# 528 - Snakes Eating our Eggs & Say Your Prayers!

Needing to catch up with my posts.

One day, about three weeks ago, Sgt. Dave was in the barn and noticed a MacDaddy Rat Snake curled up in the barn.

A humorous turn of events would soon follow.

After he finds the snake, he comes inside to tell me about it so that I can go check it out. The truth is, I did not feel comfortable with the snake in the barn. I either wanted to dispose of it with a bullet or catch it, then release it at some point further from the home-site.

Yes, I got all the lectures about how these snakes are great for rodent control and so forth, but the chicken coop was about 300 feet away from the barn, and I told Sgt. Dave that I did not feel comfortable with the thought of that snake making it to the coop.

Sgt. Dave got testy with me. "The snake is staying," he said.

"Hey, but I have to go to the coop during the day by myself, if I KNOW a huge rat snake is lurking in the area, I don't want to take a chance for it to be in the zone where I must go every day," I tried to reason with him.

What does he tell me?

"You are being dramatic. That snake is far enough away to not be a problem, don't be ridiculous," he tells me.

Well, THAT was rude!

At this point, I must tell you that, initially, I felt as if my head were filling with red anger, so I decided to go inside and calm down with actual prayers for God to give me peace over the freakin snake issue.

So, I went inside and did exactly that...I prayed. As I sat there in the zone, laying the words the husband said about me being "dramatic" over the huge snake nearby at God's feet, I got this clear message that I can only describe as being divine that said, "Don't worry, you need to laugh because the drama is about to be his, not yours...he will be the one to confront the snake, relax."

I don't like the eggs being scavenged by slick bellied creatures.

Honestly, this is one of the times when I received an immediate, clear message to reassure me that everything would be okay, but with specific details. Yes, details.

After a while, I went back outside, feeling rather happy, in a warped way...as if God and I were sharing this private, massive joke in a good humored kind of manner.

Sgt. Dave walked over and said, "We can go catch that snake that's in the barn."

With peace, I responded, "No, it's okay." I was smiling and Sgt. Dave is looking confused. So, I just shared the truth, "I said my prayers about it and have been reassured by the Almighty that things will be just fine because I will be protected, the worries I had about coming against a snake at the coop will not be for ME to worry about, it is going to be YOUR problem, so I don't have to be dramatic about it."

Big eye roll from Sgt. Dave, as if he highly doubted that I had literally prayed and received this message.

I had a complete sense of calm and faith enveloping me, but I was ready for what was about to happen, after all, I had been given a preview.

The weird story continues...

And guess what happened? Within 30 minutes of this conversation, Sgt. Dave was checking for eggs in the coop and in one of the nests, a nice-sized rat snake over FIVE FEET in length came slithering up from the hay.

And guess who suddenly got dramatic?

Can you imagine how I felt privy to the scene BEFORE it happened and that since I had flat out TOLD him what was going to happen, it was even more hysterical!

I think the ordeal creeped Sgt. Dave out, a lot. I think that being in the country, in more solitude, has put me in better touch to listen, but I also LOVE God's sense of humor.

Sgt. Dave suddenly had NO HESITATION about running for the .22 rifle with the scope, to take position outside of the coop with the bullet ready to fly through the coop itself to shoot the snake.

It was creepy.

Two big rat snakes within 30 minutes of each other in the residential area was not pleasant.

 

I reminded him that the entire moment of divinity over this snake issue was not with malice, it was with good humor for a good lesson. My concern had been valid, especially since the coop is now enclosed in a fenced-in area that makes it a lot more difficult to run for an escape at the sight of a snake.

And the chickens got to enjoy some revenge.

Show and tell goes further to demonstrate these snakes can get quite a few eggs in their belly.

I don't know if I will ever have a moment like this again, but lately, it seems that the Lord is truly hearing me and creating some consequences and events on my behalf that is uncanny. God is cool like that, He really is. I can vouch that it is better to be a friend of God, to be the one laughing WITH Him than being the one taught a lesson that can only be laughed about at a later time.

:-) I will keep saying my prayers.

# 512 - A Copperhead Kind of Day

For the past few days, I've not felt very well, so my stamina and abilities are low. I am trying to get through this bout of being sick, but it is so hard to rest when your yard beckons you to come work, garden, play, and be free!

