Feeding Time

Day 266: It's that time of the year again! The little "gilligans" are starting to poke their noses out the doors, getting their first glimpses of the Big Wide World. It won't be long before Mom begins tempting them toward their first flights by holding a bug just out of reach. For now, she and Dad are still catering meals.

For some time, I've been hearing lots of rustling and twittering inside the House of Chirp, as this favorite nesting box is known. Several other houses are also occupied, but this one is always the first to rent out. The side unit is purely decorative, too small even for a mother-in-law cottage.

"'Gilligans?' Is that the correct term?" I knew you'd ask, but no. The first year they nested here, my playful name for one of them stuck. They've been "gilligans" ever since, and a cuter batch you'll seldom see.