A Full-time Life

WARMTH AND SUNSHINE CLOSE TO HOME

We stayed close to home this week, working on home improvement projects and planning future trips.  (To be honest, that was pretty much the other half of the 'we'.)  I was happy to be here 'just in case of need'  and  even without that excuse, sometimes it's good just to stay home.   It was definitely a good week to be in SW Florida.   Our Oregon families were braving the 'snowmageddon' -- (you may have seen or read about the Amtrak train that was stuck in the unexpected Oregon snow.  That happened near a small town in Lane County where we live  -- east of Eugene and  in the Mountains.)  But even on the valley floor, where most of our family lives, there was  a snow accumulation almost unheard of in that part of the State.  And our Colorado family, although more used to the snow, did get home from their visit here  to more snow and icy conditions.    And here we are in the sunshine.    

So our weather alone is a lot to be grateful for, but, as the ad slogan goes  "wait, there's more!"  Here in this area, there  is so much beauty around us every day, even without venturing far from home.

  

 

We don't have the usual early Spring flowers here (because it's too hot) but we have air plants.   I snapped these beauties on Monday morning in the backyard of my yoga teacher's home.  (She has a studio there.)  I used the view of that tree through the studio window  as my balance focus.  After class, I walked outside and took some pictures.  (It was actually a good way to transition before driving.  The last thing this and every Yoga class does is a few minutes of total relaxation and sometimes it takes me a few moments to come back to the real world.)   

 

 

 I  did go out of our resort a couple of other times for routine errands and  grocery shopping.   And almost directly across from the supermarket is our now world-famous SW Florida Eagle Nest.   Here's the pasture on a beautiful blue sky afternoon.   (This was on  the same day, by the way, that we'd received several text pictures of backyards in Oregon that we know and love showing the over seven inches of snow that they all woke up to that morning.)  I almost felt guilty.  Almost.  

 

 

 

 This picture is from a different day  when I stopped by.  It was fairly early  and the light was terrible that morning.   But the eaglets were active and fun to watch.  It's getting  close to the time when they'll leave home ... one of them has already flown to the branches above the nest but on this day they were just busy hopping on the edge of the nest and exercising their wings.

 

 

This is the same day as the first sky picture above -- it was afternoon, the light was great, but the 'twins' were just sitting there probably waiting for mom or dad to bring home their dinner.  (About the only action was a couple of plaintive cries.)   I would have liked to see the parent fly in with food, but my real purpose for being in the neighborhood that day was to get to the people food across the street at the supermarket.    I didn't want to be making plaintive hunger cries myself.  

 

 

 This one's not my picture, but it was posted on our resort's community Facebook page with an invitation to 'feel free to steal'.  I saw these Sandhill Cranes on the edge of the park while I was driving out one day, but couldn't stop at the time.   It is probably the same pair that we've seen here every Spring.  But particularly notable this season, because the golf course area where they've always hung out before is completely torn up this year.   (The resort's owner is adding more sites and there is really only a very small lawn area left, plus lots of construction equipment and noise.)  I assume the Sandhill pair was surprised to find that out and hope that they'll find a better place, but it was fun to see them.

 

Meanwhile, back at the Eagle pasture, these horses couldn't have cared less about the birds or the people on their way to grocery shop .  They were busy eating their own dinner.

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LINKING this week to the following sharing opportunities.  Thank you to the hosts and to visitors, especially all who leave a comment.  

 

NATURE NOTES;   ALL SEASONS; THROUGH MY LENS;  MOSAIC MONDAY; OUR WORLD on Tuesday; TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS; SAY CHEESE; WILD BIRD Wednesday;   MY CORNER OF THE WORLD;  THANKFUL THURSDAY;   SKYWATCH FRIDAY;   FRIDAY  BLISS;   SATURDAY CRITTERS;  and RATHER B' BIRDING  

CHECKING IN WITH THE EAGLES

     

E-10 and E-11, this year's  two (no longer) baby eagles,  are practicing for the soon-to-come day when they'll leave their North Fort Myers nest for good.  

 

  

 

My timing was perfect when I stopped at the pasture last week.  Right in front of where I parked in the next door church lot I saw one of the two perched on this snag tree which is closer to the parking lot than it is to the nest tree.    Wings were fluttering and so was my heart as I tried to fumble the camera into position (using the strongest zoom lens position I have).

 

 

 

But I made it .... camera ready.... there was about ten more minutes of fluttering and hopping before E-10 finally flew off the snag.    

I learned later that this was the first 'long-distance' flight either of the two had made.  They'd been flying or hopping to higher branches in the nest tree for a while, but this was the first time either of them had actually left the tree.   

 

 

 

 

 Here's (s)he is  ..... flying gracefully across our cloudless blue sky and then smoothly gliding into the nest with landing gear extended. 

 

 

 

Once more back home  (s)he appeared to try to poke her less adventurous sibling awake.  Who knows, maybe narrating the tale of the first flight adventure.  Eventually she succeeded in the sibling jostling match   -- and both flew to the 'attic' branch just above the nest.

 

 

This,  though, is my favorite part of the story.   The whole time E10  had been gone and while all the action in the nest was taking place, their Mother (Harriet) was perched on the next branch up.  With her head resolutely turned away.     Can't you just hear her mom thoughts?     "I'm not going to pay one bit of attention to you ....    but  I'm right here if you fall."    It will only be a matter of a few weeks before Harriet and her mate M-15 will once more be empty-nesters.   Every season they handle this  transition beautifully.   Instinct is a wonderful thing.  

 

 

 

 

Here's a better view of the adolescent pair. 

E-10 hatched on December 26 and E-11 on December 27.    

Every year, we winter resident birders are grateful that nesting season corresponds so perfectly with Snowbird season here in North Fort Myers.  Hatch happens right about the time people start arriving .    The babies fledge during the main part of our season  -- and  those of us fortunate enough to stay late in the season will still be here when they leave the nest for good.   

 

 

Beautiful Harriet. 

(I think she was calling Dad telling him to bring home some dinner  -- or maybe she wanted him to take over the nest watch.  Although by this stage, Harriet and M-15 sometimes leave the youngsters alone for brief periods of time.

 

We live about a mile and a half from the Eagle pasture which is on a street that we drive pretty much every time we leave our RV resort.  But most of the time, like fans of the eagles everywhere, I check the progress on the Internet.     

Here is the link to the North Fort Myers Live Cam website where there is also great information about the history of this nest.   

 

THANK YOU to the hosts of the following sharing opportunities:    

 

OUR WORLD on Tuesday; ALL SEASONS; MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES; IMAG-IN-ING; THROUGH MY LENS; WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY;  Wednesday AROUND THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY; SKYWATCH FRIDAY; SATURDAY CRITTERS; and RATHER B' BIRDING.