As I was growing up, my dad always made sure, wherever we lived, to feed the birds. I remember sitting at the dinner table watching birds out our sliding glass doors or sitting backward on a couch and peering out a picture window at the little birds pecking at seeds. At one of our homes, we had some pretty greedy Blue Jays. They would bully the little finches and chickadee's, chasing them away from the food. My dad had a great idea to nail some peanuts to the deck and tie others with fishing line. We laughed and laughed as those big bullies would try to pick up those nailed peanuts (think about the quarter-glued-to-the-sidewalk gag) and then nearly die laughing when a Jay picked up a tethered peanut, flew away with great pride in his final success, then had it yanked out of its mouth. You could almost see the complete confusion on the birds face. Mean? Not really. We wanted to feel ALL the birds.
Anyway, I have always tried to have a bird feeder since being away from home. We most recently had our squirrel proof ($$) feeder destroyed by a dog we were dog-sitting a couple months ago, so I've resorted to an old plate. Today it was rainy and cold (no school because of ice), so I set the plate of seed just outside our French doors. It didn't take long for the little birdies to spread the news. It was fun to watch the birds with the boys. I definitely received more satisfaction than they did, but I hope that as they grow, they will remember feeding the birds and have feeders in their yards one day.
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