For the birds

Are there fallen tree limbs in your yard from the thunderstorms that dotted our area in the past few days? Don't haul them to the curb! Make a brush pile and double the number of birds at your bird feeder this winter--and all year round. If you plant a flowering vine or two nearby, the mess of brush will turn into a beatiful flowering bird hostel. More tips here (including a primer on hand feeding wild birds.)

Here's a quick and easy craft for the kids (messy though): Mix together 1/2 cup shortening, 1 1/2 cups uncooked oatmeal and 1/4 cup sunflower seeds. Tie a string to a pine cone (or card board tube) and coat the pine cone with the mixture. Then roll it in seeds. Hang your new birdfeeder outside and in a few days, the birds will surely find it. (From Hi 5 magazine).