birds of a feather

After reading through some of the archives the other day, I see that I repeat a lot of the same themes. Two things I mention often are appreciating the changing seasons and how much I love coffee.  It's true that sometimes I look forward to the next morning mainly because it means another opportunity for my ritual café au lait...or two. And yes,  I openly admit addiction but, now there is another reason to happily greet the first rays of the day aside from my latte. It's because the birds are back and chirping again. Such a joyful tune to hear!  Their sweet song is made all the more amazing by their prolonged absence during the winter.

In honor of their return, here is the best of the web-- all things avian.

1.  Birds with mustaches, no. really. They have mustaches and they aren't trying to be ironic. It's called an Inca Tern. Handlebar mustaches have never been so wonderful.

2. This Bird Ballet video is beautiful --so beautiful you get completely lost in the movement, the music, the sunset and shadows.  A must see! ( via Black Eiffel )

3. This clip of the finest bird song of 1890. Yes, 1890! It's amazingly realistic.  Created by Bontems, a noted Parisian specialist, maker of automaton singing birds. Genius!  (via Even Cleveland)

4. A fun DIY Bird Feeder to make with kids.  Easy and entertaining for all.

5. My glittering hibou above is from this outing.  I found it at the adorable shop, Sweet Bee,  if you are ever in the area, it's well-curated and worth a browse.


As always, these aren't sponsored links, just fun things I wanted to share. Happy clicking!

flock together

There is a certain, quiet stillness in the early morning hours that I truly love. It comes after the snow plows have rolled through town, before the urging of alarm clocks to rise and shine, and prior to the arrival of horn-beeping delivery trucks in the village.  Lately, those fleeting peaceful moments have been filled by a loud, little captive shouting to be freed from the confinement of his crib. It has been a struggle for me over the last week and a half to find something good about getting up with Clover at four-thirty or five in the morning. I kept trying to see a positive side to it but each morning coming up short. The call of slumber and a warm bed proved too alluring to cheerfully greet the dawn.

The other day, I brought the freed little prisoner, all smiles following his liberation, to the front room. We hung out, Clover with his sippy cup of milk and me with my coffee. Wishing for even just five more minutes of sleep, I tilted my head back and sighed. It was then that I heard it - a solitary warble that steadily grew into boisterous chatter. The birds are back! We haven’t heard birds chirping for months. Their happy trills signal the impending arrival of spring.   And so, my sleepy steps are a little lighter now, buoyed by the chipper songs of our feathered friends.