A few birds in the Garden

Hi There
I've been a bit quiet but it's half term this week so I am going to be a frequent visitor to blog land this week! Thought I would share some photos of the birds visiting our bird feeders at the moment. Spring seems to be in the air and the blackbirds are busy chasing off their rivals. Mrs Blackcap has made an appearance - the first female we have seen here, so hoping we will get youngsters this year. Here she is with her brown cap.

There has also been a little flock of long-tailed tits. They are such beautiful birds!

Thanks for looking and I will be back tomorrow with some mid month inspiration for Stamping Sensations.

May Rudolf Day and Lea Gardens

 The end of the month is approaching fast so it is time for Rudolf Day once again over at Scrappy Mo's. I have created two little scenes using Inkylicious stamps and my ink dusters. The first has a sentiment from Honey Doo Crafts and on the second  I used a Sheena Embossing folder. I might add a sentiment eventually - for now it will do.

Do pop over to Mo's blog and take a look at the fabulous inspiration from her and the DT. Now spring is finally here, we have had a couple of outings recently, one of which was to Lea Gardens in Derbyshire, where there is a fantastic collection of Rhodedendrons, Azalea and Camelia. There is also a lovely tea shop! Here are some photos (I took lots!)

 The colours, scent and variety were a feast for the eyes!

 

By the pond we spotted lots of red damselflies

 and in the pond were lots of newts!

 Finally, take a look at the cakes!

Thanks for looking!

Dora's Digis for March

Carrying on with the African theme I have been playing with my ink dusters to create a background for Dora's fabulous Elephant that you can find here. The background stamps are all from Inkylicious and the inks are Izinks. I coloured the elephant with alcohol based markers.

I also made a card with one of the squirrels which you can also find on the realistic animals page. It was a sunny morning for once so the base of the easel card is a bit too washed out in the photo.

I'm hoping it got to it's destination on time.
Here is a photo of our resident squirrel during the recent snow

 
Thanks for looking and for all your lovely comments.

Feathered Visitors

We have had rather a lot of different visitors to the bird feeders recently, and both Meg and I managed to get some photos, so I thought I would share them with you.

 first up is our male Blackbird, who is already staking his claim to his territory and chasing off the competition. The next photos aren't the best as they are taken through the slightly grubby window on full zoom to the bottom of the garden, but first we have a chaffinch

 and also goldfinches (top) and greenfinches (bottom). Just in case you were wondering, the glass lampshade prevents the squirrel from reaching the holes on the birdfeeder!

 Then the male Blackcap appeared and has been around for over a fortnight now

 Here is a better photo of the goldfinch.

 The great tit loves the berry flavoured fat candle from B&M!

 The starling is looking very smart at the moment too.

 Bobbin the Robin is always around the garden

 And finally, meet our resident goldcrest, Britain's smallest bird. Don't you just love his yellow mohican?

I am just hoping they all show up for the RSPB's big garden Birdwatch in a couple of weeks time. If you want to join in with the biggest citizen science project of the year, you can find out more here . All you do is commit to watching for an hour and then you can log your sightings online or by post.
Thanks for looking and for your lovely comments

More shades of Autumn - a few photos

 On our last day of our short break in Wales we went to Pistyll Rhaeadr, the highest single drop waterfall in Britain. We parked by the Tea rooms at the bottom and climbed the steep path to the top of the falls. It doesn't take too long, bit I was glad of my monopod /walking pole as it was quite slippery in places. I chose three photos from the walk and have put them in order of my own preference. I love the contrasts on this first one.

 The second is the view of the Waterfall from the other side of the valley. I stood just to the right of where the water falls from.

This is looking in the other direction down the Valley. The bracken definitely makes the grass look greener.

 Now I don't post many photos of me, but as someone who really doesn't like heights I was very proud of myself standing upright just there! That water to my left is the edge of the waterfall.

                                
                    
Thanks for looking!

Open Garden Scheme

A couple of weeks back I remember I told you I had visited a couple of gardens that people had opened to the public as part of the National open Garden scheme. This is where they open their gardens and charge a small fee for opening which goes to a charity. Many sell plants and have refreshments on sale too.

All of the photos here were from the first garden we went to, just a short walk from our house. They have a smallish plot, but it is on several levels and is chock full of wonderful plants, particularly Clematis, Roses and Hosta.

I took rather a lot of photos of these two entwined clematis

This stunning apricot rose had a wonderful scent too - quite spicy

I rather liked this geranium - such delicate colours

This clematis head was huge!

I loved the sunny faced pansies too.

It was a very enjoyable afternoon!
On the way back, Steve and I talked about our own garden and thought about what we had seen. In both gardens there were definitely not enough bees! Our marjoram is flowering at the moment and is a mass of bees. It is good to know we are doing our bit for the bee population. If I could have my own 'collection' of plants, I think I would choose something like Lavender - beautifully scented and a haven for bees.
What would you choose?