May 2014

So, it was a great that last week we were able to spend a lot of time outside getting things accomplished.

At one point, I was working in an area that had inadvertently become a landing zone for a bunch of stuff, and it was looking crappy. So, Sgt. Dave agreed to work with me in the area that lay between our RV and the barn and shed. The weeds had grown thick among the trees in this area that also held two kayaks laying against a tree, old fishing equipment, and pieces of wood and a few bricks.
We began moving everything.

Here is the area where we were working---area with trees.

Then, since I could not fit the lawn tractor through much of this area, I wanted the area weed-eated. First, I had to go move the old boards that were laying across the top of the septic tank lid and remove old bricks that had piled up next to the boards.

Since I am too comfortable on the land, I was walking around in my summer clothes...wearing my comfortable flip flops and fabric gloves to keep my hands from getting filthy.

However, before moving the boards and bricks, I noticed the wild blackberry vines tangled with plenty of ripe blackberries ready to be picked. Aware that snakes love blackberries, I began to carefully pull the leaves aside to find the ripest berries closest to the ground. Within ten minutes, I had a handful of berries to bring inside.

Then, back outside I went to finish cleaning up the area.

I lifted old boards off the top of the covered septic tank, carefully, keeping an eye on my surroundings. Everything went great; I worked steady and took my time...clearing the entire area so it could get a beauty treatment!

As soon as I walked away with my last bit of debris, Sgt. Dave had perfect timing and stepped over to use the weed-eater to slice through the mess of thorny blackberry vines.

Since this area is so close to the RV's (both ours and Heather's), I was glad that it was finally hitting our list of priorities.

However, within the first couple of minutes of his weed-whacking...Sgt. Dave let out a loud, "Augghhh!"

I stopped what I was doing, even though I could not see him, I knew that sound was not a good one. The weed-eater stopped. And I peered around the corner at him and asked, "What's up?"

Then, I noticed he was walking with a snake to the burn pit. I ran to get my camera, of course. Taking photos, I initially thought the snake to be a Rattlesnake that was shedding, especially since we have several varieties out here.

Turns out, it is a Copperhead. One of the first I have seen, in person.

Then, he tells me that he killed the snake with the weed-eater in the exact same spot where I had been spending the last hour...picking berries, picking up bricks and clearing out old wood.

I would be lying if I said I didn't feel a lump in my throat. Looking at the dead snake, I knew that I probably would not have seen it because of it's camouflaging markings. Sgt. Dave said he only saw the snake because it was moving, coming at him. Copperheads are very aggressive.

Needless to say, the Copperhead lost its battle with the weed-eater.

And for everyone out there in blog land...I hope you found a reason to celebrate the wonderful moms in your life. As for me, I was spoiled by Sgt. Dave all day long and given beautiful tributes by my daughters. Sgt. Dave made me a great dinner of grilled Wild Salmon, Lobster Bisque and green beans with Lemon Meringue Pie for dessert. And, I loved the beautiful roses he bought for me, too.

Life is filled with good and bad. But, the days that smell like roses sure are wonderful!

# 507 - Country Life in an RV - Nearing an End!

Ohhhh...Country life during this time of year is even better than I imagined. The weather has, for the most part, been delightful. We love being outdoors and savoring the beauty of our acreage.

Can you believe that we've been in the country, in "camping-mode" for almost one year? I cannot believe time has passed by so quickly!

Good thing is, we have met with our loan officer for our home to be built, but it will probably take until around June to get all the paperwork together for submission. We have to have the specs of the house finished and all the bids attached for every sub-contractor needed to construct our new home in the country. That is taking a LOT of work!

And, you blog buddies already know one of the reasons for the hold-up...my indecisiveness, which is now becoming more narrowed. I now realize we need a 1 1/2 story home with extra bedrooms upstairs and that's for another blog post, but it is important. Of course, I will be looking forward for your feedback!

Over the past few weeks though, we have had fun. I learned to load the .22 rifles.

 

Our oldest daughter and her husband had their huge fifth wheel pulled out here by a dear friend so that Heather and my first grand-daughter, Coraline, can be here whenever they want.

