Luna Moth

This morning we discovered a giant sea foam green colored moth hanging out against the side of the house. It didn't seem at all phased as we gathered around with the dogs to stare at it, so eventually Josh slid his finger next to it, and it had no problem climbing right on. It hung out on his hand for a few minutes while we took pictures, then we gently placed it in a safe spot behind the house. I got the sense it would have hung out on Josh's hand all day if he had let it.

A little Googling revealed that this is a Luna Moth, one of the largest and most beautiful moths in North America. These guys live just 7 days, and their bodies are covered in a soft snowy white fuzz. The wildlife on our little hillside here in Vermont continues to amaze us. Yesterday a family of wild turkeys, including a number of poults (baby turkeys) was wondering through the orchard when we arrived home from errands. I love that :)

 

June Chicks

It looks like our bird friend has been successful raising four chicks in the nest on our porch. They are getting quite large and one has been perched at the edge of the nest for a few days like it might lean over and fly away.

Last year we had two sets of chicks under the same eave, and none of them made it so I am crossing my fingers for this group. Last year the mother bird began removing chicks from the nest when they were too young to fly, carrying them with her beak down to the ground and leaving them there to die. I read that this often happens with chicks that are sick or have some genetic flaw, and it broke my heart. The second group seemed to be fine for a while, but at a certain point we realized there was no activity in the nest and when I took a peek up there the chicks were still there, but dead and covered in dust. Second broken heart. 

It appears that there are two adults taking care of the current nest. Does that sound right? Two birds fly back and forth with worms and bugs, and two birds hang out in the tree next to the nest chirping whenever anyone gets close. I managed to get a shot of them together in a nearby tree.

Does anyone know what the dynamics would be between these two? Would they be two females? A male and a female? Two males?

I'm pulling for these little chicks, hoping they will fly off soon. I imagine another set of eggs will appear in the nest not too long after this set is gone. 

Our Bird Friend

A few days ago I was able to snap this shot of the little bird that is building a nest under our porch eaves. Does anyone know what kind of bird this is? I cruised around birding websites for about five minutes before becoming overwhelmed by the number of birds that look exactly like this one and gave up. If anyone has an expert birding eye and happens to know what species this is, please do share!

I also captured these shots of the nest while the bird was flying about collecting twigs and moss:

Pretty, right? Isn't it amazing that these little structures are built one twig at a time?

This evening the bird appears to be roosting. It generally flies off as soon as anyone enters the porch area, but today I was able to quickly snap this shot before moving away so as not to disturb it. I am assuming it is incubating eggs, though I really have no idea.

In other news, I am headed to Massachusetts tomorrow for two days of antiquing at Brimfield (HOORAY!!!!!), one day of bumming around in Boston, and a trip to Todd Farm on the way home on Sunday. I am perhaps more excited about the next five days than any others this year. BRIMFIELD HERE I COME!!

Five Proofs of Spring

1. The birds have begun building nests under our porch eaves. It's hard to get good photos, as the birds move so fast and won't come around if I am standing on the porch, but I was able to snap this shot through the window from inside the house. Can you make out the little twig in the bird's mouth?

They appear to be at the beginning stages of building three or four nests. The nests are mostly dirt and moss at this point.

2. The grass is finally green! Well, sort of. Large patches are still brown, but they will come around in the next few weeks.

3. We're bringing seedlings outside. It's finally warm enough to bring them out without shocking the plants, so today we lined our young tomato plants up on the porch for a little sunning. I like to think of them as a row of ladies on the beach sunning themselves.

4. A number of bulbs and other yellow flowers in our yard are starting to bloom. I never realized what a mood lifter flowers are until this year!

5. We can work outside. Josh has been digging a second garden plot along with a number of holes for five magnolia and dogwood trees we ordered from Arbor Day. Fern is a good lady, and hangs out in the grass with Josh while he works. Riley, on the other hand, slips off to the neighbor's house every time we turn our backs to taunt the dogs behind their fence. That little sneak.

Hope you are all enjoying beautiful spring weather. What are the markers that make it finally feel like spring to you?

Our Dogs are Famous

Okay, not really, but they are included on Design Sponge's Sneak Peek: Best of Dogs, Part II this morning :) Scroll way down to find them. They are closer to the bottom.

