What you can't see...

What this picture doesn't show is the little bird mama who has taken up residence in the red house on my back deck. We had originally planned to mount the house somewhere in the yard, but spring snuck up on us before we had the opportunity. (And she just couldn't wait--she had business to attend to.)

I discovered her quite by accident yesterday when I stuck my nosy face into her refuge. I had seen that a few pieces of grass had accumulated in there the past few days, but I thought surely that no bird would build a nest in such a high traffic area. (We practically LIVE out there.) I was taking a quick peek in when, to both our surprises, we came face to face. She was all aflutter when she spied me covering her little front door, and she made her narrow escape under the deck. Of course, I felt terrible, and even moreso when I saw the three little eggs that she'd abandoned on my behalf. I worried all day that she wouldn't come back because I'd scared her too badly.

My fears were assuaged this morning when I caught sight of her tail feather disappearing into her little home. Now I just have to keep my distance and resist my urge for nosiness.