Bluebirds, At Last

In the early morning hours of this fine Monday, after I took care of dishes and fixed up a pot of coffee and was returning from the outside recycling cart, I caught the sharp yellow smear of my goldfinch flitting by. He landed and was perched on the fence outside the kitchen eating nook/bay, and I quickly swapped out my camera lenses to get off a quick shot or two of him.

It proved most fortuitous that the goldfinch's appearance propelled me to have the telephoto at the ready, because as I walked past the kitchen sink window a little while later, I caught sight of something that I couldn't quite believe:

Through the dirty window and the dusty screen, I at first thought that it was my imagination that led me to think I was seeing a surprising blue tint to this little girl's coat... It couldn't be.

Then, she turned:

I've lived here now for 13 years and have never seen any bluebirds in the yard. I figured downtown was too inhospitable to them. But there she was. And, a moment later, her mate flew into sight and perched on the hook with the little red bird feeder on it:

Honest to god, I almost lost my sh**! I found myself irrationally happy and thrilled just to have spotted them. They are quite beautiful to me, but they were also one of my mother's great birdwatching joys, as she'd sit on the front porch in Buies Creek. They were faithful residents of her bluebird house each spring and summer.

When I bought the Roediger House in 2003, a bluebird house was one of my mother's first house-related gifts to me, but I've never gotten around to putting it up. Again, I just didn't think I had the right location and habitat for them. You'd better believe I got that rascal up today, though!

And their visit to the yard was not a one-and-done thing: I spotted the female again early afternoon:

Around 6, she was yet again on that same perch once more. Oh, I am overjoyed. And hopeful that they might be regular visitors...and, perhaps one day, residents!