take pictures, when your tree is horizontal at eye level!

The Crab apples are blooming. I like the white one the best, but also have a pink one.

There is a nice nest up near the top.....don't know who it belongs to, but it's a lovely location....."penthouse with scenic view of pond, newly decorated in pink and green" :-)

My lilacs are beginning to burst open, but my bush is about 8 feet tall, so I have a lot of trouble taking pictures of them! I'm trying to get up the nerve to cut it back to a shorter height. I have two and cut one back last year. when it is blooming again, then I'll cut this one back...maybe.

The Japanese Cherry tree will be blooming and raining pink petals everywhere very soon! Here is one brach with some blossoms already open.

The abundance of blooming bushes and trees almost over-whelms me at this time of year!

I guess the birds are blooming too with the yellow goldfinches everywhere, red cardinals and house finches, robins with their bright breasts, red winged blackbirds stopping by, downys and red-bellied woodpeckers, and assorted titmice, chickadees, nuthatches and sparrows.....but against a GREEN background or flowers instead of snow or mud!

Sunday, our minister was explaining the difference between happiness and joy and right now, I can tell you that I am both happy and filled with joy at the beauty of this Springtime! God is good!