HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE - SATURDAY TO SATURDAY - STARTING 2/7/26

The weather above is for next week. As you will be able to see we are going to have higher temperatures. I am looking at Tuesday in particular.

I haven't done one of these for a while but felt like jotting things down, even though it was all pretty mundane. 

Saturday 2/7/26: I'm busy trying to take a photo of a white-throated sparrow I saw in the flat-feeder. He's a quick one, I haven't been successful in getting him full body, the same with a wren and blue jay. The juncos are more cooperative. 

As for the others, either they are super-fast at picking up their seed or my reflexes are slowing down. Let's just say those birds are faster than I am! 

60 mile per hour winds were expected but it wasn't as windy as I have seen in the past. Son texted me and said that he had to hold onto the steering wheel and saw a downed tree. We got our front tree trimmed a few months ago, but we need more taken off and this is a solid reminder.  

The snow has melted a bit, but with these low temperatures, it is going to be a long time before all this snow and ice disappears.

Hubs went to the supermarket and picked up a doughnut for breakfast today. He also stops in at the coffee shop next door for me. Saturday is doughnut treat-day for both of us.

Sunday 2/8/26: son came over. He called later after he had picked up our daughter-in-law and as always, we are looking forward to getting together with them both coming over soon. 

We introduced son to Spike and he immediately got his cell phone out. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, says I smiling.  

We have the traditional selfie of the three of us before he leaves. Gregg made this one into a painting. Doesn't get our exact likenesses but we both liked it.

Monday 2-9-26: Gregg went to the dentist and he has to have a back molar removed after having had some discomfort this past week. They wanted to do a lot more work than he was prepared for. That's to be sorted out next week. 

I had a quick chat with my brother-in-law in Germany and will be followed by a FaceTime soon. He's like a brother rather than a brother-in-law. I have known him since I was 13. 

Oh joy, we have had mouse activity in our car as you will see from yesterday's Saturday at the Bird Feeder Post. The surrounding where the shift is, has been chewed considerably, and a big hole made. The photos don't show the full damage. You can actually lift up a big flap that shows more damage. This was done in one night! Two years ago we had huge cachet of sunflower seeds tucked into a pocket on top of the engine. The previous link takes you to that story, but you'll have to scroll down. Maybe they are seeking the warmth of the car. This one certainly likes the taste of it.

A few years before that, the snow was elevated up to the dryer vent outside and a mouse got into our basement that way, through the tiniest hole! 

Gregg lifted the hood this time and said he couldn't see any damage, but we're going to be having an oil change and will get the guys to do a double check. I will also be checking the basement. 

Tuesday 2/10/26: Gregg read up on how to keep pests away naturally. He bought a small container of peppermint aromatherapy, yesterday and sprayed it on cottonwool balls as the article suggested. These he placed near the gear shift and others under the seat and in other areas. He did this last night and no more signs of chewing today. Fingers crossed! 

No breakfast today and for lunch we went to McDonalds for a burger and fries. The car smelled lovely though a little overpowering with that peppermint smell.

Dinner was quite late and we had a medley of roasted veggies; potatoes, carrots, quartered onions, and broccoli, cooked with avocado spray and all done on one sheet, popped in the oven. We had bought a Costco rotisserie chicken the day before, and had more for tonight's meal. We have leftovers for tomorrow. Pretty plain cooking but we both enjoyed. 

Wednesday 2/11/26: we ate the leftover vegetables for breakfast/lunch, tossing them around in the frypan for a few minutes. We added sliced tomatoes and an egg, plus a slice of toast. Very good! We had a relatively light supper. Roast chicken again, Lacy Swiss Cheese and lettuce on a focaccia roll. Also, very good and a no fuss cooking day. 

Gregg went out to try and find this boot replacement that the mouse chewed on. Didn’t have any success at the two auto shops. We will probably end up taking it to our dealership. 

I forgive you mouse, you were just following your instincts. Please find another warm place to stay, preferably not at our place. Sorry about the peppermint (not really, our pockets will be a little emptier thanks to you)! 

A quiet day today. Pottered around, did some housework, did a little computer work (I had fun putting a few things together as you can see), I read a bit. 

The temperature rose above freezing and there was a bit of snowmelt. I can see more of the deck. I will be glad to get out there and clean up. It was all quiet at the feeders today.

