I wiped away the weeds & foam. / I fetched my sea-born treasures home... Ralph Waldo Emerson







Friday, February 9, 2018

Winter Bird Nests ~ and Some Shopping



When I was a little girl I collected birds' nests. I was a shy, solitary, book-nerd child and presumably to  get me out for some exercise and fresh air, my mother invented nature walks. Looking back it seems odd of her---my mom was not yet thirty, an urban young woman who had met and married her husband in NYC, a former stewardess, a woman who cared about clothes and hairdos and who ''did her nails". But walk we did, after school on the long afternoons when my dad was away travelling for work.


We lived in a suburb that was urban encroachment on what was once farmland, so behind our house was a tiny old apple orchard, cornfields, a new peach orchard, then a wide creek with tadpoles and leopard frogs and box turtles---and acres of woodland. If you walked far enough, the woods met a highway with a roadside bar that my parents went to on Saturday nights. My memory is they left us home alone but perhaps a babysitter was there, I don't recall.


My mother taught me how to find birds' nests by watching in the spring to see where the birds would go into the leafy trees, bugs and worms in their beaks. We only collected nests that had fallen, of course, but I amassed a small gathering, displayed in the basement on the old pine topped farm table where my mom folded laundry. (Oh I wish I had that table now! The chunky turned green chippy legs, the lovely oiled pine top. Sigh.) I had a few treasures, a mud cup of a robin's nest, a lichen encrusted hummingbird nest.
Here at the beach, songbirds are few, but my eye is still trained to see the evidence of summer bird activity. When Mo and I walk in the winter, I am thrilled to finally find Mr Mockingbird's nest in a now-bare shrub, like this one, near where the mockingbird chatters frantically on the grey fence in the early summer.




We also look for signs of spring. Most of the Big Snow has melted and underneath a few green tips of daffodils are peeking out.


Sharp eyes and patience required.


....
In the stores Valentines Day has passed ages ago, the theme is spring!




                                     


And again birds' nests.






Now that we know birds return and reuse their nests each year it's especially important not to ever touch a still-viable structure. Faux is clean and pretty and ecologically better.


Cute bunnies too! Though my kids are too old for Easter decor or baskets/ treats, too bad.



And I really want this pitcher, 25% off.  Isn't it wonderful. Calls out for pink hyacinths or white tulips on my table.







Pier One also had wonderful furniture. How I wish my budget [still saving for a new dishwasher and dryer vent cleaning], could run to new sofas like this one.



So white, so soft! Zippered slipcovers!



Quite modern [or Chippendale field desk?] but such a good idea for a sofa table. It even has a drawer for sewing things, or TV remote? Nice design, not yucky plastic and tin.


This would be a great coffee table with a  Nantucket basket or driftwood-ish tray on top.


Neat cabinet too, with good storage.


Lovely chair, same one I've been wanting in the blue floral or ecru stripe. (Kel, I was chicken to sit in it! All set up for display. LOL. I'll go back with a friend to investigate further.]


..........................
In other news, how would you like to wake up to this on your phone!? Eeeeek!



And--last night I couldn't find Mo. Where's Mo? Where's Mo!? Not underfoot, not in his bed where he watches me during the day, not outside or downstairs...where is Mo.








(His new food regimen leaves him very hungry, poor little man. But unfortunately is adding weight. Must reassess!)



Any signs of spring at your house?
Have a great weekend! I'm off to buy a Lotto ticket, because ''ya never know''.

love

lizzy

gone to the beach........
















Just for Fun, a Nature Walk with Doug the Pug!

8 comments:

  1. Beautiful furniture and house pieces.
    We used to add grated carrot or chopped up cabbage to our dog’s dinner to fill him full but lessen his weight.

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  2. I never collected nests, but I did like finding them and peeking at the eggs.

    A white sofa would never survive in my house, LOL, but I did love that wooden over-the-sofa table - I may have to see if ours has one! The coffee table made me laugh as on Home Town (show) the couple had a running argument all during the show as to if it was a coffee table or an ottoman!

    I hate to see peeking daffs so early here as that usually means they'll get messed up by late snow or ice.

    The tsunami warning would have freaked me out!

    Oh, Mo!! He's such a funny boy!! It looks like he's staging a sit-in to protest his lack of food, sitting there in what looks like it might be YOUR spot! I like Dorothy's idea of adding some veggies to his meals. I was going to suggest dividing his meals into smaller meals more often, and then sharing 'treats' of carrots or maybe small chunks of celery with just a tiny smear of peanut butter or something to make him THINK he's getting something special. Cucumbers? Any other veggies he'll eat?

    If you get a lottery ticket I'll wish you good luck! It'd sure be nice to get a little windfall - you could get that new sofa! AND your dishwasher, etc. LOL, would be fun!

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  3. Oh, what a sweet little peek into your childhood! Your Mom was a stewardess? How glamorous they were back then, sigh. Gosh, I also wish you had that pine topped table. How cool would that be.

    Lol! I would have tossed those pillows off of that chair in a second. And the sofa! So pretty, and clean, and new.

    Maybe a little birdie could tell the kids that you'd be very happy to receive that pitcher for Mother's Day, or your birthday, whichever comes first. It sure is cute.

    SMH, can't believe you didn't try out the chair!

    Oh Mo, God bless him ;)

    Kel

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  4. P.S. Beautiful pics of the sky, and cute Doug The Pug video. -Kel

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  5. We feed our 9 month old Aussie veggies or fruit when he's begging for more food, carrots, broccoli, celery, apples and tangerines, so far he loves them all. Actually he loves everything he can get his mouth onto! I do like that over the couch table though doubt it would survive around here for very long - same rambunctious pup to blame. We've always thought it lucky if we brought our Christmas tree home and found a birds nest tucked among the branches.

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  6. Did you get the pitcher? It's really pretty. I collect nests too. We get a lot in our yard. I keep them in my garden shed. My cats think they are very interesting if I bring them inside. Lol :) Kit

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  7. I can see that jug with soft silver Pussy Willow on one of your small quilts with Spring blues.
    A cold snap recently tricked a pot of bluebells to flower here - mid-summer and early this morning felt like early autumn had arrived.
    So good to have lovely memories of growing up close to Nature. Penny

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  8. The memories you have of those walks with your mom are incredible and they may have been a big part of what trained your professional eye.

    Mo seems to like to be on top of things!

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