We got slammed this week by two back-to-back massive polar vortex storms that moved across the USA. The ice arrived first with single-digit (F) temperatures followed by another storm which dropped a thick blanket of snow. Below is not snow - it is solid ice.
Female Cardinal and Brown-Headed Cowbird
We had plenty of warning and were prepared for the storm. The last thing we did before the ice arrived was to load up on bird food. The bright red cardinals could be seen perched in the trees in the woods behind our house.
We threw the feed out the kitchen door onto the deck. They were happy - we were entertained.
Word spread about the free picnic and more birds arrived.
Two days following the ice storm, we awoke early to see the second snowstorm had arrived during the night and our neighbor clearing our drive.
Thanks to his kindness, Dustin didn't miss a day of work which pleased his boss but not Dustin. However, Bill and I didn't want to walk home if our car slid off in a ditch so we stayed put.
Scooter slept through the weather report and was quite shocked to see how the world changed overnight.
What happened?
The horses hovered beside the dwindling hay bale and didn't venture further than a few feet away. They didn't like walking on the slippery ice.
Second in popularity to the bale of hay in the field were the feeders and blob of frozen homemade suet in the basket on the back deck. The variety of new birds that showed up was surprising.
Male Red Cardinal and Carolina Chickadees
Blue Jays
Tufted Titmouse
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown Thrasher
Sparrow
Woody, who loves to drink the syrup in the hummingbird feeder, found the suet irresistible. Being frozen hard as a rock only added to his dining experience.
Finally, the sun shone again. When the hay bale was gone, the horses moved to the middle of the field and stared at the gate awaiting more food. It didn't take long before the magic feed tractor arrived right on time.
Yesterday the roads melted enough so we could make it up the driveway in the late afternoon. I was fighting a bad case of cabin fever and had to get out of the house. I told Bill potatoes were on sale at Kroger and we desperately needed a bag. Then I said surely our neighbors had built some snowmen and we absolutely must see them before they melted. (Fever will do strange things to a person's brain and I was going crazy.)
My creative neighbors didn't disappoint. This fellow had a rake for hair and driveway reflectors for eyes (must look scary after dark).
This guy was over eight feet tall. It took some strong men to build him.
This one was standing in front of the junkyard that employs Junkyard Sheep and Goats as landscapers. It must have been a slow day so instead of working, the employees (not the goats, I think) built the snowman.
This guy has either ears, horns, or a punk hairdo, but no matter, he looked quite satisfied with himself.
We headed back home before the roads began freezing again so I could bake potatoes for dinner. Now I am quite satisfied to wait out the rest of the storm at home. Cabin fever is a serious malady.
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Your photos are all gorgeous! It looks so beautiful there. I love all the sweet critters and love the neighborhood snowmen too. Stay warm!
ReplyDeleteI think taking pictures of others was much easier than getting out and building my own.
DeleteYour house looks so beautiful with the snow...could be a pretty Christmas card! And I love all the birds you've fed through the storm...what a nice variety. The snowmen are really cute. Glad you could stay inside a few days with the ice so bad. Take care!
ReplyDeleteWe were surprised by the new birds that appeared. There were some that I never could get their picture and others that I couldn't identify. I hope they stay around and eat the bugs this summer.
DeleteSo many species of birds! And all of them are beautiful. I am very impressed by this great variety.
ReplyDeleteI would wish and hope that many of them will stay in your region and find bugs, larvae and insects in your summer garden.
Snow beautifies the landscape, but can make everyday life more difficult for us.
In the meanwhile the conditions will probably have changed. Spring is on the way.
Christel
I did not know we had so many different birds. It is hard to tell them apart far out in the yard but when they came up to the house, it was easier. I really hope they stay around but not if I have to feed them all the time.
DeleteThe conditions have changed and the sun is shinning! I got out and uncovered the hoop houses because the heavy snow and ice smashed some of them. I took three down because we have eaten most of what was under them. Now I am exhausted! Bending over working in the garden is something I am not used to doing. Sitting on the couch and staying inside has made me lazy.
Love all the Cardinals...I only see them like that once in a blue moon here, but at home they were like that in the winter. Snowment were funny...I totally understand about getting out. We did not leave the house from Sun...we may have went somewhere Sunday till Friday...
ReplyDeleteUsually I am happy staying home but knowing I couldn't leave is what bothered me. We got the car out of the garage but then couldn't get it up the incline nor could we get it back into the garage. It was stuck. By late afternoon the sun has melted a spot in front of the wheels so we could get a running start. We should have just gone back in the garage because the roads were bad.
DeleteThe birds are absolutely beautiful... it seems strange that, in order to see snow, I have to look it up on the internet! But we are currently volunteering at a missions group in McNeal, AZ, near the Mexico border. (They train bush pilots here to schlep people and supplies around the world, but especially in the tropics.) It is straight desert, with a front of bare mountains around us -- not a flake of snow in sight, though the temps haven't been really hot. Thank you for sharing your snow with me.
ReplyDeleteI had to check out your site and see where you are and how you are doing. You are really in the middle of nowhere. Be glad you missed the snow and ice! It is more fun to look at snow in pictures than to fight it in person.
DeleteIt's all so pretty... the birds, the snow. I can enjoy it vicariously through your lovely photos. The snowmen are great.
ReplyDeleteHopped over here from Stuart's blog where I saw your comment about your birds. They are lovely. However, the one you'd called a wood thrush is actually a brown thrasher. They're normally skulking around near brush or under trees but will occasionally come out to feed on the ground under feeder. They are truly gorgeous birds. I'm surprised to see the blackbird already. I guess spring might be coming after all. Take care.
ReplyDeleteWelcome Florida Girl! I was hoping someone would check what I said. I only had pictures on the internet and was guessing. Thanks for the correction.
DeleteJust found your lovely blog. The pictures are gorgeous, I was particularly liking the bird photos, the species are so different to the ones in my garden, here in the UK. I look forward to exploring your blog more.
ReplyDeleteWelcome Diane! Explore all you want. I hope you have a good time.
DeleteLoved your post and the bird pictures! Great photos.
ReplyDelete