Thursday 2/12/26: Gregg had his back molar taken out, thankfully a little sooner than expected as there was some infection and they gave him an early appointment. He is doing very well he says. No brushing his teeth for a couple of days his dentist told him. Scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes and soup are on the menu. I was surprised how chipper he seemed to be and very happy that tooth is now gone. I have an idea it was bothering him more than he said.

Spike was back today with his sister, Sister of Spike. Would you believe they both have barely any fur on their tails? I looked it up. Squirrels do have health issues but these two seemed okay otherwise, not scratching and bright-eyed. Other reasons were interesting, as they do molt and also take the fur off their tails to put in their nests for insulation. That's the first time I've heard about that. Neither of them seem to have any health issues and are quite lively and happily stuffing their faces.

This one has a nice healthy tail.

Hubs checked, no more mouse activity, fingers crossed! 

Friday 2-13-26: 39 degrees F. today. Even more snow off the deck. Across the street it is disappearing from people’s front lawns. Not ours yet as they get a lot more sun on their side of the street. At least our driveway and pathway to the front door are clear.

Breakfast was scrambled eggs with cheese, toast for me, and a small glass of orange juice, also berries bought yesterday. I have just finished a cup of black coffee and am blogging for a bit.  

After spending a quiet morning, we made another batch of Thai-style soup. You can see my post here if you missed it. We made several changes by adding extra broth, and we had no green onions for the garnish (also none to put in the soup). A yellow onion did nicely. No carrots - replaced them with peas. Also, added a combination of pasta and dumplings (no potstickers in our freezer, or regular noodles in the pantry). He liked the idea of adding Girelle pasta (recommended by our son) - a little Thai-Italian fusion going on here - and I like my miniature chicken and cilantro dumplings, so we put them in together. He added the left-over Costco rotisserie chicken and I suggested adding fresh cilantro, but he wanted it just for garnish as he wasn't sure about putting it in the soup while cooking. Next, a little lemon juice also at the table, a few splashes of Sriracha, and a teaspoon of Chili Crisp. Sounds an awful lot of ingredients I know, but this turned out really well and is now one of our favorite soups.

We had a tot of Harvey's Bristol Cream Sherry before we went to bed. I told Gregg in dramatic fashion, and with pauses, that "It greets - the nostrils - like - an old friend." I got the wanted reaction when he laughed. Doesn't take much to keep our funny-bones going. We, after all, laugh at all jokes that are groaners and often laugh at ourselves.

Off to bed, it's been another fast day.

Saturday 2/14/26: Gregg is doing well after his tooth extraction. He's a trooper I tell him, and having those good genes from his parents may have helped. He also had a long chat with his sister and brother-in-law first thing, and that is always a great start to the day. He went out to our local supermarket and bought our Saturday doughnuts. His choice because I may have mentioned in passing, that we should leave it this week but no, he looks forward to them. He also popped in next door to get my coffee. 

We are not doing anything special for Valentine's Day. It's hopeless trying to get a seat at a restaurant locally and a lot of places don't take reservations. I don't have the patience or ability to wait an hour for a table, not that I ever did even when I was younger. We're not ones for doing anything too much. At the same time, I love seeing what you do. 

I enjoyed watching the birds turn up at the feeders this morning. Above we have a Male house finch and a female Cardinal. Mr. Cardinal was nearby and I'll share him another time. 

I am looking forward to many things about the warmer weather, one of them is washing down the deck, and giving it a good scrub after all this snow we've had. We will be going to the garden center to buy flowers for the planters. I am determined to grow herbs this year. It's 54 degrees F. today.

 How nice it will be to sit out there with a hot drink, relax and enjoy the fresh air. Simple things sometimes are the best. When dear other half went to the supermarket this morning, I threw clothes in the washing machine. I found a simple joy in that. 

We just had a photo sent from our son. He and our daughter-in-law are standing in a very, very long line at Chateau de Chantilly Bakery. They introduced us to the place last year and we love it, but it gets very busy at the best of times and can be hard to find a table. One thing I noticed, they're all young-uns standing in this line, which reaches to the back of the store. Gregg replied that we are going to that other fancy French restaurant, Chick-fil-a. He said "Nothing but the best for my gal." Did I laugh out loud! And yes, that's where we decided to go. We enjoy Chick-fil-a. Their young staff are always polite and friendly, and even with the longest line, we can get through fast. And the food is consistently good. Son said their place was hopping, and I am very glad we're not standing in that long line. (Back home now and we enjoyed as always.) We go through the drive-thru and our friend here always greets us before we pick up our food.

