Shades of Gray

We have an abundance of white-breasted nuthatches this fall, a sign that the breeding season in our woods was fruitful.  They are such cute little birds and very well behaved at the feeders, darting in to grab a seed before flying off with it.  The females look very much like the males; the only slight difference being that the female's cap is a dark gray and the males is almost black.  Hard to tell them apart, frankly.  But this one is a female; I am certain because a male flew in right after her, giving me a good comparison.

We have one hummingbird in the garden today, a young female.  I think she is newly arrived - she's definitely taking full advantage of feeders and flowers.

I dug up the last of the phlox this morning and got rid of the second-to-last clump of day Lillies.  Hard work as both plants set wide root balls and you really need to get the shovel under it all to move it.  I do still have more phlox to dig up in two other small gardens, but I can chunk away at that over the next few weeks.  Mainly, I wanted to clear out the garden around the perimeter of our patio.  

Jax has been busy today.  Hubs left a pair of shoes in next to the closet, so Jax relocated them.  Then he wanted to play chase with Charlie which never ends well for Jax.  I took him outside and he spotted a squirrel all the way across the yard and yanked the leash out of my hands in hot pursuit.  Just when I thought he was getting the whole "leave it" thing.  He is currently zonked out on the sofa, no doubt resting up for his next burst of energy.

My mom and dad have decided to fly out for a visit and are arriving next Wednesday!!  I am SO excited and am already getting things ready.  Sheets have been changed and dusting done.  I will do last minute cleaning over the weekend.  

And speaking of cleaning, I bit the bullet and purchased a Shark robotic vacuum (with a mopping feature).  It is currently huddled in the foyer, charging itself.  I named it Hammerhead (I was required to assign it a name when I set up the app for it.)  It needs to charge for a few more hours and then we can let it loose to "learn" the floor plan.  I'm sure none of the animals is going to like this, but if it saves me on sweeping, mopping and vacuuming, I'm sold. Stay tuned.

Dark with sea salt caramel today - yum!

xo
Debbi