Trail Cam Follies

This is one of my favorite trail cam shots even though it's nearly ten years old.

I also wanted to share these recent pics from my ahem,  neighbors trail cam, stationed on a corn feeder. 

Visiting the corn station is a family affair 

Corn however, is on a lot of North American mammal's menu so there are a variety of dinner guests.

Apparently, this young buck in velvet did not read the etiquette book on surprise co-diners.  If you have a fun caption for this or any of the pictures leave a comment. 

And other critters just passing through leave their record too.

And others, are more into dessert.

Apparently it was an all you can carry special under the apple tree.

This was a short post crammed with critters for you. If I still have your attention, consider messaging me any questions you might have about the things you have seen and read on the blog, or about our life in the country.  I'll try to feature them in future posts and you can remain anonymous. Or I'll just answer over messaging, whatever.  I really think that is what this squirrel is thinking. Whatever.

Foxin' Around

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First, do not be alarmed. There are no foxes eating bunnies in this blog post. This is all about animals in the neighborhood, not birds (they get their own post) and not on the trail camera, also another post. Apparently as a librarian, I am super into sorting these animal posts. I did post this first so it would be the picture to go on Facebook, to lure you into the blog.

This is actually at my green thumb friend's yard. She gets lots of shade so still has chamomile going for this baby bunny to eat, but they didn't like my scrutiny so ambled into the undergrowth.

To watch warily, waiting for me to leave so they could continue to eat her chamomile. 

And here is a picture of a more local bunny, that started it's life under Mom and Dad's porch, enjoying clover in their lush backyard. 

Enjoy these fox picture below, taken with the cannon camera (but inside the house so still not great) of a fox hunting mice in the pasture. 

The project you see on the right is drastically different and will get its own post later. 

I was hoping to catch the fox with my sport mode on, in the classic 45 degree angle of pouncing but alas got this levitating shot. All four feet are actually off the ground.

Fox has the mouse!

Well, that's all the charisma and jazz I have for you. It's time to discuss an animal that's a little bit more down to earth.

This toad, I first met in June (I know I am writing about June still!) I haven't named it but for as much as I see it, I should. Feel free to suggest names in comments. Anyway, it was during a really hot streak and I had been out gardening until dark and watering and I was just getting ready to head in for the night through the garage and then I noticed something underneath the car and just inside the back right tire. It looked like a rock...but a rock that big? I got slightly closer already guessing what it was and once it hopped, further underneath the car I was irritate and mildly terrified. 

Wait a minute...could that be the toad from the chicken pen last year?

Is it the same toad from the garden, just not covered in mud? Just how many toads are on this property anyway? I mean, it's not like I'm numbering them with a yellow logging crayon...

Well we may never know. Toads this large in this day in age indicates a healthy garden and property so I'll swallow my phobia and be appreciative even if it leads to the occasional harrowing experience. I may delve into my toddler embedded toad phobia one of these days in a sketch but for now, or at least for this scene in the garage, I plucked up my courage and found something to nudge the toad back outside. It was so hot, I didn't think it would survive a hot day in the garage. As much as I don't like them in practice. I like them in theory and who wants a toad this big in their hot garage to take care of. I mean. Ick. 

So at first the 48 inch yardstick waving around the floor under the car was enough to move the toad out. But rather than going out the garage door (right, it's never that easy) the toad hopped behind my large square galvanized tub of garden tools, in the little corner to the left of the left side of the garage door. I sighed. I considered leaving it there but I persevered. I'm not going to give you a blow by blow account of our sparring. I'm sure you can imagine me at ten o clock at night rattling this yardstick around the garage floor like a demented game of hockey, softly shrieking a little when sometimes the toad hops away from the yardstick and towards me rather than our of the garage. At one point, I managed to press the yardstick right against his butt and nudge him out the door. Even that gave me the heebie jeebies and watching its legs dangle out behind it with every hope just tripped the reptilian part of my brain...some part of me convinced despite all reason that this toad is going to jump 5 feet in the air and right into my face.  I know. I know. It's a story for another time.

Do you see that space between it's plumb little legs? That's where I bravely pressed the yard stick all to save him. Once he was out I lectured him roundly and soundly on the garage being a hell oven for toads with a slow death wish. 

