I stand corrected!

They are a pair of Tree Swallows.... not blue birds! Wow, goes to show how much I know about birds. Thank the Lord I'm home schooling my kids (or maybe not?? yikes!)... but maybe I'll learn a thing or two that I missed the first time around ;)

If you build it, they will come...

I thought it would be neat to have some birds make a nest in our backyard. So, I bought the bird home and told my husband, "if you put it up, I think they'll come."



Now, the ultimate goal, of course, was to have a blue bird take up residence (rather than a nasty sparrow). However, we had never seen a blue bird in our yard. Ever.

But, wouldn't you know it - within 2 hours of him posting the new home in the backyard, a beautiful little blue friend and his wife came for a visit...




.... and they decided to stay and make a home.




And now, several times throughout the day, he perches on the nearby trellis, keeping watch over his lady...

... as she diligently builds her nest.

It is an amazing blessing to have these beautiful blue birds in our yard! We have SO much fun watching them. They are so persevering. It's amazing to watch as she works so hard just to carry piece by piece by piece into her home. Sometimes she struggles, but she never quits. God's creation is amazing.

Wordless Wednesday

Can you hear me now?

... Unfortunately, yes. I can.

This was the recurring thought I had going through my head from about dinner time on until about, while -until right about now, as I type this with my kids (finally) asleep in their cozy beds.

I am suffering from a nasty cold and along with it I've gotten the first ear infection I can remember having since I was a kid. Horrible! Ear splitting pain. As if that's not bad enough, I can't hear out of my right ear at all. This was starting to quite annoy me throughout the day, until I landed at the dinner table.... party of 6. And a rude, crude and down-right disgraceful group of darling disrespectful children surrounded my table.

I found this to be especially disappointing considering that it's my favorite night of the week. "Guacamole night." This is my self-created weekly "holiday" because, well, obviously- because I love Guacamole. So, once a week, I make myself an enormous bowl of guac and the rest of the family eats some other Mexican concoction. It's a down-right fiesta going on. Except tonight. My holiday was ruined by my ill-mannered children.

I have no idea what was going on. Is it a full moon tonight? I'd never know since it's cloudy and rainy outside. But, jeez! I sat there tonight in disgust as my beautiful "princess" daughter passed wind and laughed when I scolded her. I shook my head in dismay as my 3 year old son said the words, "poop nugget, fart, toot" more times than I care to remember. Now, of course you're thinking- didn't you just discipline them and stop it? Well, yes and no. I had one of those nights. I was tired. And it was my Guacamole night. And I just wanted to enjoy it. So, I shook my head harder and faster and sank my face deeper and deeper into my bowl of guacamole and thought to myself, I really wish I couldn't hear out of EITHER ear tonight. Wouldn't that be bliss? Just me, myself and my bowl of guacamole... un-attuned to the realities of a dysfunctional dinner table. Ignorance can be bliss.

But I could hear them and all of their nastiness. Even out of just one good ear that works.

Things improved slightly after dinner. We had a great night. Went for a walk, despite the sprinkling rain. I bathed each of the children. All fresh and clean. I snuggled in and gathered them in my arms to read our evening books. It was my turn to read. And as I opened up our Bible and started reading, my precious daughter informed me that my breath smelled "like diarrhea." Yes. Diarrhea. Those were her words. And I was right back where I was at dinner. Wishing for 2 ears that temporarily didn't hear.

Can whomever took my sweet, darling, loveable and POLITE children return them to me please? I don't know who these crazy strangers are.