birds

Birthdays are for the Birds

/ Jodi / 21 Comments

child birthday card punch art birds on wire

Birthdays were so much fun when we were kids – right?

And even more when my boys were young and we could do (what they eventually came to dread….)

THEME parties!

I recall parties themed with pirates and magic shows, and Barney the purple dinosaur………

jake 5 cake jake 5 pirates 2 jake 5 pirates

Oh the days….  (I can’t believe these were over 20 years ago now!)

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So I was excited to see The Paper Players Challenge #209 this week be a child’s birthday card.  Gave me a chance to be silly and fun.

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Leanne Pugliese, of The Paper Players Design Team, is celebrating her granddaughter, Cassidy’s, 4th Birthday this week (Happy Birthday Cassidy!), so she chose a Clean and Simple (CAS) Child’s Birthday Card for #PP209 Challenge.

child birthday card punch art birds on wire
My card is a “punch art” card.  I’ve seen some amazingly creative critters created out of punched out shapes.  They range from puppies and turtles and hippos, lions, elephants, and monkeys to caterprillars and lambs and bears and birds – silly birds, angry birds, real birds.  There are some awesomely talented artists and designers out there!

I saw little birds similar to these somewhere at some point and thought they would make a fun child’s birthday card – especially for a “wee one.”  My “birds” are cut out using SU framelit circles and the bird builder punch for the wing and nose.  I sponged them with some pumpkin pie ink, glitzed their feathers a bit with #WinkofStella, cut out party hats from SU DSP, added some Crystal Effects to their beaks, and popped on a candy dot for the eye.  The background is done with a cloud embossing folder, the “telephone wire” is made from baker’s twine, and the Happy Birthday sentiment is from the Bloom with Hope stamp set.

I can’t wait to share this card with a wee one on their birthday.  As for me – no more birthdays please…  Birthdays are for the birds!

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

Real Life ANGRY Birds!

/ Jodi / 6 Comments

ab 3So at first I thought these new Blue Jays that started visiting the feeders on our back deck were so beautiful.

ab 1Look how dainty this one looks tip toeing across the deck railing.

ab 0and stopping to pose, but then…………….

SHEEEESH!

They sure get mad when the other nice birds (that all got along before) come to the feeders!  And this new GANG in town gets angry and mean with each other too!!

ab 6They holler at each other

ab 4

The pick and peck at each other!

ab 2I actually had to holler at them several times and tell them to share nice!

(even Mikey was yelling at them!)

I shooshed and shooed them a few times, and they seem to have left this side of the forest for now…..

And the sweet ones are happy — – the grosbeaks and wrens and cardinals and goldfinches and woodpeckers and hummingbirds all take their turns nicely.

Anybody else experience this?  Have suggestions for how to get everyone to get along?

I guess there’s always at least one in every group – eh?

Even in the bird world.

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

 

 

Birds in our Backyard – Better than Bravo TV

/ Jodi / 3 Comments

wetbird2
Birds have to eat – even when it is pouring down rain.

But really, Buddy – couldn’t you have waited a little bit longer for this torrential stuff to stop – eh?!

Look how SOAKED this poor little guy is?
———-

I’m thinking it is a true sign of – ahem – middle age – err – approaching senior when you start loving to watch birds….  Please prove me wrong friends, and say it isn’t so!

When Marty first started putting up birdfeeders and watching birds and getting bird books and binoculars and telescopes and citing them by name (we think this is a rose-breasted grosbeak, but correct me if I’m wrong), I laughed.

(Just like when he started listening to country music years ago, and I poo pooed it, until one day I realized I was singing along too!) OY VEY!

But Dangit – I gotta say – I’m into this bird watching stuff now too!

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Our back deck looks out into the woods, and it is practically a bird sanctuary.

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To just listen to them singing all day is quite amazing, but to see them flying around, feeding, sometimes fighting over the feeders, bringing their families in – wow – it’s quite mesmerizing. (Sure beats the multitude of episodes of Housewives and Kardashians, which I have finally and completely tired of!)

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Look at this cute little one waiting it’s turn.

IMG_9233Yep – I’ve become a bird watcher…

I’ve yet to capture my favorite pair of yellow finches.  I think I get so fascinated watching them, I forget to grab my camera.

I also want to capture some of the other woodpeckers (several varieties hanging out here) and the beautiful orange bellied orioles and vibrant red cardinals, but have not been successful yet.

MIkey deck

Even Mikey likes to watch them…

And they tolerate him 🙂

Yep – bird watching in our backyard is better than Bravo – any day – rain or shine….

at Life In Between.

Cheers and Hugs,

Jodi