Bird

The Empty Nest

/ Jodi / 52 Comments

scan20161013_07132959

The Empty Nest

Today you stretch your wings
and show us how we taught you to fly.

Today you pack up all the things  you have and need
to make your own life and home.

Today you say good-bye and I love you when you walk away,
but you don’t come back to stay.

Today you take my love with you
and know it will always be here.

Today you leave the nest.
and memories are sneaking out of my eyes and rolling down my cheeks.

Today and always, I am so very happy for you… so very proud…
but I can’t help feeling a little emptiness in the very core of my soul.

Today you begin creating your own nest
but please don’t forget you will always be a part of mine.

Wishing you the best… today and always
from my full momma’s heart..
and empty nest.

Cheers & Hugs NCM  ❤

Love,
Mom

A Hummingbird in Watercolor – Draw A Bird Day

/ Jodi / 74 Comments
hummingbird watercolor 8 x 10 300# Arches Cold Press

Hummingbird Watercolor 8 x 10 300# Arches Cold Press

For #DrawABirdDay this month, I decided to paint a Hummingbird – the smallest bird of all.

I adore the sweet little hummers that visit our backyard every summer.

I take special care to assure their feeder is full of fresh nectar each week as I know they count on and need it to support their ultra-fast metabolism.  I have read that their heart rate can reach as high as 1,260 beats per minute, and they have a breathing rate of 250 beats per minute, even at rest.  During flight, oxygen consumption per gram of muscle tissue is about ten times higher than that measured in elite human athletes.

Amazingly, these tiny birds fly all the way from Mars, PA to Mexico, the Caribbean Islands or Central America every winter and return each Spring.

After I painted this, I realized I had painted one about a year ago, shortly after I took up watercolor.  I recall thinking my hummer was one of my best paintings I had done at the time as I had only been painting for a few months.  Looking back, I still like it, and I am also surprised at how different the two look.  I can’t decide which I like better.  I question if my art has even improved over the past year.

One thing is for sure, the splatter is one thing I have always loved!  🙂  I believe my strokes are more confident, my use of white space more defined, and my splatters a bit more refined and controlled.

Another thing I know for sure….  I am having FUN!  Painting to me is relaxing.  It is a way to unwind after a stressful workday or energize an early morning.

If you have ever thought about giving watercolor or any kind of painting a try, DO IT!  Discover that inner artist just bursting to express your individual creativity.  You will never have a dull, boring moment again in your life.  You will always have something fun to do.  You will always have a way to express yourself.  You will always be able to create something beautiful to someone.

Happy #WorldWatercolorMonth!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

I Have Officially Become a Bird Nerd

/ Jodi / 88 Comments
purple finch

Curious the Purple Finch, Mars, PA

I have to admit I have officially become a “bird nerd!”

After sharing Happy, My Blue Bird of Happiness yesterday (well officially an Indigo Bunting, but I like to give most everyone a name), and sharing what a stand out he is among the crowd, I thought I’d share some more of my feathered friends with you today from our little backyard sanctuary.

From hummingbirds that are only about an inch and a half long…

hummingbird

Hummer the Hummingbird, Mars, PA

to Woody, the Pileated Woodpecker who is about a foot and a half long…

pileated woodpecker

Woody the Pileated Woodpecker, Mars, PA

our backyard is just chirping with charming chatterboxes.

Here is where we all hang out.  I took a few pictures very early yesterday morning, while the dew was still dancing and the sun was just summoning its presence for the day.

backyard deck

Our back deck is southern facing, so it is warmed up quickly when the sun rises and is shaded by late afternoon when the sun is hottest.

backyard deck 2

I am still patiently waiting for the birds to discover they can bathe in the bird bath.

backyard deck 3 birdbath

And when the sun gets too hot, we can round the bend to the side of the house for shade…

rocking chair and fern

side porch

where it is undercover, and we can sit in cushioned comfort.

backyard deck 3 side

porch rules

Even Charlie likes a break from the sunshine sometimes.

backyard charlie

The birds come out rain…

male cardinal

Male Cardinal, Rainy Day, Mars, PA

or shine.

female cardinal

Female Cardinal, Sunny Morning, Mars, PA

Mr Rose-Breasted Grosbeak always dresses for breakfast and dinner in his finest formal wear…

male grosbeak

Male Grosbeak, Mars, PA

and carefully watches over the little Mrs.

female grosbeak

Female Grosbreak, Mars, PA

There are many more – the sparrows and cowbirds, the bluejays and the goldfinches, the warblers and the nuthatches. There is a wide variety of woodpeckers and a huge extended family of mourning doves.  An occasional blackbird stops by, the robins romp about, and we are always excited to see a Baltimore Oriole hang out for a while.

baltimore oriole

We sure love our winged wanderers and welcome them with wonderment.

I hope you enjoyed this little glimpse before you fly away to go about your day.

female grosbeak in flight

Cherish the moments!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

PS – If you too flock to the flight of fledglings, check out my blogging friend, Kathy’s site: Backyard Bird Nerd.  Kathy regularly posts photos of the birds that are lucky enough to call her backyard home.

