Before There Were Birth Certificates

This is a framed birth record I have hanging on my wall in the living room. I bought it from a New Jersey dealer about 35 years ago and still love it. It is a page from a family Bible recording the 18th century birth date of all the family members. Someone kept it up until 1834 and then the record keeping fell by the wayside.

Here is a closer look. Isn't thehe penmanship exquisite? This also falls into the folk art category because of the folky angel and decorative flourishes across the top. It's a wonderful glimpse into 18th century family record keeping.

Best Baby Goose ever

I absolutely love this little gosling, don't you? It was taken by a registered nurse on Long Island and she crawled thru goose poop to get close and not disturb the geese. It was worth it to get such an adorable photo, don't you think? photo by Lisa Franceski She though this little one looked like a referee calling "Touchdown".

Lily of the Valley

I took this photo last year and I really babied my lily of the valley to urge them to spread. I won't be seeing them anytime soon because there is still about 4" of snow in their garden spot in front along my brick wall. I have snow drops coming up in another location on the other side of the drive way near the spruce trees. They are in the bud stage and haven't opened. I found another big patch in the woods where I throw my weeds. I'm going to dig them up and plant them where I can see them. It's a gray cloudy day and we are supposed to get snow after midnight but not too much, they say. Fingers crossed.

Waiting for More Snow

I took this photo two days ago and that little patch of snow that refuses to melt is still there and it's definitely "waiting for more" as my mother used to say. This tangled mess of thorn bushes and wild grape vines looks like a giant bird's nest, doesn't it? The weight of all the snow we had mashed it all down. You can't keep a good wild barberry bush down though. In no time they will spring back to life and provide good cover for small wildlife. This area is rather like Brer Rabbit's briar patch.

Wow, This is Cool

I wish I could say I did this myself, but Google did it for me. Remember when they put falling snow in one of my photos recently? When I set up a program to have access to pictures on my phone directly from this blog page, there was something called Auto Awesome. I checked it and this is what they did to several sunrise photos I took from my bedroom window. Awesome!

Mary Cassatt, Snow Nest, and Daffodils Sprouting

Mary Cassatt (American, 1844–1926). Young Mother Sewing, 1900. The Metropolitan Museum posted this photo in celebration of Women's History Month. Don't you love it?

I've had my eye on the bird nest for a long time. It was the snow piled inside that disclosed the location.

I am seeing a few signs of spring here and there. These daffodils will be some welcome color pretty soon.

Bird's Nest in a Thorn Bush

I would say the mother bird picked a good place to build this nest last year in the middle of a wild rose bush with giant thorns. I cleaned out all the debris in hopes she will come back to reclaim it soon. I am always fascinated with the beautiful weaving our fine feathered friends are able to do with no hands. Can you see the tiny bit of greening in the multiflora stems? Spring is on the way.

Let Sleeping Cats Lie

She certainly looks comfortable, doesn't she? Tabitha was snoring softly when I took this photo this morning but the shutter click on my iPhone woke her up. It has been eat, go out, sleep, eat, go out, and sleep ever since. She is in sleeping mode right now. Webster is whimpering for his after dinner walk so off I go. Lots of good TV tonight but nothing is on PBS. Enjoy your evening. xo