Critters and other things in our back yard

The block just ended, and I'm mainly grading papers, so I've had lots of time to gaze out my window during the day. Here are some of the things I've seen recently.

No post is complete without a photo of a squirrel, so here is the daddy, munching on a delicious peanut.

The maples are turning, and this one is right outside my window. When the sun hits it, it looks like it's on fire.

We have a cute neighbor cat who visits us every day because there are so many interesting things to hunt in our yard. He's never been successful, but he pounces at everything that moves. Here he is "hiding."

The jays have come back. Yay! I'm rewarding them with millions of peanuts. Interesting factoid: The squirrels are not intimidated by the magpies, but they definitely are afraid of the blue jays. Blue jays are smart. And mean.

And if you thought THAT post was exciting, wait till you see what I have in store for tomorrow. I'm going to make another batch of rice pudding. I'll have pictures, and the RECIPE.