Hummingbirds

This is a female Rufus Hummingbird. The red spot on her throat is clearly visible.

This is a male Rufus Hummingbird. His red throat is irredescent and turns yellow as he moves.

This is a male Rufus Hummingbird. He is about 3.5 inches. He is very friendly.

This year we have put up 3 humming bird feeders. One in the front of the house, which is visible from the laundry room window. And two on the back deck - one visible from our bedroom window and one visible from the living room window. We began to see the little hummers about a month ago and so I put up the first feeder. Well, it was not long before we had lots of hummers and they were very aggressive towards one another. I put up the other two feeders to give them plenty of syrup, which helps with the aggression and fighting. The hummers are very friendly and very curious towards us. When I fill the feeders with fresh syrup, they are so interested and buzz me and check out what I am doing. The other day I had my camera in hand and stood about 2 feet from one of the feeders on the back deck. The lighting was great and I got some AMAZING photos of these beautiful and brilliant little birds.

Elsa on Easter

Miranda sent these photos of Elsa in her Easter dress. It had a crinoline petticoat and she looked like a little princess. I miss her so much. She is so adorable. She just turned one year last week. Looking at the adorable little face, you can see why I miss her so much. They are coming out in Sept. for a visit, but that is still 4 months away. Thank God for digital photography.

Elsa Jane

In March Joe and Miranda went to Hawaii with Miranda's family for a vacation (Christmas gift from Miranda's parents). They had a fun time on the beach, and enjoyed the warm sunny weather compared to cold Toronto. Elsa would not keep a sun bonnet on her head, so they put a scarf on her and she kept that on to protect her little hairless head from the sun. You can see that she clearly loved the water and the boogy board.

I love this photo of Elsa looking at her Daddy with absolute love.

Great family photo

Birds and Babies

We are confirmed 'birders'. We have 3 seed feeders on the south side of the house and love to watch the birds of all varieties come and eat. Some are definitely feeder eaters. Some are ground eaters - eating what the feeder eaters drop. Some are very skittish, some are very aggressive, and most are willing to share the seed. We have a large number of Red Wing Black birds this year for the first time. They love the feeder, but they scare the smaller birds away. And we have seen very few of the lovely American Goldfinch because of the large black bird population. We also have a large number of the Cow birds. They are not particularly pretty and also keep the finches away. We have a lot of the various sparrow varieties. And recently a pair of Grosbeaks have made our orchard their home. We even have a Peregrine Falcon that seems to appear every now and then. Unfortunately, he has killed a sparrow and a Mourning Dove. We have seen the remains under the feeders. Bob even saw him appear out of no where one day and dive bomb a sparrow and poof! No more sparrow. It was lightening fast and brutal. But Falcons eat other birds. One day he sat on our feeder for hours just waiting. There was not a bird in sight for an entire day after that. They may have small brains, but they are not stupid.
This week we have a delightful couple that seems to have made our orchard their home. A pair of Lazuli Buntings. Their coloring is exquisite. They are very skittish and it is almost impossible to get a good picture of them. But I did manage to capture two of them thru the kitchen window. One is at the feeder and one is in a cherry tree next to a female Grosbeak. What a treat!





When our daughter, Jenn, was 2 years old we got her a Playschool fun house for her birthday. It was quite expensive 32 years ago, but we thought it would be a toy that would provide hours of fun and creativity. After she played with it, our son, Joe, also had many years of fun with it. Being the practical person that I am, I decided that I would clean it up and put it away for our Grandchildren one day. So I put it in a big plastic bag and we lugged it with us for four different moves. I know that these toys are rare and if you find them on Ebay, they are very expensive. All the parts were still working and none of the pieces were missing. Well, now that we have Grandkids, I got it out and put it in the Toy Cupboard for Jacob and Abby. They love it! I was able to get this wonderful picture of them playing with it yesterday. One generation passing their fun on to the next generation - 32 years later. Nostalgia and memories fill my heart.

