We thought life with our two little kids was wild. Then we looked out the windows.
Here's a partial running list of the various creatures we've seen in our yard.
snapping turtle - May 29, 2007
Ms. Snappy checking things out (she had absolutely no problem with the staircase up to the patio)
Thank God Rick was home to discover our little friend.
Krista just pictures herself walking outside to open the gate for Elliot,
probably while holding the baby, before morning coffee, barefoot...
That poor turtle would never be the same after witnessing such a reaction.
Rick opened the gate for Snappy so she could enjoy the patio and search freely for a spot to lay her eggs.
She was especially interested in Elliot's sand table.
After a couple of hours partying on the patio,
Mama Turtle made her way down to the beach and laid her eggs.
heron
blue jay
crows
chickadee
nuthatch
robins
chipping sparrows
cardinal
This little guy (and his main squeeze) are frequent diners at our window feeder.
frogs
owl
(we haven't seen him, but he likes to hoot right inside our window in the middle of the night)
stray cat
opossum
Krista thought this was a white stray cat at first. Yikes - that's not a cat.
painted turtle
wild turkey
racoons
mice
deer
red & gray squirrels
chipmunks
several different woodpeckers
loon
(not technically in our yard)
bats
stray dog
(HUGE and actually came INTO the house and ran around for a while.
Krista had a heck of a time getting him to leave.)
geese
mallard ducks
wood ducks
muskrats
rabbits
groundhog