Good Morning, Geese!!!

Good Morning!!!  

Check out this incredibly beautiful sunrise shot of an early morning at Hearthstone!  I had to share as I am feeling extra blessed this week that I get to wake up to such breathtaking views in the mornings.  The sun has been hiding most of this year, therefore I can truly appreciate watching the sun rise over the horizon during this especially cold winter week.  The sun streams in the windows at the cottage as we are cozy inside!  Trust me when I say that the pictures do not even do this place justice!  

I do have to share with you that I am becoming quite the bird expert.  I am still getting used to the incessant squawking heard in the early mornings and late evenings around here.  Literally hundreds of geese fly over our neighbor's pond and land in ours.  The running joke is that we need Don out there as the "scare-geese"!  They even have the audacity to try to literally tear each other apart on the pond!  Nothing seems to scare them off...i.e. me standing there, making noise, or adamantly insisting that it really is quite too cold for them to be here this late in the winter.   Hello?!?!  What happened to heading south for the winter?!?!  Anyways, it is quite interesting to watch them coordinate their arrivals/departure.  It is arguably even more synchronized than trying to fly out of an active airport!  They fly out in groups, squawking all the way.  During the seemingly never ending fog early this year, it was interesting to watch them try to seek out their  favorite (unfortunately) spot with such low visibility.  As I hesitantly ventured out in the freezing air this morning, I only managed to get a distance picture of the flock on the pond (see the picture below).  The sweet little duck families scram to get away from their impeding arrival/departure as lines are drawn on our forever busy pond!  Poor things!  Here is my "thus far verdict"...the noise could be somewhat soothing (like my old beloved dead noise of traffic) although I would prefer it in far lesser numbers!  :)  Baby-steps, folks, as I adjust to country living!! 

Love to all!

The geese (or at least a fraction of them!)