Every day I see this quail couple in my backyard. I feel sorry for the female, because she struggles to get around. She hops on one leg, while her bad foot or leg hangs useless. The good news? Her husband is always at her side. No more than an inch or two apart. He doesn’t leave her alone.

“I know I am in love with you because my reality is finally better than my dreams.” – Dr. Seuss

The quail couple reminds me of how well my husband has taken care of me this past year. From the time I fell trying to avoid two growling dogs on a trail around a lake, he walked me back to the cabin, supporting me the entire way. He immediately went to the store and came back with ice packs, Tylenol and ace bandages.

Next came ankle surgery, where he stayed by my side. More recently it was foot surgery, and yes, he’s been a great help to me. He’s even done grocery shopping which he can’t stand.

Now it’s my turn to take care of my husband who has a knee replacement coming up. I’ll be by his side, driving him to appointments and PT — even though I don’t like to drive. It’s what we do for each other. And yes, I’ve taken over the grocery shopping again.

Some species of quail, including California and the Gambel’s quail we have, often pair for life and work together to raise young. The Northern Cardinals are monogamous, too. Isn’t that something?

Happy Monday and have a wonderful week.

What little things do your family members do to support each other — in sickness and in health?

A few pics of healthy quail couples.

A female quail with an unusual male with no tail!

This is Momma quail’s “No Tail Male Quail!”

P.S. Thank you to my professional photographer friend of 30 plus years. He gave me a tip yesterday to adjust my settings to get more images in focus. The results are the photos above where you can see the patterns of feathers on my quail.