Hopalong Hollow....

Hopalong Hollow, where the Blueberries grow sweet, and the moss feels soft beneath your feet.

Monday, May 5, 2014

Yearly Spring Giveaway...

This is becoming a happy habit come Spring; my attempt to spread the joy of all that new life amidst the garden.... all that budding and popping and blooming and chirping away! This year I will have a drawing for my Bird Print entitled "Birds of the Garden". I created the  original as a painted paper-cutting and have been selling reproductions we printed ourselves, but soon we are having it reproduced as an offset Lithograph. The print is sized at 9"x 25". Papercutting, also known as Scherenschnitte has been my main art form for over 30 years now.
" Birds of the Garden", here: click to enlarge.
Here is what you must do to be entered in the drawing. Tell us your favorite garden bird and why... that's simple enough... or is it??? I don't know, as I have SO many favorite birds. But I will get the ball rolling by narrowing down my choices to the tiny chickadee. Who can resist that  sweet singing and sociable little roundish birdie with the black cap?! They are just adorable. Now it is your turn! 
Drawing will be held in Mid May, it depends on when my prints come in.
"Twitter, Chatter, peep-peep-peep;Whistle, Cackle, Hoot and Cheep;Chirp and Screech and Cockadoodle-doo; Twitter, Chatter, Crow and Coo!"
 I just now realized I used Twitter and Chatter twice!!! Oh Well.

52 comments:

  1. I have little finches, Cardinals, Blue Jays, Black birds, Mockingbirds and Hummingbirds. Hummers would have to be my favorite because they are so rare to my gardens. I love the mockingbirds song, the Cardinals happy chirping and the sweet little finches peeping. I don't like the raucous blue jays. :-)

    That's it in a nutshell for my bird visitors. I hope to draw more hummers to my gardens this year.

    I would love to be the lovely winner of print of your fantastic artwork. It is wonderful and happy.

    Have a great week ~ FlowerLady

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  2. Oh Jeri - Hands down the hummingbird is my favorite. They are so amazing and have even had the opportunity to hold one in my hand. I once read that they can live a several years and will return to the same place every year. I consider them my sweet friends. Of course my second favorite is your chickadee (who can resist these tiny ones too). Hope you have a great week.

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  3. I love the sound of the morning dove. It takes me back to my early days as a child-laying in bed and listening to them croon. Wonderful memories. Would love to win your bird print.

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  4. Hi Jeri,
    My favorite bird is the Hummingbird.. I love to watch them zip in and out of the roses... Last year I saw a little one sitting on a branch, not moving.. I had never seen one be ~still~...
    Please, please count me in on your exquisite giveaway... How very generous of you.. I love your Scherenschnitte art work.. The details just amaze me.
    This piece is breathtaking!
    love and blessings,
    Penny

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  5. I AM HERE! Oh, and I see my dear Penny here! HI THERE PENNY! OK, my favorite is the sassy and fast CARDINAL! The males love to come and talk over whose territory it is on Rabbit Hill, and I just love his morning love song. He always seems to have more than one song in his repertoire as well, and they are fast. Count me in Jeri Landers...I am greedy when it comes to having great art in my home, especially when made by a dear friend with so much talent. AND, now that the weather is better and I have a new wicker settee in my enclosed yard, I am going to re-read your stories in the evening, with the sound of the squirrels in the background.

    MUCH LOVE! Anita

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  6. I'd have to go with the Cardinal also, but for a different reason. I love that they mate for life and are the one bird I see all year round. It is so lovely to see the bright red male on a snow-covered branch and in the Spring they are the first "flower" in the trees!

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  7. Hi Jeri,

    I so love the bird picture!!! Without a doubt, my favorite garden bird is the cardinal. Several years ago, I witnessed the devotion a male cardinal gave to two little fledglings whose mother went missing. I never found out what happened to her, but I dearly loved watching the gorgeous male cardinal tend his little ones. He fed them many times each day, rarely pausing to grab a bite for himself. Back and forth he went for days and it was so tender to watch the little ones grow day by day. They eagerly fluttered their young little immature wings each time he brought food to them. I just know he was worn out. It was then that I fell in love with cardinals. As you probably already know, cardinals prefer to eat on the ground and I see them picking up black oil sunflower seeds that fall from our main feeder. I sometimes worry that our cats will grab them, but so far both the males and females have managed to stay clear of the cats.

