Spring has definitely sprung ....

After the hibernation of my garden the first sign of Spring were these fritillary popping up in the border. 

It continues to amaze me when there actually grows something out of the bulbs I've planted months ago .... 

But also all the wildlife which makes a frequenter appearance, like this wren who is sunbathing after a bath in the pond .... 

The grape hyacinths in the flower box in front of my living room window were a nice surprise, it's such a relieve there's also a bright sight at being forgetful sometimes ....

A serious fight was preceded but in the end this blue tit has taken up residence of the nest box ....

And love is definitely in the air as this is his lady friend. They really seem inseparable and even feed each other, they're so much fun to watch ....

Now I'm used to get lots of different bird species in my garden but I couldn't believe my eyes when these two showed up on a Saturday morning ....

Another nice surprise on my drive to work, the storks who are back on their nest
just like last year ....

During a walk in the woods with a good friend I was astonished at all the green ........

On our way we also visited the Goat Farm where not only we saw a lot of little goats but also this hanging basket with a very special resident ....

Not only a lot of new green in the woods but also in my garden, gorgeous signs of Spring ....

And not before long now these ones can hide in my maple tree ....

"Pretty in pink" at the end of my street ....

After living here for fifteen years I finally planted the fruit trees who were on my wish list for so long. So now I've got lovely blossom as my garden fence  ....

With the large selection of flowers this season it's so easy to create a spring scene at home, even in my kitchen with my favourite spring flower ranunculus ....

A real bonus to the longer and warmer days is the evening chorus of the blackbird .... 

I've been very busy sowing all kind of seeds and last week all my seedlings went from the attic to my greenhouse in a new larger pot ....

Still so very happy with my little green house. As you can read here the assembly of it was quite a task but so worthwhile ....

How fab it would be when these really turn into the gorgeous hollyhocks as the front of the seed packet does promise ....

But for now I'm enjoying the wisteria on our back patio, if only you could smell the scent ....

My mums peony with so many of these promising buds ....

In an attempt to capture the fairytale atmosphere of the English bluebell woods just a little bit at home, I planted some Spanish bluebell bulbs and were so pleased when they actually popped up.
Although I think they're very pretty and would love to have them spread around my garden, it's not exactly the same one I admired during our holiday two years ago.
Not being able to find this particular one in a garden center at home gives me the perfect excuse to pay a visit to a local garden center during our upcoming visit to England, I'm not complaining!
But for now I'm very happy with these ....

So my next bunch of flowers will not only consist of cow parsley but just like this beautiful illustration in The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady with some bluebell too ....

We've had wonderful weather this past week and hope it will stay with us for at least the (long) weekend!
Hope you'll have a wonderful one too.


Anita
~xo~

Mother nature at its best part 2 ....

Not only because the little ones are still there - but also because the village website recently gave publicity to my previous post about the nest - I thought it was about time for a little update.

As you can see on one of the pictures of my previous post there were initially four little ones ....

But last Sunday I saw only two had survived the nest ....

And doing so well that their parents already leave them alone on the nest, while first having kept an eye on them from another nest pole ....

They already have spread their wings and passed their first test flight successfully ....

And like real siblings do, already have a tiff over who's allowed to eat first ...

I guess it won't be long now before the nest will be empty. I do hope their parents will return next Spring and take even more companions along with them.

Anita 

~xo~

Mother nature at its best ....

You'll probably already know I live in a little village near Amsterdam. A city where I also have my daytime job meaning at least three times a week a drive over there.

On my way to work I always pass the village Sloten and the associated piece of unspoiled nature called Vrije Geer .

On that little piece of land is a unique situation for Amsterdam standards. This year they have placed four poles with woven nests about six or seven meters high to attract storks, with the expectation the storks itself will fill the nest with nesting material.

Until recently there was only one pole in this area what made that each Spring there was a fight between the storks to get a place to breed. 

This caused a lot of stress for the storks with the result there was hardly any breeding at all.

As you can see on the next photo this wonderful new initiative wasn't without success.

Because this is what I saw mid-April .... 

At least once a week I took my camera with me when I went to work and on my way home I made a stroll on this special place where city life meets country living ....

This was around the beginning of May where I suspected the eggs had already hatched and mum was waiting patiently until dad came back from his hunting to feed his family ....

And here he is, one very proud dad .....

And clearly on a mission ....

To make this picture of the two together on the nest I had to spend a lot of time in the high and most of the time very wet grass. Quite an achievement for someone known for little patience. But somehow when it comes to bird watch I don't mind the waiting at all ....

And finally the four little ones ....

So very pleased I managed to capture them (from quite a distance in order not to disturb them) before they leave the nest ....

Aren't they cute ....

I'm going to miss this sight on my way to work, that's for sure .... happy weekend everyone!

Anita
~xo~

P.s. There's a little update on the following link : Mother nature at its best part 2