I saw the toad on and off throughout most of July but not much since we got back from our camping trip to Michigan. This changed yesterday afternoon when I dumped the rain water out of one of our Gorilla carts. And right before I reached the cart in full, broad, hot, humid August daylight, a shadow darted, well as much as this little chub can dart out from under the shade. I pinwheeled back, shrieking (again) and chastised the toad for scaring me like that. 

Clearly this toad is not sorry. I gritted my teeth and bent down mere feet away and emptied the water. Then I admonished the toad to get back under the shade like any same amphibian. See. I'm terrified of it and yet I still worry for it. 

You know what? I'm going to say it's the same toad from the garden based on the two humps right behind it's eyes. 

Look

I mean, they are both rotund, have the humps, and look completely not sorry.

But I do think it's a different toad from the chicken pen last year. 

I have to go help get dinner ready. Here is a picture, apropos of absolutely nothing related to this post of peppers from the garden. Also thanks to my green thumb friend. 

 

Toad Update:

After I drafted the above, I had another run in with my nameless garden friend who terrifies me. Just Monday night I was wrapping up watering when the toad was a mere 6 inches from the garage. I still had one more piece of gardening to do so I wasn't ready to shut the garage door. I was going to stand up to this toad!

I got the trusty 48 inch yardstick out and waved it (boldly) right in front of its nose which made it run straight at me. I shrieked, backed away and raced to the garage door where I hit the button to shut the door, hoping it didn't dart under the door at the last minute. Then, and this is the sort of radical transparency you get on this blog. I went out the back door to water the pots on the deck. 

Magic In the Neighborhood

 I am saddened to have to preface this blog post that I am super excited about with an apology to you, my readers, for the junk formatting. Blogger has updated something and I accidentally hit a button and this happened and I can't figure out how to reverse it. I've spent on and off the last two hours trying to figure it out and even my friend Scott F. who I meet way back in my Marysville Library days tried to help other chat. I'll post on the blogger message board and hope when Blogger forces everyone to update, this will go back to normal. For now, it's not my fault. Well, it's sorta my fault but for all their napping pods you'd think google would have a button to reverse this  Anyway, we will press on:

Hi, I'm interrupting my planned lineup of blog posts (I'm still very behind) to devote some time to something truly amazing and magical right in my own backyard. I included a couple pictures of it's debut last year in a post but really, it deserves its own featured post.

The Plant Kindness Project is in my hometown and on Bullard-Rutan road. 

If I wasn't fired up about raising dahlias before, I certainly am now. There is a reason why some varieties are called "dinner plate" dahlias. 

It's not just flowers that are gifts for visitors but also, fresh veggies.

There is hand sanitizer, and a box for suggestions and donations. I dropped off a little lavender, a gardener's trade. 

They've added a new activity this year. 

And now, for the feature you've all been waiting for...

Well, it certainly looks interesting. Let's get up close and see...

This is walking tunnel completely covered by plants: gourd vines and their gourds. 

Pause a while in the quiet shade and enjoy the softness of being surrounded by so much life. 

You might find an activity or two along the way. 

And it's not just dahlia blooms that are the size of dinner plates!

This is one of my favorite pictures from my visit. 

There is more to explore. 

Even the exit is beautiful.

I think this is a pumpkin Linus VanPelt would be envious of.

Let's check out the flower field next.

I hope you can hear the bees buzzing from this picture. It was like a busy airport with bees everywhere. This lovely addition to the bench was a real pleasant surprise for the children's librarian in me. 

I hope you enjoyed this post. If you never want to miss one, don't rely on the Facebook algorithm. You can put your email in the box in the upper right hand corner, or follow the blog. 

In the kitchen and around the garden

 Well this is a real flotsam and jetsam post. All the garden pictures are a couple weeks old at least. First, dessert. 

This Cheesecake recipe from my lactose free dairy folks, has the sour cream making a top layer rather than mixed into the whole cake. It was tangy, and okay but Andrew and I prefer the other version that is more uniform and also a lot more firm to cut into. This was made the week we went on the Canal boat ride in June. I've been able to go to Fresh Thyme market once a month or so for all the lactose free real dairy items, or some combination of them as it is impossible to get all the things in one trip. Something is invariably sold out.

