Tuesday Blessings

 Since there is no Tuesday 4 today I thought I would get caught up with pictures and things happening around here since the last time I wrote!  

Little by little we are getting things prepared at our house for Easter...

Lily Grace and her dog Bailey are dressed for Easter and excited about how special this week really is.

Lily was especially excited when she found out that these beautiful flowers are called "Easter Lilies"!!

She said, "I'm also an Easter Lily, because I'm all dressed up in my Easter dress and my name is Lily!"

Yes, I guess that's true, Lily! And your name, "Lily Grace", is also all about Easter, because Easter is really all about the Grace of God...His "unmerited favor" towards us...we do not deserve God's grace and salvation...it is a free gift to any who will believe!

Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV

8 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, 

it is the gift of God— 

9 not by works, so that no one can boast."

So yes, Lily Grace, you are a true "Easter Lily"!

So moving along to other things happening so far this week...last night our "kids" came over and brought pizzas for supper!  We had a good time "doctoring  up" a couple of good frozen supreme pizzas and baking them here. We've decided we like that better than ordering from Dominos.  And of course they brought our sweet grandpuppies Sugar and Spice along.

Since we've had to feed the kitties on the front porch now, the kids had to come in through the back door and not let the puppies see the kitties on the front porch. However, it didn't take long for them to discover them out there through the front window:

Talk about squealing, noisiy, excited puppies! Oh my goodness! They wanted to go out there SO bad and see those cats!! Blackie Sue and Sunshine just stared back at them as if to say, "You can't get us! We're safe out here and you're in there and you can't get us!!"   I'm afraid my window blinds will never be the same again. LOL.

I can only imagine what it's going to be like when the kittens finally arrive, which, NO, they have not arrived as of yet.

And, isn't it funny how the puppies get all excited watching the cats, and the cat loves to watch the Sand Hill Cranes from her perch on the back porch...

Look how tall Trumpet has gotten!!  He literally grows at least an inch every day! Or so it seems.

Blackie Sue loves to watch them, but she knows better than to get too close. That mother Crane would definitely let her know that she wasn't welcome, and it wouldn't be pleasant.

I expect Blackie Sue will feel the same way about her babies when they arrive.  That mother instinct is very strong in all of God's creatures...even we human mothers...right?

Oh, this Pileated Woodpecker couple flew back in the other day to peck away at that pine tree.  I wonder if they are nesting somewhere around here. We don't often get to see a pair of them together, so this is a real treat!

They certainly are interesting looking creatures, aren't they?

All of this nature around me makes me think of this old hymn:

1 This is my Father's world,

And to my listening ears

All nature sings, and round me rings

The music of the spheres.

This is my Father's world:

I rest me in the thought

Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas--

His hand the wonders wrought.

2 This is my Father's world:

The birds their carols raise,

The morning light, 

the lily white,

Declare their Maker's praise.

This is my Father's world:

He shines in all that's fair;

In the rustling grass I hear Him pass,

He speaks to me everywhere.

3 This is my Father's world:

O let me ne'er forget

That though the wrong seems oft so strong,

God is the Ruler yet.

This is my Father's world:

Why should my heart be sad?

The Lord is King: let the heavens ring!

God reigns; let earth be glad!

Amen.

Hope you are having a blessed and beautiful Holy/Easter Week.  

Saturday Review...Asking for Wisdom

 Y'all do remember that I said my "One Word" for 2025 would be "wisdom", right?  Yeah, I remember it too, but who knew it would be all about wisdom concerning what to do with a pregnant cat and her "friend/mate??", and some wild Muscovy Ducks that think they belong on my porch eating the cats' food? Who knew that dealing with such beautiful creatures could just about drive me crazy? LOL. (I'm not kidding!).  

So today I was determined to try to keep those ducks off of our back porch so our cats could live and eat in peace  (and so could I).  I had a hair-brained idea that if I blocked the porch deck, the ducks wouldn't be able to get up there and bother the cats and their food.  So here's what I did, since we don't have time or money or energy to screen in the porch, which would solve a lot of problems, but not something we can manage to get done right now...

I moved the wicker chairs over to the railing, and then went and got the folding chairs out of the shed and brought them up to the porch (no easy feat, by the way)...

Looks like we are setting up for a nice porch party, huh?  Yeah, Right, I wish!

So here come the ducks. This will be a test to see what they do...

No problemo!  Just fly right up there and waddle right around all those chairs as if they weren't even there.  No obstacle for them at all!