Blue Bird of Happiness

/ Jodi / 54 Comments
blue bird

Blue Bird, Mars, PA June, 2016

One lovely, bright blue bird
has chosen to make our backyard his home.

Oh how happy he makes me
with every appearance.

Amidst your brown and white and black and red and yellow-feathered friends,
you truly are the blue bird of happiness.

 

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Blue Heron with Purple Feathers

/ Jodi / 74 Comments
blue heron with purple feathers original watercolor 9x12 arches 300 lb cold press

blue heron with purple feathers – original watercolor-  9×12 arches – 300 lb cold press

Why be simply an “ordinary” Blue Heron
when you could have Purple Feathers too?

It’s #DrawABirdDay!  Why not?

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

#NatureDoodlewash

A Little Birdie to say Happy Mother’s Day

/ Jodi / 61 Comments
goldfinch watercolor drawabirdday

Goldfinch Watercolor Doodlewash for Draw A Bird Day

Some of you may remember the darling little goldfinch I captured in a photo recently as his family has become a regular in our backyard and at the feeders.

I decided to do a quick little watercolor and doodlewash him for today’s monthly #drawabirdday.

I am out of town today, but he is flying by to wish all the Moms out there the happiest of Mother’s Days!

Being a mom has unequivocally been the greatest privilege of my life and has provided me with such joy and love.

Thank you Jake and Nick for all you have given me.  My life would not be nearly as extraordinary if it weren’t for what each of you has given me since the days you were born.

Now that you are grown men with lives of your own, I thank you even more for still allowing me the honor of being a part of your lives and being your Mom.  And thank you for the beautiful ladies in Colleen and Liz that you have allowed me to “mother” too.

I am the luckiest Mom of all!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Peanuts are not just “For the Birds” – A Charlie Guest Post

/ Jodi / 59 Comments

charlie peanuts

My mom heard that birds love peanuts.

and BOY am I glad she heard that!!!

When she puts some out on the deck railing…

for the birds…

I slither out when she’s not looking

and nibble my way along the deck railing.

She doesn’t know any different.

She thinks the birds ate them.

Please don’t tell her – let’s let this be our little secret.

Peanuts are not just “for the birds!”

Woofs & Wags,
Charlie

A Little Birdie Told Me

/ Jodi / 62 Comments
goldfinch

Male Goldfinch, Mars, PA

A Little Birdie told me….

Stop waiting

for tomorrow,
or the weekend
or a rainy day,
or a sunny day.

Joy is found

when you stop waiting,
and start realizing
the joy in the moments
of every day life.

Cherish the moments

of a gentle breeze,
a warm smile,
a soft embrace,
a kind word.

A little birdie told me

life is short,
grief and hatred and sorrow exist,
but love conquers all,
joy exists,
happy moments must be grasped.

Cherish the moments.

A little birdie told me.

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

A Pink Flamingo for Draw a Bird Day

/ Jodi / 73 Comments

pink flamingo watercolor1

 

Although some blogger friends and I celebrate #DrawABirdDay every eighth of the month, April 8th is the OFFICIAL Draw A Bird Day, so I wanted to do something extra flashy and a little out of the ordinary – a Pink Flamingo!

Bright pink to open your eyes
and wish you a cheery flamingo kind of day,
a Happy Friday,
a Happy #DrawABirdDay!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

 

Shake Your Tail Feathers

/ Jodi / 42 Comments

draw a bird day march 8 2016 wren shake your tail feather

Shake your tail feathers!

It’s #DrawABirdDay again with my WordPress friends.

This little wren is shaking it’s tail feathers in honor of Spring approaching, as am I!

This is a very simple 5-minute “study” of sorts in brush strokes using my BRANDY NEW Rekab 320S #2  squirrel hair brush!  Oh what a glorious, lovely brush it is!  This brush came on the recommendation of Debi Riley as her “go-to” brush, so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it.  Unfortunately, the only place I could find it was in an art store halfway across the world in Australia (where Debi happens to live), called Art Scene.

So order it I did, and then I waited, and waited, and waited.  Patience is not one of my virtues.  It really only took about ten (loooooooooong) days.  I practically hugged Cliff, our mailman, when he brought it last week.  Between my excitement and Charlie’s leaping out to see him, Cliff got the greeting of the prodigal son.  He laughed about my paint brush coming from the other side of the world and my excitement over it, and he spent a minute or two giving Charlie some pets and scratches and a morsel or two of his lunch pretzels (yep – Charlie has weasled his way into Cliff’s heart too!).

I can’t wait to have more time to play with this lovely, wonderful brush, but I am traveling this week for work, so it must wait.  What I was trying to do, however, with this, was to be very deliberate with my brush strokes and create an impressionistic version of a wren.  I love the freedom with this brush to create swooshes and thick washes as well as the tiniest of lines like the feet and beak and even a small dot of an eye.  One brush for every stroke, line, dot, and splash!  Swoon!

Wishing you the simple joys today – like the chirping of a bird…

Springtime weather…

or small gifts like a paintbrush brought by the mailman from the other side of the world…

or nibbles of pretzels and ear scratches from a thoughtful mailman to a loving  dog.

Cherish the moments!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi