Quoth the Cardinal, Nevermore

In the spring this past year we had a new visitor to the window of my office. A cardinal, just a young buck we imagine, new to the dating scene, who seemed keen on showing off to any of the ladies who may be watching. Not wanting to be outdone by the other young men courting, he never rested. He would flit from tree to tree, into the hedge and out, and we'd see flashes of him as he went about his rounds. The branches were still bare, so it was not difficult to catch glimpses of this fine fellow, but we never thought we'd get to be as intimate with him as we did.

Since the leaves were still off the trees, there was no shadow being cast on my office window from the large bush outside. It was a great reflector, which, when this cardinal saw it, must have shown him a perfect image. Of himself.

He would go to town showing this "other man" that this was HIS turf, and no one would horn in on HIS area! He would perch in the branches of the bush and then attack the window, flying at it, pecking at it, hurling himself at this perceived intruder. We hung CDs in the bush to dissuade him, but nothing would put him off. He would start at first light, and it would continue through the day. At least until the leaves flushed.

Figuring that after a full season of being the only guy around, he would have more confidence (or have forgotten about the other guy!) and that would be that. No mating to be done, no other man to attack.

Notsomuch.


I've got my eye on you... (Photo Jan 11)


Well, the tapping at my chamber door has resumed. Here's hoping he finds some other entertainment before too long...!

Till next time,

Sarah

What to create?

Like most creative people, I like to dip my toes into a lot of different creative ponds. When I'm not photographing I'm usually knitting! I carry a small project around with me in my bag, often pulling it out while waiting in line at the grocery store, or the dentist's office, or the doctor's... I've made lots of socks that way! Of course with all the interests come the requisite supplies. I have a soft spot for beautiful tools, and I must admit to having a few skeins of lovely yarn in bowls in my office as inspiration. Or just eye candy...

 
Rock Star; Beaded silk yarn (Photo Jan 9)


Namaste; Glass knitting needle (Jan 9)

'Till next time,

Sarah

Success!

We've been all family all the time here for the last weekend of Christmas holiday, so the photos for Project 365 are all family too.

 
Patty cake with Nanny (Photo Jan 6)

My favourites from the weekend have to be the photos where we were finally able to catch Peanut's smile on camera! She's a funny little thing, and as soon as Mum's face disappears behind the big black camera the smile disappears. Not that kids should be smiling in all their photos (in fact I believe that some of the most beautiful photos of children are when they're not smiling), but at this age, we just want to be able to show it off!


Happy girl (Photo Jan 8)

I also caught a photo of my big kid with his amazing green eyes. Not quite sure what it is about them, but they certainly evade capture. His eyes never look the same colour twice!


Green (Jan 8)

Hope you had a nice weekend with your people too.

'Till next time,

Sarah

Museum Wonders

Christmas holiday from school continues, so today's Project 365 photo is a bit of a fly-by shot.

I took both kids to the Museum of Nature here in Ottawa today, and has it ever changed since its recent renovation! It's an absolutely beautiful building steeped in history (Parliament sat there for 4 years while Centre Block was rebuilt following the fire in 1916), and is a great place to visit.

While there we were wowed (yes, even Peanut!) by the Earth exhibit with all its gems and minerals. We'll definitely have to go back for another look. We were struck by the amazing pieces that were on display, like this one called The Lovers:


The Lovers (Photo Jan 5)
The photo was taken on my iPhone. As I said, it was a fly-by shot!

'Till next time,

Sarah

What a year!

Welcome 2012!


Happy to welcome 2012 (Photo Jan 1)

I've seen a number of farewells to 2011 around the 'net in the last week or so, and a lot of them seem to be glad to see the year out the door. While the year that was definitely threw some hefty curve balls in our direction, it brought with it some wonderful surprises too- most notably, the addition of a daughter to our family!


Our new Peanut, just a few hours old

The year began with the news that we would be having a wee person join us, then continued with the usual battery of symptoms that go along with that, and culminated in the blur of long nights, feeding and diapers. The Christmas season was certainly different this year than it had been in a while...

I have had to forgive myself quite a few times and for a variety of things that just weren't being seen to while our Peanut was baking, and the blog, alas, is one of them. I'm looking forward to posting here more often, and showing off some of the things I've been working on. Now that Peanut is closing in on 12 weeks old, we're hoping that she'll be napping long enough for me to be posting...


Not so sure about that one Mum. (Photo Jan 4)

The project 365 (Picture a Day) that I was doing kind of fell off too as I wasn't well, though not as quickly as the blog! I'll be putting some of last year's photos up on Flickr so you can check them out there if you're interested. I'm doing the project again this year, wiping the slate clean and starting over. Here we go again!


Bath time with Dad (Photo Jan 2)

I'd like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy and healthy new year. May 2012 be filled with wonderful things for your family. Thanks for coming by!

Sarah

PaD, Day 19

A different view of Westboro Village.  I love that this could have been taken in any city in Canada- that's certainly not to say that each city is not unique, but that if you really look there are aspects that unite them all.

PaD, Day 18

This is the beginning of an idea I want to play with a little more in the future. The cameras are my grandfather's and his sisters, and one of them still has film in it!