Steller's Jay! (It took me a while to capture this image since jays are very cautious & fast)
A squirrel eating her peanuts
This squirrel has been fed so many times, she lost her fear of people
Loads of fun for Sophia!
One of the miniature horses at the farm near Gerritt's daycare (The children visit & feed them cabbage regularly. I felt compelled to add the horse's photo here since Gerritt talks about it quite often.)
This all started with my craving for roasted in-shell peanuts & one rainy afternoon a couple of months ago. I was staying at home with the children that day & needed some new entertainment to keep them out of trouble. I had to make dinner & clean up the house before my husband's return from work. Both were not possible with clingy Gerritt constantly saying, "Mommy, come! Mommy, come!" & crabby teething Sophia wanting to be held. It was a cold rainy day, & as I looked at the squirrels digging in the flower beds in search of food, I suddenly got the idea of sharing my favorite snack of peanuts with them. The response was overwhelmingly positive, with squirrels excitingly crunching on the nuts right in front of our kitchen glass sliding door & Gerritt & Sophia squealing with happiness due to live animals being in such close proximity. I bought myself some time, & the kids were entertained for at least half-an-hour.
Fast forward several weeks, & we now have regularly visiting squirrels, crows, & Steller's jays. That, combined with the often present hummingbirds, surely creates nice childhood memories for years to come! :-) Putting the nuts out for our back yard guests is now Gerritt's daily ritual. The key to a happy squirrel & bird-feeding experience is to keep the doggie door closed since Spike will not miss an opportunity to chase a creature that got too close. We used to have visits from raccoons, however, they have, unfortunately, stopped ever since our neighbors bought 2 dogs. Even though we live in the city, thankfully, nature is all around us!
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