Mishkin has been catching some mice in the house this week, earning his bed and breakfast. The last mouse he caught was still very much alive and active when we got up in the morning. He was catching the mouse, going to the middle of the livingroom floor and releasing it, letting it get a bit of a running start and then catching it again. He was very into his game of catch and release but the mouse was not having as good a time. Then Mishkin made a tactical error – he chased the mouse into my purse. I carried purse-containing-mouse out onto the deck and dumped the entire contents on the deck. The mouse was hyperventilating, not a surprise there. Mish spent the next several hours looking for the mouse and he was very consoled when I gave him his toy mouse to play with and we played fetch for an hour.
I’ve started a new knitting project using the yarn I got from my friend in March. I’m going to make a vest and I’m making up a pattern as I go. I totally adore how the colors are developing on my ribbing, and I think she should call this color “Blue/Gold Macaw.”
This is an amazing color progression. It will be exciting to watch it become a vest.
While I’m knitting, Mishkin is on chipmunk watch. He spends many hours a day being highly entertained by the chipmunks on the porch and windowsills. They are totally unimpressed by him, and will sit up straight on their back feet, nose to nose with him, the sliding glass doors on the patio separating them, and look him in the eye. They wiggle their noses and whiskers at him, and he is completely entranced by this behaviour. Then, they scamper sideways and Mishkin goes full speed in the livingroom, anticipating which window they will end up in. The game goes on for hours.
Kitty-TV - the Rodent Channel
Early last week we had snow showers in the higher elevations, and cool spring temperatures. The hills are getting less white on top, and turning greener day by day, and so we know it is spring. The morning light on the hills when the sun first peeks over the mountain peaks to the east of us is the prettiest light of the day.
Snowing yet again. We even saw flakes outside our windows, but they didn't stick to anything.
We started on our outdoor landscaping projects this week. Our first chore was to remove a lot of wild rose bushes, and I do mean a lot. We didn’t attempt to remove their extensive root systems and they will return over time but they should be easier to manage now that it isn’t so hazardous to get near the plants. We’ve also been removing the jungle of grass in the flower bed by the two Service Berry bushes and putting down ground cloth and bark mulch.
Underneath all the grass are rocks, a juniper and fruiting bushes.
The daffodils were hidden underneath a thorny jungle.
New flowering plants have been planted, mostly perennials and only a few annuals to fill in the blank spaces. We have a new rhododendron, delphinium, day lily, fern, azalea bushes, columbine, and a stonewort. All the perennials are small versions of their adult size and we’ve left a lot of room for them to grow before we add any more plants to the beds in years to come. When the rest of the bark mulch is spread, it won’t look so bare. What we really want to do is to get some more native plants for our perennial gardening, but that will be next year.
The beginning of a finished flower bed.
Most of our perennials were planted in this flower bed. They're small now.
More weeds need to be removed, and ground cloth and bark mulch needs to be spread.
Our hummingbird population has exploded, a lot of migrants still moving through most likely is the explanation. Yesterday they drank their way through six cups of sugar water. Immediately prior to taking this picture, there was a swarm of ten birds around this feeder. They take turns scrappily getting a drink, and then chase each other out through the woods. Their evening feeding frenzy is as much a party as anything else. It is important to tank up for overnight. They are so fascinating to watch. We had over 20 birds on the front deck last night swarming around the feeders.
Hummingbirds at sunset.
The house and grounds are looking mighty impressive! And, lots of hummers to boot! Yay!