Hello! We are Shari & Jon and we live in Southern Indiana.
We are both 40-something, are in the last stages of childrearing and work for ourselves. We run both an eBay store (called The Treasure Port) and an online store ( thetreasureport.mybisi.com ) where we sell antiques, collectibles and lots of antique prints of birds and animals.
Prior to taking our work online, I farmed for 18 years and raised not only cattle, pigs, chickens and rabbits but I also raised plants in my greenhouse. My primary business though was selling home-grown vegetables. I raised 25+ acres of vegetables and sold them throughout the summer months and fall. I am a master gardener and firmly believe there is no such thing as a weed....only a plant nature has planted in a place inconvenient to us!
Jon is my better half. We've been together for 3 1/2 years and are loving life together. Prior to joining me in our eBay and online business, Jon held several managerial positions and worked for eight years as a home builder. Although I would not have initially taken him to be a 'bird watcher' he suprised me and is usually the first one to remember the binoculars on our way out the back door! Insects and reptiles seem to be attracted to him and on more than one occasion I've caught him with a butterfly, tree frog or turtle in hand!
We live just on the outskirts of town on an acre of land that is currently in mowed grass, trees and flower beds. Over the course of the last few years we have slowly been adding more trees and plants to help supplement the local wildlife as well as beautify our yard. We already have mature Walnut, Hickory and Oak trees that provide food for a wide variety of birds and animals but it is our ultimate goal to naturally provide for as many as we can and work WITH nature; not against her.
We live next door to a pasture with a pond, a meadowland, a scrub brush area as well as a small woods and as you would imagine, it lends itself to a whole host of nature's creations. We are interested in feeding our wildlife naturally by planting foods (plants) that will attract and benefit many species.
While we have always been nature lovers, the time we spend near the pond...whether it be with our morning coffee or toasting marshmallows around the fire or dinning outside with our kids, has become precious to us. We are never bored, always entertained and also come back with more than we went with...memories of a fish going down a Blue Heron's neck sideways or three Barn Swallows feeding-on-the-fly, a fence-line full of babies or the acrobatics antics of the nest-building Orioles, birding has found a special place in our hearts.
We hope we can share the knowledge we've gained via our blogs and photos as we make this journey into the world of birding. We hope you will be joining us and we are glad to be here!
Shari & Jon
