Back in June I planted a little something that I knew would give me great pleasure. I planted a bird feeder! Over the years I have learned that a minimal investment in bird seed each month provided me with maximum entertainment. The visitors I have received throughout the changing seasons are as diverse as the interesting people that walk by my house each day (and we do see some interesting characters). The strategic placement of one of my feeders brings the activity into full view through the living room's bay window. Imagine my excitement when one of the bird feeders I planted shot up 8 feet, far exceeding the height of my previously favored one! Let's see, the month of October costs me the price of a single sunflower seed as opposed to the $10.00 I spend the other 11 months of the year. That's a savings of, lets say roughly $9.90. Hmmm... that's 3 lattes, or a movie ticket, or a bargain skein of wool...
If I can keep the birds off of 11 of the full heads then I can put them away and bring out one a month, impale it in the garden and save myself $9.90 a month each month! In a year, that's 36 lattes, or 12 movie tickets, or 12 skeins of wool!!
Wait a minute. If I save 12 seeds from one of the sunflower heads I already grew, I save another $1.20 on the seed packet I would have purchased for next year. That's a bag of m&ms! Sometimes it's fun playing in my head!
Blessings, Debbie
Hi Debbie!
ReplyDeleteWow! I love that blue bird! He's quite the acrobat!
My mammoth sunflowers did not grow as big as they were supposed to, but yours sure did! Awesome!
I wish you a latte.
Lovin' your math! That's a beautiful bird-enjoy:@)
ReplyDeleteI'm just on my first cup of coffee so I can't really follow the math this early,but I think you are on to somthing.:)
ReplyDeleteI love sitting at my kitchen table and watching the birds out the window. We have a lot of cardinal's here and they keep me entertained with their antics!
Happy bird watching! xx
I wish I could have a bird feeder!!! But we have bears that walk through the property all the time and I really do not want to feed those.....I will enjoy your bird feeding instead.
ReplyDeleteOH, WOW!! That bluebird is different from ours! Oh, he is beautiful!! And, your birdfeeder is a beauty all in itself!! You are ingenious! blessings ~ tanna
ReplyDeleteHe is a pretty fellow! We don't have that kind of bird, what is he? (I love sunflowers and we plant them every year).
ReplyDeleteI leave my Echinacea even after the flower petals are gone so that the birds can eat the seed heads. They are right out my bay window in the living room too, and we like to watch the finches come eat!
ReplyDeleteDeanna
Now you're thinking like a true thrifty gal! I also plant amaranth, coneflowers, and black-eyed Susans for the birds. But I'm lazy. Just don't deadhead the flowers and just leave the seeds for the birds.
ReplyDeleteI suppose that's a type of western bluebird? I've never even seen a real eastern one.
ReplyDeleteYou're clever, and I think you've got a good plan - do it!
We love to watch the birds, and get so excited when a "new" one comes along.
What a pretty bird. I love your bird feeder. That one flower would not last a day here in my back yard. I go through tons of sunflower seeds and other smaller seeds each months. I feed lots of birds and squirrels. Maybe I should plant a whole garden of them. JB
ReplyDeleteNow, THAT is homeschool math that my C would LIKE! :)
ReplyDeleteIsn't it funny to see the birds hanging upside-down to get to the seeds?
When you put it like that.....it just makes perfect sense. Although if I costed out my time to organise it and store it, I'm not sure it is such a bargain. Nah! Its still workable. Time to buy my last packet of sunflower seeds. Ever. Love the bird. We have nothing quite like it. Hope you enjoyed your day.
ReplyDeleteNow there is some math I can really get behind!
ReplyDeleteOnce again you are soooooooooooo smart! I am going to have to grow some next year in front of my kitchen window. And hopefully I can also save seed to keep it going each year. I love love love birds and they are such a joy. Thank you for spreading that joy. ((HUGS))
ReplyDeleteBlessings and ((HUGS))
-Mary
Hehe, I love how your first idea for your savings is food. My kind of woman! Aren't the giant sunflowers lovely? And surprise to us, we've already got sprouts from the seeds that dropped/the kids "replanted"!
ReplyDeleteOkay you are doing too much math for my stressed brain but I am glad you saved money !! Clarice
ReplyDeleteYep, a continues source of joy for me. Not to mention the surprises that come up when I need a flower to brighten my day in January. I love sunflowers because they are just full of lots of surprises and I love watching the birds who find them too. I had some heads drying so I could save my seeds and I noticed Mr. Blue Jay very quietly sneaking up and stealing seeds. I watched him a whole day then I took my seeds inside. He had a whole garden. :)
ReplyDeleteYour brain works in ways that mine doesn't. Love that upside down shot. Most of the sunflowers that I saw planted here this summer all shriveled up in no time. The heat was just too much for them. Temps are slowly coming down though so our planting season begins. Best wishes to you and yours, Tammy
ReplyDeleteHow fun...I love the little birds that come around. I had one on my deck this morning and it just does not know what to do about this abrupt change in our weather, poor thing!
ReplyDeleteLove it! lol The bird upside down is perfect.
ReplyDeleteWe have bluejays that visit daily, they love my water fountain in our back yard. We placed it strategically in the perfect spot. As I wash dishes I am able to view them through the kitchen window drinking the water, and taking their daily baths in it! :) I love watching them!
ReplyDeleteYour photos turned out amazing! Thanks for sharing...:)
xoxo...Gloria
It's all about the investment. One of my favorite concepts.
ReplyDeleteWhat great shots.
Girl your post are getting so popular I spend half the day getting to the bottom of the comment line...LOL I love it, I remember when you were first getting started. You are truly a blessing to us all.
ReplyDeleteYou did part of my science lesson with Benjamin today...we are studying birds! We are also going to plant sunflowers next year. Our new backyard is big enough.
This was just great...and Benjamin so enjoyed also.
Sunflowers are amazing flowers. Did you know that the blossoms always face the sun?
ReplyDeleteLove your math!
a beautiful post, you leave a smile on my face:) (I thinks thats the kind of math I would have needed in my school time;)) such beautiful shots!
ReplyDeleteJenMuna
Those photos just fascinate me! I love bird watching, and this was awesome. I also like the way your "head plays".
ReplyDeleteI am loving your practical math. (Hmmm...wonder where I can save some money to be used for M&Ms and frappuccinos?) :-D
ReplyDeleteThe real treasure is the show you get right outside your window! Fabulous show, fabulous photos...thank you for the smiles today, my friend!
I love your mind!
ReplyDeleteHappy Birding.
jody
Oh, I love this. The photos are perfect, too!
ReplyDeleteOh, you are so smart! I would have never thought of it that way. I love the acrobatics of the jays. They are so confident.
ReplyDeleteBlessings!
Deborah