    I would treasure your beautiful bird picture if I am the lucky winner!

    Love from Diane in North Carolina

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  8. Oh Jeri, I have so many favorites. I love to sit and watch them come in to eat at the feeders and then move to the baths for a little cooling off. They each have their own personalities. My very very favorite though is the bluebird. They are not that common around here. I have been known to sit for several hours in waiting for one appear at my feeder. Your artwork always astounds. Absolutely beautiful!

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  9. I love all birds! I think my favorite is the crow. They are a little mysterious and I love the folklore surrounding them, not to mention the poem "The Raven"
    I love your bird print, it's truly amazing as is all your artwork!

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  10. Sweet Jeri! Your artwork is filled with joy~
    Little Wrens... as they come near when I am in the garden~ and have so much to tell me! Their little tails in their air... perching in curious places and nesting in creative nooks!
    Wising your heart joy~

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  11. Thank you dear Mavis Mudd! I had no idea I could stress out this little chick by not giving her a name.
    Well, if your Hannah chick has a brown tuff on her tiny noggin then Hannah it is!
    Thank you!

    Jeri,
    Mavis a buttinsky? Oh heavens no!
    She is no longer nameless, thanks to dear Mavis Mudd. She looks like a Hannah, don't you think? teeehee

    Thank you for your kind words... I actually had to do some re-work on her to get her stance right.. It was a bit of a challenge.. I LOVE your work.. Bird, chick, bun bun... Yours just warm my heart.
    fondly,
    Penny

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  12. Mine are the "red cardinals" as my 5 year old grand daughter says. She'll see one and yell Grandma there's a red cardinal on your feeder. Guess I need to show her the females!

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  13. I love birds. No one in my family was ever a birder but somehow I got the gene! My garden has taught me to id them by ear. The internet taught me how to rescue orphan baby birds using dog food. Then there's my hen addiction...

    The scrub jays always tease my pup, the robin daddies attack their reflections in our side window, the sparrows nest under our roof tiles, our chickadees say "hey, Phoebe" instead of "cheeseburger", but the linnets sing so very sweetly that I could listen for hours! Birds are the heart and soul of springtime!

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  14. Oh, Jeri. It is dear Esther. I'll never forget that. I must take myself out of the running though, as I won my beautiful print last year. So beautiful.

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  15. JERI! THank you for dropping by my blog post! Yes, isn't the Butterfly Waltz just a divine little piece to dance under the moonlight with a barnyard friend? I loved this one comment up above about how the male cardinal took care of his little ones. Oh the wonder one can witness by looking outside the window.

    Enjoy your week! Anita

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  16. Bonjour,

    Léo, le toucan ma mascotte est très heureux de ce joli billet !
    J'aime tellement nos amis emplumés...
    Dans ma dernière peinture un charmant cardinal de Madagascar trône fièrement.
    Merci pour ce joli partage.
    Gros bisous ♡

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  17. We have a blackbird who visits our garden, I can hear him now. He has the most melodious voice. My husband likes to whistle a little tune from "The Adam's family", this clever bird has learned the tune and added a few flourishes of his own. I love your paper cutting and marvel at your patience. x

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  18. Mine is the yellow goldfinches, there are so many and such a joy to watch coming to feed, there little "fights" fluttering upwards are comical. Your work is stunning and beautiful. I just received your 3 books, and I am gifting them to my nephew for his birthday, they will be treasured forever! Thank you for the opportunity to win. Donna

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  19. As the proud recipient of last year's prize, I can't resist an opportunity to add to my collection! My favorite bird, although it's nearly impossible to choose, is the quiet, unassuming eastern phoebe. It is a small, plump little bird with soft gray feathers - my favorite color of charcoal gray, and their breast is a soft creamy white. They build nests of mud and straw under the eaves of our porch, so we get to watch them raise their babies every spring. They are the sweetest, most humble little birds in our community of birds here. While the other birds are jockeying for the best spot at the feeders, they are quietly picking up whatever is dropped from the ground. It is their quiet beauty and their sweet, humble and peaceful spirit that endears them to me. This helps me to overlook the mess they make on the porch!! :))))

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  20. My favorite bird is the sweet mama Robin who has used the same nest on our back deck for the past 7 years. She is so used to us now, that we are allowed to peer in the nest at her eggs and babies as they hatch. It is always sad to see them fly, knowing we will have to wait until the next spring for her to return. She talks when we are on the deck with our morning coffee. Thanks for a chance to win, I love your work and it would be wonderful to be the winner.

