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The pond started to ice over on Saturday, but this mallard couple was undaunted.  They were back on Sunday, when everything had melted.  Maybe they will try to ride out the winter with us. A cardinal provided a shot of color to the late fall landscape.

Sarah had her last soccer practice of the season on Saturday.  It culminated in an approximately five-on-thirty game of coaches versus kids.  The coaches were surprisingly competitive. Chuck has been spending many, many hours gathering the falling leaves. We had fine weather all weekend.  On Sunday, Sarah brought out her bug-collecting gear. Our bluebirds seem to […]

We had some really impressive thunderstorms Saturday evening.  Perhaps in response, this woodpecker went looking for a safe and cozy spot.  He found one by making a hole about the size of a silver dollar in one of the pillars on the back porch. The storm also shook loose lots of tomatoes.

We had a very relaxing summer vacation at the farm.  We had beautiful sunsets … … and beautiful moonsets. Jen made blackberry jam and other delicious things. We spent plenty of time with our resident hawks, who for some reason have nested very close to our bedroom window, rise early, and are quite agitated. Jen […]

It’s probably a little early in the Spring to start gardening, but on Saturday afternoon we visited the Northern Dutchess Botanical Gardens to see what they had.  Sarah seemed skeptical. She prefers the simpler flowers. We do have some fancier flora blooming, such as these Allium. On Sunday, these tire-kicking bluebirds attended our open house, […]

A Red Admiral enjoyed the lilacs on Saturday.  They are just starting to bloom.  Unfortunately, the temperature on Saturday night plunged to 23 degrees, and it is forecast to do so again tonight. We have a bumper crop of herons this spring — there are at least four nests in the swamp.  Here is one […]

On Saturday, Sarah had some friends over after soccer practice.  We went fishing after lunch.  Here is Sophie catching the afternoon’s only fish — a largemouth bass. In bloom: Bleeding Hearts Columbine Dogwood Also on Saturday, we (and by “we” I mean Chuck) installed the 12-unit purple martin house that Julie gave us.  Although some bluebirds […]

We took Friday off.  Sarah dyed some eggs, and on Saturday we brought them back to New York to celebrate Passover.  Today we had an Easter egg hunt in Central Park.

We woke up Saturday morning to find about an inch of snow, which lasted most of the day. We’d been away for two weeks, so it was a bit disappointing to find all the early spring flowers — including these hyacinths — blanketed by snow. Sarah wisely spent most of the day indoors. By Sunday, […]

A lone Ring-necked Duck steamed across the pond Saturday evening, letting us know that spring is on the way. The robins have been around since the beginning of February — about a month earlier than usual. These snowdrops grew underneath the bench in front of the cottage.  Whenever we move the bench, we find some […]