Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Slightly Wordy Wednesday: Backyard Wildlife

We bought our house about a year ago. And I feel in love with it from the start. Not just because it was by the schools of our choice. Or because it had the square footage we wanted. Or a suite for my mom on the main level. Or a newly renovated kitchen. But, we fell in love with it because of the back yard. There is a yard. And then there are woods. But landscaped woods. With gravel paths. And tiki torches. And a wooden swing by the creek. A creek that has provided countless hours of entertainment for the girls. And an amazing amount of peace and tranquility while I sit on the deck. To read the paper. Ponder the universe. Or wonder McSteamy eats for breakfast.

And on occasion, I am drawn from my musings by wildlife that has ventured into our yard. Or into our hot tub. Children are wildlife, right?

The backyard is glorious, but, trust me, you don't want to see what lurks in the front. Right at the door. To greet you. And welcome you with open arms. All of them.

So, what kind of wildlife is in your backyard?

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42 comments:

Anonymous said...

Girl... thanks for throwing McSteamy in there. Swim on over to my blog for more eye candy. :) hee hee ~Jill :)

Skeller said...

A wonderful backyard indeed!! You guys are soooo blessed. And ick on the spider. We've got those giant things, too. And they build webs that string from one side of my backyard to the other, and I walk thru them. And I scream. Every single time.

I'm sure the neighbors probably think I'm nuts.

Jill said...

Gorgeous yard... just gorgeous! The spider... I could seriously do without!

Twisted Fencepost said...

Great photos! We have deer, fox, squirrel, rabbit, an occasional skunk or raccoon, and more spiders than I'm comfortable with. Oh, yeah and snakes, too.

storyteller said...

You live in a beautiful place with a wonderful backyard. My backyard is TINY … barely room for Molly to run along the length of the house and up the stairs (and the occasional opossum to visit in the evening) … but we do have the ocean just a block and a half away and that’s what we consider to be ‘our backyard’ ;--)
Hugs and blessings,

Shannon said...

We have the usual... squirrels and birds, maybe the occasional rabbit.

Strangest wildlife I've seen in my backyard... a rooster. Yep, you heard correctly. Now, I live in a small town but not so far out in the country for a ROOSTER to wander into my backyard! Have no idea where it came from (are there such things as wild roosters??). The stupid thing camped out in a neighbors yard for weeks... I hated hearing that thing crow in the morning.

Swirl Girl said...

Certainly not a hunk with a bowl of cereal!

But- we do have oodles of hummingbirds (those things are loud and contrary to popular belief,, they do actually sit on branches completely still...I always thought they were constantly moving)

and the occasional coyote

Insane Mama said...

I would give up my eyeballs for a yard like that! I'm jealous.

Sydney said...

Thanks for that refreshing McSteamy break! MMM!

As for wildlife, we have bunnies, ducks, turkeys, coyotes and the occassional fox in our neighborhood. Fox as in small woodland creature... not as in "that guy is a fox." Well, maybe if you count my husband... :-)

MARGARETE said...

How beautiful!

Brian and Staci said...

Wow! What a great backyard! I love that you feel like you are in the woods, yet you have great paths! We are working on that...I love that creek! What fun! I'm gonna post pics on my blog of what lurks in our backyard! (I'm catching the next flight to Atlanta if you could just tell me what time McSteamy is in your backyard!!!!)

Brandy said...

We get plenty of deer...this morning there were 5 right outside the door. And then there are bunnies, squirrels and lots of birds. The red birds and blue jays are beautiful. It makes me want to get a camera with a better zoom function.

Rhea said...

Loved McSteamy SHIRTLESS! Spider made me scream though. I hate spiders.

I LOVE your backyard, paths, creek, wooden swing and wildlife! I would have fallen in love with it too. And bought your house immediately.

We have lots of birds and squirrels...and rabbits and field mice. They squeak loudly at night.

And racoons and coyotes...but I never see them. Thank goodness.

Lula! said...

What an awesome backyard! I love it. I'm coming to visit for real now.

We have a veritable zoo here in the country...let's do a rundown, shall we? Skunk, Coyote, Turkeys (at last count there were at least 35!), Opossum, Foxes, Rabbits, Groundhogs, Deer, Snakes, and Mice. And yes--we see most of these on a weekly basis. 'Cept the snakes. Thank God.

Jennifer P. said...

That is my DREAM backyard! I saw them renovate a house with a yard like that on This Old House once and have dreamed about it ever since. Gorgeous!!!

In our last house, our yard backed up to a field so we would get geese, snakes, and even a badger. Here we have a lot more room, but nothing interesting. Just lots of squirrels, hummingbirds, butterflies, and neighbor's cats.

Still saying wow to your yard. Perfect place to homeschool!

Bootcamp Burners said...

Oh I want McSteamy in my backyard! Great pictures. I love your girls in the hot tub.
Rhonda (WTM boards)

Frizzy said...

