For the birds

Yesterday morning I was sitting at the computer, still in my PJ's, drinking coffee and checking my email when I heard a tap-tap-tap. I turned around and there on the window sill was a bright red cardinal tapping his beak against the glass. A female was resting in the bush nearby and I took his tapping to say "Hi there. My lady friend and I are really hungry. Got any seeds?" Being the nature lover that I am, I threw on a pair of jeans, boots, and a jacket and went out to the garage. I filled a gallon container with a seed-peanut-raisin blend from Wild Birds Unlimited and sprinkled it along the front walk. Dozens of birds were happy and I thought they would stay that way the rest of the weekend.

But at 5:00 the deer came and one zeroed in on the seeds. She ate every last one and then licked the sidewalk clean. What a pig!


So this morning I was sitting in my PJ's, drinking coffee and checking my email when I heard a familiar tap-tap-tapping sound. Sure enough, the cardinals were back and he was asking for more seeds. Only today it was doing this

and you know how I feel about snow! But I knew there wasn't a single seed left out there so I had no choice but to bundle up and go outside. I took a broom and swept off the walk then sprinkled the seeds, only about 1/4 gallon today. (Take THAT, piggy deer!) The birds are overjoyed. There are Cardinals, Blue jays, Mourning doves, Chickadees, Juncos, Purple finches, Gold finches, Sparrows, and even a Downy woodpecker dining out there. The poor things must have been starving!




But that one little red cardinal who had faith that I would put on my big girl panties and brave the blizzard to help the birds... Love him!