A Second Look--May 6, 2015

We've had some very nice warm weather recently--warm enough that we're thinking it might be time for the air conditioner. But it is still spring, so it should cool off soon. There are still a few daffodils blooming and the dogwoods are just starting to fade. Most of the azaleas have burst into bloom this week with their brilliant pink and purple colors.

There are eggs in two of the nests now. Last time I checked there were three in the sparrows' nest and four in the bluebird's nest. I don't if they laid any more, but mothers are sitting on both nests now. I think I'll leave them alone for a little while.

The wrens nest is getting bigger, but it is not completed. I've read that sometimes wrens will build a decoy nest and that's what happened in this box last year. We'll see if we get any eggs this time.

Here are a few things I saw this week 

during a Second Look.

Daffodil

Japanese Colored Fern--I think these are just past the fiddlehead stage.

Azalea

Wild cherry

Azalea

Bluebird eggs

Azalea that is growing out of our weed compost pile. 

Wren's nest

Squirrel who just had a nice meal from the suet cake he just removed from its holder.

Dogwood tree

Dogwood, sweet gum, Japanese maple, juniper, and cherry trees (and a drainage ditch)

A-Z Challenge Reflections

Now for the last formal part of the A-Z Challenge  Reflections

I was so relieved when I finally did the Z post for the A-Z Challenge, I didn't think that I would post again for a while. But that wasn't correct. I was happy to get back to the unrestricted posting of yore. I did a Second Look post the very next day because my yard was teeming with things to share.

So, what did I think of the whole A-Z exercise? Quite frankly, it took more time than I should have let it take. At times, there were more important things to be done than to think about what I was going to do for the letter J. But a challenge is a challenge, and I was determined to finish it.

Even though I gave the Challenge a higher priority than it should have had sometimes, I liked the creativity of coming up with a post for each letter. Because of it, I wrote some posts that I would never have thought about before. And some of them meant a lot to me. I also visited some interesting blogs and made some new friends. Some of the blogs I visited were not subjects that I would normally be drawn to, but I found them interesting all the same.

If I do the A-Z Challenge again, what would I do differently? First of all, I would anticipate it and start collecting ideas for posts ahead of time. This time, I signed up at the last minute and didn't really understand the whole thing. I was always scrambling to get something ready for the next day.

Do I think I will do it again? I'm not sure. I'm thinking about a 6 months challenge with a new letter every week instead of every day. That would be more my speed. We'll just have to see when next year rolls around what I will do.

Also, a quick note. Thanks to the sponsors of the challenge. It was well organized and I can't believe that the few of you visited each and every blog several times. I was amazed that you took the time to do this and I was thankful for your encouragement. 

Q is for Queens and Princesses and Royals Update

Royal Baby is Born!

Recently, I talked about the fact that Ward didn't know that Kate, Prince William's wife, was pregnant. This amazed me because I didn't think you could filter this information out because it seemed to be everywhere. Well, some how he did as well as a few of you. Some of you said to let you know when Kate had the baby. In case you've been able to also filter out the birth. Here's the facts.

Kate delivered a baby girl Saturday, May 2, 2015. The baby weighed 8 lb 3oz. The name is not yet announced. 

USA Today

Details and Commentary. 
More than you may want to know.

--Kate delivered the baby three hours after she entered the hospital. All of the press was saying that she had a three hour labor. Well, maybe. Most people know that you can be in labor for a long time before you go to the hospital. I'm guessing that Kate had medical professionals around her before she went to the hospital, so who knows how long she was really in labor. For her sake, I hope it really was short and sweet.

--A few hours after the new princess was born, William brought the big brother, George, to the hospital to see his sister. He is as cute as ever and has learned to wave politely to the crowds. His training to be a royal has begun.

--The crowd outside was anticipating an appearance by Kate after they saw her hairstylist enter the hospital. Sure enough, about an hour after that, Kate emerged looking beautiful with the new baby. The baby is taking after her mother. Newborn perfection of a perfect chubby face.

--Also, Kate walked down steps in high heals while carrying the new princess. William attentively gave her a hand, but she didn't need it. Really, is she still numb? Aren't there some areas that still require some walking gingerly? I know I still had some after a few days, let alone a few hours, with both a vaginal and C-section births. I would have never been able to walk in heels like that just after giving birth. But then again, I have never been able to walk in heels like that anytime.

--Kate gave birth Saturday morning and she and William took the baby home that evening. They buckled the baby in the car seat and drove home. Just that easy. Well sort of, security was everywhere and they went to the palace instead of where they're really going to live 100 miles away.

--The name has not yet been announced. Alice, Charlotte, and Diana are favorites with the bookies, who by the way aren't doing as well as they hoped because more people bet on the baby being a girl than a boy. I'm not too excited about the name because the royal babies always have a long string of official names and then the parents call them whatever they want.

--More details will emerge in the next few days. If anything earth shattering happens, I'll update you. However, now it's time to let a young family to get to know each other in private.

BTW, Miss Landers informed Ward of the blessed event. He reacted to the good natured teasing he got about missing the boat on this one too. Actually, he might be kind of proud of it.

A Second Look--May 1, 2015

I am ready for a posting break after the A-Z Challenge, but there's just too much going on outside to not share some of it. Thus, a Second Look today.

Here are some things I saw this week 

during a Second Look.

The dogwood have been coming out recently. They among the last to bloom of the spring trees and my favorite.

We have both white and pink dogwood trees.

I first noticed this redbud tree a few years ago. I usually think of it dotting the hillsides where I grew up.

Remember the wooly bear caterpillars from last fall? Here is a recently hatched white tiger moth from one of them.

Weathered sweet gum ball

I turned around one day and the bleeding hears were blooming. The last time I looked, the leaves were just coming up. Surprises like that are one of the things that makes spring so fun.

It's calving season and it's been fun to watch the babies. This brave one has strayed a little way from its mother.

Speaking of little ones, the birds are preparing for some of their own. We have three different kinds of nests being built in the nest boxes. This is the third one for the sparrows. I keep removing their nest, so the bluebirds have a chance. I may leave this one since the bluebirds are working on a nest in another spot.

Blue jay and daffodils 

Z is for Zoos

We like to visit zoos and try to if we can when we're traveling. Not only do we like seeing the animals, we like the lush landscaping that often accompanies them. Below are a few pictures from the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., the Baltimore Zoo, the Toronto Zoo, the Philadelphia Zoo and the North Carolina Aquarium.