Look who came back!

I skipped a day! Did anybody even miss me??? ;)

Okay... back to it.....

I was sitting at the kitchen table eating my lunch yesterday, and I happened to glance out the window and notice my blue grosbeak at the birdbath. I grabbed the camera, but I was too far away with the wrong lens on the camera to really get a good shot of him.

I'd seen him a time or two before that, but he never stayed long enough for a photo. I am just happy to know that he came back to nest again this year, since they aren't normally seen in this area.

He hopped into the water and did a little splashing around, so I hurriedly sneaked closer to the window and managed this shot:

None of those pictures are comparable to the ones I got last year, though.

Sometimes procrastination pays!

Friday evening after supper, I was still at the table, the dirty dishes still there, too. I was procrastinating on the cleanup by reading a book on my iPad. I happened to glance up and saw this beautiful blue bird in my birdbath! Of course I grabbed the camera, hoping he'd stay long enough for me to get at least one photo, and he did!

It was almost too dark for picture-taking, especially from inside the house at a distance. But the pretty bird stayed around long enough for me to quickly adjust some settings and snap a few shots.

Just look at that gorgeous blue color!

He bathed a bit...

... sat for a few seconds...

... then flew off with his mate. They actually didn't make a very cute couple - the female was just a plain light tan, and I'd never have paid her much attention if she'd come by herself. I'd probably never have been able to identify her, either.

I'd never seen a bird like this before! I did some researching and found him to be a Blue Grosbeak. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, he "is an uncommon bird of shrubby habitats across the southern United States".  The map does show that they're in South Dakota during the summer. Well, guess what, folks... he's now been to Minnesota! I can hardly believe I got to see him, much less get photos. Hurray for procrastination (sometimes)!