On May 25 I did show you the special Gift Bird Feeder that we received in The Netherlands. Two sweet little kids had hand painted it for us and Pieter hung it up against a tree. There was a jar inside with some kind of peanut-butter-like bird food. It got emptied but all of a sudden some critter had tossed the entire jar out of the feeder! That happened more than once, we knew that could not be done by a squirrel so maybe a raccoon or possom did it. Pieter decided to change it into a Bird House instead!
Here it is; converted into a Bird House!
That was quite a large and heavy jar with yummy food but it got pulled out of this Feeder several times...
This little girl with her brother had hand painted it...
Pieter, being color blind himself, tried to match the artwork of the little girl and her artist brother...
In the back you can see a hand made Squirrel Proof Bird House by Pieter, link you find below post.
This was a new addition and supposed to be squirrel proof. There is a spring that shuts off by weight but the squirrels hang upside down from the roof tip and easily manage to grab whatever they like.
It does not have enough height for keeping the squirrels from reaching far enough. Too bad!
A hummingbird feeder hangs to the right.
{Gift Bird Feeder} | previous post by me
{DIY Squirrel Proof Bird Houses} | previous post by me
{HOME SWEET HOME} | previous post by me
glad you were able to convert the feeder into a house!
ReplyDeleteDearest Theresa,
DeleteIt seemed to be the only way to get some use out of it.
Hugs,
Mariette
Dearest Mariette what a clever idea to turn it into a bird house. Pieter is always showing us how to think outside the box. Yes,those squirrels are certainly clever little things... wishing you both a blessed week. Hugs, Celia M. - HHL
ReplyDeleteDearest Celia,
DeleteSure Pieter always thinks outside the box and I loved this idea too. But in our opinion it must have been a raccon or possum that worked the rather heavy jar outside of the feeder. Too much for a squirrel.
Enjoy a blessed new week as well.
Hugs,
Mariette
Dear Marietta ! Es muy burna idea esa casita de pajaros ,, que tengas un optimo comienzo de semana
ReplyDeleteBesos
Dearest Angélica,
DeleteGuess this is the best solution!
Wishing you also a lovely week ahead.
Hugs,
Mariette
It's so pretty Mariette. I wonder what could have lifted such a heavy jar?
ReplyDeleteDearest Jeanette Ann,
DeleteThank you and our guess is a raccoon or possum did that.
Hugs,
Mariette
I love how the feeder is painted by such artists, lol! Great idea you had to turn it into a bird house. I think squirrels are such cute little animals, you hardly ever see them around here.
ReplyDeleteThanks for coming always, you are wonderful sweetie!
Have a great week ahead.
FABBY
Dearest Fabby,
DeleteOh sure, those artists did their very best and Pieter tried hard to match his work with theirs...
Guess it is not so much the squirrels as they don't have the muscles for taking such a large jar completely out of the feeder... Raccoons or possums did it in our opinion.
Tried to visit my loyal blog readers but being just back home there is so much to catch up on!
Hugs and enjoy your week too.
Mariette
Wat leuk dat vogelhuisje, handgeschilderd!
ReplyDeleteJouw Pieter is erg handig gelukkig!
Ook het nieuwe voederhuisje is mooi!
Fijne week!
Nicole
Beste Nicole,
DeleteJa, die handigheid dat is een zégen geweest de laatste 31 jaar. Komt vaak van pas.
Het is een geinig huisje inderdaad en nu funktioneert het voor de komende lente.
Ja jammer dat het nieuwe voerhuisje zo snel door de eekhoorns wordt leeggevreten en er werd bij vermeld dat ze er niet aan zouden kunnen. Niet waar dus... Het is gewoonweg té plat dus hangen ze aan de achterpoten van de nok en met de handjes maar graaien naar de zonnepitjes... Met een dikke buik weg!
Liefs,
Mariette
Hello dear Mariette,
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute bird nest you have put up on this tree.
A bet the little girl had much fun decorating it!
I am also thinking of putting feeders up for winter.
Hugs and have a great day!
Dearest Noushka,
DeleteThank you and it is cute indeed.
We keep all our feeders filled; year round. It is a good 'all-you-can-eat' restaurant on our property to many critters!
Hugs and a great week ahead for you.
Mariette
Liebe Mariette,
ReplyDeletedas ist wieder FASZINIEREND.
