Outside My Window

While fixing lunch, I glanced outside my window.  There, on the cones of my bare echinicea plant, sat a little bird.  As I watched, two more little birds joined him, pecking at the seeds.  I was so glad that I hadn't cut them down yet.  Watching the birds made me happy and I longed for my camera.  But it would be a difficult shot through my dirty windows or the screen door.  But after many longing moments, I grabbed my camera, tried to quietly open the door and started shooting.


But my birds didn't quite turn out right.  The contrast was too great, and my camera struggled to focus on the birds through the screen.  So I tried to gently open the screen door too.  Alas it squeaked, and the birds flew away.  Hoping that the birds would come back if I waited,  I readied my camera and waited.  To my right, I saw a flash of movement and turned my head to see this:

 I continued tracking the little woodpecker with my zoom, trying to get better shots, when he hopped away.  I tried to follow him, when suddenly something significantly bigger flew in front of me. 

  At first, this beautiful bird attempted to land on my slide.  He's sitting on top of the play structure well.  Even dignified jays don't do so well on a plastic slide.  Then he hopped up here.  I snapped several shots and then tried to keep track of his antics.  Jays don't sit still!  He flew and hopped around my yard, to neighbouring trees and the forest floor.  It was challenging but fun taking pictures of him.

 I enjoyed this little moment, snapping pictures until the birds flew away and my neighbours started walking towards their house(and me).  That's when I realized that I had been taking pictures in my jammies.  Oops.  Thankfully my pajamas are both decent and warm, but still...So I stopped taking pictures and went back inside to finish making lunch filled with joy over my little encounter.