After the rain comes Spring. . . . . .

The rain came down in buckets last night, thunder crashed directly

 overhead, nonstop lightning illuminated the trees off and on for
several hours.

Earlier in the afternoon the sun was shining and it reached 81F.

Looking through the window upstairs (sorry, there's a screen so photos
 are a bit grainy) I noticed how the trees were extending their beautiful
 buds toward the sunlight.

I was also able to catch this male White-Breasted Nuthatch on a branch.

This is the bird we usually see hopping headfirst down tree trunks which is

apparently a way to see insects that birds climbing up the trunk might miss!

Incredible agility comes from the extra long hind toe claw, nearly twice the

size of the front toe claws - if you look closely you can see it wrapped around

the little twig.  Mated pairs remain together all year defending small territories.
 The female is similar in color but has a grey cap and neck. Together they build
 the nest and have one brood of 5-7 eggs per year. Both parents feed the young.

The sun is brilliant this morning and the garden is radiant with the buds

bursting and fresh leaves unfurling.

Sadly many of the daffodils were flattened in the storm - the ones that

refuse to stand up again I'll be cutting later for a vase. 

"Is the spring coming?" he said. "What is it like?"

    "It is the sun shining on the rain and the rain falling

 on the sunshine". . . . . . 

                                    Frances Hodgson Burnett ~ The Secret Garden