One of the regulars

With the change of weather from fall to winter, our backyard bird buffet has become a pretty popular spot. Sparrows, titmice, and this female downy woodpecker are the most frequent visitors.

Dull light and cold temperature made me decide on a through-the-window blip for the past two days, but today I didn't capture anything I want to post, so you are seeing a backblip from yesterday instead. By rights I should be posting a picture of Bob and me celebrating our 54th wedding anniversary, but we have deferred the celebration until tomorrow when we will take our family out for Thanksgiving dinner. There will be no home-cooked turkey at our house this year because I am busy tying up loose ends and getting ready to leave for Phoenix on Friday for my sister's memorial service. I'm giving thanks for my sister's long life and many blessings, but her passing creates a large hole in the fabric of my life. My brother-in-law and a niece are the only connections to my childhood that remain, a reminder that family is important and should be cherished. Tomorrow I will give thanks for them.