Friends of St. Francis

Yes, more of my feathered friends.

Plum Perfect

 Who knew that the unattractive plums would be so beautiful!

Guess what? More birds.

Serene Scene

With all the brown in our yard I was pleased to see the sun shine on the hazelnut shells to create a pleasant scene.

More Birds

The birds seem to like the peanut suet. Unfortunately the bigger birds like it as well. Flickers, pileated and a smaller woodpecker all showed up this morning.  There was an unusual amount of flickers. Joe sat outside trying to get a few photos. He said another hawk grabbed a smaller bird in the yard and flew off with it.

Hawk Attack

I was trying to get a photo of a new bird when a hawk grabbed the smaller bird and brought it to the driveway.
When I counted birds for the State I never such  action.
I opened the kitchen door but the hawk took off with the little bird
Photo of hawk is blurry. I can't tell what species of bird was attacked.

The rascals are back.

If only I could've taken a photo of the three fawns fighting for a spot in the nursing rotation. I've seen them nursing before but this was amazing. The poor doe was pushed from all sides while the three fought for a drop of milk. She actually lost her balance for a moment.
They had already been to the fig tree where mom helped herself to a few leaves, then to the grapes where they all ate a few. It is not like they were starving kids.
I watched from the bedroom window but too late to get a shot as they moved along the house out of sight.

Yum!

This cake was introduced to me by Liz. She made it for a birthday. It is delicious.
I prepared one yesterday for Treats at St. James. It is in the freezer. All that is left is the glaze of melted jelly that goes on top.

Variety is the spice of life.

The words of that song describe the activity in our yard. Since first spotting the pileated woodpecker we have had three other varieties of woodpeckers. One was a downy, the identity of the others is not clear. I looked in all my bird books without  success.
The pileated returned this morning and stayed long enough to be part of my photo shoot.
Time to rewash the kitchen window!

Block Party

            How many do you see?

More photos of picnic

   Kristen helping out June.

Picnic

             My first cousins Betty and Arlene visiting June and Roger. June and Betty knew each other since grade School.   The dog will be visiting Kenney Home as soon as it is fully trained. What a great dog.

     John MacKenzie     Michele Pham  and delicious food. Thanks to our great family and friends.

           Look at all the delicious salads. Also Michele, Chinh  and Mike Mackenzie

 Sergiu , Svetlana ,  Steve MacKenzie and Danny Minardo

                 My favorite twins. Sami and Alex MacKenzie...Sami is headed for San Diego State, Alex will be going to Gonzaga.

                       Our  Grandson Dylan

 

 

Pileated Woodpecker

Interesting!      The pileated woodpecker stayed long enough for a couple of photos but was chased away by a flicker.