On our way I took one photo as we left the neighborhood. People are starting to get out and about, and the snow is beginning to melt. A beautifully sunny day at 55 degrees F. Tomorrow it's going to be colder, 45 degrees and promising rain all day. 

I'm going to finish here and get this scheduled for midnight. I don't see us doing anything else today of note.

If you stuck through all of this mundane to the end, I thank you. If you skipped entirely, I'm grateful that you popped in and to all who leave a comment, I very much appreciate that. 

A big thank you to those of you who follow me. I have tried to follow other blogging friends but I keep getting a message to say I am at my 100 percent capacity and can follow no more. I have tried deleting a few who no longer visit, but am having a dickens of a time trying the steps I have been given on a help line. Anyone have step-by-step instructions on how to delete some followers? These are the ones who no longer visit by the way, and I do want to support my more recent blogging friends.  

SATURDAY MORNING AT THE BIRD FEEDER AND HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

I received Ann's happy mail a few days ago, but with Valentine's Day coming up soon, I decided to keep it for today, on the 14th. Always a happy day to get one of your cards in the mail Ann. Thank you so much! 

I wish you and everyone out there A Very Happy Valentine's Day! 

I'm sure you'll all agree, this is a beautiful card. I have quite a collection of them now, and it will be going into my special box of Ann's treasured keepsake cards after having it on display for a week or so.

Now onto what's been going on around here at the Bird Feeder. Those birds have been all of a dither with the latest news. Please enlarge to read all the photos for a closer look if needed.

(WD-40 explained below)

Now they smell to high heaven of peppermint every time they get out of the car! There are some very strange looks in their direction. The car will be getting some cosmetic maintenance very soon.

Tomorrow I am sharing a Saturday to Saturday journal, and more of this mouse story will be in there.

And that's how it's going on a Saturday Morning at the Bird Feeder!

Thanks for visiting and 

I hope you all have a great weekend.

                

For our international friends to translate using the widget on my side bar.

Photo 1:

"Did you hear about the ruckus? A mouse got in the house.

"I heard it was the car."

"It chewed a big hole in the boot that holds the gear shift."

"Uh-oh!"

"It was me. It gets very cold out there. I need a warm place to nest."

Photo 2:

"Mouse, what are you doing down there. You're not chewing a hole in our feeder are you?"

"Errr...no, Of course I'm not."

"He's telling a lie. I know about these things."

Photo 3:

"I read that WD-40 works great for keeping mice out of a car. It didn't work, he's still here."

"At least he's not squeaking any more."

Photo 4:

"Camera Lady's husband put peppermint spray on cotton wool balls."

(WD-40 is a versatile, petroleum-based spray famous for its ability to displace water, prevent rust, lubricate moving parts, penetrate stuck components and clean surfaces. It also takes those sticky labels off your cups and saucers and anything similar. It is essentially a “toolkit in a can” designed for a wide array of maintenance tasks. For our overseas friends you probably have your equivalent. I got this little bit of info from Google.)

Added note: I found this information from the company’s website.

In 1953, a fledgling company called Rocket Chemical Company and its staff of three, set out to create a line of rust-prevention solvents and degreasers for use in the aerospace industry. Working in a small lab in San Diego, California, it took them 40 attempts to get the water displacing formula worked out. But they must have been really good, because the original secret formula for WD-40 Multi-Use Product - which stands for Water Displacement perfected on the 40th try - is still in use today.

WHEN THE ENGLISH...

 Here is an interesting poem I found on Pinterest recently. 

When the English tongue we speak

Why is break not rhymed with weak?

Won't you tell me why it's true

We say sew, but also few?

And the maker of a verse

Cannot rhyme his horse with worse?

Beard is not the same as heard,

Cord is different from word,

Cow is cow, low is low,

Shoe is never rhymed with foe.

Think of hose and dose and lose,

And think of goose and yet of choose,

Think of comb and tomb and bomb,

Doll and roll and home and some.

And since pay is rhymed with say,

Why not paid with said I pray?

Think of blood and food and good;

Mould is not pronounced like could.