Thankfully I had removed all traces of cat food on the porch, so there was nothing for them to eat, and so they just waddled on down the line and back off the porch...but they didn't give up...they kept hanging around hoping for something to fall their way until the Geese and the Cranes shooed them away.

Meanwhile, I had stealthily managed to talk the kitties into following me around to the front porch of the house, and there they ate their food in peace.  Although Blackie Sue is not eating as much right now I think because of her impending delivery...and Sunshine doesn't seem to have as much appetite either, whether or not from the stress of all this activity with the ducks, or because it's so hot, or because he's old and not that hungry, I don't know.   I know I sure need wisdom to stay ahead of these animals, that's for sure!

So now what to do...those people still have not shown up to take the ducks or Blackie Sue. They have not responded to my last night's texts, and I've decided to just leave them alone. If they come, they come, but I'm still not convinced that Blackie Sue should go with them. I have had some other words of "wisdom" from some of our blogging friends who seem to have some reservations about letting her go with strangers.  It's given me some things to think about,  and I am really praying about it. I truly do need wisdom on this subject!

James 1:5 NKJV

"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, 

who gives to all liberally and without reproach, 

and it will be given to him."

Even about cats and ducks?  Yes, even about cats and ducks and anything at all that is concerning us. God knows the intents of our hearts, and He wants to help us with things that matter to us. So I am praying and asking Him for wisdom in this situation, and I know He will guide me.

Meanwhile, the Sand Hill Crane Colts, "Trumpet" and "Spring", are growing like weeds! Here's the latest pictures of them today:

Yes, they are cute! In a gangly sort of way! LOL.

Speaking of "cute", well, maybe not cute, but unique and interesting...We were visited by a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers!

They were working their way up this pine tree down by Still Waters Pond...you can barely see the head of the one on the bottom of this picture:

The Teapot took center stage on this photo, but you can see the woodpecker in the background:

There! That's more like it!! Isn't that red cockade amazing?

This one is calling to her mate after he flew away and left her there! "Hey! Wait up for me!!!"

Don't they remind you of "Woody Woodpecker"?  Here's one to remind us...LOL.

I can just hear Woody Woodpecker now...eh eh eh eh, eh eh eh eh, eh eh eh eh eh eh. !!! LOL. (Not sure how else to make the sound.)

Well, that's all folks!  

I will keep you posted on this saga. 

Psalm 25:1-5

A Psalm of David.

"1 To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

2 O my God, I trust in You;

Let me not be ashamed;

Let not my enemies triumph over me.

3 Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed;

Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause.

4 Show me Your ways, O Lord;

Teach me Your paths.

5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me,

For You are the God of my salvation;

On You I wait all the day."

4th Day of Christmas on Still Waters Pond

 It's been a while since I shared any pictures from Still Waters Pond with you.  I've been so caught up with Christmas and all that is involved with that, and you'd think that there was nothing else going on around us. But oh no!  All of God's creation is still very much alive and active here in our neck of the woods, or pond.  So how about we switch gears for a little while and see who has been visiting our pond and/or yard lately, okay?  Some of these pictures may be a couple of weeks old. I've been saving them up, so bear with me and enjoy the view!

I'll start with our latest feline visitor to our yard.  I call him/her?? Pretty Kitty.  He loves to lay in our butterfly garden and watch the birds all around him. I don't want him trying to catch/kill our birds, but cats will be cats, and this may be his only way of survival. I don't know who he belongs to, but he looks healthy.  He just enjoys exercising his predatorial instincts.  I haven't actually ever seen him catch anything, but he sure tries.  If I go out to talk to him he runs into the woods, so I can't get close. 

This evening he was actually bold enough to sit up on our back porch railing!

That is, until he saw me looking at him through the glass doors...

So he moved over to get further away from me, but still kept checking to see where I was...

I took this picture through my room with a view window. It's not quite as clear because this window has some sun film on it so it's not so bright in my eyes.  I don't like it, but if I take it off the glare is too much and I don't want to have to close the blinds, or I might miss something, like "Pretty Kitty"!

Shortly after this picture he took off to go do some hunting elsewhere.  

One day we had just come home from the store, and as I stepped out of the car I could hear the loud raucous call of the Pileated Woodpecker up in the trees. I had to run in the house and get my "real camera" with the zoom lens so I could try to find him.  By the time I came outside I could hear him farther away in the trees over behind the new house next door. Thankfully no one lives there yet, so I ran over there and started searching the treetops for this huge prehistoric looking woodpecker!

Sure enough, there he was, pecking away in the treetops.  Actually, there were two of them, as I saw them following each other from tree to tree! Here are a few of the better pictures I managed to get.

