Greetings mates…and welcome to Day 115 of this year. As we do on Fridays, we’re joining our friends Rosy & Sunny from the LLB Gang for their weekly Nature blog hop. Be sure to click on the link to see what scenes were shared by others.
The Mum: Ummm, good morning, House Pony. Now could you please get off my laptop?
Wilson: Oh right, sorry about that. Just thought you needed some up close and personal help.
The Mum: Uhhh, that’s very sporting of you but I think I’m good. Besides, you don’t have any thumbs.
Wilson: Mum, it’s not nice to point out negative aspects of one’s anatomy. I’m a bit disappointing you’d resort to something like that.
The Mum: Nothing malicious intended, sweet boy. Just pointing out obvious differences. We both have to work with what we’ve got for each situation. Feel better now?
Wilson: Okay, but you know how sensitive I am. As long as you don’t mean anything by it, I’m good.
The Mum: Of course, the one thing we are here at the Ranch is kind. That’s a rule that will not be ignored. So what do we have for today’s slices of nature?
Wilson: Uh right…let’s get started. People are going to think we’ve gone batty about birds.
The Mum: Yeah, it kind of does seem that way. While most people show cool raptors and diverse images of birds, when you live in the heart of the city, your options are somewhat limited.
Wilson: Well one thing that’s universal is it’s definitely springtime and springtime is nest building time for birds of all stripes right now. Even if it’s a simple rock dove…more commonly known as a pigeon. In some places they are referred to as rats with wings since they eat just about anything. Here’s a male collecting some nest material in a parking garage. Adults are about 11-15 inches long (29 to 37 cm) and weigh anywhere from 8-13 oz (238–380 g). They typically have a dark bluish-grey head, neck, and chest feathers with glossy iridescence around their necks.The most identifying characteristic of this bird is those two black bars on their pale grey wings with their tails having a black band on the end, and the outer web of the tail feathers are lined in white. Pigeons are known to be quick on the wing when surprised or avoiding potential predators. Eye color is generally orange, red, or gold and they have those weird red/pink colored feet. Did you know the females are nearly identical as the males though the iridescence is less intense.
The Mum: Oh my goodness…I see you did some homework.
Wilson: Well, I am a professional and enjoy knowing little bits and bobs about things. It’s important for one to be curious about the day to day stuff. More people out to try it, especially since they they’re constantly looking at their cell phones.
The Mum: I say Wilson…good job. I found those pigeons when I parked my car at the doctor’s office. I don’t know why but I was simply fascinated watching them as they busily were ‘feathering their nest.’
Wilson: You must have been really engrossed in watching them-you were almost late for your eye appointment.
The Mum: Yeah, but it was nice to be captivated for several moments watching their rituals as they prepare for new babies. They almost didn’t mind me watching them working on their construction project-a common scene around the city.
Wilson: I noticed after your eye appointment, you went on a long walk around that neighborhood and found some serious signs of spring.
The Mum: It’s a habit I can’t seem to break. I used to live nearby and whenever I’m on the east side of town, I always have to walk by my old house. Like everywhere in the Mile High City, the neighborhood has changed so much. It’s very dismaying to see beautiful old Victorians torn down in favor of box-like McMansions. Fortunately my little 1900 Victorian cottage is still standing, having last sold for almost 19 times more than what I paid for it. Yikes!
Wilson: Gosh, Mum, that’s wild. It was a tiny little house but gentrification has really inflated home values.
The Mum: Yeah, it’s a truly bizarre real estate market, but enough of that. Why don’t you show some of the signs of spring from around that neighborhood.
Wilson: Right, well that part of town seems a little bit farther along than the area around the Ranch. I mean don’t bearded irises usually bloom in May?
The Mum: Indeed. In fairness though, they are starting to bud up on our side of town around the Ranch but I haven’t seen any that were flowering. This is your classic purple iris. Nothing flashy but oh my gosh, so early.
