We have a Mama deer that has twins.
They are great entertainment! Sometimes they wander in the yard alone and other times their Mama is with them.
They are curious about our bird baths.
We also have a fat old Raccoon that has been visiting the yard. Thankfully no skunks yet..or bear:)We have a little action on our security cameras. Mainly a rabbit that hops back and forth, a kitty with white paws, squirrels and deer eating acorns.
My other baby brother has more wildlife than we do. He has deer, fox, rabbits, turkeys, coyote and a bobcat.
nice sized bobcat in the daytime
Thursday: My baby brother was mulching leaves in our yard when we got home. The leaves are about 50% down. I appreciate him mulching for us! It is a dirty dusty job. My other baby brother delivered our mail!
Friday I went with Far Guy to his Infusion. His respiratory infection is not any better, I am keeping a close eye on him. We picked up our grocery order from Walmart and came home. My baby brother, his bride, Baxter and Smudge visited in the afternoon...they picked tomatoes for me.
I am still putting "stuff" away. We both had a short nap. I made hamburger gravy with mashed potatoes for supper.
Minnesota weather; High 86F or 30C Low was 64F or 18C. There is lots of dust in the air from the bean harvest in the nearby fields.
Far Side
I found this photo in my archives. Our fields look similar today...but it was warm so much of our snow has melted.
There are Sandhill Cranes in the background with Trumpeter Swans and Canada Geese out front.
My thoughts...I like birds...they do not have "stuff"...they have what they need to get along day by day. Three different species of birds all getting along in the same area...
maybe people could learn from birds.
Happy Spring!
Far Side
We had our second snow on late Sunday night/early Monday morning. We now have about two inches of the white stuff.
See all those tracks in the snow? Something was having a party around the bird feeder.
This is a photo of the security camera. They sure had fun and emptied out one side of the feeder. I suspect the five squirrels that showed up enjoyed a bit of that spilled seed too.
We made a list for errands in town and as we left the yard the smaller deer was watching us from the edge of the woods...I suppose he/she wanted a morning snack.
Town was fine the Turkey is thawing in the fridge and the rest of the groceries were purchased for a simple meal on Thanksgiving Day. Turkey, mashed potatoes, GF gravy, GF Green Beans with sour cream and onion potato chips on top instead of the onion rings with gluten, corn, olives, pickles and Snickers salad. Guests are bringing GF stuffing and GF cake. There will be more than enough food!
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The twin fawns were at the bird bath taking turns getting a drink. They are losing their spots. I went to get my camera and they left...but
their Mama came in for a drink too.
My what big ears you have.
She sauntered over and began nibbling on the chokecherry bushes. She is a very dark color now.
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Yes we live a wildlife.
Picking tomatoes every day and sharing them with others.
Painting the Christmas ornaments, Far Guys says there are 109 ornaments.
We got our Covid Boosters Friday afternoon So far so good...but as I write this it has just been five hours. So who knows.
We went for a Ranger Blue ride the other night. My hip is not as sore as it was so we got to have a longer ride. I still have some pain, but I am doing the exercises and the whirlpool and heated rice bags. I hope PT can fit me in their schedule next week...I am on the call list.
More Doctor appointments have been scheduled...seems like it never ends.
Far Guy got a call from his Doctors office warning him of an increase in covid hospital admissions, the covid wards in Fargo, ND are open again. They told him to isolate and stay out of crowds. We are practically hermits already.
A fawn with fading spots. The fawns are slowly turning a darker color. Their Mama is really dark.
A Grouse on the back road...she is living right behind our house...safe except for the Fox that is a frequent visitor. Sure hope there is more than one Grouse...we have not seen one in this area for a long time.
Such is our wildlife:)
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We have many visitors hat go through our yard. Chipmunks, squirrels, rabbits, fox, skunk, raccoons, porkypines, deer and bear. We even have a black and white kittycat...not a skunk.
One night we were out just before dark, three deer were eating beans in the field. A doe and two fawns.
They all crossed safely in front of us.
They like beans...just ask my sister in law she who sees robins first. She has a raised garden just outside of her door and they have eaten all her beans.
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The bear visits many times a week. The outside cameras catch him coming from the North pausing in our yard and taking off to the South. He is most likely hunkered down in a den someplace close to us. So far he has been seen only at night. He is causing heck with the chokecherries trees, he pulls them over sometimes breaking them to get at the chokecherries that are starting to ripen.
Far Guy says when the wind is just right he thinks he can smell the bear. he is not just a cute cuddly bear cub either.
We have no bird feeders out for him, and our garbage that is in a locked garage is not accessible. So he is not eating here...apparently just passing through.
Such is life in the country.
It has turned warm here in Minnesota. Yesterday it was 80 F or 27 C eh! The forecast for the next ten days is for temperatures in the 80's. They say it won't hit 90 F but we will see.
The skeeters big as birds have arrived...I was hoping that all the rain flooded them out. They are out in the daytime and are crazy hungry.
Yesterday we went to the transfer station with garbage and recycles. That was our outing for the day.
Far Guy saw the Fox up close and personal when they tried to share the covered entry to the house during a downpour. We both saw the mama doe and her twin fawns running out of the bean field yesterday.