It's always a treat to see these beautiful creatures!  I'm so glad they stayed around long enough for me to get a few pictures!

Mr. and Mrs. Bluebird have been popping in and out, checking out the birdhouse to make sure no one else is squatting in there!  They probably won't be ready to move back in until early spring, but they do like to keep "abreast" of the situation!

Isn't he beautiful?

Mrs. Bluebird lets Mr. Bluebird do all the major inspections.

She's sitting in the tree, while he's on top of the house checking out the roof, like any good husband should!

It will be fun to have them back building their nests again!

The Sand Hill Crane family fly in and out periodically, checking around for any birdseed or other tasty treats...

Pretty Kitty is sitting there on the shore, watching the Canada Geese in the water.  Do you see the goose?

Honk Honk!  The geese know to stay out of reach of Pretty Kitty. 

When the kitty started to stalk them, crawling toward the water, the geese swam far out into the pond out of reach.

And Yay! Our black and white Ring Necked Ducks are back!  They have been coming back each winter to Still Waters Pond, and they are so much fun to watch. They are diving ducks, and it often looks like they are playing Marco Polo, bobbing up and down as they dive under looking for food and pop back up again.  I LOVE that they come back here each year!

So far I'm only seeing four of them, but that could change.

They prefer the smoother waters in the back part of the pond where there aren't as many lily pads to impede their swimming.  Can't say as I blame them.  Don't we all prefer to take the easier way when we can?

That's about all of the excitement on the pond for now, but things usually ramp up after the holidays, when the geese and the cranes start thinking about building nests and claiming their territories. So stay tuned.  Things could get more interesting.

Now I am thinking about the fact that it is almost the end of 2024, and it's time to consider what my "One Word" for 2025 will be.  I honestly don't have a clue at this moment. Strength was my word for 2024, and one thing I learned is this:

2 Corinthians 12:9-10  NKJV

"9 And He (Jesus) said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

I translate that to say that in my own strength, I am nothing. It is only through God's strength that I am able to do anything.  My body is weak at best, but when I need strength to do whatever it is that God is asking me to do, He gives me His strength to carry on. It would be wonderful to have the physical stamina of a marathon runner, or the strength of a power weight lifter.

 

Habakkuk 3:18-19 NKJV

"18 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,

I will joy in the God of my salvation.

19 The Lord God is my strength;

He will make my feet like deer’s feet,

And He will make me walk on my high hills."

Psalm 3:2-4 NJKV

2 Many are they who say of me,

“There is no help for him in God.” Selah

3 But You, O Lord, are a shield for me,

My glory and the One who lifts up my head.

4 I cried to the Lord with my voice,

And He heard me from His holy hill. Selah

It is God who gives me my strength and stamina. He is the One who lifts up my weary head and provides a shield around me for protection from my enemies. He gives me the ability to keep moving forward when my weary body would like to just lay down and give up. Although sometimes that is exactly what we have to do to restore our strength.

Psalm 23:1-3a

23 The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside the still waters.

3 He restores my soul;

And that brings me back home...here at Still Waters Pond..."beside the still waters", where He restores my soul...and body I might add.  That's the journey I've been on...letting go and letting God be the One who restores and builds my strength, and helps me to understand that it's His strength all the while...not my own. When I rely on Him and His strength, then His strength is made perfect in my weakness...and then I am strong!  

I still don't have a clue about what the new "One Word" is going to be, but I have a feeling it will be a good one.  So stay tuned and maybe you'll discover it about the same time as I do! Meanwhile, do YOU choose a word for each year? I'm wondering how you go about it.  For me it is a process of listening to God's voice as He whispers in my ear the things He wants me to learn in the days ahead...and that's how He directs me toward the word for the year.  I usually try to announce it on or around January 1, so we shall see what develops in these next few days.

Meanwhile, gotta go. Tomorrow will be a busy day. Hubby is preaching in Florahome (but he teaches our adult Sunday School class here at our church first, and since their service doesn't start quite as early as ours, we have time to drive up there after Sunday School and be there in plenty of time for their church service.)   Then after church we are coming back home and our son Scott is bringing steaks to grill for lunch, to celebrate Rose's 50th birthday and also a kind of Christmas gift as well.  So it will be a nice afternoon. I pray Rose is feeling good enough to eat a steak after being sick for a few days.  If not, she can save it for later, but I have a feeling she'll be hungry and ready for it.

Good night friends. I hope your weekend and Sunday are filled with joy and blessings too.