One of my favorite birds is the tree swallow, well, since my favorite color is blue, specifically the the color blue that tree swallows are, and especially after last year when we had a nesting pair of swallows in our yard and seven little hatchlings.  So, this spring, I have anxiously been awaiting the return of the tree swallows to our yard, and I was excited last week when I caught the first glimpse of a swallow near the back of our yard.  Then, I saw no more for about week, and I was beginning to wonder if I had merely imagined I saw the tree swallow and that my mind was playing tricks on me, getting me all excited when I shouldn't be. 

Then came yesterday morning, when I again saw a tree swallow flying through the open meadow behind our yard, and saw as it went into one of the two nesting boxes we currently have in our yard.  It didn't stay long, though, before flying out.  But yet, my heart leaped with joy that we most likely would be having tree swallows yet again. 

Last night, as we made a quick stop at one of our new birding locations, I noticed a whole flock of tree swallows, so I knew that they were back in large numbers. 

This morning, as I looked out the back window, I saw a pair of tree swallows at our other nesting box.  The male was sitting on top of the box, and the female was inside the box looking out, a sight that I had become familiar with last year.  As I went out to refill the bird feeders (the winds of the last two days had effectively emptied them out), Tammy says there was another swallow that went unnoticed by me that was sitting on top of the first nesting box, guarding it from my predator instincts, no doubt.   Of course, I heard the chatter of the birds, but didn't notice the swallows again until after I had put the food away and was walking back to the house, and four swallows were flying around over the yard, chattering away. 

So, it's possible that we could get two nesting pair of tree swallows this year.  We have two nesting boxes on opposite sides of the yard, quite possibly far enough away from each other that swallows will be able to take up residence in both boxes, but I will give it another two weeks before checking the boxes to see if they have built nests in both.  Last year, I noticed that swallows claimed the nesting box well before they were actually ready to start building the nest.