Today, I had a fantastic experience when I spotted an Indigo Bunting and a Cardinal at my bird feeder.

Sitting on the sofa enjoying my coffee, I noticed a flash of bright blue. I grabbed my camera and snapped a few pictures.

I wasn’t sure about what I saw until I ran a picture through Merlin. The app confirmed that it was an Indigo Bunting–a Lifer for me! It was such a treat to see an Indigo Bunting up close and personal; they are such beautiful birds.

It was a gorgeous day; I spent much of it outside working on a new, taller fence for the pups. The 2′ fence we put up years ago for Gidget makes me nervous–Murphee has proven to be a climber. While working, a pop of red in the yet-to-bloom lilac caught my attention. A male Cardinal dined on fallen seed. Try as I might, he didn’t provide a good camera angle. Still, I delighted in his presence. Last year was the first time in 20 years I’d had a regular visitor.

As I settled on the sofa to catch the evening news, he stopped by for dinner and stayed awhile.

This striking Cardinal stayed for at least 30 minutes, studying me through the living room window.

Spotting an Indigo Bunting and a Cardinal at my bird feeders today was such a joy–it made my day.

And we enjoyed our first porch bouquet of the year courtesy of Hannah.

It’s hard to believe that less than two weeks ago we had our heaviest snow of the year. It was a good day.