Loved all the pics but the SPIDER!!! YUCK! The wildlife in my backyard includes the following: My daughter, my 3 dogs, a few squirls, a bossy blue jay that thinks he owns the joint, an occasional skunk and mice who eat the fruit from my trees. Gotta be vigilant and be sure he's not present when I let the domesticated animals out. Love your pics and yard!

The Joye of Teaching said...

WOW! Nice yard. My wildlife includes squirrels! Tons and tons of squirrels. They have now ruined 3 bird feeders. hehehe

The Joye of Teaching said...

WOW! Nice yard. My wildlife includes squirrels! Tons and tons of squirrels. They have now ruined 3 bird feeders. hehehe

The Joye of Teaching said...

WOW! Nice yard. My wildlife includes squirrels! Tons and tons of squirrels. They have now ruined 3 bird feeders. hehehe

Weith Kick said...

You have what I envision to be my dream backyard. I have always wanted to live in the woods. I live in the desert and while the desert can be beautiful, I've always longed for a life in a cabin in the woods.

Angie's Spot said...

I hope you have a spare room for me, because I'm moving in!

The most interesting wildlife in my backyard is a pesky squirrel that kills birdfeeders and a rascally rabbit that's eating my tomato garden.

Angie's Spot said...
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Anonymous said...

Trying not to covet, trying not to covet.....darn it, coveting! My DREAM!!! Lucky girl you. I don't even have a singel tree in my backyard yet. But my folks live in the country on a tree farm. They have lots of deer and raccoons and such. I live vicariously through them. (And now you!)

Kelly said...

What a beautiful backyard! I'm glad you take the time to enjoy it!!
We have snakes, lizards, frogs, hawks, owls, woodpeckers and one time (before I moved into the neighborhood) a black bear shoved down a fence and was looking around...

Anonymous said...

I keep forgetting to tell you that we tried your grits casserole and my kids loved it. It was hit! Thanks for sharing the recipe.

Anonymous said...

If I knew what wildlife lived in my backyard I'm not sure we'd want to stay here...
I can't wait to see the gorgeous manor someday--but you need not refer to the grounds as a yard, just to seem real to us littler folk--go ahead--call it the grounds. we all know that's what you mean.
did you say McSteamy is your gardener? hmmm no wonder there's so much wild life back there!

Lisa said...

Great backyard! Looks like a fun place to explore.

Britt said...

Landscaped Woods .. with gravel trails .. I'm loving the sound of that.

I'd totally love to live in your backyard .. ya know, if that wasn't creepy. :o)

Mama Peep said...

I so miss our yard in GA. In WA, you play a hefty price for yardage so we have no yard to speak of. Just the other day my husband was commenting on how he misses the squirrels we use to get in our old yard. We have yet to see one here. We use to get rabbits, turtles, LOTS AND LOTS of those icky make you scream spiders, falcons, hawks, turkey vultures, etc. These are the trade offs for the dream job I guess. :-))

Patricia in WA

Rosemary Q said...

That is a beautiful backyard! We have the occasional ant in our yard when I forget to call Pest Control... and that's about it for wildlife sightings in our backyard.

Tiffany said...

I want to come over and go in the spa and stare into the woods... but I do really dislike spiders. I live in cookie cutter suberbia.... a chiuaua on the loose is about it.

Teri said...

Hey, where can I get a cereal bowl like that, with that guy attached to it?

My backyard creatures? That Damn Bunny

Mama Dawg said...

turtles, rabbits, deer, spiders, frogs, deer, redbirds, hummingbirds, dogs, cats, mice, snakes, coyotes, etc....

You know, typical wildlife.

Dancing Queen said...

OMG, Kat! That is absolutely gorgeous! Lucky you...what inspiration you have to choose from on a daily basis!

Nissa said...

Oh I love it! Little hiking trails?? I'm on my way! :)

Anonymous said...

Wow....you have a beautiful backyard...that would be nice to have.

I have a squirrel that regularly gets in my trash for his dinner. I just put up a hummingbird feeder and have a hummingbird that stops by now too! I have ants...but I wish they would go away.

Thanks for stopping by today. Small world. I have family that lives very near Perryville....in fact on the way to their house we stop in Perryville to eat, pee, whatever...Our family is up towards Biehle...at least that is the exit we take and then a bunch of winding backroads from there!!! :)

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately we have skunks. The babies are cute but the adults are another story.

Jenny said...

What an absolutely fantastically amazing backyard!!!!!!!
I love it!!!!!!!!
And the pic of McSteamy is not too bad either.

S'more of my Thoughts said...

Oh my goodness. What a PHENOMENAL yard!!!

Not much here - @#$% deer and an occasional fox or two is about it. I hope. Oh, and a frog lives under our driveway lights, waiting for the bugs to drop.

amy said...

We have bunnies, lots and lots of bunnies. And chipmunks and many kinds of birds. And sometimes we are overrun by toddlers, but that's a different story. ;o)

Unknown said...

McSteamy .. MmmmMmmmm.. :-)

My current backyard is not as exciting as yours. It's prety non-existant. However, we do get racoons, the occasional skunk, black widow spiders and plenty of stray cats. Want another one by any chance?

We even get the occasional snake...EEEK.. and bats...