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Momma chuck and one baby snacking on some carrots is a sweet sight.
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But when she turned around?
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All I could think of was that awful song from the 90’s… Baby Got Back.
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Even when another young chuck showed up.
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Yup.
Momma got back.
🤣
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One of the baby chucks is visiting daily now.
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And learning the correct carrot consumption stance.
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He’s a little wobbly…
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And sometimes he tips over.
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But practice makes perfect.
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❤️
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Just when I was getting worried we hadn’t seen any baby woodchucks?
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One brave little guy followed momma out of the shed.
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At first he didn’t know what to make of the carrot buffet…
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And wanted mom to feed him.
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But momma chuck isn’t exactly a hands paws on parent…
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And let him figure it out for himself.
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Before long he was happily munching alongside her.
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As seen down the road from our house.
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This giant skeleton was installed last Halloween and has been making me laugh every holiday and season since.
He was a pilgrim for Thanksgiving, Santa for Christmas, Cupid for Valentines Day, and a very large leprechaun for St Patrick’s Day, For Easter he wore colossal bunny ears and now that summer is near?
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Someone sewed him (her?) a seriously plus sized bikini.
🤣
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Proof positive tequila and online bumper sticker shopping are not a good mix.
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Momma Chuck.
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She takes her carrots seriously.
And speaking of chucks, we noticed our grill cover had been looking a little worse for wear…
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We have hellacious wind here and if it’s not tied down? It’s going to blow. If it is tied down? It’s going to flap.
So we figured this cover had seen one too many N’Or Easters over the winter.
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Until….
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Damn.
Stealing the seat cushion off the barn porch clearly wasn’t enough nesting material this year.
🥴
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Every once in a while we have a strange bird drop by the feeders.
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We’re not near the beach, though our property does back up on a large river.
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But this wayward traveler spotted the woodchuck buffet and decided to munch.
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You really don’t want to encourage a seagull.
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Before long one will become twelve and your backyard will resemble a landfill, with a dozen squawking birds fighting (and pooping) everywhere.
So after a few quick pics for blogging purposes, I went outside and shoo’d him off.
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Or so I thought.
Because when I turned around to go inside…
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He’d taken up a recon position.
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Seagulls don’t play.
😳
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A few warm days was all it took for our apple trees to pop out in riotous bloom. I’ll spare you the pictures of the rest, but this beauty by the road deserves a shout out.
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It’s so large now it obscures the man cave/Barn Mahal and part of the shed.
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I wish WordPress had smell-o-vision because it’s heavenly in person.
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But it’s also filled with bees so be careful where you sniff.
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The pictures don’t really do it justice, but trust me. It’s lovely.
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And I have to say I wasn’t holding out much hope for our flowering cherry trees. The deer destroyed the other three we planted but this one held on…
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It’s much smaller and not as full as it should be with a big empty hole on the right side…
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But it’s still alive and blooming.
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So I’m calling that a win.
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😊
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One of these squirrels is doing it wrong.
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But he was steadfast.
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And made it work.
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They’re determined little fellows.
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🤣
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They’re baaaaack!
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And the minute I spotted my first Baltimore Oriole of the season I ran outside with oranges and all natural grape jelly.
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In no time flat …
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The feeder was busy.
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They’re such beautiful bright creatures.
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Only here for a short time to take nourishment for their annual migration to Canada….
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They’re always a welcome sight.
❤️
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Our grey squirrels are determined fellows. As evidenced by the never give up attitude of this little guy during a recent rainy morning attempt at reaching the bird feeder.
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Wet poles be slippery.
🤣
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If you like shrimp?
Give this recipe a try.
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In a large stainless steel skillet over medium heat, melt 1 Tbsp. butter. Pat shrimp dry; season all over with Old Bay.
Arrange shrimp in a single layer in skillet and cook, turning halfway through, until translucent, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to a plate.
In same skillet over medium heat, melt remaining 1 Tbsp. butter. Add shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to soften, 2 to 3 minutes .
Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until garlic is fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
Add wine to deglaze skillet, scraping up any browned bits, and cook, stirring, until liquid is almost completely evaporated,
Stir in broth and bring to a boil over high heat.
Stir in orzo and return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low to maintain a simmer and cook, stirring frequently, until orzo has absorbed most of the broth and is almost cooked through,
Add cream and cook, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened and reduced,
Return shrimp to skillet along with any accumulated juices.
Stir in lemon zest and lemon juice; season with salt. Top with parsley.
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My tweaks – I didn’t have vegetable broth but used low sodium chicken broth and it was lovely. I used salted butter, so I left off the salt at the end. And since my husband isn’t a spicy food lover, I ignored the red pepper flakes. There was plenty of flavor so I think that was overkill anyway.
Use large or jumbo shrimp. You won’t be disappointed.
Yum!
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Mother Chuck is back and her runt from last year’s litter is still here.
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Though not for lack of trying to kick him to the curb.
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There are daily squabbles over food and squealing arguments over bolt holes.
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Momma isn’t subtle, but Junior refuses to take the hint.
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We have green grass!
And deer.
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Our resident buck has finally dropped that pesky second antler and is in the process of blowing his winter coat.
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No, we don’t say shedding in Maine.
No, I don’t know why.
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I always think adult male deer look wonky with those big knobs on their heads in the spring.
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But judging from the tongue sticking out of his mouth, he doesn’t much care what I think.
😉
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River's world..... 