The Great "Grape Jelly" Smack-Down

Summer is officially over. But, Mikey and I are still having fun sorting through his summer photos of our feathered friends. And, we’re still chuckling over "The Great Grape Jelly Smack-Down." Here's how it all went down...


On one tree limb, we have the Red-breasted Grosbeak, looking rather calm, cool, and collected….

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Red-breasted Grosbeak

 

On another tree limb, we have the Baltimore Oriole, looking much more alert, fierce, and determined...

 

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Baltimore Oriole

 

Both birds have one goal in mind...to get their beaks on that grape jelly Mikey tucked inside a piece of driftwood.



Grape jelly used to lure in birds.

So...Who do you think got to the grape jelly first?!

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Baltimore Oriole and Red-breasted Grosbeak

And, the winner of "The Great Grape Jelly Smack-Down" is....

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Baltimore Oriole

That fierce determination definitely paid off! (Look closely and you can see the grape jelly in his beak!)

To see our favorite Baltimore Oriole photo, click here. For a little backstory on the grape jelly technique to lure in birds, click here.

Underwater Wednesday: Blue-Eye Hermit Crab – Part 2

Well, well, well...Look who's come out of his shell since last week’s Underwater Wednesday…

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Blue-eye hermit crab photographed in Cozumel.

As I was perusing Mikey’s library of underwater photos, I found this somewhat “shell-less” photo of the blue-eye hermit crab and couldn’t resist dedicating a follow-up post to him. Perhaps Mikey caught this colorful crustacean just as he was relocating to a bigger abode?

Side Note: I didn’t realize the hermit crab was such a hairy ‘lil fella!

For more fun facts on this blue-eye "beauty," click here.

Safer Than a Chainsaw

For the past couple of days, my renaissance man has traded in his chainsaw for his microphone!

(Ahhh, I can breathe a big sigh of relief knowing he’s tucked safely in his studio…rather than romping through the woods with a BIG, dangerous power tool!)

Mikey has been busy working on another corporate voice over project for one of Fortune Magazine’s Top 100 Best Companies to Work for...

Mikey is focused intensely on his script….

 

So focused, he didn’t even hear me enter the studio! (Okay so he did hear me…and I think his reaction spooked me more than I spooked him!)

Well, I should let Mikey get back to his script. He wants to finish up so he can go play (err, work!) in the woods...with his chainsaw. (Oh, great!)

Mikey is still hoping to one day land his dream voice over job!

Underwater Wednesday: Blue-Eye Hermit Crab

Our Underwater Wednesday today is quite the cute crustacean with those bright baby blues! Meet the blue-eye hermit crab…

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Blue-eye hermit crab photographed in Cozumel.

Photo Fun Facts:

• Hermit crabs don’t naturally have their own shells. To protect their soft, exposed abdomens and to protect themselves from predators, they look for shells to live in (and carry with them.)

• This particular hermit crab is residing in a conch shell.

 

• As the body of a hermit crab grows, it needs to "house hunt" for a roomier shell.

 

• Evidently, real estate hunting is quite competitive among hermit crabs, so don’t be surprised if you see multiple crabs quarreling over the same conch!

 

• This hermit crab was about 4 inches in length.

• As most hermit crabs are nocturnal, Michael took this photo during a night dive.

 

• Michael took this photo at a depth of about 40 feet.

Underwater Wednesday: Social Featherduster

The “social featherduster”…what an interesting name for today’s Underwater Wednesday! These marine creatures may resemble a common household cleaning tool, but they’re actually tube worms. Each lives in its own thin tube (as seen in the first photo below) which they can retract into if they sense danger.

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Social featherduster photographed in Cozumel.



©Life as an Artist’s Wife
Social featherduster photographed in Cozumel.



©Life as an Artist’s Wife
Social featherduster photographed in Cozumel.

Photo Fun Facts:

• Each tube is a little smaller in diameter than the average drinking straw.

• The delicate “feathers” are actually radials that extend out of their tubes to catch food (such as plankton) drifting by.

• When extended, these particular social featherdusters were about three-quarters of an inch to an inch in diameter.

• Michael took these photos at a depth of about 40 feet.

Well, I'm suddenly motivated to grab my own featherduster and dust the house! :)

Mikey the Lumberjack

A renaissance man’s job is never done.

Remember that bad storm we had last month? We had 7 trees fall down around the house, and several more trees fell down deeper in the woods. Michael has been nervous because a few big treetops fell in the creek. His fear was that if we would have another bad rainstorm, those treetops would create dams and the water would rise towards the house.

So, Michael had a plan. (He always has a plan!) Early last week he was busy doing what lumberjacks do…tuning up his chainsaw, reviewing safety procedures, and lining up some helpers to clear those trees from the creek.

Friday was the big day!

My words can’t possibly describe how hard Michael and his helpers worked. Michael gave me a tour of the progress so far and I snapped a few pics...

This part of the creek was completely blocked with fallen treetops.
(I’m not sure how the little beavers could swim through the branches!)

Michael and his crew had quite the assembly line going. They would saw the limbs, pull them out of the creek, cut them into smaller pieces, and stack them into neat piles.

This is just one of 25 piles!

Anyone need firewood? Some of these logs were so large that they had to use the winch on the 4-wheeler to pull them out of the creek.

I love this picture. The look on Mikey’s face says it all! Plus, it looks like he's looking up at God's light thinking "Are you serious? Another storm?" :)

Oh, and this is how Mikey came home after working so hard in the woods all day…
his pants were covered with stickers…ouch!

I think we need to toss these pants into one of the “burn" piles!

Mikey the lumberjack had a very productive day, but he is so sore and tired. I’m glad he’s taking my advice and is taking it easy this weekend. Thank you Mikey for all your hard work to keep our land and home safe!

Underwater Wednesday: Hawksbill Sea Turtle

One of our favorite sightings while diving was the beloved sea turtle. Whether swimming out in open waters or resting peacefully on a coral reef, it was always a thrill to stumble upon a sea turtle. (Hey, that’s me in the background!)

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Hawksbill sea turtle photographed in Cozumel.

Photo Fun Facts: 

• You'll notice the hawksbill's head and jaw are particularly narrow. This allows the turtle to nudge its way into coral reef crevices to snatch up some food. 

 

• Thousands of sea turtles nest each year on the beaches of Cozumel. Approximately 60 days later, the hatchlings emerge to the surface of the beach (usually at night) and scurry their way to the ocean. 

 

• This sea turtle was about 2 feet in length.

• Michael took this photo at a depth of about 50 feet.