Woodpecker!

We have heard and seen glimpses of a pileated woodpecker in our front yard for the last few weeks. We live in a neighborhood so we were surprised to see one at all. Imagine how startled I was yesterday when I walked up to our front window to look outside and saw one in our front yard pecking away at a decaying tree stump full of termites! He hung out for three to four minutes and didn't even budge when a car drove by. Pretty exciting.

Baby Snail

Check this little guy out. My son and I were outside when we found this teeny baby snail. He was so cute I thought about keeping him. But, we let him go fulfill his snail destiny.

First Rose

Ta Da! My first rose of the season. I had three roses die over the winter. Pretty depressing. But this one and a bright orangey pink one survived. I also have a red rose on order. I think black spot got the others. It is already destroying my miniature roses.

Self Portrait Thoughts

I've been working on a self portrait. I think that may be the hardest thing to paint. You really have to face your inner demons and accept what you truly look like. Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike what I look like, but I think what we each see in the mirror is a bit different than what everyone else sees when they look at us. The tricky part is painting the actuality. I'm going to try to finish it up tonight. We'll see how it turns out!