Natural Bird Feeders

Raine and I had a great weekend full of home cooking and crafts. One of the projects we did was out of the book I Love Dirt by Jennifer Ward. We were reading over some of the outdoor winter activities and came across the one called Tweet Treats. It is basically a great way to clear out a few items from your pantry and completely excite the local wildlife. Here's how it's done...

Find the biggest pine cone that you can get your hands on. (I just happen to love pine cones and bought this one for a buck off a lady in Edinburgh that got it from a cousin that lives out in California, ya I'm a little wacky) Tie a string around the top to hang it from and cover the string in saran wrap so that it won't get saturated with peanut butter. Put on an apron as this tends to get messy and break out a jar of natural (unsweetened) peanut butter.Cover the pine cone as thoroughly as you can in the peanut butter. Try to get it in every crack and crevice as the more you put on the more bounty it will hold...Assemble a meddley of treats. We used unsalted raw peanuts and sunflower seeds, rolled oats and dried raisens and cranberries. Then roll the pine cone in all the nuts and berries until it is completely covered. Remove plastic sheath from string and let sit out in the cold for a half hour or so until it firms up a bit...

Once it is firm (nothing is falling off) hang it from a tree or on you birdfeeder stand and wait until the "bird word" gets out. We had all kinds of feathered friends come to visit from cardinals to woodpeckers. It was great fun for us and a tweet treat for them even the cats enjoyed the show.