All Creatures Great & Small

It has been a really great week. I have been able to spend a lot of time outdoors & have got to hang out with a lot of animals. On Saturday we had two other little boys spending the day with us. I took them down to the river to hang out and see what we could see. First we found a little baby snapping turtle, way up on the bank in the gravel several yards from the river. I figure a bird grabbed him for lunch then dropped him. He was all dried out, but still alive. So we carried him down to the river & put him back in and he swam away happily. We may regret this decision when we go swimming in the river this summer. Then we walked down to a little peninsula where a stream flows out into the river to look for snakes. On the way we saw Virginia bluebells and wild violets. Frogs were singing loudly until we started playing near the water, then they would pop up their heads and look at us and sing, then duck back under. After the boys assuring me their mothers would not kill me or them if they got their shoes wet, the boys started trying to catch the frogs. I started to realize what was happening by the time they started making their own observations and comments, but by then it was too late. "Look! That frog has TWO heads!" Mating season. They had waded right into the middle of a pool full of mating frogs. Dozens. The boys were thrilled. The frogs, not so much. Everytime they would pick up a pair of frogs, slimey strings of frog-sex goo would ooze between their fingers. Then they would see tadpole eggs hit the water. The males were dark green and the females bigger and reddish. So this little tidbit of information I tried to casually share sparked a whole new set of inquiries about the males on top. Oh boy. I was thinking I probably should have had parents sign some sort of consent form had I known I would be conducting a sex education class in the middle of the river. I left them to discuss their findings amongst themselves. I heard one little boy say this was the best day of his life. I finally convinced them to put them all back gently and leave them in peace in fear of wiping out an entire generation of frogs. This week I also got to go to Catoctin Zoo with Hank, Wolfgang & some homeschool friends. It was such an amazing day and I got some great pictures. The group left at 2, but we stayed until closing time. Being that close to the monkeys, especially the Macaque family, and looking into their eyes straight to their soul was an unbelievable experience. They sat in a bunch and groomed one another using their little tiny fingers & hands. HUGE pythons came up to the glass, flicked their tongues against where our hands were pressed. One started banging his head against the corner seam of the glass and when Tayva & I heard it creak we ran out the nearest door...quickly. The lioness and white tiger were so regal & dignified. Wolfgang loved the baby goats and spent all day hanging out with them. We got to touch and learn about a baby alligator, a hedgehog, a chinchilla and an Amazon parrot. Canada geese walked around everywhere & one got between me & Hank when I raised my voice at him for walking off & started hissing at me, we were all cracking up. Then a goose attacked another goose right over Wolfgang's head and pulled a big tuft of down off the offending goose's butt. That's when I realized there must be a nest he was defending. Sure enough the female was sitting on a nest right beside the lake. I picked up the tuft of downy butt feathers and put them on the ground beside her then she started using them to line the nest! She stood up & I got some great pictures of the eggs. Wolfgang and I went to Harper's Ferry & crossed the river on the train bridge then hiked down the canal and sat out on a huge rock in the river. Then we hiked up past the church while the bells were ringing on up to Jefferson Rock. We met several new canine friends and watched the pigeons build nests. We stopped by Petco on the way home to say hello to all the kittys. A very sad part of the week concerning canine friends was finding out our friends had to say goodbye to their family dog, Alice. She was a good soul. Goodbye sweet girl. My dogs seem very sad this week, I guess they know. But our young friend Annie is very happy this week , congratulations to her on getting a new baby calf of her own named "Sprinkles". :) I need to come hug your cow, Annie! :) While at a pet store today we saw baby guinea pigs 2 for $5 so we came home and got a cage set up. It appears I am getting up early to go buy two guinea pigs, so I have to go to bed now. We may also get to go visit my friend Luna's campsite during the full moon this weekend! It has been a week full of lots of sunshine, fresh air, many hours at the river & best of all we made many new animal friends. My favorite kind.