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  21. My favorite would be the friendly and busy wren. They seem to like people and do not seem to be afraid of people at all. My mother had one that would hop into my mother's house and fuss at her if she was late putting out the bird seed every morning.

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  22. These are all such great comments! I think I will add one of my own. We've had a Barn Swallow "family" that has nested in a mud daubed nest beneath our porch eaves for years. The nest is now 4 stories high, as they add more mud each year. I can sit on my porch and watch all the flying lessons each spring.The starlings go through a Knothole near our roof and make a nest in our attic corner every year! When we enter the attic the babies put up a hoop and a holler thinking we are mom and pop.

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    Replies
    1. We let them build inside the garage one year, and we loved the close up views into the nest. But we are back to the outdoor nests again, just like you.

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  23. I love them all really - but if I HAVE to pick a favorite it would be the female cardinal. They are such plucky little birds and so much braver than the males. And I love their orange beaks!

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  24. Mine's the chickadee, too! No, wait, I can't ignore the Stellar's jay. Umm. Sparrow. No, let's make it the red-winged blackbird. Or maybe the barn owl. But then that would be forgetting those wonderful hummingbirds. Goldfinch.

    Back to chickadee. For sure. I better press send before I change my mind to the bald eagle. Or the kestrel.

    Chickadee it is!

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  25. I love the tiny Tufted Titmouse. He's such a cutie and I love saying his name. :-)
    Love the Hummers, too. They just returned to my house last week. I guess it's the wee ones that I like the best.
    Oh my, I would love to win your drawing so please put my name in there.

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  26. Well...I don't get to see very many birds except the common sparrow, robin, sometimes a yellow finch and maybe a hawk in the yard but, I will have to say that the cute little chickadee is my favorite.

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  27. Hi Jeri, You create such beautiful work and it has been a pleasure to follow you. When we lived on our sheep farm in Maryland, I used to love watching the bluebirds with their brilliant blue feathers and bright rosy breasts. Since they nest at fence height, we built bluebird houses to sit on the top of the fence posts. We had so many wonderful species of feathered friends to watch all the time. Now that I'm (sadly, but temporarily) living a more urban life in New Jersey, I see far fewer birds than I used to....mostly robins. I do have several big old trees next to the house that are loaded with squirrels and they have kept me entertained with their antics. I tossed a whole apple under a tree and watched for an hour while 2 squirrels (one pushing and the other pulling) rolled that whole apple up the tree and onto a branch. Urban squirrels are tough and smart!

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  28. Jeri, it is quite difficult to chose a favorite bird. It's like asking a parent to chose a favorite child. Right now we are having many goldfinch visit our feeders. They are so lovely with their lemon colored feathers now. We have two robins that have made nests in our garden. One is in the trellis that is covered with a pinkie climber rose. I'm amazed at the choice of a thorny home. The other is at the tip top of a large arborvitae. Your print of birds is so lovely and full of many fine feathered friends. How wonderful it would be to have it in our home. ♥

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  29. I love cardinals but the song bird I miss the most is the whip-or-will, I haven't heard one in years! I love your work it is just beautiful!

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  30. I love cardinals but the song bird I miss the most is the whip-or-will, I haven't heard one in years! I love your work it is just beautiful!

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  31. I love the Orioles and Goldfinches that come to my feeders. So bright and happy!

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  32. Hummingbirds. I just love them. :) We don't get very many out here, but we have had a few visitors, including a dazed one my children took care of until it was able to fly away again.

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  33. We mostly get Robins in our garden. I like how they and the local rabbits all know where the invisible fence is for my puppy Toby. They love teasing him by standing right on the line or just inside to get him to start running and they just walk outside the line. We also get a lot of Fledgleings and if Toby gets near all the local birds of different species will make him run away.

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  34. such a beautiful piece Jeri! I clicked to make it larger, it is gorgeous and charming!

    not easy to pick a favorite bird. I love watching the swallows swoop about. The robins and their antics, hummers have not appeared yet this year... any day. the little Downy Woodpeckers are adorable and steadfast. Today i will pick the red winged black bird for I am enjoying their songs.

