Wintery Mix

January 2013 in My Mountain Green has been brutally cold and bone chilling with morning temperatures hovering at or below 0º F (-12ºF last Sunday morning) and daytime highs in the upper teens to mid 20ºs F.  Yet the wintery bitterness does not hinder the birds from completely draining the feeders!  

Here are some of the beggars birds in my yard this month:

Western Scrub Jay

Spotted Towhee 

(I think he is a little cold!  He is so puffed up, I had to do a double-take when I saw him!)

Evening Grosbeaks

(Female on left; Male on right.)

Black-capped Chickadee

House Finches

(12 in this photo, plus a Black-capped Chickadee.  I have had as many as 46!)

Downy Woodpecker

Northern Flicker (female)

Northern Flicker (male)

Steller's Jay

Common Redpoll

(not so common in Utah, classified as rare, 

yet there has been a large influx this year with multiple sightings across the state)

 My Mountain Green Yard count in January is 16 species:

1. Downy Woodpecker

2. Northern Flicker

3. Steller's Jay

4. Western Scrub Jay

5. Black-billed Magpie

6. Black-capped Chickadee

7. Dark-eyed Junco

8. House Finch

9. Pine Siskin

10. American Goldfinch

11. Evening Grosbeak

12. Common Redpoll

13. Mountain Chickadee

14. Spotted Towhee

15. Eurasian Collared-Dove

16. Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Thanks for visiting My Mountain Green!  Stay warm and toasty during these winter days!

Happy New Year!

From one little bird to another.....

American Goldfinch and House Finch

House Finch

Western Scrub Jay

Western Scrub Jay

Red Breasted Nuthatch

Here's wishing all my friends a Happy New Year!

  Looking forward to 2013 in My Mountain Green!

Pretty Bird, Angry Bird

Evening Grosbeak, a Winter bird for my part of Utah, is a strikingly beautiful bird which to me looks like an angry bird with a bright yellow uni-brow!  

First there was one......



Then a few more, even a female American Goldfinch...

How many do you see below?

Including the blurry one, I count 6!

On this gray, overcast day, the grosbeaks are eating me out of house and home. 

 Just a few more shots...

Pretty bird even though he does look angry!

As I am getting used to my new camera, these shots were the first ones taken and were on the auto setting.  Not sure that is the best setting for these photos, but it's a start for me. I'll figure it out eventually as I continue to play with the features.

Hope you enjoyed the Evening Grosbeaks.  Thanks for stopping by My Mountain Green.  

It Can't Be...Already!

As I look at my last blog post, I realize that some time has past. Plus the fact that yesterday, my friend, Kathie of Kathie' s Birds, pointed out to me Summer was over whether I liked it or not,  blooming cactus and leafy trees just did not cut it anymore!  It can't be.....I am not ready!  


Time has flown by for me, the seasons have changed too soon as well!  Fall was absolutely stunning, yet short and sweet.

Even a couple of visitors loved the aspens in my yard....






Winter decided he wants to display his full glory this year by showing up early.  Several significant snowfalls have blanketed the landscape already. 

Front Porch

Back yard patio & deck

Balcony view

Have a seat!

The Big Green Egg 

So stop on by for a bbq and a glass of wine on the patio!


To celebrate my birthday, my sweet husband gave me a  Canon PowerShot ELPH110HS.  So I hope to have better photos in future posts.  

It's time for me to embrace Winter and enjoy the beauty of My Mountain Green in its "white" palate.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Simple Beauty....

Or Exquisite Beauty... the cactus blossoms are so stunning as compared to the very prickly nature of the cactus. 

Life sometimes reflects the same.  

While the everyday details of life and summer travel are keeping me extremely busy as well as distracted, the simple beauty of nature reminds me to slow down and enjoy the glory of creation. 

Thanks for stopping by My Mountain Green.

Bright and Beautiful

After 3 days of rain and high temps in the 40Fs,

 this Memorial Day awoke to fabulous sunshine!

So what else would I do, but venture out to my balcony to enjoy my hot tea and read a good book while soaking up some rays?!


Hope you enjoyed a little snapshot of My Mountain Green!

Nesting News

A beautiful sunny Friday morning beckoned me to soak in the sun's rays and to sip my coffee (from my favorite mug, of course) on the bedroom balcony.  While here I noticed some nesting activity in the trees below.  

I repositioned myself to the lower deck so I could get a better angle on the nesting boxes.  This is a major lesson in patience for me....my camera is a Canon Power Shot point and shoot camera, no bells and whistles, no sports mode, only a 16x zoom.  After about 100 photos and some major cussing over missed shots, these are the photos I got.  

Three Springs ago, I hung 2 nesting boxes in the trees on the south side of my house.  One on the far right, I purchased at the local hardware store and it is made out of pine.  The one on the left, I so crudely made from untreated cedar scraps I had left over from when I made garden boxes.  Not having my own table saw to cut the wood to size, I just pieced it together as best as I could with wood screws and chiseled a hole in the front for an opening hoping that the birds might use it. 

Well, I am happy to say, this year a pair of Black-Capped Chickadees have deemed my crudely made nesting box fit for their brood!  Getting the nesting box ready is in full swing with the pair flitting back and forth with nest materials. 

I recently noticed that tree bark from some of the scrub oaks near the balcony has been stripped.  Now I know why, the chickadees are stripping bark to use in the nest building.

"You lookin' at me?"

I was also happy to notice that one of the chickadees is the one I spotted several months ago which has the overgrown upper mandible.  No picture of it yet, still trying.

Going in....

Flying out....

While back on the balcony, I heard a noise just over the ridge line above my house.  

What is it?  Looks like 2 huge birds of prey.....

but take a closer look...

An air glider is being towed to altitude by a Cessna airplane.  Morgan County Airport located a few miles East of my canyon is the glider airport for Northern Wasatch Front mountains.  An amazing sight to watch the gliders soar!

Well, thanks for joining me on my Friday morning adventure in My Mountain Green.

Happy Mother's Day to all!