Grand-Daughter Coraline during her time with me, her Nana!

Heather is helping me in a HUGE WAY to finish the development of our architectural plans and to get prepared to build a house in a more organized fashion. Heather is EXTREMELY detailed oriented and no small matter will go unnoticed in her presence.

I have enjoyed having my oldest child and my grand-child out here in the country more than can be expressed.

 

 

At our local Feed Store with my daughter and grand-daughter.

Of course, Heather is like me, her mom...we step into the feed store, she hears the chicks and gets chick-struck. We end up adding three more chicks to our flock of twenty.

And these chicks have names...Penguin, Copper and Calico.
For Heather's daughter, of course, because Heather doesn't act like
an excited little kid when she sees sweet baby chicks. Oh Nooo!

Then, my youngest daughter, Stefie, calls me and says, "Hey! What about me? I want to get some chicks!"

Oh Lord, go ahead. Why not make our flock an even THIRTY!?

Since their own family are business-owners, lots of travel is always on their schedule, and we are so happy to be a lay-over station for whenever they want to soak up some more country life!

 

Heather, Coraline and me enjoying dinner in downtown Livingston.

I've been spoiled by Heather...she's been cooking for us. I guess Heather and I spoil each other because I get to play with the baby and free the young mom's arms, which she then uses to spoil me with a delicious meal! It's a beautiful plan between a mother, daughter and grand-daughter!

Farm-raised pork from my son-in-law's family's farm, made into
meatballs with Parmesan and other great ingredients, browned
to perfection and served on toasted French bread with sesame seeds
and with freshly grated Parmesan. So delicious!

And Pappy is happier that a dog with a real bone as he holds his grandbaby.

And Gracie the puppy found in the forest has turned out to be such a wonderful dog. Getting through the puppy stages has been difficult, but she's a sweetheart and will also be a great guard dog. Already, she is almost six months old and has been killing gophers/moles on the property. It's disgusting.

She digs and digs, then traps them, kills them, and plays with their carcasses for a long time --- flinging them into the air to catch them and so on. Yuk. Gracie is my first country dog...it's a new experience, let me tell you.

Anyway, the past couple of weeks have been more excited than I can express. We are making strides toward building that makes me feel as if I am ALMOST breaking into a full run. Almost.

For now, I am enjoying our current living conditions because the hardships that have come with living in an RV for this year will soon be over. I would NEVER change this experience for anything.

Well, I might have bought the de-humidifier a LOT sooner, but other than that, I'm doing great and having the time of my life!

# 465 - Pet for Half a Day

Going for a walk on our acreage means a treasure-hunt is included. To tell the truth, we don't even have to look for the unusual or the curious because it usually crosses our path.

This little dude was moving along the ground and he got selected to be the pet for half a day.

Sgt. Dave was generous enough to volunteer to capture the creepy-crawler between his fingers and to carry it all the way to the home-site for me to put into the examination jar. I am thinking this is a cricket of some sort.

The colors on this guys body stand out...reds, yellows, black and the design is intricate. How can I not stare at it?

 

Very quickly we let the beauty go into the edge of the forest.

 

Living the city does not offer such opportunities as does a walk through the country to see nature first-hand. And being in the country seems to put me closer to God, to see His handiwork more often, and very up close.

I love exploring nature, as long as it does not include a slithering creature with fangs.

# 461 - Cottonmouth in the Coop

This morning, Sgt. Dave went to open the door to the chicken coop and saw all six chickens running around in the chicken run instead of hovering at the back door of the coop, as is their usual routine.

As he approached, one chicken began screeching a distress call, so he knew something was wrong.

He opened the back door of the chicken coop and found a large snake tightly coiled in the middle of the coop.

As you can imagine, he was not happy. I was still half-way asleep, half-way awake and could hear his noises that meant there was something he'd come across that was giving him the weebie-jeebies.

Here is an extremely short video of the snake in coop with chickens trapped.

http://youtu.be/KdwlDJcic90

He had his 9mm on his hip and I'm surprised he didn't use it, but he instead ran back into the RV and grabbed the .22 we keep at the ready, then he went back to the coop and found the snake was raising its head at him while standing its ground. Cottonmouths do that.

