Ann, thanks so much for starting the new thread for November; that is a beautiful shot of the finches at the birdbath! I bet you will love that new camera! I am so thankful for the technology for these new cameras because I don't know a thing about photography and I'm too old and set in my ways (short attention span) to learn. I never know what I have until I download it to my laptop.
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Margaret, great shots! Wow, looks like y'all have snow already and it's so pretty! I love the Woodpeckers; I was told we have the Hairy WP here but all I've ever seen is the Downy. Amazing close up's of the Pileated, so pretty, cool shot of her taking off too! I've never seen a Pileated visit the suet feeder, wish they would but they are usually pecking away at the palm trees.
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I was out of town for a few days ... flew out to Texas with one of my friends and another friend from Va. met us there. Does anyone watch HGTV and the show Fixer Upper with Joanna and Chip Gaines? It's one of our favorite shows so we went to Waco, Tx for the grand opening of the Silo's and Magnolia Market. We flew out of Orlando at 6:00 Saturday morning and got home at 3 a.m. Tuesday morning and it's taking me awhile to adjust from central daylight time back to eastern standard time.

Our return flights were all out of whack, we were supposed to leave Waco for Dallas at 1:30 in the afternoon but when we got to Waco airport we were informed that the flight was cancelled due to weather so everyone had to get re-booked for later flights. My friend had dropped us off at the check in place while she returned the rental car but someone in the parking lot told her about all flights being cancelled so luckily we didn't have to go through the process of renting another car and were able to keep the one we had. We went ahead and checked our bags and then drove back downtown to eat lunch and shop. We returned to Waco airport for our flights to Dallas and our connecting flights (our friend to Va. and us to Orlando.) As we were sitting at the gate in Waco, they announced that the plane was there but we couldn't begin boarding as scheduled because they were waiting for the pilot and first officer to arrive from their hotel ... which delayed us even more but we all still arrived in Dallas in time for our our continuing flights home. My friend and I were supposed to get back to Orlando at 8:30 p.m. but due to the delays it was 12:30 a.m. when we landed. We got coffee and went to baggage claim to wait on our luggage, then on to the trolley to get us to the lot to pick up my friends car for the 1 1/2 hour drive home to Daytona Beach. We got home at 3:00 a.m. Tuesday morning! It seems the older I get, the longer it takes me to adjust from traveling, especially when we change time zones.

Anyway ... I was out in the yard with the dog this morning and got a picture of a belted kingfisher! I've been hearing them a lot lately but they zoom around so fast that I never seem to get my camera in time to get a photo when they are perched and still.

Belted Kingfisher

Welcome home Lin! I hope you recover from the time warp soon. Gosh, made me tired just reading about all the changes. delays & re-routing you went through. I didn't go anywhere & this time change is kicking my rear HARD!!!

I love those kingfishers! They're just so silly looking. So did you guys watch the taping of Fixer Upper? We watch Chip & JoJo sometimes.

Hi, bird people! I was volunteering at Joshua House today and they have a pond in the front of the property that attracts lots of birds. Here's a look at the pond.



There are actually birds in both of those photos if you look close, but I have close-ups so you don't have to strain your eyes. Now, remember a couple of months ago my brother and I got in an argument about White Ibises having black tips on their wings? It turned out my brother was right (boo!) but I had never seen it with my own eyes. He only knew because his old Boy Scout Troop had a White Ibis as part of their regional council's patch. Well, today I saw one grooming itself up in a Cypress and I saw for myself!



The Muscovy Duck was there, too.



I managed to hide behind a tree and get a picture of the Little Blue Heron. Once it spotted me, it flew across the pond making the most awful noise you ever heard! Like, worse than what the Crows were doing!



And here's another Ibis picture just because I think it looks cool.

Thank you Lin! Nice shot of the Kingfisher, haven't seen one of those in a long time.

Melanie, your getting way better at birding, good shots.

Ann, they weren't taping an episode of the show but it was a weekend celebration for the grand opening of the new location of Joanna's business, Magnolia Market. They purchased some Silos (old cotton oil processing plant) in downtown Waco and moved the market/store from a mile or so away to the Silos property : http://magnoliahomes.net/magno... There was a stage set up on the property with a band playing during the day, food trucks lining the property for folks wanting to grab a bite to eat; games on the grounds for the kiddo's and a pumpkin patch too. The market was open for shoppers and boy were they doing a heck of a lot of business, lines to the registers were unbelievable. I had fun window shopping but didn't purchase anything because their prices are a bit high in my opinion. Both Friday and Saturday nights Chip and Joanna were on stage to chat a bit and welcome the crowds and the group Johnnyswim played. My friends and I drove all over the Waco area (which isn't all that large, LOL) and we found Chip and Joanna's farm house and stopped along the highway to take pictures. I even took a picture of their horse that was out by the fence along the roadway. We also went to Harp Design Co. which is their carpenter Clint Harp's business. Chip and Joanna refurbished a home in downtown Waco for them and it was featured on an episode of their show and their home is right next door to their business which we thought was fun.

Melanie, Those are wonderful shots of Ibises and I really like the Little Blue Heron, I don't see those too often. I know what you mean about their loud noises ... it's the loudest, gawk, gawk like sound of any bird I've ever heard; nothing like the caw of a crow. That last shot of the White Ibis preening it's feathers is very cool!

Thanks, guys! I'm not sure I'm getting better. It's more that these birds seem somewhat tame. I'm pretty sure the kids (and maybe the adults) might be feeding them. The Ibises don't even seem to care, the Muscovy went in the water when I got a little too close, but those Little Blue Herons are really shy. Luckily, I had a tree and some brush to "hide" behind. Maybe I can get Dad to teach me how to set up a duck blind so I can shoot at them - with my camera!

Oh, I would have taken a picture of the Crows but they were dumpster diving.

Loved the bird photos, Margaret. The Goldfinch with the melted snow on its head, is my favorite!

Thank you Linda!

Fantastic shots Margaret! Sorry I didn't get to see the redpol but the Pileated surely makes up for it

It sounds like you had a very cool trip LIn, loaded with lots of fun.

Melanie you sure are getting better at the whole bird thing. I agree the little blue herons have a squawk that defies their small size. The squawk alone is enough to scare off anything interested in doing harm to them.
Melanie the butterfly stalker is morphing into a bird stalker.

Thank you Ronnie!

flaflwrgrl said: Melanie the butterfly stalker is morphing into a bird stalker.

I agree ... and stalking b'flies and birds is the best kind of stalker.

I was joking with Dad about the duck blind and he said holding still is a big part of not scaring the wildlife. I told him I was pretty sure I had that down as I'm used to the butterflies reacting to movement. He also told me it helps to wear dull colors that don't stand out. Oh, and my face is too white. It's true, I am pale-skinned. He said it would stand out in nature. Just wait until the neighbors see me with full on face paint!

mellielong said:Oh, and my face is too white. It's true, I am pale-skinned. He said it would stand out in nature. Just wait until the neighbors see me with full on face paint!

We gotta do what we gotta do to get those pictures!

If there's one good thing about getting older, it's the fact that you really stop caring about what others think of you. Especially when you're seeking your own happiness - like stalking wildlife to take awesome photos!

Amen.

mellielong said:If there's one good thing about getting older, it's the fact that you really stop caring about what others think of you. Especially when you're seeking your own happiness - like stalking wildlife to take awesome photos!

Spot on Melanie