A Strange Bird

This morning, I cut grass for the first time in two weeks, and believe me, it 

needed it. 

About a half hour after I cut, I had come in to do something and came back around

the side of the house.  In our back yard was what looked like a hawk. 

I couldn't believe it... I ran back into the house quietly to get the camera.  When 

I went out on the deck, I could not see it... then... I saw something move in 

my neighbor's (perfect) yard. 

It was the bird. 

Here is a closer look.  I am at a total loss, here, folks. 

It was as large as a Coopers hawk, much bigger than a songbird, but 

what on earth IS it???? It flapped very fast.  

I'll be looking for it again, and I have never seen it before. 

A mystery! 

I had to take something over to Troy's back porch yesterday, and since the dogs were all inside with no one home, I let Lilly and Jester come.  Lilly got to run down to the pond again. 

She loves to walk around in the shallow sides. 

She never did swim, but she had a good time.  Jester was funny... he did not want to get near the water, but was jumping like a rabbit through the high grass around the pond.  

I was sitting on a boulder. 

On our way back to our yard, Lilly was naughty.  There is no fence around Troy's yard. 

She was naughty, naughty, naughty, but she came to me when I called.  After a minute. 

Kathy's cherry tree was blooming. 

I stopped at the Ag Hall in the afternoon, because I had been invited to dig up some 

Japanese iris that had become overgrown by the one room school. 

The banks of the pond were covered with geese. 

Including these little dolls. 

There were actually 8 of them. 

This mama swallow built her nest over the doorway of the General Store. 

This gives you an idea. 

Dad was there, too, and they had been swooping and swirling around the geese. 

I only went to the old place once today, because my car is overheating again.  We've flushed the radiator and changed the thermostat, so something is WRONG. 

It is going to the dealer this time, instead of a garage where Keith took it.  

Anyway, I have to drive slowly and run the heater with the windows down in order not 

to overheat the engine.  It's not fun with the heat on... but... it was cool today, in the high sixties. 

Tomorrow will be a different story, so I am only going to drive it once. 

Since we moved here a year ago, we have had some dying bushes in the back yard. 

They were a mess and I pretty much left them alone last year. 

Today, I got busy.  They are against a retaining wall. 

Here is the result. 

I am not even sure what this shrub is.  I am going to shape the one on the left a little more. 

I got busy with my little Worx weedeater, too. 

I am starting to concentrate more on this house... and it's beginning to show but

at the old house, the flower beds are getting away from me again. 

You can see the house has been painted, and there are still three 

windows to be put in on the west side, the two kitchen windows and 

the front room window.  The trim is up on all others. 

We have a maple tree over the house... those are MAPLE SEEDLINGS in the gutter! 

Yes, they're on the list to clean out, and new gutters are going on. 

But really. 

A happy, happy picture to end this post... I moved this feeder a little closer to the deck, and I am cleaning the feeders every other day.  I just love to watch these little birds!