Sonnige Grüße
Elisabeth
Liebe Elisabeth,
DeleteJa stimmt und die beide Kinder haben ihr bestes gegeben.
Auch sonnige Grüsse mit Abendregen zurück.
Mariette
You certainly are feeding the squirrels and the other big fellows than the birds I am afraid. Pieter did a great job in painting the bird feeder! It is quite a challenge for the birds to get their food. Nice you had a travel through Arizona. Hope you made some pictures to show us.
ReplyDeleteBegin ineens in het engels zie ik nu, dat komt omdat ik de ander blogs in het engels aan het beantwoorden ben...
Groetjes Marianne.
Dearest Marianne,
DeleteWe do love all critters in the wild but we prefer to feed the birds as it takes huge bags of sunflower seeds to feed those bigger stomachs!
Guess this will work out better and it cannot be prevented that those pesky squirrels don't steal some seeds, like from the too shallow new feeder that shuts off by weight, not for birds, but anything heavier. Squirrels quickly find out that by hanging from their feet, upside down they can eat all they want! Not pushing down any weight on that bar that would otherwise shut off the entrance to the seeds...
I still have a few scheduled blogs lined up but for sure you will get to see something from our Arizona trip! First I have to catch up on so many things...
Hugs,
Mariette
Dear Mariette,what a clever idea to to turn into a bird house, the bird feeder!
ReplyDeleteThe squirrels are so cute little critters!Have a lovely week!Hugs!
Dimi...
Dearest Dimi,
DeleteYes, that was indeed a clever idea from husband Pieter!
We love those squirrels but not so much if they empty the birds' feeders ongoing. One cannot keep up with the volume they gobble up!
Hugs,
Mariette
The little bird house looks great. Not having squirrels in Australia, makes me fascinated by them, They sound cheeky.
ReplyDeleteHugs Kay
Dearest Kay,
DeleteThank you and the hand painted gift bird house looks great indeed.
Well, squirrels are very cheeky; super smart!
But you sure do have squirrels in Australia too, the flying squirrels and also the northern palm squirrel. They are doing a lot of damage as you can read here: Northern palm squirrel
Hugs,
Mariette
Una simpaticissima idea quella di colorare le casette per uccellini, un allegro punto di riferimento per tutti i volatili in cerca di rifugio e cibo. Un bacione grande. Paola
ReplyDeleteCara Paola,
DeleteEra un dolce regalo dai bambini piccoli e ora serve come una casa di nidificazione. Abbiamo sempre molti uccelli mangimi con un sacco di semi, è una gioia da vedere a loro intorno!
Abbracci,
Mariette
Dear Mariette,
ReplyDeletePieter did a good job in changing the feeder into a birdhouse! Hope you are Pieter are both well and enjoying the fine weather. Although the mornings in Rotterdam get chillier, it's still pleasantly warm in the daytime.
Happy week!
Madelief x
Dearest Madelief,
DeleteWe are glad with this transformation.
Yes, we both are doing very well and enjoyed our active walking and hiking trip to Arizona. Here it is now still summer with a temperature of 26°C at 17:30 o'clock...
Hugs,
Mariette
Lieve Mariette,
ReplyDeleteVorig jaar zijn in mijn omgeving veel kinderen op scholen en hobbyclubjes creatief bezig geweest met het timmeren en beschilderen van vogelhuisjes.Hele parken en straten met aan zowat elke boom 'n vogelhuisje kwam ik tegen.
Grappig dat er ook in jullie tuin vogelhuisjes hangen met schilderkunst gemaakt door kinderhandjes.
Heb heel wat speciale pindakaas potten voor vogels in ons huisje gestoken in de wintermaanden,maar kwam er al snel achter dat kraaien en Vlaamse gaaien het ook gemunt hadden op de lekkere pindakaas,ze waren zo hebberig dat ze nog net niet met pot en al tussen hun poten wegvlogen,het was in elk geval een kleine moeite om de grote pot met hun snavel uit huisje te trekken,heb de pot menig keer in de tuin tussen de planten op kunnen rapen.
Laat maar gaan dacht ik,kan er moeilijk 'n bordje bijhangen wie wel en niet mag komen eten;-)
Lieve groet,
Ger
Lieve Ger,
DeleteGrappig en mogelijk was dit ook het geval voor Limburg!
Hier kwamen er ook grote zwarte vogels van snoepen en wie weet waren hun ook de boosdoeners om de pot er telkens uit te trekken, of het waren de wasbeertjes of possums. Er zit hier zóveel en we gaven het dus uiteindelijk op en Pieter had een beter idee.
