Ginny Diezel Studios

If you are a regular reader of my blog, then you know that from time to time I have posted pictures of some of the wildlife in my yard.  We live on a marsh, and it is simply gorgeous every day – the trees, the wildflowers, the wildlife — something is always flying over, or walking through, or crawling by.  Certainly, at this time of the year, we have many little fledglings learning to be adult birds, AND we have baby ducks!  This little family has survived natural predators and everyone is thriving.  They literally grow by inches each day!  I don’t always see them during the day, but as I work in the kitchen at my bay window, I keep an eye out for them, and today, they and Mama arrived – a bit later than usual, but they are here!  I rushed to get my camera to snap a picture for all to see!  They have nested down the bank, but not so close to the water’s edge that the eggs or very young ducklings could have been taken by snapping turtles.

My personal feeling is that Nature balances and provides, and it is only when Man intervenes that things are thrown off balance.  I believe that we must live in concert WITH Nature, rather than flying in her face.  We have large hawks which come to catch the occasional slow moving dove in the yard.  We have harriers which nest close by and provide for their young.  That is the way that it is.

Because I believe that I live in the environment of the wild things, and because the homes are built on the edge of this setting, I try to provide for the vanishing food supply for my neighbors.  I feed vast numbers of birds – cardinals, nuthatches, titmice, blue jays, robins, thrushes, red-wing blackbirds, goldfinches, purple finches, hummingbirds, and even grackles!  Oh, the crows swing by during the day as well.  And every spring, I have ducklings.  And, every summer, I have baby raccoons.  I have  a steady population of raccoons and possums who come to feed at night.  I have never been bitten, scratched, hissed at, or anything else.  I think they instinctively can recognize my intentions, and the raccoons love to sit on the windowsill at night, or in the late afternoon, and watch me sculpt and paint.  They put their paws against my hand through the glass, and they wait for their evening meal – dog food, sunflower seeds, and they love watermelon rinds!  Then, of course, I have many squirrels during the day, and their babies come as well as they learn about their little world.  The squirrels will knock on the window if all of their seeds are gone, and they frequently sit and watch me as well.

Enjoy this small peek into my vibrant backyard.   Oh, we even have gray foxes occasionally, and muskrats from the river.  We are alive, and well, and content here on the marsh in Virginia Beach……

Hello world!

Meet Mikey!   He is one of several new little friends who frequent my backyard in the late afternoon and evening. At this time of year, the raccoon babies are about two months old, and their parents are teaching them how to search for food. Well, they need go no further than to my house! I have set up a feeding station on the other side of the fence where the land slopes off to the marsh. The raccoons wade in or swim in, depending upon the tide, and stop for a while to eat. The babies are learning so much every day, and usually are pretty shy around humans, but Mikey is my new best bud. I have named him Mikey because he eats anything – cantaloupe and bananas are his faves! Actually, he enjoys little peanut butter sandwiches, apples, peaches, and strawberries, and plenty of nuts, if you have ‘em!  I put out lots of sunflower seed every day for the birds and squirrels, and raccoons love them as well.  They are able to grasp little pawfuls and are quite refined as they eat.  Look for more posts about Mikey!  He is growing daily!

Hi everyone!

Matt and I have been working this afternoon to upload pictures and text to Spooky Time Jingles, in preparation for the launch on the 13th! And, bless his heart, Matt has gotten my blog all fancied up! Don’t you love this? I will be adding some of my fave sites and blogs for you all to enjoy, so stay tuned for some goodies.

It has been quite an afternoon of computer work for me, and my little brain is so tired! I feel good – the pics are in place, so I can start to relax for a couple of days anyway!

My baby raccoons are coming in the yard, so I will be uploading some pictures soon so that you can see their adorable faces. One has finally figured out how to get into the feeder to get at the sunflower seeds, and he is ecstatic! I am, too! Maturation ! But, he’s still very small, and it will be a long time before he is out on his own. He and his siblings live in the marsh behind my house, and come in late afternoon and evening to eat. The adults are coming as well, and the real fun is when the adults bring their children to play at night in the yard. A couple of nights ago, I had five babies running around in the moonlight. What a treat!

I am off to fix dinner, and then try to unwind from my computer session this afternoon. Have a great weekend, one and all, and be sure to go to www.spookytimejingles.com on Sunday to see some terrific artwork from a wonderful group of artists. I am so fortunate to be on the site with them!