Nature, nature everywhere...

Last week we unearthed a huge snail in the garden. Its house was still closed up for the winter-- something Sunburst recognized immediately from our study of snails last year. We brought it inside to see if we could catch it warming up and opening the door...

We had set it on the windowsill and after a few days had forgotten about it, actually. It wasn't until I had the kids in bed and sat on the couch with Einstein that I heard the strangest sound... crackle... crackle... crackle... the snail was out and crawling around. We missed the big show, but we got to take a good look at the cast-off door the snail had made. We were so surprised at how strong it was!




Then we found a peacock butterfly in the garage. Not the best place to sneak out of your chrysalis...






Next came the salamander...




And of course more digging in the garden. There is so much nettle still, plus I've discovered that our yard used to be a road... a very, very long time ago. So underneath the nettle roots are huge stones. Luckily it's a very old road, and though it's a ton of work, I can use the stones to line the garden beds. Once I dig them out that is... It's slow going, but I've learned something about myself. I'm like a dog with a bone when I want to be.





The kids are not helping dig. But I'm going with the old adage that modeling workhouse behavior this care for the earth before their eyes is enough. It sinks in... while I had my nose to the grindstone the kids had built a couple of forts out in the yard.



It's so good to feel the warm sun again!