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I put a bowl of grain out every night for the deer.
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But lately someone beats them to it.
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And guards it from marauders.
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Momma Chuck likes the grain as well…
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But isn’t sure what to make of its protector.
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She inched closer.
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But finally gave up and stuck to her own buffet.
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😊
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Momma Chuck brings the babies out from under the barn every day now.
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When I see them?
I show up with apples…
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The little guys try to talk mom into feeding them.
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But that’s not happening.
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Junior figures it out.
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And munches happily beside his mom.
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If that’s not cute, I don’t know what is.
💕
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Our rhododendrons finally popped.
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At least on the front side where my husband didn’t butcher them with the shears.
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For a sheer burst of color they’re hard to beat.
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And I’m not the only one who loves them.
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Giant bumblebees swarm ever them all day long…
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And it does my heart good to see their little legs covered in pollen.
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Long live the bees!
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🐝🐝🐝
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Our resident male mallard duck likes the deer grain.
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He really likes it.
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He likes it so much he climbs into the bowl and guards it.
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And quacks loudly if anyone gets near.
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I think he’s pooping in it as well….
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Which would explain why the deer haven’t been eating it lately.
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Momma Chuck birthed them and nursed them…
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But now that they’re eating the same solid food ?
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She’s not sharing with them.
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Motherhood has its limits.
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🤣
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Siblings don’t always get along.
Or so I’ve heard.
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Clearly this goes for baby woodchucks as well as humans.
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Momma Chuck doesn’t intervene.
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And beats feet when things get too rowdy.
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❤️
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Poor Momma Chuck has her hands paws full with five babies.
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Teaching them to be self sufficient and take advantage of the daily buffet we lay out is exhausting.
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More often than not she beats them to it and gobbles everything up before they wander over.
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Momma needs nourishment and strength.
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As well as a decent support bra.
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What does she think of the local paparazzi?
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This.
🤣
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Momma Chuck is bringing her young ones out from under the barn on daily foraging trips.
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So naturally I sit on the barn porch and entice them with apple chunks.
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One brave little fella gets closer than the rest.
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He’s so sweet!
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Yes, they’re flower munching machines…
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But they’re also too cute to stay angry at for long.
💕
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My first baby chucker count was off by two. There are five baby chuckers and my flower gardens are doomed.
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I try to make friends by sitting on the barn porch and giving them apples.
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I do this so they’ll leave my carefully tended blooms alone.
Sometimes it works, other times I’m left with a bed of bare twigs.
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It seems there’s always one brave little fella in every litter… the one who edges closer and checks me out more thoroughly.
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Yes, they munch my flowers.
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But damn, they’re cute.
❤️
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The husband and I planted three flowering cherry trees last year.
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Two of them were eaten and absolutely destroyed by deer over the winter.
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This one, planted closer to our house survived… even if it is looking a little spindly.
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🥴
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River's world..... 