Why is done, but gone and lone -

Is there any reason known?

To sum it up, it seems to me

That sounds and letters don't agree.

"When the English Tongue we Speak"

by

~Evelyn Baring~

The author is Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer. You can read more about him if you click on his name underneath the poem. I haven't read all the way through his biography yet, as I wanted to get this published for my blog post. He seems to be a very interesting person.

His poem, often titled "Our Strange Lingo" or "Our Queer Language", was written by him and first published in the London magazine, The Spectator, on August 9th, 1902. 

The verses are frequently used by English teachers and language enthusiasts to illustrate the frustrating inconsistencies between English spelling and pronunciation. 

While Lord Cromer wrote this specific version, it is often confused with a much longer and more complex poem titled "The Chaos," written by Dutch traveler, writer and teacher, Gerard Nolst Trenité in 1920, which follows a similar theme.

RANDOM PHOTO - THE 'HUSH BABY' CHERUBS

A few years ago, I found this at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, a place I would dearly love to go back to. It is a two-hour plus drive away and we thought it would be nice to stay overnight somewhere. Maybe in the Springtime.

I checked Google and found more information about this urn. It is called a Lead Cherub Urn or Putti Lead Finial, typically used as a decorative garden focal point. It features a central neoclassical-style urn garnished with floral garlands and two seated cherubs (or putti) on either side.

These specific figures are sometimes referred to as "hush baby" cherubs due to their finger-to-mouth pose.

Thanks for visiting and wherever you are, I hope you are having a great week.

A FEW FLOWERS FOR YOU TODAY -

With many of us still having a lot of snow on the ground, I thought it would be nice to share these today. They were all taken a few summers ago.

Double Coneflower

Echinaceae purpurea

'Pink Double Delight'

Asteraceae

Sunflower

Helianthus annuus

Water Lilies

Nymphaea odorata

Milk Thistle

Carduus Marianus

Gaura

Gaura lindheimeri

'Sikou Pink'

Onagraceae

Lily

Lilium regale

'Album'

Liliaceae

I hope you have enjoyed this little bit of warmth and sunshine.

Thanks for dropping in. 

I hope your day is a great one.

BEACH SCENE AND A POEM

There's times you'll be 

A sinking boat

Left adrift at sea,

And times you'll be 

The ocean tide

Breaking wild and free.

There's times you'll be

A jellyfish

And other times a seal,

And times you'll be

The great white shark

And times you'll be the meal.

There's times you'll feel

Like giving up

And sinking to the floor,

And times you'll float

Upon your back

And wash up on the shore.

But know these times

Will come and go,

And just like tides

Will ebb and flow,

And though you won't

Know which you'll be,

You're still a part

Of that mighty sea.

by Dallas Clayton

As often happens when I read poetry online, I will come across something that stays with me. This is one such poem by Dallas Clayton who is an American author and motivational speaker. This poem is a well-known piece often shared online for its inspirational message about life's challenges and the enduring nature of what a person can do if their choice is to persevere and keep putting that one step forward. 

The photo is from my archives. We were on a road trip driving around Florida in January 2014.

MONDAY MORNING RECIPE POST - CREAMY POTSTICKER SOUP - 6 TO 8 SERVINGS

On Friday (2/6/26) it was a bitterly cold day and it just called for soup. I found this one at allrecipes a while ago and the original recipe by Natalie Gravois can be found here. There are lots of other great recipes, and I highly recommend a look. We both gave this a thumb’s up, and it is another we will be making again. Gregg said he would like to try it with noodles next time. I am all for that though I am a big fan of potstickers. It isn’t mentioned but this to me is a Thai-inspired dish and all the ingredients used is what we have made in other Thai dishes, with most ingredients already in our supplies. 

Creamy Potsticker Soup - serves 6 to 8

1 tablespoon avocado oil

1 bunch green onions, sliced (white and green parts separated)

1 quart of chicken broth

1 clove garlic, smashed

1 inch piece of ginger, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons red curry paste

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

2 (14 ounce) cans coconut milk

1 cup thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms 

1/2 cup shredded carrots

1 (18.2 ounce) bag frozen potstickers, such as P. F. Chang’s Chicken dumplings

Garnish:

Sliced green onions

Chili Crisp

Heat avocado oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the white parts from the onions and sauté until softened.

