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Aviary Amphitheater (Wordless? Wednesday)

We're slow starters in the morning. The children lie on the sofas and read. Charlie sits and eats a graham cracker and a bowl of yogurt at the table before breakfast. Lauren and I take turn cooking oatmeal, or muffins, or scones... We eat somewhere between ten and eleven. Today, in the midst of all this leisure, the house became exceptionally quiet and I went to figure out why because "too quiet" is never a good thing. Except that it was today. I peeked out the living room window into the backyard and found five chairs and five children lined up on the patio. I opened the door and everybody shushed me.

"Hush, Mama. We're watching the birds. Come sit with us"

Six or seven hummingbirds were zipping around the feeder, frantic to fill their little gas tanks before they migrate. The children were silent, heads tipped up, eyes squinting against the morning light. I went in to get the camera. I took a few pictures of the children but could not capture the hyperactive hummers. The kids laughed at my ineptness.

John has a way with the camera so I handed it over to him and pulled Charlie into my lap. We sat for fifteen more minutes while the hummers chirped and scolded and John worked his magic. (Well, as much magic as he could with our unimpressive camera.) Finally, we went in to get to work and left the birds to their sugar water feast. Our backyard will feel lonely without them in a few short weeks.





Comments

Christin said…
AHH!! I LOVE this! The kids lined up...the hummingbird pictures (way to go, John!) Too cute!

Makes me want to go out and buy one of those hummingbird feeders!
lori said…
SOOOOOOOO BEAUTIFUL!!!!
I LOVE hummingbirds, they fascinate me....what a great Wordless Wednesday...or not so wordless!!
(I love the words!!:))
CableGirl said…
Fantastic. I think I'm going to go out and get a hummingbird feeder. We have a mating pair that love the hedges outside our house. I'd love to keep them coming back.
Alana said…
Love, love, love the picture of the kids lined up watching the birds. Priceless!!
Faith said…
Ohh, how awesome! :)
Joyismygoal said…
Great Hummingbirds they are such an inspiration on howthey work --fun contrast to your children enjoying watching them.:>
tammi said…
Oh, you got so close to yours!! Our feeder is right outside the dining room window, but through the glass never makes a good shot and I'm usually not patient enough to sit and wait for them to get used to me being outside. (Oh, and plus we've got 4 cats and a dog constantly lurking about -- you know, the kinds of things that make ALL birds nervous!!) Where do you live again? Maybe those are the 6 that left our place 2 weeks ago! Great pictures!!
Alyson said…
I just love it when the kids capture the quiet moments for us :)

I have not purchased a grain mill yet...just drooling over yours. My husband thinks I'm crazy :)
Mary@notbefore7 said…
OH I love that picture of your kids all lined up sitting there. It is so adorable.

We have relaxed on the deck in the AM watching the birds before too. I am not much of a bird watcher, but my parents are and have instilled the love of it in the hearts of my girls.
Janelle said…
Cute bunch of kids. Looks like they are truly a good team.
Lexa Roséan said…
how beautiful they are :)
Kate said…
Christin,

Do go out and buy a feeder. But the hummingbirds will probably be leaving in a few weeks. Here's the recipe for birdfood. 1 part sugar to 4 parts water. Boil and cool. Your kids will be fascinated by these thumbsized creatures.

Cablegirl,
I'm jealous of your mating birds. We found a hummingbird nest once in the woods. It would be so awesome to be able to see a nest full of babies.

Alyson,
Your husband won't think your crazy once your making him bread. It's delicious.

Valleygirl,
Our cat was lying right under the feeder. Maybe they're not intimidated by just one cat.

Kate
Deb said…
Very cool - love the one of everyone lined up watching! Happy WW :)
Shana said…
What a great post and that first picture is amazing. There are two winged critters in that one, the bird and the bee. Great job John!
Happy WW!!!
ZAM said…
Hi. Love the pic of the kids all lined up. It's a cute pic.

And the action (wings) in the other shots.

BTW, I read about your John. Was moved. Regards.
ocean mommy said…
Love this post! John - you are a gifted photographer! Grab that camera more often!

I love the shot of the kids!

love you all,
steph.
Etta said…
Those are some pretty good pics for an unimpressive camera. I love the one of all five children sitting in a row. Cute!
Anonymous said…
John, great camera work! My boys and I are birdwatchers, and we are missing the wide variety that frequented our mountain cabin (we recently moved back to the city.)

The photo of the kids lined up is so cute. I love it when kids take it upon themselves to do these things.
Sarah Markley said…
This is so beautiful. I love it that your kids shushed YOU...I love it when that happens!
Anonymous said…
I have fallen in love with these little creatures this summer. We have a feeder attached to our kitchen picture window, so we see them constantly. They sound like little helicopters when you're outside! Wouldn't you love to hold one? My John got a pretty good picture last week, too, I'll try to post it soon. Yours are much better, though - big thumbs up to YOUR John!
Christine said…
They are amazing animals! What awesome captured moments.

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