Not only will a Cottonmouth stand its ground, it will pursue you. This one won't be harassing us or the chickens any longer.

Fortunately, the .22 took care of the chickens' reason for distress. And knowing this snake was lurking so close to the RV makes me shudder. EEEEWWWW!!

But, this is part of living in the country, in the woods.

We measured the snake and it is 63 inches long, my height. In fact it was five foot, three inches and a quarter long. So, that means the snake is one-quarter longer than ME!

Unlike a rat snake that has a row of teeth that leave a horseshoe imprint/bite and constricts its prey for consumption, the snake that slithered into the coop with the chickens has fangs. Look closely at the photo below and you will see the fangs.

Good thing is...I've been practicing target shooting, every day. I'll have to eventually post a video because I need to toot my horn a bit, I am a good shot. Really good. My husband, the one who earned recognition in the military as an "expert marksman" said, "You're a natural."

I think he's a bit more scared of me now.

Anyway, my husband chastised me because I put on a kitchen glove, then grabbed the snake by the tail to lay it on the ground for photos. I held on tight, but that snake was still fighting and able to writhe around with its powerful muscles. The below link is a video of the snake after I laid it out on the ground.

http://youtu.be/-Kcl4Pk0puQ

Of course, the wildlife that stays away from the home-site are free to enjoy our stance of live and let live. However, once a critter or reptile enters our home-zone or begins to approach the animals we are supposed to protect, it's ON.

I must say, living in the country provides a life that is never boring. I can see why it is great for kids to grow up in the country because there is so much to keep them busy --- much more than a trip to the neighborhood park.

And tomorrow, I get to spend my first day here with my six year old niece, Shaye.

You regular readers already know what a huge part we play in Shaye's life and she in ours. She's staying with us for about a week. She's NEVER been to our property, so she's about to have a week of real country living, which is a much different kind of life than what she experiences in her neighborhood that is mostly a NASA community. Her dad is a NASA man.

My sister Robin is completely nervous about Shaye coming out here. Today, she told me that this visit is going to be harder on her than on her daughter with any separation hardships, but it's because Robin keeps picturing the worst part of country life impacting her daughter. She keeps asking me to make sure I keep Shaye away from snakes...and then this snake is found in the chicken coop today.

My sister and brother-in-law.

Oh well. We will teach Shaye about the woods being different than her suburbia back yard. She LOVES animals and being in nature, so I imagine this will be a perfect environment for her to adore. And yes, we will teach her about snakes, scorpions, boars, black bears, and panthers. Me oh my.

The visit starts tomorrow, so we shall see how it goes. Thankfully, this Cottonmouth is no longer roaming around the RV and chicken coop, but I am sure there are numerous other snakes taking its place as I type.

# 459 - Celebrating Country Life!

The deck building process exposed a visitor, a Black Widow.

My husband tried to hold it still for a few shots. I found it oddly beautiful. After the photo session, he let it go in the woods.

Lions, tigers and bears. Well, not quite. However, we do have cougars, spiders and snakes. And, the bears are in these woods again because of a re-introduction plan that has now prompted official sightings in the area. Black bears.

For now, I am adding Black Widow spiders to my list of creatures and insects that city-life did not expose us to quite as much.

Also, the deck construction is finished. We are still going to add lattice to it, but this beauty is wonderful to step out onto instead of cinderblocks and indoor/outdoor carpeting that quickly gets clogged with DIRT GALORE.

Here is a photo, at night, of my mother-in-law standing on the deck.

I will be landscaping around the deck, so stay tuned. Of course, Beaker, the chicken missing the top beak, has already found her way to the top of the deck, but that will soon be off limits with the finishing touches that will be put onto the deck.

My huge picnic table fits on the deck and we certainly enjoy sitting outside while soaking in the peaceful view and country sounds.

Another great bit of news today that we received had been our electric bill. First of all, at this time of year, we would be getting an electric bill at the big city house that would be at least around $400.00 because of the days on end that were in the high 90's and right at 100 degrees.

The chickens are hanging out beneath the RV.

