Outside My Window ~ 1.3.10

Outside My Window…is a beautiful morning.  There are blue skies, sun shine and oh yea, it’s freezing cold!!  The temperature at 8:00 this morning is 24F, the wind is blowing at 21 mph with gusts up to 30 mph which is creating a wind chill of about 10F.  Our high today is suppose to be around 34F.  Fortunately the sun is out so it may not seem that cold when you walk outside……who am I kidding, it is going to be freezing cold no matter what!!  🙂

I am thinking…the fresh water I put in the bird bath yesterday is now a solid block of ice.  It was a block of ice yesterday morning and I don’t believe it was quite this cold yesterday.  I slid the block out and put in fresh water for the birds….thinking what bird will be taking a bath in this but did it anyway.  I looked out a little later and noticed there were quite a few birds drinking the water in the bird bath.  It never really dawned on me that when it is really cold, their water sources probably freeze over and they may get quite thirsty.  Here is a shot I took through my sliding glass door of a Blue Jay after his drink….

I am thankful for…my home with central heat.   I can’t even imagine what it must be like to be homeless and endure these kinds of temperatures. 

From the kitchen…coffee is in the coffee maker and I’m thinking oatmeal may be a good choice for breakfast today. Later, I will put on a pot of chili to simmer for dinner tonight.  Notice a theme for today….warm food!   

I am creating…or I should say I’m processing some of the many photos I have taken during my vacation.  I am also going to burn a disk of different photos my sister had requested copies of some time ago. 

I am going…to have to go outside eventually to run some errands.  Brrrrrr.  I put them off yesterday because I didn’t really want to go out in the cold.  After watching the weather forecast for the week, it isn’t going to get much warmer so I better get them over with.  If I don’t, food may become an issue and kids tend to get cranky when you don’t feed them.  🙂

I am reading…perhaps I should say, still reading my new PSE7 book.  I have picked up a magazine or two, but mostly reading my book and the blogs I visit on a regular basis. 

I am hoping…that everyone had a wonderful holiday and their new year has been good to them so far!  I’m also hoping you will join me each day this year ~  I have decided to challenge myself to do a post with a photograph each day of this year.  I was inspired to challenge myself by my friend Tracey at These Nine Acres.  Her 365 blog is featuring a photograph a day ~ one she has taken on that particular day.  She is a very talented photographer…stop by and take a look if you get the chance.

I am hearing…the ticking of my many clocks…..the wind…..my wind chimes singing to me.

Around the house…inside Christmas decorations that will come down tomorrow…laundry….boxes to go back up into the attic….a sewing table that needs cleaning off.

Plans for the week include…well, after tomorrow….back to work.  *Sigh*  Other than that, going out for my birthday dinner with my daughters, my mom and my sister.  Several years ago, my mom decided she wanted to take me out to dinner for my birthday on a day that wasn’t a holiday.  I still have to decide where we are going…..decisions, decisions.

One of my favorite things…is watching the birds after I have filled the feeders.  When I am outside filling the two that I have, I notice them starting to gather in the surrounding trees.  Sometimes they are hiding out in the bushes on the other side of my fence, waiting for me to go inside.  The brave ones don’t wait and will visit one feeder while I’m filling the other.  I was cleaning my room yesterday and noticed at one point there were several morning doves, cardinals, blue jays and a few others I don’t know the names of feeding at the same time.  The cardinals, both male and female, visit in greater numbers than any of the others. 

A picture I’d like to share with you…is another kind of bird, one that doesn’t visit my feeders.  This photo was taken New Year’s Eve.  It was quite foggy all day and night.  I went to the boat docks near my mother’s after I stopped by her house to say hello to some aunts and uncles that had come by to see her.  There were gulls everywhere.  I suppose they don’t like flying in the fog?  This bird was standing on one leg ~ or maybe it was a one legged bird……”One Foggy Day”…..