More (Natural) Hospitality

We're falling more and more in love with this house every day. As the pictures go up and the vertical blinds come down, it's beginning to feel like home. And the more we see of the neighbors, the better!

This visitor wishes to retain her privacy, and while she agreed to a picture, she prefers to go under the pseudonym of "Jane Doe."



Pablo was the one who spotted her in our back yard, just beyond the creek. The resulting conversation went something like this:

Pablo: Deer!

Me: Yes, do you need something?

Pablo: No, DEER! Grab your camera!


The "picture through the sliding glass door" is always our first attempt, just in case our wildlife decides to run off when we venture outside. But we managed to get down a little closer. She eventually noticed us, and I love how even when she looked away, her ears were swiveled back to listen to us:



Fortunately we only have neighbors on one side (the other side is an empty lot that came with the house); I'm sure they must have thought we'd gone beserk!

After Jane ran off, we went down to the creek -- only to find that Peter was also visiting.



Eventually he had no other option than to hop down the stream, getting his poor little cottontail wet in the process. If you've never seen a rabbit trying to hop down a stream, you should!

I'm sure deer and rabbits in the back yard are common occurrences for many Americans, but they're novelties for us! The area we live in has a stretch of wooded highway that is teeming with deer around twilight, and I've been hoping very hard that we'd have some in our woods, too. We're already figuring out ways (namely, a salt lick or some feed corn) to lure shy little Jane back to our home. I have a feeling that all we need to do is start our garden to see more of her than we anticipated...