I regret that I was not the nutty lady at the grocery store and bought out all the lactose free butter. It was even on sale! It's sold out again. If I had known I wouldn't have blown my real butter wad on this new cake recipe I made as a birthday cake for me, Andrew and Dad, the three summer birthdays.

I tried my hand at my first two layer cake, and it was really simple to make. The extra effort to make parchment paper rounds in the cake pan is worth the time. 

 

 

And since I discovered a secret cache of black raspberries from last year, I cooked down a bag with honey and cornstarch for a fruit filling.

 

The magic of blogging makes this look delicious and it was, but I screwed up the icing again and Mom had to remind me of several techniques I wasn't using. The icing is (sadly) from a can. It was almost impossible to spread on the pound cake surface, and was too sweet to match the cake! I should have taken the hint from the picture inside that just showed whole fruit in between the layers and on top of the cake. 

The good news is, this is an excellent, excellent pound cake and they can stay in the freezer for up to a month if wrapped up. So I may make it in the future. 

But I'm not going to lie, I was dissatisfied with the effort overall to cover for three birthdays. So, I dusted off a classic I can count on.

 

I just noticed that both of the featured cookbooks use the word "simple" in the title. So, that tells you my priorities. I also love this relatively new format of book where there is no plastic jacket, and it's just a nice chunky, wipe-able cover.  Some of my home decorating books I've brought home are going this way, and I like the trend. 

I've only made one bundt cake out of this sucker with my vintage bundt pan but I remember how easy it was so I tried the yellow cake one as my Dad likes yellow cake with chocolate icing.

Nice. In my haste I don't have a picture of the actual bundt cake as I was also making a video for the library. The cake popped out easy enough though and I again, used canned icing. Strawberries were .99 cents a quart at Kroger and gorgeous. 

The pretty blue plate is Ohio Harkerware. I love them and usually just use them for fancy desserts. 

I had to use butter flavored crisco and I thought I could really taste it but Dad seemed to like it. As I write this, Andrew hasn't had a chance to try his slice as he's been working. 

We are a Sunday breakfast family. Andrew fixes pancakes or waffles, but we hadn't had french toast in a while. This past Sunday he used his new hand made bowl, that will feature in another blog soon.

All eggs in all dishes are courtesy of the hens who really want to run free and eat grapes but are forced to endure the strawberry and tomato tops, watermelon rinds and buckets of weeds room serviced to their pen. 

We've been roasting vegetables a lot to go with our cook out dinners of brats or burgers. It's usually potatoes and a green veg like brussel sprouts or asparagus. This colors looked so nice in the olive oil, I took a quick snap. 

In our own backyard, we had a few cherries, less than what we had last year that we used in the Easter pie.  

And two  cucumbers 

 

become seven

 

It takes me until August to realize that it's not just weeds that multiply. Before we left on vacation in late July I really noticed the first tomatoes

and the promise of watermelons.

The kale a friend gave me last summer survived the winter, seeded, and is reborn.

Andrew's grapes go from this

to this. 

We have some grapes turning purple already, but that will have to wait for another blog post. 

Weeds never stop multiplying and here is my second weed of the herb garden since Memorial Day. 

I love my vintage galvanized tubs and smaller pails. A shovel and a weeding stick help me make short work of this. 

And could this be the toad from the oregano? So much bigger. I can only hope I have two as they indicate a healthy garden...and I have more on the toad front for another blog.

My first sunflower from my green thumb friend appears. 

Moxie supervises my watering.

Tutu waits for me to return from a quick run  to get something outside. 

Let's look at the back deck and see what's going on there.

The moon flower begins its climb.

The morning glory is a cascade of hearts.

 Other porches have exciting plant developments.

And rainbows in July keep on coming by. 

Here are the last of my few lavandins cut for the season.

And you can see I'm wearing all my UPF 50 gear. 

In other news, I started a new journal after less than 4 months after starting the last one, a new all time record. I don't know what possessed me to buy this one, as I think the cover is kinda ugly the pages are a nice deep cream and thick. I'm using pencil with this one and it's about two inches thick so it should take me a while to get through despite writing nearly every day. It's a bit of a long haul journal. 

And the pets are all still living their best life...well Tutu is at any rate.

Next up, my birthday trip, update on the lavender, and maybe next, a real wild post!

(that's a hint that there will be more wild animals)