Wildlife and domestic pet night before an ice day..

Inside the house my tabby Toby is wandering and meowing restlessly.. maybe because the office is closed while I block a new sweater on the coffee table. He likes to chew on wet wool, and I like to keep my projects safe since they take so long to make. His sister Jewel has decided to spend the night and is crouched under the kids low art table so he can't pounce.

Outside the hens are locked up safe (and hopefully warm). The bantams have gone broody again, taking up the third nesting box together and squeaking indignantly when I feel underneath them (for the eggs they've stopped making). Houdini's tail feathers are growing back in and she and the other big girls are laying regularly. Unfortunately my Crossbeak (aptly named for her craniofacial deformity) died last weekend. Carl heard a 'thunk' on the back window about an hour before he went out and found her- he thinks she may have flown into the back glass door. It may have been the cold or her nutrition (she always pecked and pecked at food but lost half of it out of her beak), or something she ate. We comforted ourselves with the usual "she lived a happy life (perching on Carl's shoulder looking for treats)", though who knows what really constitutes happiness for a chicken. She got to free range, scratch in dirt and sleep with her sisters- maybe that was good enough? So now we have 7 girls, three laying, two small goofballs playing house and two younger girls almost almost about to give me blue eggs..

Crossbeak as a chick

After an oatmeal feast last week. 

I've admired everyone's beautiful wildlife photos of birds today- cedar waxwings, robins, hawks and doves. Our bird feeder fell off its stand (and my husband has taken to feeding the extra bird seed to the chickens) so our backyard has mostly doves, chickadees, bluejays and the occasional grackle. In the front yard though I saw an early Frittilary butterfly a few weeks ago on a warm day. In typical fashion it flew off when I got close, so all I have is a grainy photo to remind me of the spring that it coming any (wet icy) day now..

 And I am late to post my Wide angle, but this pic of my front yard has one of my favorite semi-domesticated pets sitting in the front yard :)  My eldest is all flash and movement, except on rare days that he tucks under a tree to read and read and read..

It was a couple of weeks ago- the elm trees on the right are budding out now and the yellow bearded irises just barely starting to peek up..

Stay warm and cozy everyone!