Design Sponge's pet roundup reminds me of the Pets on Furniture series from the Desire to Inspire blog. I bring this up because I really think the animal lovers out there may enjoy it. For years, Desire to Inspire has been posting reader submitted photos of pets on furniture every Monday. Anyone can submit so long as the pet is sitting on a piece of furniture. Some of them are hilarious, and some are completely heart melting. Check out the series on their site.

That's all for now. We are headed back to the basement today to continue with the remodel. Happy Thursday everyone!

Fern & Riley

 

Truth be told, we've been pretty lazy for the past few days. On Thursday mornings we generally go to the gym, and yet here I am in a bath robe taking photos of my dogs. In the absence of any real or useful content to share this morning, I'm resorting to the old standby of cute pup pictures :)

Fern is now about 8 months old now, and still as sweet and cuddly as she was the day we brought her home. She would not mind being cuddled all day, and routinely sits in front of me and places one paw on my leg to ask for pets. Riley, on the other hand, is becoming a grumpy man in his old age. He's never fully bounced back from his bout with Lyme disease this past summer, and has a stiff lower back that gives him trouble. We've been working on his hip, leg, and back muscles and giving him a decent dose of fish oil each day, but it still worries me to no end. Despite his back, Riley still rules the roost and Fern follows him around like a big brother. Riley seems to enjoy her company as well, and I sometimes catch him resting his head on her back or snuggling his nose into her fluffy white belly when they take naps. It melts my heart :)

Delicious Snow

It's been snowing on and off since we returned from California, and Fern can't get enough. She is content to frolic all day in the subfreezing temperatures, stopping only occasionally to sit on the deck and eat snow. When she returns to the house, the balls of ice wedged between her toes make a click clack sound on the hardwood floor, reminding me of a lady in high heels.

Riley, on the other hand, prefers to stay inside on the couch all day chewing bones and napping in his "den".  He's still a bit of a city slicker.

First Dusting

We returned home from Boston last night to find our hillside covered with the first dusting of snow to stick this season. I took the dogs for a walk around the hill this morning and snapped a few shots.

Friends

We've had the new puppy for about a month now, and although Riley was grumpy about the whole situation at first, he and Fern are now playing, wrestling, and generally hanging out together. He still bosses her around, so it will be interesting to see how the dynamic changes in a few months when she is twice his size. For now she is content to follow him around, nibble his legs to instigate playing, and sit on the sidelines while he hoards all the toys on the giant dog bed we bought for her.

In the mornings Fern is going strong by 5 a.m. and uses every trick up her sleeve to wake us up. She pulls my glasses off the night stand, gnaws on the bed frame, and puts her paws on the edge of the bed and whines. After a few minutes of this, Riley (who has always enjoyed sleeping in) comes out from his den under the covers, huffs, and jumps down to play with her. He proceeds to tire her out with 5-10 minutes of wrestling, then jumps back on the bed and climbs under the covers once she is laying on the floor panting. We like to think he is "taking one for the team" wearing her out so we can all go back to sleep.

Watch Where You Step

We've been busy the last few days, so I didn't have time to prepare a full post today, but wanted to share a few pictures of the spider we spotted in the field this morning while walking the dogs.

Now I am no fan of spiders, but when I saw this one I had to stop and stare. The body itself was 1/2", and with the legs we were looking at about 1" in total length. I've never seen a spider with black and orange stripes, and the way the rain drops clung to the web was quite beautiful. As soon as we saw it, I knew I had to get my camera.

After a bit of quick research, it looks like our friend is a female White-Backed Garden Spider. Luckily, they are not poisonous, but I'll be paying better attention to where I step from now on.

Meet Fern

We picked this little gal up four days ago from the lovely Cheryl at Connecticut Herding Dog Rescue in Lebanon, Connecticut. Fern is a snugly, sweet 14 week old Border Collie mix, and we are already smitten!

Riley, our 8 year old Rat Terrier, is not as thrilled as we are with the new pup, and has taken to stealing her toys and growling under his breath when she gets too rambunctious. For the most part Fern seems completely oblivious. She's too busy cruising for trouble and falling all over her clumsy puppy self.