Ayla, Whinney and Racer … they are here daily.  The last few days, they arrive at the back slider while I’m dancing.  My back is to the door but I see them in the reflection of the living room window.  One day, Whinney tapped her nose several times on the glass so I turned around. She stared at me, then lost interest and began eating the wild violets just outside the door.  That baby is very bold and curious.  Yesterday while dancing, in the reflection I could see her staring intently.  Husband said her face was incredibly cute while watching.

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Our wildlife friends …

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Oscar … he has come to the slider and pressed his antlers to the glass, looking right at me. He makes really good eye contact.

 

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Elwin – far more skittish.  Walks by regally.

 

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Llama-Boy … we don’t see him as often.

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One of the babies we call Racer (from Valley of the Horses – Jean Auel).  He is wildly fast! See below for his sister watching his blur ..

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Our Deer-Friends are all welcome here and they can eat anything they wish.  We have apples and plums and roses and all sorts of flowers and they are especially fond of the weeds, so we are glad for that 😉

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Hidden Life of Trees

“It all starts with the wolves. Wolves disappeared from Yellowstone, the world’s first national park, in the 1920s. When they left, the entire ecosystem changed. Elk herds in the park increased their numbers and began to make quite a meal of the aspens, willows, and cottonwoods that lined the streams. Vegetation declined and animals that depended on the trees left. The wolves were absent for seventy years. When they returned, the elks’ languorous browsing days were over. As the wolf packs kept the herds on the move, browsing diminished, and the trees sprang back. The roots of cottonwoods and willows once again stabilized stream banks and slowed the flow of water. This, in turn, created space for animals such as beavers to return. These industrious builders could now find the materials they needed to construct their lodges and raise their families. The animals that depended on the riparian meadows came back, as well. The wolves turned out to be better stewards of the land than people, creating conditions that allowed the trees to grow and exert their influence on the landscape.”

~~Peter Wohlleben, The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate.

Buddy …

All these years later, the antics of Buddy still makes us laugh. Buddy was one of the smartest dogs I’ve met.  Sort of freaky smart. And very very kind.

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He was so smart that he trained us to toss the ball back to him when he would make it bounce down the stairs.  He was extremely accurate and fast about catching the tosses.

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He also trained us to find him in the game of hide & seek. He would set the ball for us to find, then dash behind a tree and watch.

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He introduced himself to the neighbors cow and they became friends.

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He loved to swim. And he LOVED to jump off the diving board to fetch his frisbee.

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In the shallow end, he would stand on his hind legs, and sometimes push the frisbee down under the water so he could make bubbles.

… more to follow :)

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