Liefs,
Mariette
Oh, your talented husband's great idea and work as well for birds♡♡♡ And the little kids' help is so lovely♪ For me squirrels around is an envious environment :-)
ReplyDeleteI hope you will have a wonderful new week, Mariette.
Sending Lots of Love and Hugs from Japan to my Dear friend in America, xoxo Miyako*
Dearest Miyako,
DeleteYes, even the birds do profit from husband Pieter's great ideas. This worked just fine.
You don't have squirrels around in your area?
Have you ever been to one of the Squirrel Gardens in Japan?
Just click here: Inside Japan's Squirrel Gardens. Yes, Squirrel Gardens!
I would sure love to have one nearby and how fun to feed them like they do there.
The week looks wonderful so far, with lots of rain in the late afternoon and evening but that is perfect for the garden.
Sending you hugs and love across the ocean to my Japanese friend!
Mariette
Oh I like this
ReplyDeleteDearest Jo-Anne,
DeleteAnd we hope the birds will like it too in the spring!
Hugs,
Mariette
Dearest Mariette,
ReplyDeleteThe special gift Feerders your recived in the Neherlands.Your husband's Pilter hung it up against a tree
also he dicided to more them once.
The squirred are racoon or possom did it and decided to change into bird house instlad.
Bird House Jar yummy food pulled out of the feeder times. Pieter being color bling himself the artuark of the little girl and her artist brother you can see a hand made squirre from reaching far enough that I can understand :-)
Hugs to you and Lots of Love!
Michiko
Dearest Michiko,
DeleteYes, squirrels are rascals and so are those raccoons are bandits as well!
Hugs and love to you.
Mariette
｡°°｡✿⊱｡
ReplyDeleteGosto da alegria das cores, ficou muito bonito.
Amei os hibiscos brancos do post anterior!!!!
Bom mês de setembro!·..✿✿
♪♬♫°｡ Boa semana!
Beijinhos.✿°.•
Dearest Inês,
DeleteThank you and yes those huge hibiscus from my previous post are lovely.
Happy September to you as well dear!
Hugs,
Mariette
ciao Mariette, questo è un bellissimo e colorato regalo!!!!! un abbraccio grande grande Lory
ReplyDeleteCara Lory,
DeleteSì, c'è un carino e bellissimo regalo.
Abbraccio grande per te.
Mariette
Wow what a wonderful transformation from feeder to the bird house! It looks fantastic!
ReplyDeleteSquirrels are very smart and determined when it comes to food, aren't they? Haha..
I am so sorry that your vet passed away. He was so young... My sincere condolences to his family.
I hope the clinic will find a good vet so you can continue to go there. I like to have vet nearby as my boys don't like car ride.
Have a great day, Mariette xoxo
Dearest Tamago,
DeleteYes, a very tragic tiding and I have just today reached out to his wife and children... Luckily I had saved some of his emails, regarding the healing of our felines. He also mentioned in one of them to be very proud in regard to the birth of his grandson. That will mean a lot to them, especially now. Emotional things. We sure hope that someone will take over his clinic. Ours are not so good at car travel either! We have used our bike for Barty ones, in his basket but as soon as they see the pet basket, they start crying so loud that it hurts your heart.
Hugs,
Mariette
Bella casetta per gli uccelli. So colorful and useful.
ReplyDeleteDearest Daniela,
DeleteAs casetta even more useful than with that jar, filled with yummy food but that got stolen away from the birds and even taken out entirely.
Hugs,
Mariette
Very sweet birdhouse, painted by Pieter and the children! I can see why the jar of peanut butter was an attractive target for the wildlife. Very nice bird feeder, too. I recently saw a squirrel proof post - use a round metal pipe and cover it with vaseline! Messy job, but keeps the squirrels from climbing. We have too many critters and squirrels to keep them away, so I just feed everybody sunflower seeds. We buy it by the 40 lb bag! Hope you have a lovely week, Dear Mariette. xo Hugs, Karen
ReplyDeleteDearest Karen,
DeleteIt was a special mixture, not quite peanut butter but especially black birds loved it and squirrels and for sure some bigger, night visitors. We too buy the sunflower seeds in big bags as we have so many feeders and all critters do have a good apetite.
Happy remainder of the week to you as well.
Hugs,
Mariette