My new birdbaths...

...aren't really birdbaths at all. They're actually plastic chip bowls I just purchased from The Christmas Tree Shop.

I've had these hydrangea patterned ones for a few years now, and although they're somewhat faded from the New England summer sun, they're still going strong.  
(I store them inside our shed over the winter months.)

Some are placed on the ground where, in addition to the birds, they get lots of action from our squirrels and chipmunks. I've also seen some of our nocturnal visitors drinking from them (skunks, possum, and raccoons).

Some are placed in old birdbath basins that have cracked and no longer hold water.

 Some sit on tree stumps...

And some sit on metal garden tables/plant stands.

The birds love the large size. There's lots of room to splash around. This is one of the new bowls. I filled it with water and placed it in an old wicker planter I have on the deck.

 They didn't have any hydrangea patterns this year, which I'd been hoping for, but they did have a great selection of designs. I got some that were very bright and cheerful (top row) and some that were more subdued garden and bird designs (bottom row).

I think the birds will really enjoy these for years to come.

I got twelve. That's "12."  A full dozen. Yup. Call me crazy, but when I find something good, I sometimes buy backups. If I take good care of the hydrangea ones I have now, I might not even need to use these for a couple of years yet, but I like having these as backups in case the hydrangea bowls crack or develop leaks.

 At $1.29 each, I couldn't pass these up! I'm not sure if this is a special sale price or the everyday price, but if you have a Christmas Tree Shop nearby and are in the market for an inexpensive birdbath (or twelve), run and pick some up!

The birds will thank you!

 (2010 photo of blue jay at one of the birdbaths on a small metal plant stand/garden table.)

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
We're in for about 4 days of humid, over 90 degree weather.
I'm sure I'll be spending much of that time making sure my birdbaths stay full!

Donna

All birds welcome...

"I value my garden more for being full of blackbirds than of cherries, and very frankly give them fruit for their songs."

(Joseph Addison, 1672-1719, English Essayist, Poet)

(Joseph Addison, you are a kindred spirit)

Nothing attracts a wide variety of birds to our garden more than the abundance of fresh water we offer in our small backyard. A variety of birdbaths hang from trees, sit on stands or tables, or rest on the ground (after all, the Chipmunks, Squirrels, and other wildlife also need water). Let's take a little walk around and I'll show you.

This small bird bath (shown in the first photo) hangs from a tree next to our deck. In the photo above, a mourning dove was enjoying a cool drink during our hot weather.

Also on the deck, attached to a rail, is the heated birdbath. It gets plugged in during the winter months, providing fresh water all winter long.

I've had this tiny little shell birdbath longer than I can remember. It is chipped and doesn't hold much water, but it's a favorite of mine.  And would you look at who is watching me take these photos!! This little bath sits on the "haunted" carpenter's bench on the deck.  

The last birdbath on the deck is this fountain. They say the sound of running water attracts birds. I also love the sound of it.

See the little bubbler on top of the fountain, where the water runs out? I was absolutely mesmerized by Sharon Lovejoy's post showing a mama hummingbird laying on top of her fountain's bubbler! See for yourself! How I'd LOVE to find a hummer bathing on my bubbler!! Okay, let's head down into the backyard and I'll show you what we have down there.

This little mosaic birdbath sits on the ground in front of the swingset deck we built last year.

On the other side of the swingset deck, a makeshift birdbath sits on a wire table. I have several of these baths in the backyard.

Here's another one sitting on an old milk can on the patio.

 These are inexpensive, $1.00 chip bowls from The Christmas Tree Shop. They are the perfect size for the birds and at that price, I can put them all over the yard!

Here's yet another one, sitting in a small concrete pedestal birdbath in between two of the paths we just put into the garden. The concrete developed a crack and doesn't hold water so the large hydrangea CTS bowl was the perfect solution.

Another source of running water is this small waterfall fountain on the backyard patio.

Again, you can't beat the sound of running water for attracting birds and wildlife to your backyard.

Across the garden paths is another large Christmas Tree Shop bowl. This one is quite deep so I put rocks into the bottom so the birds aren't afraid to hop in and take a bath. (Please excuse Mr. Bunny who seems to be wearing mulberries!)

Now we're heading over to the cherry tree, where my beautiful vintage Mary garden statue watches over all the little creatures and birds who visit our yard. It seemed fitting to place this gorgeous blue and white bowl over by her.

