Grassland crawfish mud chimney

I’ve been out in the yard quite a bit now that the rain has let up. When I was a kid, the outdoors was my playground, the backyard woods was my jungle gym and I fancied myself as a young Euelle Gibbons. Needless to say, I never did quite end up catching my supper, but I tried! I was reminded of the time when my kid sister Carla (I think) poked her fingers in one of the grassland crawfish mud chimneys and promptly found out someone lived in there. With all this rain, it’s no surprise that the crawfish are again constructing their mud piles in my yard. If you are mowing, you’ll want to watch out for them so that you don’t damage your mower blade.

With an observant eye and ear, I’ve seen and heard so much! I saw an orchard oriole and a yellow warbler. I found I have an American robin’s nest right off of my patio and that there are at least 2 male house wrens vying for the same house.  A Carolina wren has been trying to make a nest in our Uncle Bill’s game (known to the rest of you as Corn Hole) that is hung up in the garage. A Northern Cardinal has a nest in the neighbor’s Colorado blue spruce tree. A garter snake startled me as I mowed today; luckily he escaped without a Toro haircut!

Baby grasshopper

It’s not just the out of doors that is budding with new life. I found tens of teensy weensy baby grasshoppers at the family room patio door. On the INSIDE. I’m guessing that they hatched from one of the pots I brought in from last year. They are no larger than 1/4 of an inch though it is hard to tell the scale in my photo. It is quite tricky getting them outside without hurting them but I’d rather have them OUTSIDE than inside!

Osmocote $10 rebate

If you use Osmocote, be sure to check out this $10 rebate on a 3-lb container of indoor/outdoor Osmocote. My rebate check is already being processed and the container will only cost me $2.97 after rebate. Yay! I love good deals. (Offer expires June 30).