Front Yard Visitors

Had a few feathered visitors on this very blustery and somewhat snowy Sunday. Found this guy (or gal?) perched right above our bird feeding area. He (or she) stood guard for the better part of the day keeping any and all birds from paying a visit to the feeders.

Well, he (she) must be back as the feeding area is again void of birdlife. So much for birdwatching from the comfort of one's living room!

Since I'm terrible at telling the difference between cooper's and sharp-shinned hawks, I'm hoping some avid birder out there might be able to shed some light on which one this might be.

Was also lucky enough to have a fox sparrow visit today in between visits from our predator friend above! What a beauty. If only he would have turned around for the camera.

In addition to these two excellent feeder visitors, the following birds also tried getting their fair share of food:

downy woodpecker, red-bellied woodpecker, Junco, red-breasted nuthatch, white-breasted nuthatch, cardinal, blue jay, American goldfinch, tufted titmouse, chickadee

Another picture of the hawk. Happy birding!

On his way!

Sometime early this morning, Bob called Josh to see how he fared through the night as he makes his way home. He was just entering Illinois. His projection was to be here about noon today, but that may not happen as he pulled over for a couple of hours for some rest. So I'm guessing that he will arrive sometime around 2:00 p.m. today just ahead of this "storm" that's been predicted. Speaking of storms, I've been checking the radar and there is nada, zilch, nothing on it to indicate we're going to get 12 inches of snow this weekend!

Well, we'll keep you posted!

Jacob "X-man" Skolmutch

This little guy is the reason Nick is now a "middle" child. Jacob is 4 1/2 years old and no, he didn't get the buck. This nice deer belongs to our nephew who shot him just down the road from where we live.

Jacob's favorite things are trucks (lots of trucks) and volcanoes. With the recent snow we had (which is now gone!) he's learned to love throwing snowballs!

Nick "The Next Jimi Hendrix" Skolmutch

Nick is our "middle" son and I use the quotes because it's still hard to believe that he's a, well, middle son. For those who don't already know, read my next post and you'll understand why.

Nick is a junior at West Holmes High School, loves Guitar Hero III for the Wii game systems and is patiently (riiiight!) waiting for mom and dad to get off their "duffs" and get the rest of his driving time in so he can FINALLY get his driver's license.

He also likes history, especially WWII stuff, gaming and is an excellent artist. I'm sure he'll be totally embarassed when he reads this - sorry, Nick - gotcha ya!

Welcome home, Josh!

Well, the countdown begins. Our oldest son, Josh, should be home from Wyoming this Saturday, December 15th! He's been attending college at the University of Wyoming since August 2007. He transfered from Hocking Collge and is majoring in Wildlife Biology and Fish Management or something like that. He can leave a post and correct me!

Wishing you a safe and speedy journey, Josh!

Well, that was easy. It really did take just 3 easy steps to launch this blog. Now for the hard part - what to put IN it!

To be continued . . .