“Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,”
Psalm 33:18 ESV
I hope your week is off to a wonderful beginning, whether you have big plans, a routine work week, appointments, or nothing in particular on the schedule. Pleasant moments can often be experienced by something as simple as a walk through the pasture, observing the surroundings from a different perspective. Everyday living doesn’t have to be complicated to be fun and rewarding!
The poppies in the wildflower garden are quite delicate and look almost like silk. They remind us of crepe paper too, but they are real!
For several weeks mockingbirds would attack me when I came near the snowball viburnums while mowing. I found things a bit more peaceful last week upon discovering the mockingbird couple are now empty nesters!
About 30 yards away in the knock out roses the scene was quite different. These little cardinals have been very noisy. With all the space and places that seem suitable and safe for raising their young, it is puzzling why the adults choose certain spots to build nests. This nest is only a few feet from our kitchen door. I noticed all was quiet Saturday…and a closer peek revealed the cardinals are now empty nesters also!!!
I finally had an opportunity to hike along the creek and check on the oak leaf hydrangeas. Many of them are not fully bloomed out yet, but those that are near the woods edge where they receive more light seem to be ahead of plants found in more shaded areas.
Pam and I were wanting fresh strawberries so we called on a crew of pickers to supply us from a nearby farm. EK tried to instruct WL on the proper way to harvest, but he insisted on eating every other berry.
It does take longer to pick a gallon when you eat quite a few along the way, but the delightful pickers did finally bring PJ and me a full rounded basket. Which do you suppose were the sweetest, the berries or the workers?
After a surprise sighting several weeks back, Mr. Fox E. Squirrel has become a regular visitor to the front yard.
I am still following the growth and progress of the now, 6 foot tall, “nodding thistle” that I mentioned last week.
All the blooms turn 90 degrees or more from the stem as if nodding, hence the name. I noticed every bloom on this plant nods toward the east and remains that way. Perhaps they wish to be greeted by the sunrise?
P J walked by and discovered that I am not the only one finding an old weed interesting. It’s nice that a bee and a swallowtail butterfly have learned to share!
While on the subject of nests this week, I wanted to show everyone this discovery. Seth found a turkey nest in an overgrown area behind the barn. Turkeys nest on the ground in what is hopefully a protected spot. The hen will not incubate the eggs until all the eggs are laid and she will only lay one egg per day until she is finished. The average is 12 eggs, so maybe this hen has almost completed her first task and incubation will soon begin. We will stay clear of the area so as not to disturb.
About 100 yards away from the turkey nest, this old gobbler decided he would use the same two track that is used often by a local grandmother on her speedy golf cart. Possibly he just wants to keep an eye on the nesting hen? Maybe the two are close friends!
I found this old hollow log near the creek. It was adorned very nicely with what I call fungi ornaments. Not having a flashlight handy, I could not see what might be hiding inside, so I moved on!
The 2 smallest woodpeckers that we see in Alabama are the downy woodpecker and the hairy woodpecker. We rarely encounter these smaller birds, and for me, identification is a challenge. The downy is the smallest and has a short bill. I believe this is a hairy woodpecker based on its size and the length of its bill. This was one of a pair that visited the yard last week.
We were blessed to have an opportunity to dine at Bottega last week. A Mother’s Day meal a couple of days after the fact, but since they are closed on Sunday, we adjust. Pam loves tiramisu!
The golf cart trail has other features besides turkeys and a traveling grandmother with a load of grands. Oxeye daisies!
Where I did find oak leaf hydrangeas in bloom, they were about 1/2 complete…but I personally enjoy the contrast that the combination of white petals and bright green buds bring to the mix. Variety!
I pray my gaze into the heavenlies never leaves me unmoved!
Thanks for stopping by. Have a blessed and peaceful week.
”Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever”.
Hebrews 13:8
Linking with:
Pieced Pastimes, Between Naps on the Porch, Katherines Corner, Follow The Yellow Brick Home,
Imparting Grace,Life and Linda
Good morning Butch. The whole earth is waking up and as God would have it the birds are doing their share. I didn’t know that the Turkey usually lays about a dozen eggs and then doesn’t set on them until she’s finished laying. Poor little unsafe eggs. I’m looking forward to knowing how many hatch.
