The "Hodge Podge of Photos" Post

I've got a bunch of random photos from our week in the Des Moines area that I thought I'd share today.

But first, an update on that bird that was stuck inside my parents' house last week. (Check on the original post here.)

This bird found itself trapped inside my parents' house. I don't know how long it had been inside before I realized it was in there. Originally, it was in the living room (not pictured) stuck in between an inside shutter and the window, desperately trying to get outside, and not realizing that the glass overlooking a wooded area would never allow him to get out.

I'd somehow gotten him to perch on the brush end of a broom, as I held the handle. I quickly walked to the front door as Livie held the door opened. But he became confused and flew not OUT the door, but up into the window way above the door. You can't get to that ledge unless you have a tall ladder (or are a bird).

We tried shooing him out, but he was confused, and just hopped, fluttered, and flew around near the window. I thought of throwing a towel on him so I could transport him out, but I was too short and didn't have a ladder tall enough to facilitate that idea.

We'd gotten a suggestion to use a butterfly net, but the only one we own, Livie's, was at our home 140 miles away.

After a couple hours of trying, off and on, we just left him there for the time being. When my dad got home from work, he also tried shooing him away, without success. But at one point, he FINALLY shooed the thing far enough away from the window that somebody was able to gently grab it, and release it outside!! So the little thing was finally free!!

And the funny thing is that we would occasionally see him at the bird feeder in the front yard. At one point, Andrew saw him on a ledge looking inside. Livie wondered if it was trying to figure out what had happened to him!

Anyway, here are the random photos I'd wanted to share. The first three were taken at the Downtown Des Moines Farmers' Market.

Enjoying a bean and cheese pupusa for breakfast at the Farmer's Market.

This dragon is on a building on one of the side streets in downtown Des Moines.

Livie got a "fishing" balloon "hat."

And the "Instagram" photo (of a Farmers' Market goodie) I took with my iPhone:

We'd gotten a blueberry pie from the Farmers' Market. Here's the piece I later enjoyed.

"Oh, deer!" Guess who was enjoying the spilled bird seed in the front yard?

Oma (Liv's great-grandmother, my grandmother) and Liv are enjoying caramel sundaes one evening after dinner at the local DQ.