 I love the hand painted pink roses and sponged gold border. The birds love the generous size!

 Hanging from the cherry tree is this small decorative bird bath.

The 'secret garden' bird bath is a favorite with the birds because it's a bit more secluded than some of the other baths...

... and this little gazing ball bath is a favorite with the many Chips who frequent our yard because it's low to the ground. They stand up on their little back legs and drink out of the bottom tier.

This is the ugliest bath in the yard (its twin sits in the front yard). So why do I keep them both? The birds all LOVE them. They seem to be the perfect size for small, medium, and large birds. They're just large plastic drip tray bases for huge planters. Maybe some day I'll try to do something decorative with them (yeah, right!)

Now we're heading toward the gate that leads to the front yard. This dove birdbath sits just inside the backyard next to the gate.

Bye Bye, Birdie! We're heading out front now!

Okay, so let's see what we have out here...

Right outside the gate, another of the CTS hydrangea bird baths sits on a table under the old window and flower box...

... while a little cherub birdbath hangs from the old stockade fence.

And we end our birdbath tour with the ugly twin that sits under the hoppa crab tree (which has started dropping leaves at an alarming rate with the 90+ degree temps we've been having lately!). So, I think 19 birdbaths should be enough to keep my little feathered and furry friends happy!!!

I'm linking to Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show & Tell Friday. Till next time, I hope you are all staying cool wherever you are!!!

Donna

Macro fever in the garden...

I thought I'd share some of the garden statues and such that reside on our deck or in our little garden. The camera is set for macro, so here I go (trying to beat the rain that is due any minute now from the looks of the sky!)...


My prized possession - a vintage, chippy Mary garden statue that I found in a NH junktique shop last year (and on sale, too!)...


A little stone bird, from Target, living among the flowers in the garden birdcage (or is it bird cage - 2 words?).


A little fleur-de-lis adornment (from Wal Mart) for the top of the cage. I think it dresses it up nicely.


This little garden angel has been around since my primitive days...

She's been a steadfast friend, watching over our little garden for many, many years as her distressed wood attests to.

My biggest, heaviest wabbit; he lives on the patio. All our "Chips" enjoy sitting on top of his ears. I'll share those photos when I do my next "Chip" post.

Our little hedgehog (all cracked open in the back, but that doesn't seem to bother him so I don't let it bother me either)...

An old (but not yet vintage) lantern that was probably meant to hold a large candle. I like using it as a planter.

Littly bunny foo-foo is a little flower pot stake that I picked up at Wal Mart several years ago.

A very cute, short, round bunny that I got at a craft fair many, many years ago.

Mr. Tweet, who came from The Christmas Tree Shop a few years ago.

Mrs. Tweet, a little bit smaller, bought the same day.

A little garden turtle that I bought for Court so she'd always remember her box turtle, Nike, that she had when she was younger.

Rascally Rabbit, still down in the backyard chasing those flamingos around...

Rusty, a little bird who lives in our garden.

The "other" stone rabbit (because there can only be one original stone rabbit... Dana, my SR would LOVE to get together with your SR any time! Maybe we could have baby stone rabbits!)

The welcome bird, just picked up this year (Wal Mart I think?)...

I call this little guy David the Gnome becuase my girls used to watch that cartoon all the time when they were little. He was a Christmas present from a good friend (which is why he's holding a candy cane, but he's too cute to only come out at Christmas time, so he never gets packed away).

A happy little bunny from The Christmas Tree Shop....

Another bunny from The Christmas Tree Shop (not quite as happy as the other guy, but since his back has cracked I guess we know why!)

Rustic little church birdhouse on a stake which is strictly for decoration as no birds have ever used it.

I have a thing for chipmunks (Chips) so when I spotted these guys in the dollar section of Target this year I grabbed two - one for each corner of the deck.

One of two cherub "curtain rod holders" that I picked up at a church rummage sale a couple of years ago. I just use them for decoration out on our deck.

A little stone birdbath (with a broken rim, so it doesn't hold much water anymore), but I like to just set it out between plants.

A little birdbath that hangs from the oak tree next to our deck.

A little bird perched on the side of a birdbath down by the patio.

A bird perched on the birdbath I got at Christmas Tree Shop...

And now it's time to run inside and get these pictures posted because the rain has arrived!!!

Donna