The male pine grosbeaks are such beauties, aren't they? Lately I've noticed that the 4 males visiting my yard seem brighter, or redder. They must be getting geared up for a date and a bit of nookie! I had no idea that grouse went up into the trees. But I guess it makes sense - when everything on the ground is so snow covered, what else would they eat. We had nuthatches early in the winter - white breasted here at home and red breasted at work - but I haven't seen them since. DH saw an owl just outside of town a yesterday and from his description it sounds like a Great Grey. I want to go hunt him down, but it's been snowing pretty good since I got off work yesterday. Great photos, everyone.

I bought a quart size container of dried mealworms and tried them in and about my backyard feeders with no success at all however, I don't have regular bluebird visitors either so didn't know what to expect. The regular feeder birds (sparrows, doves, cardinals, and juncos) ignored the dried mealworms entirely while still gorging themselves on other seed offerings. While the mealworm casings (because essentially that's all that's left after drying) eventually disappeared, I've always felt that they simply disintegrated in the weather or blew away and weren't actually eaten by the birds. In another local area where there ARE bluebirds and I occasionally "bait out" an area for my photography hobby, I found about the same level of feathered interest (zero) from multiple species (all of the above plus chickadees. titmice, and a couple of other species). In areas with a steady or high seasonal number of bluebirds, the dried mealworms may be a reliable food source but I won't be trying them again in my area of DFW. If you're in a different area of the country however, YMMV. Steve

Cool cjc. Yesterday I made a suet feeder. Watched for 2.5 hours straight realizing that any birds might need to be accustomed to something new, and no visitors. Then I decided (didn't help :-) to add oranges for color and a big old half orange on top of my shepherds hook. I watched non-stop from 11:30 am until 5:10 pm. The Brown Thrasher is a permanent part of my landscape, however. He was there all afternoon. Dax The only bird during all those hours to go near the feeder

I would not hang a skirt. It would crowd the room and make it seem smaller. It is not the style of sink that would look good with a skirt. They get wet, show water spots, and go limp. They are just something else to clean. That is a beautiful sink and a good choice getting one with the faucet set to the side. You are going to hang a mirror and that will make a big difference in the room. Go with an oval to soften the boxy-ness of the room. Have some detailing in the frame rather than smooth so it does not look institutional. The windows panes are frosted so they do not need shades or curtains but they do need something to soften the look without making the room seem even smaller. Are you bold enough for beaded curtains? They make them in all sorts of styles. Even getting sheers that have a bit of sparkle in them with metallic threads run through them, would help bounce light around the small room. I would not hang a ledge on the back wall for displays. It would crowd the room. The room does not have any storage, and since it is a guest room does not need much, but you probably do need a shelf to place an extra roll of TP or other items used in a basket. Get a shelf with some curves and style. Add a simple vase with a tulip.