While our domain has been in an uneasy holding pattern the past couple of months, the rest of nature continues on unperturbed.
This is the third nest in as many years that the local robins have built around my house, but the first that I’ve been able to see down into. They built their nest on the outer sill of my garage window; I’m around it every day, but the robins don’t seem to mind too much, only flying away if I get within about 10 feet of the window. The mother laid all four eggs (one a day) before starting to incubate them, something I didn’t know before. Normally it takes about 14 days for the babies to hatch, and then another 14 days for them to fledge (or leave the nest).
completed nest 
1 egg 
2 eggs 
3 eggs 
4 eggs 
mom robin on nest
I grew up in the country, but only since moving to the city have I been able to view many of these creatures up close, especially the deer, who seem to have almost no fear of humans.
catbird 
American goldfinch 
rose-breasted grosbeak 
northern cardinal 
gray squirrel 
white-tailed deer 
Baltimore oriole 
blue jay
The grosbeaks, catbirds, and orioles just arrived from the south in the past couple days, a sign that the weather will be getting warmer soon.
Another sign is the azaleas blooming.
Despite the cold weather (it even snowed yesterday), the peas I planted earlier this month have sprouted. I’ve planted a small garden for the past several years, but this year, given the uncertainty with the global food supply, I thought I’d get an early start.
