Spring Peeper?

I went down to the basement to do laundry and was startled to see about a dozen little frogs stuck to the outside of the window.  They are only about an inch long so I suspect they are spring peepers.  Not the prettiest sight, but still a reminder that spring really is a-comin. I don't know why they were right by the house as normally they would be in a marshy area in a field across the road. It has been rainy and mild for the last couple of days so I guess that woke them up. You just never know who you will encounter on any given day.

Happy Easter

 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread...
Jesus came, took bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.
This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
John 21: 9, 13-14 NIV

 Happy Easter.

Many Years

This year our church, in the middle of nowhere, is celebrating a 200 year anniversary.  Back in 1816, a couple of Scottish missionaries made their way, for some unknown reason, to a tiny village in Eastern Ontario.  Starting with a house church, a small group of people met to worship together.  Later, they built a stone church, and much more recently, they added on a church hall.  They named it Breadalbane Baptist Church after Breadalbane, Scotland. Over the years, the number of attendants has waxed and waned, but every Sunday for 200 years, weather permitting, a service was held.
This year is the 6th anniversary of a sister church that we started in a nearby town.  We asked some of our members to leave their cozy home church and embark on a new adventure.  At first, they met in the library of the local high school.  Now, they rent the town hall for Sunday mornings.
Many churches in our area are dwindling.  Why is ours growing?
Is it our pastor? Is he some charismatic preacher - No. Does he have a wonderful, warm personal manner? No.  Is he really smart? No.  Is he full of energy? No -he has a chronic illness that makes him tired much of the time.
So is it the congregation? Are they charismatic, warm, energetic, smart?  Do they organize lots of engaging activities?  No, no and no. 
What we do have is a pastor who believes that it is God's church and his parishioners are God's people that he has a responsibility to nurture and equip.  And we, parishioners, also believe it is God's church, not our church, and that our job is to love and care for each other.  We also feel it is our responsibility to encourage and support our pastor. We talk a lot about forgiveness and strive to walk the talk. We try to be slow to anger, and quick to be kind. We embrace the love that God has given to us.  We are happy to have a haven.
It's Palm Sunday.  Hosanna!

Bright and Gurgly

 It will be a while yet before any flowers are blooming in the garden, but some cut flowers are a cheerful presence on the table.

We didn't get a lot of snow this winter, and we have already had a couple of meltdowns so there won't be much spring run-off to enjoy.

Not much to see at the side of the road, but the water running down the ditch makes a happy, gurgling sound.

The Sound From Here

It is mild today and I thought I would try to get some photos of the finches. Unfortunately, they are very skittish, and I had to resort to taking pictures from the doorway of the house which is quite a distance from the feeders.  Hence, the fuzzy photos. I was happy to see that a male and female purple finch were at the feeder.

 I like the head-on view of the goldfinch highest on the line.

The finches queue up on the line waiting a chance to get some seeds.  We have been putting out black sunflower seeds, and although it is often suggested to feed them Niger seed, they are pigging out on the sunflower seeds.

 All the movement, swings the line and the feeders.  Really need to make a video, but I don't have enough zoom to do that. The male goldfinches are already starting to show more yellow colouring.

 A very pastel shot.

And this is what they sound like!
(The creaky sound is just the screen door.)

Lett-uce Say Goodbye to Winter

 It suddenly feels like winter is over.  Oh, there will probably be another snowstorm or two in March and April, but the dark, cold days are done. 
The lettuces I planted in January have been doing their best to grow in challenging conditions, and some of the leaves are big enough to warrant picking.

Not enough for a salad, but a little nibble of freshness is a treat. 
A big flock of goldfinches has been frequenting our bird feeders, and yesterday I spotted a purple finch in among them.  This morning I saw two purple finches and heard them singing a lovely spring song.  Yesterday, I also saw a group of 4 robins.  Perhaps they never went south, or they were early birds in the northern migration.
We don't have a lot of snow, so the snowdrops should be visible soon.
Yeah, for spring!