THEY'RE HERE!!

I saw the first arrivals today. There are at least two of them, maybe more. I've got three feeders up now and I am in hummer heaven. Be sure to check out my Five Steps to Happy Hummers and get lots of tips on starting (or increasing numbers) of your very own hummingbird colony!

Screaming, Rearing and Charging

I'm sitting here on my screened-in back porch with two hummingbird feeders hanging on either side of the door. Jerry said he had one dive bomb him this morning, but I have yet to see one. I've been working out here for a couple of hours and no customers yet! Oh well, I did take Rudy for a spin this afternoon. He was a perfect gentleman. Rita, of course, carried on like a maniac. I figure when I ride Rudy, I get two for the price of one. Rita gets her exercise too. While screaming like a stallion, she entertainingly demonstrates her athletic ability, rearing, bucking, leaping, spinning and charging. It's quite a workout. More than I'm up for, FOR SURE! :-D
Here's a quick sketch of Rita today. I'm starting to draw more again, in preparation for my summer sketching series... I'm dreading it and looking forward to it at the same time. Hee Hee, Go figure.

Oh Where, Oh Where Can My Hummingbirds Be?!

OK, they're late. I'm beginning to worry. The first males have been arriving here around the 19th or twentieth of April for several years. (I write it on my calendar.) We did have a very cold winter here, but according to hummingbirds.net, they've been spotted as far north as Canada. Oh dear . . . I put up another feeder today by my studio window. Maybe I'm just missing them. I'm on edge and everything that goes by my window catches my eye. I'm even dreaming about the little cuties. Oh well, I'll try to be patient. Today's sketch is one I did in preparation for my studio drawing classes that I did in Florida last week. (And, I have been informed that the course was a huge hit with all the students.) :-D

An Obsession With Hummingbirds

I will be traveling and giving s few drawing demonstrations next week, so I thought I'd better practice a little today. Not drawing as regularly as I would like, my session started off slow and a little rusty. After a short time however, it became much easier. Here's a few steps of one of today's sketches. No hummers have been spotted here yet, so drawing some will just have to quench my thirst for now. Last year the first one showed up here on April 19th, so it shouldn't be too long of a wait now!

The Hummers Are Here!

I looked at Hummingbirds.net's hummingbird migration map and quickly got a hummingbird feeder out this past weekend. The little travelers have been spotted in my area and as far north as Massachusetts! No need to put out more than a single feeder just yet though. When you see one bird, you can then put up another. Once your spot is established, you can be certain within a day or two you'll be seeing more. Be sure to check out my Five Steps To Happy Hummers site to get your hummingbird season started off with a bang! I'll keep you posted on our arrivals here. Good Luck and Happy Humming!