Nothing much new here. Far Guy worked on woodcarving Christmas ornaments yesterday. I mowed lawn for a couple of hours....not quite done yet but I got side tracked killing ants. Tomorrow is another day. It got warm enough yesterday that we finally put the air conditioning on.
The paint for the Christmas ornaments has been gathered. All very metallic looking paints. I can still paint ornaments...but the woodcarving is very painful for my fingers and wrists.
Far Guy was outside sitting on the patio when two fawns wandered into the yard, they walked closer and closer to him, when he spoke to them their Mama came running out of the woods. His phone was inside but he said the photo would have been awesome.
We both got to see a Red Fox run into the yard and attempt to catch a squirrel dinner.
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We raked a bit and blew all the leaves from the rocks on the East and West sides of the house and from under the back deck. Far Guy vacuumed out Ranger Blue.
I mulched the leaves that found their way into our yard ...again. Then I went next door and finished that property for the season. Far Guy hosed down my lawnmower, put "stuff" in the gas and put it away for next year. Yeah me...I made it through the year.
Toward evening we went for a Ranger Blue ride into the Smoky Hills. We saw no one...we saw the beaver swimming in his pond.
The road to the old fire tower.
The view from the road up there.
It was a nice day 60 F or 16 C eh!
Baxter and his folks visited toward evening. They had a bear at their house that took down bird feeders.
Far Side
A number of squirrels are back. The bums chase each other and the birds away.
His/her tail is just a nubbin. It will not grow back. Sometime squirrels are in a bad fight or they have been attacked by a predator and lose their tails. Their tails are useful for balance and for keeping them warm in the winter.
The Juncos are back as are the Blue Jays...all are hungry.
I had my eye appointment, he just wanted a second look at one eye. I walked around grocery shopping with my sunglasses on. I also got the RSV vaccination...so far so good.
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Far Guy heard some noises one night...he said it sound like an animal scratching in the laundry room. We both looked around and didn't see anything out of the ordinary.
One day I heard a sound like a marble was in the dryer...I found a dime! Yeah me.
Night before last I got up in the middle of the night and read my book ...I heard a scratching and a noise of something dropping... in the area of the dryer.
I told Far Guy the next day...he investigated.
This is the dryer vent with the cover removed...seems someone was squirreling away acorns for the Winter. Apparently when the guys refinished the house they did not put the dryer vent cover on correctly and some critter could shove acorns in through a small gap in the bottom.
Far Guy came inside and took the entire dryer vent apart...guess what? Many more acorns...we vacuumed them up, reattached the venting and outside Far Guy covered the dryer vent cover with some heavy screen...because apparently this is a creature of habit and must be stopped from using the dryer vent as a storage area.
It is either a mouse, a chipmunk or a squirrel. My guess is a chipmunk.
It took us half the day to get it all cleaned up. Far Guy says the sound I heard was acorns dropping down the dryer vent when the area up top of the vent got too full... then the acorns ran down the dryer vent inside.
Mystery solved. Country living at its finest.
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We have a fox here in the woods. We saw it in the ditch a few days ago.
The ditches are turning green which here in Minnesota means that the deer are out grazing at the edges of the road at night and in the morning.
We are seeing some green in the trees.
See a hint of green through the trees?
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We finished painting the sauna, the paint held out and the rain held off until I was on the front side where there is a huge overhang. We took turns being on the ladder and no one fell!
After a late lunch we went for a Ranger Blue ride to the hills.
View from the road to the tower.
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My other baby brother and she who sees robins first had a visitor at their trail cam.
The photo was taken about July 6th.
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We had a busy day, I went on an adventure with Jen, my baby brother and his bride in the morning.
When we got back Jen moved the downstairs bed upstairs in preparation for the new bed coming on Monday. I was of little help with one hand and Far Guy was struggling but we did what we could to help Jen. It was musical beds upstairs moving one to a different area...thank goodness for Jen. We still have to put the bed together upstairs...it has a frame with drawers underneath...it needs to be dusted and cleaned up and all the bedding washed. We have all week to get it accomplished...maybe longer. I will miss all those drawers. I have a bunch of clothing to go through one day soon.
We went for a Ranger Blue Ride in the afternoon. I had been looking forward to a ride for a long time.
Our driveway.
Swans in a field.
My baby brother, his bride and Baxter joined us for supper. Impossible Italian Sausage Pie, Salad and Ice Cream for dessert.
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The deer are thirsty. They come in to drink from the bird baths. I took these photos out the kitchen window...they came into the yard as I was making supper.
We have not see her and her twins for a couple of weeks. Mama looks a bit skinny.
The twins still have their spots.
Far Side
We do have visitors.
Far Guy took a photo out the kitchen window of our deer.
We have about five regular visitors...squirrels. Two are black and three are grey.
Our baby Pileated Woodpecker is back. We moved the suet feeders because the squirrels were emptying them as fast as we could fill them ...he was confused for a few days but finally found the suet.
He is a handsome dude and kept us entertained!
I will be ready for Trick or Treaters on Saturday. I plan to hang up a small clothesline between two trees and attach bags of treats for the children...I hope I can get a few photos. I am expecting that we will have nine special kids stopping by. The treat bags have been packaged up for a week now so they should be safe!
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