Wilson: Early, eh? What about this somewhat out of focus Bleeding Heart (sorry about that). Guess it surprised you so much, you couldn’t hold the camera straight.
The Mum: {blushing with embarrassment) Something like that. To say I was stunned would have been an understatement. Around our neighborhood, I haven’t seen any even close to blooming. Must be because of the sunlight exposure. They sure are pretty and fairly easy to grow.
Wilson: I see you found some new garden art on your walk.
The Mum: Yeah, I can’t help myself. When I came across these frogs, I kept thinking now that Lent is over I could actually enjoy an alcoholic beverage. Suddenly I was craving Mexican food and margaritas-hold the salt, please.
Wilson: I can practically hear them singing ay-yi-yi-ing from that sunny spot.
The Mum: You’re a real hoot, you know that? So what else do you have for this week?
Wilson: Looks like the lupine are starting their annual surprise appearance in odd places where they weren’t planted.
The Mum: I had to chuckle about where this one showed up. It’s not even remotely close to where last year’s lupine bloomed in that part of the garden. It always makes me smile. I’m looking forward to seeing what color the blossoms will be.
Wilson: Well, Mum, it’s time for me to go on my morning constitutional so I’m going to wrap this up. Be sure to get outside and enjoy the longer daylight with slices of nature that are appearing in your neighborhood. Is spring in full swing near you? Have a great weekend.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Wee LOVE LOVE LOVE Irisess of any kind as youss’ nose Miss Monika an Wilson!! THE Bleeldin Heart foto iss spectaculur! Wee love it!
An THE singing Froggiess are AOORBSS!
Pigeons….who doesn’t like them? Wee have 10-12 who come fore snax efurry mornin’….Bellaita has fed many geenyrationss of them heer. Two Tip an his wife Smudgey are so tame; they do not even move when BellaSita goess out on patio. An yeah, BellaSita namess efurry Pigeon!
Mew mew mew BellaDharma an **blowss kissess** BellaSita Mum
Glad you enjoyed the irises and bleeding heart. They sure say spring has sprung. Pigeons are pretty common place in the city but it was very relaxing watching them nesting. Hugs and tail wiggles.
Wee love watchin our Pigeonss heer two!!!
Love the purple iris and bleeding hearts! Yay for Spring.
And now Wiilson’s song for the frogs is going through my head. 😂 Ooh Wilson! You are great, buddy!
You are one smart dog! I think you should go on a gameshow. 😉
Oh, and I love watching pigeons. 😊
Thanks. Glad you liked the flowers. Don’t those frogs just make you want to fix a pitcher of margaritas? 🤣
Yes! When should I be at your place for a margarita? 😂😂
Any time is margarita time. Bring the limes!
🥰🍸
Java Bean: “Who needs thumbs when you have a nose for booping things, sí?”
Charlee: “BIRDS!!!”
So Bean…you do realize booping is not particularly helpful when one is on a deadline. Still, it’s hard to get upset when you see that face. Charlee, there are birds everywhere, chirping and dive-bombing curious uprights. It makes for great episodes of bird TV.
Wilson is practicing his ABC’s . . . as in Always Be Cute.
As for the 117th day (now) of the year, it was a chilly morning run with lots and lots of wind but as the day went on, it was pleasant and sunny.
That PURPLE! I love it
That GARDEN ART. I love it too.
Love your Friday tours. Hope the weekend found all the ranch hands well.
As always, you’re too kind, Marc. That garden art made me smile, mostly because I pictured myself enjoying a nice margarita with those party-animal amphibians! Spring has really sprung in the Mile High-it was toasty today (81ºF) but windy. Looks like a cool front is moving in this evening and I hope it has some moisture with the cooler temps.
Did you say MARGA! RITA?!!!!
We go from forties to high seventies on the regular. Jackets in the AM, short sleeves in the PM.
Yup. Yo-yo weather here too. I’m getting a serious case of whiplash. It’s no wonder I’m craving ‘Ritas!
Ariba!