We don’t have pick yourself strawberry fields here. I miss that and I could almost smell them in the grands bucket. Your grands are the picture of love. Oh to have lived so close to them. Those thistles look pretty but are so invasive. What we are dealing with are dandelions as our neighbors won’t mow their yards until they have bloomed and now our yard is beginning to look like theirs. I saw only one bee last year and none this Sprung. Frightening. Have the must blessed week!
Thank you, Alice for your lovely comments. I am so sorry about the dandelions! Have a great week!
Pam and Butch
So many new creatures today! I’d love to host a cardinal nest anywhere among my plants (mockingbirds, no!), but mourning doves found my copper gutter to be their choice real estate this year. I will definitely be raising the rent to make it cost prohibitive for their return! EK & WL did a great job, and I love seeing the thistles. I’ve never a squirrel like that, so varied in color!
Have a great new week. We’re having another cool morning in the high 40s today. What an extended spring, great for new plants and grass I’ve been working on!
Mockingbirds are aggressive, and they frighten me. Enjoy your extended spring, Rita!
Pam
Beautiful flowers, and those strawberries look delicious! You can tell the downy and hairy woodpeckers apart by looking at the back of the head. The hairy has a black vertical line bisecting the red patch down the middle. The downy woodpecker’s red patch is solid red across the back. The females don’t have the red, but the hairy ones have the black vertical bar as well.
Thanks so much for all of the valuable info, Carole!
Pam
Those poppies are fabulous. Seeing your garden helpers reminds me of being a kid at my grandparents’ farm, picking berries (or whatever else was in season!) It’s a lot easier when your legs are lower to the ground!
Yes, Jeanie being lower to the ground is definitely easier!
Pam
Oh, those poppies! I love your cute strawberry pickers, and I would love to buzz around in a golf cart! The turkey is fabulous, and so interesting about the turkey hen laying 12 eggs before incubating them. So many beautiful flowers and natural growth provided by Mother Nature! Enjoy this beautiful Sunday!
Jenna
Thank you, Jenna. Have a beautiful week!
Pam
Wow! I learned so much today about birds, fox squirrels, and thistles! You are a wealth of information and I so enjoy learning about God’s creations. I am constantly amazed by God’s varieties and creatativeness.❤️
Thank you, Nancy ♥️ Have a wonderful week.
Pam
Fox squirrels are so colorful and you don’t see them very often. I love seeing all the new baby birds, squirrels, etc. The animals have a hard time raising there young. So many predators to be wary of and the storms, etc. That log was so interesting. The poppies do look so delicate. Freshly picked strawberries can’t be beat. I made a fresh strawberry pie yesterday. I remember as a kid, going to Shoney’s and getting a pie. That was such a treat. The children looked like they were having fun in the field. Loved all the pics! We’re getting a reprieve from the heat and were able to eat supper alfresco Saturday. It was wonderful! Another day of cooler weather and then back in the heat. Enjoy your day. Clara❤️
Clara, a strawberry pie sounds delicious. I remember the strawberry pie and hot fudge cake at Shoney’s. ♥️
Pam
What a Sabbath feast of beauty and wisdom……oh the poppies, imagining the
flights from the emptied nests, jubilating with the little ones over their strawberry
harvest, mesmerized by the fungi growth, pausing to listen to the music of the creek. giving a wave hello to tom turkey, being transfixed by the wonder of that sky …. just gathering it all up into heart’s memory…what a blessing. Merci…In your
particular garden paradise, God is in His Heaven and all is right with the world.
Amen, Mary! Thank you for your sweet visits!
Pam
Super post! I showed the turkey eggs to my husband. And I can sympathize with the Mockingbird attacks. They frighten me! All is beautiful in your world. Children included. Happy Sunday to you.
Thank you, Leslie Anne. With all those turkey eggs, it is no wonder that we constantly have turkeys in the pasture! Happy Week!
