One day at a time

Thank you, all, for your kind wishes. It makes me weep. I had a Lyme test Friday. It'd be good to get to the bottom of this, or rule stuff out. 

JB and I did my laundry. He can't carry too much at once, but brings up the clean clothes up an armload at a time. Poor man! I managed toast Thursday, and some grapes. The day before it was a banana. I've lost 3 kg! My brilliant Caitlin is bringing me Ensure today. She's coming to help with some household chores, but we're not failing! (Family joke!) As my parents were both dealing with cancer, and they lost their ability to do a lot, mom would tell me that as soon as they improved... they'd get back to normal. With our aches and pains, we are making accommodations. 

I've no appetite, but on this rainy day, we are cozy indoors, watching soccer. I'd a bit more energy Friday. The night sweats are terrible. 

I love these slippers. I took them into emergency with me Wednesday. They were cozy and lovely. After my hallway medicine, they wheeled me into a lovely bay with a door, shut off the lights, and closed the door as we awaited the negative blood tests. The sensory deprivation was lovely. I just get on overload. I did manage to read for an hour last night. My eyes haven't wanted to do that in a week.

I watered the hanging baskets, which I'd ignored since Monday when this began. The cherry tomatoes, the extent of my veggies, are beginning to ripen. I am worried, as there aren't too many open blossoms.  

Friday, I woke up with another headache. I soaked three t-shirts with cold sweats. Managing to sleep several hours at a time has been wonderful, however. I've little appetite, but my 'nurse' makes me eat something when I have some tylenol for the headaches. He even made me toast and a scrambled egg for lunch. 

The robins have flown, I realized that only two of the three eggs hatched. Since the cats were going antsy,  I let them out. I miss my walks with Cinnamon. 

The LDD caterpillar damage continues. The spruce and the roses out front. The roses will come back. The spruce, probably. It did after the spruce budworm attacked it one year! The difference is the sparrows loved the caterpiglies! 

They are now 42 mm long, May 16 they were 4 mm.  They could get to 50 mm. Disgusting little creatures, and you know I love my insects, and the diversity of life. 

I finally found a predator! He's a bit slow, though. They do have poison in their spiny things. It almost looked like it was sucking stuff out? Clever critter. chipmunk 

The milkweed are in blossom. Here was a virginia ctenucha. I was so proud of myself, AC, I remembered the name of it, just couldn't spell it. I forgot the 'c'. Can you smell the milkweed?!

We've seen monarchs, or the same one many times! I counted three eggs, and I shall hope for more.

Finally, the flags do their job. Our lactating doe went around. She's here every day. I think she parks her fawn across the highway in the forest. She begins in the front and works her way around to the back. We talk to her. She wags her white tail.

deer from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

It's the season for critters!

The Scarlet Tanager keeps visiting. I watch him from the luxury of my back deck, the deerflies are so bad on the ground!



The poor, dried up frogpond has sent froggies elsewhere... Happily, there is a storm front going across the region and we had 11.2 mm last night (0.44") of rain. More on the way. We are having a drought, and this will bring relief, although it won't top up the water system.




to my goldfish pond, specifically. I counted 14 frogs in my wee pond. The leopard frogs are in the foliage, my veggie garden and the ornamental gardens. I don't know where the bullfrogs have gone.

The trees are full of aerial insectivores, birds that only eat bugs in the trees, like the American redstart (witchety-witchety-witchety), and the Red-eyed vireo (song is like a conversation,"How are YOU? I am fine. Talk to you later." I have a hard time photographing them, not only am I only 5'4", but they are in the tall trees! Dorah did a catch-and-release last year, I must confess.


Phoebe had two nestings, after a poor start. They are around on the ground snapping up bugs, bless their hearts. These photos are quite artsy, except they were taken through the plexiglass on the upper deck. (Remember my bugs...)


The butterflies have been busy. We have a ton of milkweed and I spotted my first monarch butterflies here in two years! Fritillary, methinks, as well as an admiral.


The mason bee house is going great guns.


Dragonflies are happy, as are the Butterflies on the weeds. The goldfinch is thirsty. We are so dry! It's a banner year for raspberries, that'll make our bear happy! We want happy bears! It's a banner year for Virginia ctenucha, as well. It's a pretty moth, quite ubiquitous. I hatched one from a cocoon last year. New hatchling: Virginia Ctenucha they come from a lovely fuzzy cocoon. a beautiful moth, with an orange head and flabellate (feathery) antennae, blue marking and a blue thorax. My book tells me that black and blue indicates to birds that they are bitter-tasting and/or poisonous.
I have found my first chrysalis, which is either the Eastern Comma, or the Question Mark!

For more critters, visit Eileen's Saturday Critters #134!