Oh, Wilson, we didn’t knew that you had Pigeon furriends too, and even studied their entire appearances😸The flowers look very beautiful too. We had a Bleeding heart too when we lived in our other house, but when Granny planted some here, they didn’t survive. For us it’s a sign that it wasn’t necessary anymore🪄You’re looking most awwdorable on your mom’s laptop🩷Double Pawkisses for a Happy Day to the both of you🐾😽💞
Thanks, kitties…I try to help Mum wherever I can. She just needs to appreciate my help more. 😆 Mum doesn’t generally pay attention to pigeon/doves-they are so many of them…they’re kind of like squirrels with wings and everyone knows I’m no fan of those tree rats.
Your fur-iend,
Wilson 🐾
I like the way Wilson is offering to help. The picture of the Bleeding Heart is beautiful! I love the color.
Thanks Sue…yes, the House Pony is quite the ‘helper dog.’ 😆 Bleeding heart is always gorgeous but what a shock to see it in April blooming so profusely! We just had snow last weekend. Have a terrific weekend.
Love the signs of Spring……..we have trees leafing out like crazy, my bleeding hearts are still in bloom but bloomed early so some are already fading, a couple of perennials are popping up and out, mowing the lawn brings that wonderful smell of fresh grass and our azaleas – even though they had a LOT of ice damage this Winter – look beautiful ANYWAY! YAY FOR SPRING!
Hugs, Pam
What’s not to enjoy when the natural world is waking up all around? I’m glad I cleaned up a tree that too a beating last November so that as spring unfolds, it wasn’t made worse. Nature seems to know what’s she’s doing, though sometimes us mere human end up scratching our heads. Still who can deny all the beauty that’s gracing us now before summer heat hits? 😉 Have a lovely weekend enjoying it.
Your post made me smile. Have a great weekend 💕
Many thanks, Nimi. So glad the post made you smile. Have a wonderful weekend.
Nice photos. I like the metal frog sculpture. XO
Thankas, Ellen. When I saw it, I giggled. Too much fun on that walk. Have a great weekend.
My bleeding heart is only just now showing us where its blooms will be. Not at all like yours…yet!
Those frogs, LOL!!
We don’t even have any buds on our irises.
It’s always fun to watch nesting habits of birds! No matter the species!!
Thanks for showing off your version of spring!
That Bleeding Heart blew me away. The ones in my garden haven’t broken ground yet! I have to admit, those frogs tickled my fancy. Pretty cute and clever. Trust me, pigeons captivating my attention for many minutes is quite remarkable. Wishing you and the poochies a great weekend.
Spring is looking good at your place and the pigeons seem pretty happy. Have a totally fabulous weekend!
Thanks, Terry. Pigeons aren’t exciting birds (like the Cooper’s Hawks, owls or the like) but they sure captured my attention while they were constructing that nest in a parking garage. Hope you and the kitties all have a great weekend.
iris! glorious
Wilson you are adorable
Thank you! I’m looking forward to seeing more irises around the ‘Hood. Hope you have a great weekend.
We love the bright bleeding heart flowers and those frogs on the bench are totally pawsome! Have a Grand weekend!
I stopped dead in my track when I spotted it-at first I couldn’t believe it was blooming already. So early. Those froggies made me giggle and then made me want to sip a nice cold margarita! LOL Have a great weekend.
This is a great post. I love the signs of spring. You’re a little ahead of us, but we’re catching up fast. I love that picture of Wilson leaning on your laptop. I wish I could reach in and give him a hug.
Thanks so much, Dan. Spring shows itself for a few days and then shifts back to winter. We’re getting whiplash! Wilson thinks he’s helping me by laying his head on the laptop. With that fat head, I can’t get around it! Have a great weekend.
Our dog used to do that, but on our thighs. She would press down, though and it was impossible to do anything other than give her some affection.
Wilson is an equal opportunity hunk…I’ve woken up more times than I can count with him smothering me like a burrito.
HA!
