The Birds

These are the various bird-themed items I have on the first floor of my house. The plates are all in my kitchen--courtesy of Brian's Grandma Wiard. Sun catchers are scattered around the downstairs--the hummingbird was actually one me and my brother made with my mom when we were little--it used to hang at my Grandparent's cabin in Colorado. The bird clock showcases a different bird sound each hour, and under it is a cardinal plaque that my sister-in-law, Jeanne, saved out of her grandparent's house when they moved into a nursing facility.

I post this not because I think I have amazing decorating abilities, but to emphasize how much I LOVE BIRDS! We have FOUR feeders out in our front yard; two on a shepherds hook in front of my kitchen window and two hanging from our red oak. I am entertained by the birds that visit these feeders all waking hours of my day. This spring, we've had a duck couple that frequents our feeders--the birds that sit on it are messy and leave TONS for the ducks to clean up. Over the past couple days the female has been under our tree pretty much non-stop. We've noticed that she has a limp--she can fly just fine (much to my dismay--I so love her hanging out more!) but barely uses her left leg. Loving these creatures as much as I do, I just want to pick her up and nurse her back to health; however she just doesn't understand that I'm not going to eat her for dinner whenever I try to get near her. So, I throw her and her mallard pieces of bread and also, what else? SNAP PICTURES! So, here are my sweet ducks from earlier this evening--just hanging out and tolerating my shutter clicks.

LOW AND BEHOLD, while sitting out on the front porch step, I see a flurry of red and look up to find our BEAUTIFUL cardinal, Harold (named affectionately after my Grandpa Miller) swoop down to scope out the bird feeder, which just happens to be filled with sunflower seeds JUST for he and his girl, Emma. What a nice surprise ... and me with my camera! Not all the pictures I took of my very favorite bird in the whole world turned out so great--blame it on the lighting--dusk will do that to an impromtu photo-shoot!

Harold in the tree ... Brian made fun of this--said, "You can ALMOST tell what it is!"

My handsome bird hopping around to see what was going on under the tree (ducks happily quacking and eating!)

Who is my handsome bird? Have I mentioned how much I love this guy?!?

I know it's a little insane, but I can't get enough of him! Sadly, Emma just did a fly-by and I didn't get capture her beauty, but Harold just seemed to know I had my camera with my zoom lens attached--appropriately spoiling me, just like Grandpa Miller always did. It couldn't have been a better Sunday!

Lastly, but certianly not least, are the goldfinches. They're beautiful and frequent our feeders almost as much as the sparrows! I got this guy a few weeks ago while sitting out on the front porch, watching the nature.



I couldn't help but share these beauties ... a few of the "little things" that entertain me so!

My Mom

First thing this morning, Brian was helping unload at the church and both of my kids were still asleep (in my bed); I had just gotten out of the shower and I was standing at the kitchen window with a fresh cup of coffee. I was watching the birds at and around my feeders, and this was my thought process: "Man I love nature. I really love birds. Today is Mother's Day. My mom loves birds. I love my mom!" It went on from there as I thought about things I have learned from my mom, from my love of birds to how to be a good mom to my own children. I thought I'd list a few in honor of her today ... this list is not all-inclusive, I don't think I could ever list everything!



A few Things I Learned from my Mom:

1. Not everything orange tastes bad
2. Other's don't make you mad, you CHOOSE to be mad (I really hated that one)
3. If you play "How close can I get" to objects in the car, eventually you will hit said objects, no matter how good at the game you are!
4. Be yourself, even if others think you're goofy
5. It's OK to be goofy
6. There is nothing wrong holding hands with another adult (I think she wishes she wouldn't have taught me this one now!)
7. Jewelry is pretty
8. Spending money is fun!
9. Nothing is more important than family
10. Peach schnapps, champagne, 7up, ice and frozen peaches taste really good blended together
11. Follow Jesus and love him with all I have
12. Spend quiet time with Jesus every day
13. Birds are beautiful
14. Treat others with kindness
15. Patience is a virtue
16. Hugs are important
17. Be affectionate
18. Treat your body good
19. You're never too old to get on the floor and play with kids
20. Don't laugh at my Dad's dumb jokes because it only encourages him (I completely ignore this one, but she's tried really hard!)



There are so many more things I could say--so many of my good characteristics have come from my mom. She's been a wonderful example of a good wife, mother and friend to me. My kids ADORE their Monna and light up at the mere mention of her name (these next pictures were taken with her in mind--I'm supposed to send them to her over e-mail--which I will, but thought I would post them here, too!)

Our family is so blessed to have Cheri as a wife, mother, grandmother and friend ... I can only hope my kids look upon me with as much love and affection when they're 34 as I do my mom today. I love you, Mom! Happy Mother's Day!!

Easily amused (just like their mother!)

So, on CINCO DE MAYO, my kids were outside playing with our neighbors, as they often do. Holly had opened up the back of her van and the kids might as well have been at an amusement park! They literally played in that van for over an hour--and Holly and I got to chit-chat for over an hour, with minimal interuptions!



I love how kids can be so easily amused--just opening the car door can make them SO happy! I'm pretty easily amused, but it's not quite like it is for the kids. When do we loose that ability to be so easily contented with small things? And by small, I don't mean insignificant ... as I write, I think about the times Paige will try to hug me and I push her away because I'm in the middle of making dinner, or when Nicholas tries to chat and cuddle with me on the couch but I'm really into the show I'm watching so I can be bothered. Those are significant things--things I should "amused" by--things that should add to my contentedness. I LOVE those "small" things from my kids, and I don't want to take them for granted. Who knew by playing "car" the kids would teach me a lesson and remind me to cherish those I hold dear.

Wii Sing It: High School Musical 3

We're not serious gamers here in the Wiard household, but anytime we're at the store (Wal-mart, Meijer, Target, etc.), we walk through the video game aisles--specifically Nintendo DS and Wii games. Last week, Paige and I were at Target; we were taking our game aisle pass through when we came upon this game for the Wii called "Sing It". This particular one has all the High School Musical songs--from ALL THREE MOVIES!! It's basically Karaoke for the Wii--you get points for how well you do--there are levels to choose from (Easy, Regular & Hard)--and you can even choose which part you want to sing. The game came with a microphone that plugs into the back of the Wii console. For $30, I thought it was a bargain--but you know me: any excuse to spend money!! ANYWAY! The kids love it--and, much to my surprise, they're really good at it! Here's Nicholas getting his song on ... and a screen shot of Troy & Gabriella:

Not that Nicholas isn't good, but Paige is a superstar! I was a little surprised at how well she did. Every time Nicholas sings, Paige wants to sing the same song ... and beats him! At first I thought maybe it was because she knew more words than I thought (we weren't completely clear on how you earned points--words, tune, rhythm, whatever) but I soon realized it's because the girl can carry a tune! She really does know more words than we realized (we shouldn't be surprised--we have the soundtracks to all three movies and she listens to each) but a lot of times she's just mumbling--she knows the melody and is singing it on key so she earns points! Here she is regaling us with her HSM singing talent, and a screen shot of Sharpay and Ryan singing "Bop to the Top":

If you know me at all, and I'm guessing you do since you're reading my blog, you know that I love music and LOVE the High School Music movies! I LOVE THIS GAME! I'm SOOOOOO good at it. I can't even be modest. I ROCK! Here I am working some musical magic, and rocking the kids' worlds ... that's me that has over 1 million points!