5/1/11 - 5/2/11

5/1/11
I cultivated the garden this weekend. It finally stopped raining thunderstorms and the sun came out. The soil really does look like black gold. I'm excited for a super growing season. After all, it does all start wit the soil.

5/2/11
Spring has hit and everyday progresses before my eyes. The spring brings, warmth, rain, wind, and length of daylight. Nature wakes up and gets busy fast. The color of the hills change from morning to evening with the swollen flowering buds and unfurling hardwood leaves. All the fuzzes are collecting seeds along with the return of the birds. This one's for them.

A list of my neighbors with flight who have shown up already:
(clicking on the link will just show pics randomly found on the web)
red winged blackbirds
juncos
blue jays
cardinals
red-bellied woodpecker
pileated wood pecker
sparrows
chickadees
titmice
wild turkey
rose breasted grosbeak
crows
grackles
swallows
brown headed cowbirds
morning doves
robins
northern flicker
canadian geese
hummingbirds

and my current favorite and long awaited... the oriole. I love orange in nature and their sound is bittersweet. I wasn't sure if they'd leave their beloved south for northern delights, but there he was singing in the trees. Only till the next day did I actually see him.