more rare bird sightings

As I was driving home yesterday, I saw this on the side of the road...

A huge bird in the fields. I pulled over because I'm a sucker for all things birds. He flew to the top of a power pole.

It was then I realized what kind of bird he was...

That's right!! A Bald Eagle!!! I was so so excited! I've never seen one out in the "wild" before. I inched closer and closer to him; my camera happily snapping away. I think this is my favorite shot though...

He was looking at me as if to say, "Crazy girl. Do you know how silly you are?"
I looked at him thinking, "Beautiful eagle. Do you know how breathtaking you are?"

Then...today as we were driving home from church we saw this big guy...

I think he was some sort of a hawk. But for some reason he only wanted to let the camera see his underbelly. A gorgeous underbelly to be flashing about though.

I told james I think that when I'm old, I'll be a bird lady rather than a cat lady (Just to clarify, I never really wanted to be a cat lady--but if I had to choose one of the two...). I'll have a big picture window looking out into a yard filled with lots of bird feeders. A good rocking chair and some nice knitting by my side. For outings I'll go feed the ducks or visit the feathered creatures at the aviary.

Actually when I really think about this, my great grandma on my dad's side was a bird lady. She had a menagerie of birds. They converted part of their garage into a huge bird cage. She had finches mostly. And she was always nursing sick or hurt birds others would find around the neighborhood.

And then my grandma, my dad's mom, used to breed cockatiels. She gave me one when I was little. I named him Feathers of course.

I've had a lot of birds growing up. Feathers, a bright yellow canary named Peep (oh he had the most beautiful songs!!), a few parakeets, and another cockatiel named Kramer.

Hmmm maybe birding really is in my blood...