The rental property

We added a small garden outside the kitchen window in the fall, planting bulbs which all came up. We also put in the birdhouse my son made at school. For Christmas, I asked for a birdfeeder. I got it, and Mr. MarthaAndMe hung it from the big tree. We have had hours and hours of enjoyment from this little community we’ve built. A pair of little birds have moved into the birdhouse and for about a week, we watched them bringing nest materials into it. It was amusing to see Daddy Bird (or so we assumed) trying to stuff in a stick that was way too big. Mommy Bird would come out and yell at him and he would try again.

The diner

The birdfeeder is an endless source of amusement. It hangs on a long wire from the tree, pretty far down from the nearest branch. This did not stop Mr. Squirrel Wallenda from attempting to get to it. First he would stand on the branch above it, looking down. Then he would go up the trunk and lean out with his front paws to try to reach it. One Sunday morning he started jumping from the branch above. It took about 10 tries but he finally landed on the feeder and stuffed himself. Then he stopped for a while and a week or so ago was back at it. One time he was clinging to the feeder with a front and back leg on the top rung and a front and back leg on the bottom rung. Other times he has dangled by two feet. He lands on his feet on the ground every time.

We’ve had lots of cardinals and blue jays at the feeder. There is a family of chipmunks we clean up the spilled seed from the ground underneath, and believe me, there is plenty. The birds come and simply shower seeds down on the ground, apparently rejecting about 50% of the seeds in the feeder. We also have 2 big black crows who come through and eat off the ground, scaring everyone away.

In the mornings when we are eating breakfast, I feel like I’m watching a little neighborhood, with our rental house (birdhouse), diner (birdfeeder), and picnic area (seeds on the ground). There is always something to see and it’s given me such great pleasure to observe it all.