I shot a few more pictures today, but none of the others stopped me in my tracks the way this one did... or rather what I saw before I took the picture stopped me. While I was dragging a hose this morning watering my “pot garden,” a little house finch flew frantically out of a hanging planter, perched on a railing nearby, and began warbling in alarm. Of course, I didn’t water the ivy  I got a step ladder and found her nest and her little brood of four baby finches. I can't figure out why two of the chicks were obviously older than the other two.  In this picture you see one that hasnt even lost its fuzz yet, and the tail and wing feathers of an older one that may be almost ready to leave the nest.  I got the picture quietly and quickly and left her alone.

The experience was a reminder that life is fragile.