Brown Creeper

When you feed the birds you open yourself up to daily surprises. You never know what will show up at your feeders. This morning I've had a Brown Creeper visit the apple tree that is next to my bird feeders. It is a brutally cold day, temperatures starting out in the single digits, which tends to bring out more birds looking for a free handout. Well maybe not free, as the birds gift me with their infinite beauty. The Brown Creeper is a tiny bird, about 5 inches in length, that forages for insects on trees. My apple tree has lots of rot on it, so it is exactly what a Brown Creeper would be looking for to find it's food. Despite it being winter, there are still insects and their eggs holed up under the bark and in crevices. The Creeper has a curved bill for poking and prodding to get into small spaces and stiff tail feathers that help it to spiral up a tree.

Today is a very rare day...that I will be at home alone. I truly enjoy these moments, and know that I don't want too many of them, I do get bored quickly with out the chaos of my family. I've straightened up the house, and filled my feeders. I hope to putter around and get some more cleaning out and straightening done. Still trying to purge through some of the massive amounts of stuff we have obtained over the last couple of decades, always wanting to SIMPLIFY my life so there is more time for the good things....like nature.

This past week we had snow and then freezing rain. My world is covered with ice. The sky is a deep blue and the ice covered limbs of the trees glinting in the sun make for a winter wonderland. How people can say that they hate the winter, I'll never understand. Wasting a quarter of your life wishing for something else is crazy. Finding a way to enjoy the weather no matter what it is for the day, week or month is the only way to fully live in the moment. Winter has it's own beauty and magic. Open your eyes and heart to it, and don't miss out on what it has to offer.

Feeder list: Turkeys! Chickadee, W.B.Nuthatch, Blue Jay, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy, Hairy, Mourning Dove, Starling, Cardinal, T.Titmouse, W.T.Sparrow, Am.Tree Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Goldfinch, House Finch, Brown Creeper, Junco. Red and Gray Squirrels. Love my Squirrels.