Here in the RV, we are in the shade for part of the day, but the hot days find the air-conditioning unit in the RV to run non-stop, so we were DREADING the moment the electric bill arrived.

You can imagine our high-five celebration as we opened the bill to discover the charge for a HOT month in Texas to be approximately $140.00! So, we are paying more for gas and commuting to Downtown Houston on a daily basis, but the overall break from "big house" bills is very nice.

It's so nice to have affordable electricity with this country electric co-op.

It's so nice to not be air-conditioning nearly 3,000 square feet of house.

It's so nice to be able to step out my front door and be in the midst of nature.

It's so nice to no longer share a front curb on a street without adequate parking space.

It's so nice to live on land that has trees instead of in a development that is just over ten years old and struggling to grow trees because the developer bull-dozed everything before construction began.

It's so nice to not hear police sirens throughout the night, every night.

And, it's so nice to see the beauty in nature, even if it includes a Black Widow every now and then.

# 418 - Luna Moth Awesomeness

Sometimes, when I'm in the country on the acreage, I feel as if I should start a wild-life blog and perhaps fake an Australian accent so I can start a Saturday Night Live version of being an expert of creepy crawly, furry or slithering things I seem to cross paths with on a regular basis.

The truth is, I am a kid at heart. I see a bug and lose all fear, except if it is a bee, hornet or wasp, then I might run screaming while flinging my hat in the air around me.

I see paw prints in the dirt and want to get that Big-Foot impression.

The bones in the forest make me ponder the reason for the bones and to make sure they ARE not of the upright, two-legged variety and I then would like to do a "CSI Forest" segment.

Here I am...hiking thru the forest.

My kind of inquisitive personality needs to be in the woods to explore an ever-changing environment.

All I want to do is get close enough to get a focused picture and usually must take shot after shot for a few good ones to be used for my blog. I'm glad I keep my camera close by because I've taken pictures of some pretty unusual things that I never expected to see. Often, I have no idea what I'm photographing; I just know that it has captured my attention and I'm in African Safari mode, if you know what I mean.

Oh, I've read YOUR blogs too, and I already know that YOU KNOW what I mean.

So, last week we stayed a few days on our acreage in the country and we drove into town to take a look at a few of the businesses that build small cabins and sheds.

During one quick walking tour of a few sheds and small cabins, we stumbled across this beautiful moth-looking creature that was quite large and more colorful than the camera is expressing.

Upon posting the photos on my blog, a couple of readers let me know that it appeared to be a Luna Moth, so I began to do some further research and have been amazed. Thank you Rae!

Luna Moths are currently listed as an endangered species. OF COURSE IT IS...

Who would have thought that we'd see so many threatened and endangered creatures in one weekend?

My IPhone photo of a Luna Moth --- a beauty to behold.
It didn't move at all...motionless.

Apparently, the Luna Moth is a member of the giant silkworm moth family and are RARELY seen since they fly ONLY at night. They are nocturnal insects and can be seen flitting around outside lights at dark. Their nocturnal nature has also given them the nickname, "Moon Moth."

This species is not a harmful moth. They are mostly found throughout the eastern forests of North America and lower Canada.

I guess this past weekend of seeing a rattlesnake and this moth, among other creatures, found us enjoying life in nature with unusual sightings. I could have lived without the rattlesnake experience though.

These Luna Moths begin life as tiny eggs laid on the underside of leaves with about 200 sibling eggs. Hatching takes place within ten to twelve days as caterpillars leave their egg habitat. Of course, these little dark brown eggs are busted as predators find them and chow down on their egg-goodness before the Luna Moth can continue its life-time of transformations.

From http://wormspit.com/Luna.htm
I won't disturb any leaves I find on our land that have these eggs
on the underside of tree leaves or that have cocoons.

The hatched caterpillars emerge as hungry little boogers. This is their "Luna Larvae" stage and they do not waste time...they begin eating, immediately. They eat and they eat...life is about eating persimmon leaves, walnut leaves, butternut, hickory and sycamore leaves, but they will include on their menu a diet from the leaves of oaks, maple, sweet gum and willow. These ravenous larvae get plump and make for attractive wiggly live bird bait.

http://wormspit.com/Luna.htm

Now that I know these caterpillars are in the area of the acreage, I will be on the lookout for all stages of this Luna Moth. I will keep an eye out for caterpillars who are dining out in their Sunday best...it would seem they are outfitted quite beautifully with a yellowish-bright green body and a yellow stripe along their sides.

http://wormspit.com/Luna.htm
This photo shows the "Scoli" which are fine hairs.

http://wormspit.com/Luna.htm
The older the caterpillar stage, the darker the head becomes.