Add chicken broth, garlic, ginger, curry paste and sesame oil. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, remove the garlic and ginger. Add coconut milk, shiitake mushrooms and carrots. Bring to a boil.

Add frozen potstickers and cook until heated through! 6 to 8 minutes. 

Serve with green parts of green onions and chili crisp. We also added a few splashes of sriracha hot sauce. If you are not keen on anything hot, then leave the chili crisp and the hot sauce off. On the other hand, a little goes a long way.

 

I read the comments from people.  Someone added snow peas and collard greens. Maybe you could add your favorite vegetable. As Gregg would like to try noodles next time, he suggested using the meat off a rotisserie chicken. Another suggestion of his was to add rice.

I didn’t have fresh garlic or ginger so used the frozen cubes that we keep in the freezer. It has several different ones which you can see at this link. You can also scroll down and they have recipes.

We buy ours from Trader Joe's but checking online I saw Harris Teeters, Safeway, Whole Foods and Kroger also sold them. They are very convenient when we run out of fresh. That cut out our step for removing both of these fresh ingredients in the third paragraph of the instructions. We put them into the liquid straight out of the freezer, and they dissolve as we stir them in, adding to all that goodness.

We had leftovers for the next day and as always happens, it tasted even better. Those flavors had a chance to work their magic.

One addition we added to our next day meal, was a cooked Jasmine rice. We don’t usually add two starches but this was requested by my dear other half. It was a great choice and took it up a notch.

I am a big fan of chili crisp and below is the kind I enjoy best. I have tried others but always come back to this one.

Here is the full address where you can find the recipe. This is for those of you who prefer to copy and paste rather than use the link at the beginning. 

https://www.allrecipes.com/creamy-potsticker-soup-11873308

If you have any questions or suggestions, you can leave them in the comment section, and I'll do my best to answer them.

That's all for now. 

Always appreciate you dropping by. 

Thanks so much and have 

a wonderful day!

HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE - REVISITING A TRIP TO FLORIDA TAKEN IN JANUARY 2013

 We woke up this morning to wind chill warning as low as 10 below zero. Can cause hypothermia if you are out in this too long. Temperature is 12 degrees F.  People east of us have worst conditions than we do, and probably further north. Please stay safe out there. Gregg just sent me this from his cell phone. Neither of us remember experiencing this before.

Now back to my ‘warm weather’ post.

The information below was found years ago, so may not be up to date, though I have checked and fixed the links when needed for this redo post. They do over the years keep changing. What you read below was done in 2013.

Today I thought I would share some photos I took when we were on vacation in Florida a while back. It was a fun experience taking photos of birds we don’t get in our state, definitely a bird-lover’s paradise. Some of these were taken in the Everglades and others at a bird rehabilitation centre found while driving down to Key West.

We found this beautiful Green Heron when looking around a Marina.

The Stork was having fish for lunch under a pier in Sebastian. A fishing boat had just pulled in and one of the men from the boat tossed a bucket of leftover fish bait to the birds.

A Brown Pelican found also in Sebastian.

We found these pelicans at the Florida Keys Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center in Tavernier.

As we did the Great Egret.

I have included a couple of maps showing Florida in the first map, and the Keys in the second. You can see the location of the rehabilitation center. It's very much worth a visit.

I was surprised to see all the restaurants pinpointed too. If you travel down Rt. 1, you can see the sanctuary approximately two-thirds of the way down. You can enlarge any of the photos for better details by clicking on them. I sometimes forget to do that when I am visiting blogging friends.

But now we are in the Everglades where there were many, many photo opportunities to take photos of Cormorants close up without using a zoom. It was an incredible experience. They must be very used to visitors and they should be. The Everglades typically welcome 1 million visitors per year (I added this information on Sunday, 2/7/26)

I saw several with outspread wings, drying them in the warm sun after diving and swimming for fish.

This pretty little bird is a Palm Warbler. 

And now for the bugs we found on the palm trees. These are the Eastern Lubber Grasshopper, young nymph (Romalea microptera).

2-7-26: thank goodness for old photos when the well is running dry, so to speak. I have been trying to take photos of bird out back and am not very successful at capturing them. My reflexes are definitely slowing down and the camera with our zoom is getting heavier it seems. Still, I never give up, says I smiling.

Thanks for looking everyone.

Have a great day.