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  35. Love this print. It would look perfect in my house. ;)
    My favorite bird is the Bandit bird because it looks like it should be part of Batman's gang. You know, fighting evil and such. hee,hee,hee.

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  36. I like them all but the one that always stuns me when I see it is the scarlet tanager. It is such a brightly colored bird it almost scares me when I see it. Then I remember how I felt the same way last year when they arrived. Breathtaking. Thnx for your art and love of animals. I feel like a child again when I read and see your blog.

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  37. I think my favorite would be the red cardinal. Because it reminds me of my grandmother since it is the Indiana State Bird, I remember this from doing a report on it in grade school. Strong second would be a blue bird because the are rare to see by me and pretty with their burst of color!

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  38. Definitely the Robin. When we see are first Robin after a long cold winter we know Spring is here! We have an evergreen tree outside my kitchen window where there is always a robins nest. The eggs are so pretty nestled in the nest and it is always so thrilling to see the babies appear. The robins sing to me first thing in the morning and throughout the day. What a blessing!

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  39. Mr. Cardinal sings his sweet song every morning. What a treat to see him perched in the tree chirping his melodious tune. The spot of bright red is most welcome throughout the year but the Spring time is when I most appreciate his singing!

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  40. There is no contest for me - the hummingbird makes my jump for joy with every appearance in our noisy ungarden-like city backyard!

    storylady@mail.com

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  41. my first visit to your beautiful blog!
    I've enjoyed all your side bar pictures as I scrolled down to write a comment.
    favourite bird ~ sweet sparrow ♥ always there keeping me company.
    thank you for the chance to win one of your prints ♥
    have a wonderful weekend.

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  42. Such a wonderful time of the year when everything is growing and giving birth. A busy time too. There are so many beautiful birds but I am always excited when I see the Bluebirds in my nesting boxes. They are back and it makes me happy. Have a lovely weekend.

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  43. Favorite Bird? I love them all!! But if I have to pick it must be the barn swallow. I love to watch them swoop through the air. BTW I love everything about your work. I stare for hours at your artwork.

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  44. Hello Jerri,
    As you must know...The peacock is my favorite bird. I've had them so many years now I could not imagine my yard without them running around, displaying their gorgeous tails in the Spring. They follow me all around the yard , like watch dogs. I'm so very proud of my gorgeous birds. I just love them,
    Happy Mother's Day,
    XXOO, Marie Antoinette

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  45. As a New Englander, my favorite bird is the robin - to me, they announce spring has arrived and after winters last this past one, they are welcome visitors. We have tons of barn sparrows in our neighborhood who are sweet little visitors although sometimes they are like little kids who have had too much sugar. My all-time favorite bird is the mockingbird who moves into the neighborhood in late spring, early summer. I love to sit on the porch early in the morning and listen to him sing his cocky little songs - he has quite a repetoire.

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  46. Jeri,

    The wren is my favorite. I love their flipped up tail and their song. They seem to have a "big personality" in a tiny body!

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  47. Though I love all the birds that visit us, my very favorite must be the little Chickadee. Last summer, as my husband and I sat on the back deck, one darling little one landed in my hair, and danced a little jig while pulling with all his might on my hair (-I hope he did manage to capture one or two) and later he also landed on my husband's knee and for some reason gave him a pinch that made him exclaim in surprise. Yes, it has to be the Chickadee, and we're watching for that little mite to return this summer--fingers crossed!

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  48. I am loving all your birdie stories, aren't they just wonderful! It is difficult to choose a favorite bird, today I am loving my bluebirds who are nest building in the birdhouse right outside our window.

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  49. My favorite (if I must chose one), is the Cardinal. We have so many in the yard and the red color against the green looks like a giant Holly Berry bush. They just make me smile when they go on and on with their singing.

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  50. Hi Jeri,
    Thank you for coming over to meet Andre and leaving such kind words.
    Your dog was sprayed? Poor thing, yep, so was my little Jasper.. That is one odor that lingers on and on.. I purchased some skunk odor remover and sprayed him with it after his bath, it helped a little, but it took quite a while for it to go away completely.
    Hope all is well with you.
    fondly,
    Penny

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  51. I would have to say, I love the little hummingbirds as they flit around the flowers, but I also love the raucous crows as well, just love their calls.

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