Blessings in the summer

Picking up the challenge from Jo's latest blog, please let me share one of my favorite blessings of this summer season...our tiny little feathered friends who live on our patio. On Facebook I shared pictures of our first summer inhabitants, but not on my blog. Imagine my surprise earlier this week when I discovered a NEW nest on our patio - this is our sixth nest we have, and the first new one in a couple of seasons. That little critter built it right under my nose and I did not even see her do it! Notice its cute location..on the shoulder of our little Irishman on a wind chime! Mama is so tiny that it makes me wonder if she is one of the babies that hatched and flew away last month? Who knows..not being familiar with the habits of hummers. But what a treat! Two of the tiniest eggs you can imagine..and she is a faithful mama, sitting on it most of the time, leaving only for very short periods of time. Mama fights with the purple finches, who also feed at our feeder, and sometimes she has support in the form of other hummers who join her in shooing them away! You are right, Jo - summer is rich and full of fun. I accept your challenge to blog about some of those things in the next couple of weeks. Meanwhile, what are you grateful for in the summertime? (You can read Jo's blog at http://cjoshoot.blogspot.com/)