Lovin' Spring!

Our bird feeders are busy with hungry birds these days.  To my chagrin, we have alot of invasive species -- common grackles and starlings always seem to be bullying the smaller birds.  But we discovered a kind that I had never seen before, so I took my camera out and sat very still to try to get a pic of this shy little bird:

Well, OK, I guess it's still hard to see what it is, but we identified it as a white-crowned sparrow, and his little striped head is very striking.  I'll see if I can get a better shot, or maybe play with one that I have to make him stand out a little more.  I'd better hurry, the bird book says they will be heading north very soon.

Here's another fave from my watch this morning:

A cardinal and a "common" sparrow!

Kim Klassen's Texture Tuesday challange this week is to use Photoshop to enhance a photograph containing a tea cup or coffee mug.  I played around and came up with this one:

I added some fallen magnolia blossoms, and used one of Kim's textures (I think "silence") and then brushed away some of the extra texture from the teacups so they would be nice and shiny.  Makes me want to have a cup of tea!