Awwww....the sunny days... OF JANUARY?

We're having a heat wave.   It has been in the 70's here and temps MIGHT reach the 80's by the weekend.   Then, next week, they dip into the 60s, when February arrives.   My birthday is Valentine's Day and February is always our coldest month.

I do have sunflowers blooming in the back yard!   I'll go outside later and take some photos.   I have hollyhocks coming up, alyssum, snap dragons, cosmos (from last summer) and even marigolds left!   :-)   I'm so pleased with my front yard garden!  My sweep peas are growing and I have a row of sugar snap peas, which I need to add some "alfalfa tea" to this week and give them a boost.

We have 4 hummingbirds still here.   3 males and 1 female.   I often literally run into her out on our side porch.   She is busy collecting spider webs for her nest!   She constantly is out there, buzzing around the garage door and other areas that have webs.

The 3 year old now has the coughing flu, so he will probably miss about 8 days of day care.   FORTUNATELY his other grandma is in town (she lives in Joshua Tree), so she may extend her stay.   I'm still too weak from my bout with the flu to take care of him.   This flu has been a NASTY one.   Both hubby and I are still coughing.

A little color from years' prior for your morning below:

 Poppies planted in the strips on El Paseo, Palm Desert...

 These were my yellow daisies a few years ago.

 Bee on almond blossoms up at the horse ranch

Not sure what the purple flowers are, but they are pretty!

Got some 80 degree days coming up soon!

Hubby and I are SLOWLY recovering from our bout of strain B flu.    Honestly, this is the sickest we have both been since we each had pneumonia.   We coughed so much our sides hurt and we often couldn't get our breath.   We both DID live on NyQuil for a few nights (and days), but we also found that elderberry syrup really kick the flu's BUTT! Our daughter went to Whole Foods and bought us a bottle and we lived on it for 3-4 days and then started to recover.   We are both still coughing and I had to pick up the 6 year old from school yesterday for early release Wednesday and after that, I drove home and took a nap for an hour!   I was... EXHAUSTED!

I checked our weather forecast for the next 10 days.   We will have days in the mid 70's, then the upper 70's, then a couple days of 80, and even an 81!   IN JANUARY!!!!!   Makes ya wonder what this coming summer will be like   :-(

I edited a few of my flower photos from last year and I've posted them below.   Right now I have sunflowers blooming in the back yard.   Our feeders are full of finches, sparrows, goldfinches, Verdin, and occasionally I hear the woodpecker!   And, of course, our doves.    I went out front to scatter some bird seed and I found a dead young Cooper's hawk.   I turned it over and didn't see any signs of the cause of death, so I have NO IDEA what happened to him or her.   I need to get out there and bury the poor thing before a neighborhood cat drags it away.

We have about 4 hummingbirds still in the yard, so I change their feed about twice a week and clean out the containers.   One day I saw the female out on our side porch, checking out all the spider webs (and there are MANY to choose from).   Another day I watched her and one of the males do some kind of mating flight dance.   So, I guess Spring is upon us?