Greg, we've been here for 33 years - sold our house in Seattle to buy a chunk of raw land, lived in a 24' trailer while building the house (which took several years on the pay as you go basis) and had two kids in the early stages. Our yard evolved by mowing the thistles and nettles surrounding the house and letting the pasture grass take over, then slowly digging out beds and such. No formal grading, so it was a hodge-podge for quite some time. Over the years, we've gone through the gamut of farm animals - pigs, goats, chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, ponies, cows, horses - but have recently torn down most of our fences and are now livestock-free. Our boys made great use of our back woods - tearing around the roads/trails on ponies, horses, off-road skateboards, mini-bikes, motorcycles, and finally trucks. Braffin' was their term for this, not sure if that is local lingo and if others will recognize it. It's been an ever evolving journey.

It's been raining pretty much non-stop for the past week and our creek & pond are fed by run-off from surrounding hills so it goes up and down with the rainfall. Downstream from us is the remains of a beaver pond which is adding to the backup. We have new neighbors now and they seem motivated to tear down the rest of the dam, which will be helpful. We will, of course, offer to help - it's a benefit to everyone upstream to keep the creek flowing.

Yes, that's scary when you can see the water rising and don't know when it'll quit! Your land sounds idyllic!! And not having livestock also sounds more relaxing!
Meanwhile I've been thinking about how your began this post - Robins...there have been so many of them in the Cap/First hill area this year, and they stayed all year, they are overtaking the starlings, and that's saying something!! Its near the UW arboretum here in Seattle and there have been flocks of 20 or more birds - its crazy, I think because they don't have natural predators and humans are feeding them, and appreciating them - their populations have taken off! I haven't check birding sites online to see if anyone else is remarking about them, but I'd be surprised if they weren't! The other thing that has always been funny to me, are the Robins and pigeons here in PNW are so fat compared to the Robins we had in Michigan, and I remember their red being brighter then these Robins in Seattle...Anyway BH - good luck with your creek flow! I hope the neighbors get it together and remove the dam
Good luck

Tracerracer (in Oregon) also noted having year-long robins. I don't know enough about birds to know if that is odd or not. Ours usually show up in January, not sure when they leave, or where they go. Last year my first robin was early January, this year it was late January.

Or, I could just be looking out the window at the wrong time of day.

Heard a single frog (or perhaps toad) over the weekend. Still not seeing many robins, they seem to be late this year. I will typically get a bunch at once, all pulling worms out of the ground.

Nice Deb!! How fun to hear frogs, and have them be so early!!
Do the robins that you're speaking of have more yellowish breasts than red? Because in this area we do get an annual migration of thrushes, but those ones aren't the deep red breast of a robin, they're loud and stay together in large flocks and have more yellowish breast
Just curious, because I haven't seen any of those yet this year

I have both thrushes and robins. The thrushes seem to just pass through but once the robins come, they stick around. The other birds I get on a pass-through basis are evening grosbeak, which I call the clowns, both for their bright coloration but also their behavior. They just seem comical to me. I have 4 feeders in view of my office window and the various birds keep me amused during lag times (waiting for the dang computer to reboot, waiting on hold for extended periods, etc...)

They are very entertaining! Do you get titmouse? or even tufted titmouse (which are also pass through birds) beautiful with their crown!
I like birds, living here in the city, I don't have as many as I did when I lived right near the Arboretum!

I'm not exactly sure what a titmouse is, either tufted or not, but per my field guide it could be any one of the numerous small gray-brown birds that flit around my feeders. I really can't tell one from the other, try as I might - I was not blessed with good eyesight. When my boys were young, I just told them to lay off all the 'tweetie birds' with their various pellet/BB guns and wrist rockets.

Oh good!! Yep I'm sure you have them at your feeders! They're smaller than chickadees and quite gregarious!

My frogs came out the other evening - full on chorus! They are late this year. So are the robins - I've had a few here and there, but have not yet seen a bunch of them pulling worms from the yard.

I love frogs in spring

I do too. I have kept track of when the frogs emerge for several years, and would be curious to also track when they go to sleep in the fall, but who notices a silence...??

Its true! Except I live on a busy traffic noisy street, when there's a street closure (very rarely) I first notice because of the silence!

Once I lived for a winter in a summer home right on the water: waves constantly pounded the seawall and shook the flimsy house.

One night I stayed late in New Haven and went to the "Things that Go Bump In The Night" film series. It was some creepy, scary movie.

I drove home around 2 am and got out of my car into the scariest night I ever experienced

I didn't know why for many very nerve-wracking seconds.

For the first and only time, the sea and air were so still, there was NO sound of surf or wind.
Dead silence.
My hair stood on end even after I figured it out.

That can be spooky! Rick are you a writer (or like myself a wanne be??) I love that line "lived for a winter in a summer home" (are you quoting from something? If not I'm surprised it hasn't been used before!)

Frog pic from last year. Shows what a 7 year old boy's hands should look like in the spring! (my oldest)

I heard the frogs last night.

Nice photo!!
I was visiting the Upper Peninsula in Michigan one spring and took a late night walk to lake Superior, and when getting close heard this amazingly loud and ethereal sounding noises, it totally sounded like what I would imagine a space ship taking off would sound like - a whiring, high pitched - not like an engine at all except in its steadiness. When I asked later what it was, I was told it was the frogs that had just hatched! I have never heard anything like it before or since and am still in awe!

>> Rick are you a writer (or like myself a wanne be??)

It sounds like MUCH too much hard work. Other than that, I wish! I would love to write Science Fiction or an occult/SF crossover.

Of course, in order to sell any copies, it would have to be an SF/occult/romance novel!

>> "lived for a winter in a summer home" (are you quoting from something?

Thanks again, but just quoting each other: I had just gotten my first job, and was sharing rent with four college-stricken poverty students.

>> amazingly loud and ethereal sounding noises, it totally sounded like what I would imagine a space ship taking off would sound like - a whiring, high pitched

Cool!

The birds are starting to check out my houses. I brought them all in over the winter and cleaned/repaired them, then put them in new spots, trying to space them out better. I also copied an idea I ran across somewhere (maybe here?) - I filled my suet cage with random pieces of yard and string and hung that out for the birds' nesting use. Hopefully I'll get some little babies this year.

Deb that is a good idea! Best of luck to you!