Jacob with his Grandpa

Abby and Grandma

Yesterday was so fun because our Grandchildren, Jacob - 4 and Abby - 2, came over and spent 8 hours at Grandpa and Grandma's house. Jenn and Tim wanted some time alone and we were most anxious to accomodate. Abby is talking so much and you can understand most of what she is saying now. She is absolutely crazy about Grandpa and wants to sit in his lap and look at books all the time. He is naturally willing to spend as much time with her as he can. We both know this window of opportunity is so short. They grow up much too fast. Jacob is such a sweet boy and so polite. He says, "Please, Thank you, Excuse me, etc". He wants to be right with us and is such a social little fella. They both are really funny and keep us laughing. This is a precious time and we are so blessed to be able to spend time with these amazing little people. Thank you, God!

Birthday for Jacob and Abby

Last Saturday, April 18th, was a combined birthday party for Jacob and Abby at Jenn and Tim's home. Bob and I picked up Mom and Dad and took them over for the party. My brother, Paul, and sister, Barb, also came to share the birthday celebration. Jacob is now 4 years old - April 15, 2005. And Abby is going to be 2 on May 1. Jenn made the cutest LadyBug cake and put 2 candles in the head for Abby, and 4 candles in the body for Jacob. They got lots of nice gifts. Jacob was not too thrilled with the quilt that I made him. But Abby loved the quilt that Grandma made and sat in Grandpa's lap with it wrapped around her all afternoon.


Great Uncle Paul and Great Grandpa dueling with party favors.

Great Grandpa and Jacob

Great Grandma and Jacob

Great Grandma and Abby

As I look back over the last 4 years, I wonder where the time went? How did that tiny little baby boy who weighed in at 5 lbs. and was just 17" when Jenn took him home, grow up to be a busy, active 4 year old preschooler? He has a head for numbers and loves to sing. Just like this Grandma. That makes my heart smile.

Spring Time Blossoms

I love living in Oregon in the Spring. Every where you look you see blossoms. Every tree, bulb, bush, and many plants are blooming and the rainbow of colors is amazing! When the cherry orchard is in full bloom, it is a breathtaking sight to behold. The contrast of the white blossoms with the deep blue sky is beautiful. The orchard hums with the sound of hundreds of thousands of honey bees that are pollenating the 490 cherry trees. It is magical.

My friend, Michelle, has a flowering plum tree that is so beautiful and I got some lovely pics of her tree. We have a flowering cherry that is full of pink blossoms also that I plan to get pics of when it is in full bloom.

When I was driving into town the other day I saw a lot of daffodils by the side of the road in a ditch. I wanted to cut a few to take to my Mom. When I got out with to cut the flowers, I had to run back and get my camera because these were the most beautiful daffodils I have ever seen. They were multilayered and ruffled. They were stunning, and just in a ditch. Where did they come from and who originally planted them for all to enjoy.

I continue to marvel at how much God loves color and how creative He is by the variety and beauty of the flowers He created for us to enjoy! Enjoy just a bit of what I see everywhere.

This came from a friend and I thought it was so good that I wanted to post it on my blog. Sometimes I hear things or read things that resonate within my soul, and this sure does. This demonstrates a life lived as a reflection of Jesus, who came to serve and not to be served.

"True service comes from a relationship with the divine Other- the Holy Spirit - deep inside. We serve out of whispered promptings, divine urgings…Self-righteous service is impressed with the “big deal.”…True service finds it almost impossible to distinguish the small from the large service…Self-righteous service requires external rewards. It needs to know that people see and appreciate the effort…True service rests contented in hiddenness. It does not fear the lights and blare of attention, but it does not seek them either…Self-righteous service is highly concerned about results. It eagerly waits to see if the person served will reciprocate in kind. It becomes bitter when the results fall below expectations. True service is free of the need to calculate results. It delights only in the service. It can serve enemies as freely as friends. Self righteous service picks and chooses whom to serve…True service is indiscriminate in its ministry…Self-righteous service is affected by moods and whims. It can serve only when there is a “feeling” to serve (“moved by the Spirit” as we say)…True service ministers simply and faithfully because there is a need…Self-righteous service is temporary…True service is a lifestyle…Self-righteous service is insensitive. It insists on meeting need even when to do so would be destructive. True service can withhold the service as freely as perform it. It can listen with tenderness and patience before acting. It can serve by waiting in silence…Self-righteous service fractures community…True service builds community." Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, (San Francisco: HarperCollins Publishing Company).