With the beginning of spring and all the exciting life and growth in the garden, I felt inspired to blog again. My mind races ahead and I want to share our backyard adventures, but practicality sets in and most of them remain just a memory or a story or photo for another time. I wanted to be true to this blog as I originally envisioned it with a focus on nature and photography, centered on my favorite place to photograph-our own backyard. As my husband's illness has progressed, I have prioritized  spending time with and caring  for him and writing on a more personal level on his lotsahelpinghands...

I noticed this house wren built a nest in our backyard bird house. House wrens are cavity nesters and are easily attracted to bird houses. I was surprised when a week later I saw what looked like the same species of bird carrying twigs into another birdhouse not 20 feet away. I asked a birder friend who explained to me that the male house wren starts a number of nests, shows them to his female mate, and then lets her select the one she prefers!Together they rebuild the final selection. The male may start as many as 12 different nesting sites. Wow, he really works hard to please his mate!...