And they molt about five times in a four week time-frame because they continually eat so much and outgrow their skin, until they reach about 2 1/2 - 3 inches in length. They make their way crawling around as caterpillars for 3-6 weeks, depending on location...the farther North they live, the more chance this stage will last longer.

After all that munching and skin changing, the caterpillar will eventually be ready to "pupate." At this stage, they wrap themselves in leaves and spin themselves into a cozy silk cocoon, produced from their mouth. In their home of leaves and silk, they live dormant for up to three weeks. If they happen to have entered this stage just as winter settles in, they will then continue the cocoon stage until the following spring.

I found it very interesting that moths re-born from the cocoon are not able to fly right away, so they hang around to allow blood to circulate to their wings; blood inflates the veins of the wings and firms their wings. This step takes around 45 minutes or longer.

Deputy Dave's hand held up for perspective to
show the large size of this Luna Moth.

From the moment of flying away for their first night of exploration, their sole mission is to search for a mate. You could say this is their new obsession, especially since they have about one week left in life and they spend it as a stunning Luna Moth. All that time changing from egg to plump wiggler to an immobile cocoon phase is so they can one day become an object of beauty. In their moth phase, mating is their only obsession because the fatty days of being a munching caterpillar are long gone --- this flying stage means they have morphed into a beautiful creature that doesn't even have a mouth. During their cocoon stage, they lost their digestive system.

I guess in the moth world, there is a REAL price for beauty.

Come to think of it, I know a few women who might consider the loss of a digestive tract and the absence of a functioning feeder-mouth to be an excellent trade-off for unparalleled beauty.

Anyway, female Luna Moths release a chemical into the air that attracts males who speed to the scene because it is first come, first serve...with no time to waste. Following the moths mating in an episode of "Afternoon Delight," the female finds a few nice leafy undersides to deposit her eggs, then she dies shortly thereafter. I suppose laying approximately 200 eggs will do that to you.

Hence, with the freshly laid eggs, 4-6 on each leaf, starts the entire process again with the next generation.

http://wormspit.com/Luna.htm
Belly full of eggs in this Luna Moth.

Luna Moths are up to four inches in width and five inches tall with glorious coloring that can vary from yellow to green to blue, and I find it interesting that their coloration depends on their location. Their colors aid them in camouflaging themselves along the forest floor. The eye-markings on their wings help to prevent predators from targeting them.

The Luna Moth that we got to see so close up was during its day-time mode of being perfectly still, trying to blend in with the natural setting. However, this moth at the underside of the cabin porch roof didn't realize that it wasn't on a tree, but on a piece of wood in a people-zone.

I always need to have some sort of camera on me.
Even though the IPhone does not have great
quality for photos, it sure is nice to have a
cell phone and camera combo. The camera has
a super easy feature to make Facebook uploading
a matter of pressing a couple of selections and BAM
you are sharing on Facebook, sharing the photo
via text, email or other transfers!

Most moths are considered a pest, but it appears that Luna Moths do not harm their host trees because they are laid in eggs that are evenly spread out.

Between pesticides and street lights, there have been significant decreases in their population. Efforts to kill Gypsy Moths have caused Luna Moths to be caught up in the effort. And owls seem to love Luna Moths.

Their green coloring helps them to disguise themselves in the midst of leaves. The eye spots on their wings look scary to some of their enemies as their large wings flutter. Then, some would-be predators have learned that Luna Moths are not so tasty.

Picture of a Luna Moth, taken with my IPhone.

I'm sure if I would have followed the kid instinct in me and ran for a jar to capture my treasure, then we would have ended up with the possibility of hanging from the nearest tree for touching a wild creature that is endangered.

My mother would be proud, I'm finally learning to LOOK and to NOT TOUCH.