Pam
The thistle favors an allium bulb.
Love seeing and hearing about the turkey eggs.
All the plants are pretty and interesting.
I agree with Butch about never being unmoved by the wonderful wonders each sunrise and sunset displays.
Strawberry picking sounds like fun.
That tiramisu is calling my name. Looks fabulous.
Hi Bonnie, thanks so much!
Pam
Butch you have such an artistic eye and sweet way of describing all of God’s creations for us all!! Now we are a year in The Villages, we miss Alabama nature & mountains & hills. As we went up last week for one grandson’s high school graduation from Alabama, I told my husband I hadn’t fealuzed how homesick I was for the grandeur of the hills & valleys❤️😍Thank you for keeping us abreast of your sweet mountaintop🤩🤩Loved seeing your sweet grands picking strawberries😀😉Such delicious memories being made by all💗
Thank you, Penny. I think of you often living down in Florida. I am sure you miss the mountains and hills. I am no longer on Facebook, so I am so happy to see you here. Take care 💕
Good afternoon and thank you for the lovely stroll. I enjoyed seeing the littles. How sweet they are!
I never saw a turkey nest full of eggs! Wow!
The thistles are gorgeous!💜
Enjoy the strawberries! Are we having shortcake?
Thank you, Nancy. The strawberries are so good, maybe shortcake!
Those strawberries look delicious. EK and Will are the cutest pickers. Adorable. Love seeing the Turkey Squirrels are too destructive. We have very bad memories of squirrels. Love the birds. Have a great day.
Marilyn,Joan and Marion
Thank you, dear friends! The strawberries are delicious! Happy week Marilyn, Joan, and Marion!
Nature at its best! And those ‘strawberry pickers’ are the best of cuteness!
Thanks so much, Mary!
Pam the nature around you and Butch is absolutely beautiful. God’s creations right in your sight on your property. We just had a Robin hatch her beautiful blue eggs into 4 babies and they just flew the nest this weekend. The nest or condo I have been calling it was a work of art. Just fun to watch them go through making the nest, laying eggs and then feeding and caring for the babies and then teaching them to fly. Nature can be so beautiful. Have a great week. Hugs. Kris
PS: Pam I do not have your email so when you leave a comment on my posts I would thank you but I have not way to do that. So I will say it here. Thank you always for your sweet and kind visits to my blog.
You are so sweet, Kris! Nature is so beautiful and interesting to observe. Have a great week!
Butch, I am fascinated by that fox squirrel, having never seen one! Isn’t wonderful seeing all the new birds hatch? I think I’ve eaten my weight in strawberries again this year. Saw the comments above about Shoney’s…strawberry pie was my daddy’s favorite and I always went for the hot fudge cake. I had tiramisu tonight too…from Costco, not quite the same ambience as yours. Hoping your week is full of sunshine and new wonders.
The fox squirrel is quite unique, Roxanne. Wishing you a wonderful week!
Pam
From your opening words to the beautiful sunset, this post was so inspiring and beautiful. As my friend would say, there is nothing more wonderful than an ordinary day. The poppies, the nesting birds, the empty nesters and that fox squirrel. I have never seen one. My favorite, however, is the strawberry pickers. Wyatt has the right idea. Your everyday living sure sounds wonderful to me.
Thank you for your sweet comments, Dianne! Happy Monday!
I always look forward to these posts – so much ordinary yet so much beauty at the same time. The poppies are gorgeous and the creek looks so pretty. I’ve never seen a fox squirrel before so this is a first. The grands are precious – who can blame WL for eating the strawberries – they look delicious! Wishing you both a lovely week ahead!
Thank you, Kim. I hope your week is going well!
Pam
“I pray my gaze into the heavenlies never leaves me unmoved!” Amen, and amen!
Amen!
Amazing and precious post. Thank you for your encouragement. God is good. Blessings.
Thank you sweet friend!
Pam
What fun to see all the beauties of nature you shared with us!
Thank you, Jerralea!
Pam