Birds, flowers, and art. A delightful post. Spring is a solid month early here. Usually I don’t plant until May, and it looks like I’ll be enjoying a salad from the garden by then! Thanks for the fun post and have a lovely weekend!
Awww, thank you for the kind comment. Yeah, annuals aren’t safe from frost until late May (we’ve had snow the week of Mother’s Day). Wilson and I wish you a ‘pawsome’ weekend!
Wow, a third of 2025 is gone already?? Yikes, I hope time slows down for the next few months so we can enjoy the good weather. 🙂
Our cool weather has been replaced with summery temps and the plants are leaping forward. It’s daffodil time here and daily I notice a new bloom or three. Today I saw my first hummingbird, 10 days early! I was happy, but it did make me wonder. Their previous arrival time has always varied by only a day or two. Hope your weekend is lovely. We’re due for an inch of much needed rain tomorrow.
Hard to believe, isn’t it? Time just seems too speedy anymore. I need to get some hummingbird feeders put up-love watching them nosh away. It misted early this morning and has been chilly but I don’t mind. I know it’ll be hot soon enough. Have a super weekend-stay dry if you can.
Wilson, I think my Mom needs to follow that advice too.
Mums can always use our advice. 😆 We know the real skinny around here.
Your fur-iend,
Wilson 🐾
Thumbs or not, good job today Wilson … says June, waving a thumbless paw! PS: most of the birdies I see (being a city girl) are the same ones you do!
Thanks, June. Our city birds may be ordinary but our observations about them are extraordinary! Have a great weekend.
A lovely walk. So nice to see the blooms. The bleeding hearts were terrific and the frogs were good for a laugh.
Thanks, John. Yeah, the real laughs begin with the second margarita…because, you know…tequila. Bwhahahaha! Have a good weekend.
thanks for clarifying that the plant in our back yard is a bearded iris 😂 It started blooming a week ago. Along with the red roses back there.
A bird around here kept trying to nest in my front door wreath. Every morning I had to go out and remove what she’d already done. Then I put a piece of aluminum foil in the bottom of the wreath, and that took care of it. She flew around back and has now nested and laid her eggs in our covered grill. *sigh* Probably no grilling out this year for the 4th of July.
You’re very welcome. I guess when you gotta lay, you’ll do what you gotta do to make it happen. Have a great weekend.
dood….letz hope de burdz find all de constructionz materialz they knead, what with tariffz on everee D thing on de planit 😾. de flowerz iz pawsum….knot much
out yet heer in TT…thanx for sharin de fotoz 🦋🌿🌸‼️🐾😺💚
Thank you, our pleasure sharing then photos. No kidding about the tariff things. It seems like pricing clerks have to work overtime repricing things by the hour. Mum is trying her best to avoid having to buy anything-food is bad enough. She kept yelling that people were gonna rue the day when their bunches of bananas reach $20. Sheesh. Hope you have a lovely weekend.
It’s amazing what a few hundred miles will do. We are in full bloom here…even with the late season snow last weekend.
Have a pawesome weekend!
xoxo,
Rosy & Sunny (and Beth)
You’re so right-I think your elevation may be higher and thus the sun is speeding things up. It struck me as odd that the east side of town was ‘springing up’ faster than the western part of the city. Have a great weekend.
Just waiting for the resurrection plants to pop up here….first the flower and then, much later, the leaves.
I just looked up resurrection plants-was not familiar with them. Wish it would do well in Colorado but suspect it’s just a tad bit too dry here. Looks amazing! Hope you and the Thugs have a great weekend, Helen.
We are just ending daffodil and early tulip stage here. Most blooming trees are blooming. Everything is so green and fresh. Love the spring!
Tulips are pretty much done here too and the daffodils are close behind. We’re seeing lilacs in a few places along with flowering trees and shrubs starting. One house we walk past every day has apple and cherry trees in full bloom this morning. So gorgeous. Have a wonderfully spring-like weekend without any weather surprises.