Monday, September 20, 2010

Kids Critters and Coyotes

Time has flown by so quickly and in some ways I am thankful and then in others I’m not.  JT and TA were getting “antsy” as summer wore on; the excitement of being out of school dwindled as days went by and there wasn’t much to do except hang out with the kids next door and do basically the same thing every day.  I guess playing baseball and hitting golf balls out in the back yard or riding bikes in the neighborhood gets boring as days turn into weeks.  Of course JT had regular baseball team during the summer, which meant practice sessions and games for him that did help with his boredom some. They seem much happier now that school is back in session.

This leaves the two little girls at home with me and they are getting to where they play together quite well. I still have to do a bit of monitoring but not like I used to. Now that AG is up and walking pretty steadily on her own two feet, not needing to hang onto furniture like she was, the tumbles are a lot less frequent, tears and bruises less frequent, and she is able to keep up with AL as she flits from room to room.  Talk about a “busy” child! AL is constantly on the go! I sometimes think someone wound her springs up too tight!  About the only time she will sit still is for a favorite cartoon and then half way through it she is off and running again. I so look forward to nap time every day!  Just wish I could get them both down at the very same time so that I could rest too.

Our critters, Ranger and Sophie have been encountering coyotes out back for the past few days. Ranger, being the protector that he is, of house, home and all that reside therein, runs out into the back forty barking and chasing after them. At first the coyotes would turn and run, especially if there were just one or two of them, but lately they seem to be getting braver. The other day I heard the worse ruckus outside, all kinds of barking. Ranger was out there running off the coyotes.  I called for him and Sophie to come inside, Ranger came up to the backdoor and sat on the porch but wouldn’t come in.  I called again for Sophie and didn’t see her. I went around to the front door, to check out front and there she was, wedged in between the glass storm door and the front door. Now mind you, Sophie is a little Jack Russell Terrier mix, and would be easily carried off by a coyote! I guess she ran there for safety and Ranger really was keeping the coyotes away from her. It is evident that I really am going to have to bring her in at night.  She is TA’s pup and usually wants up on the bed with her and right in her face, which of course TA doesn’t like. So we have begun crate training her to sleep inside. I’ll have to keep you posted on how well that works out. Ranger is a big dog and lets everyone know that he owns his territory so I don’t worry about him as much. It would take an entire pack of coyotes to bring him down I am sure. He loves being outside and “patrolling” his kingdom, but if we start getting a lot more coyotes around I will insist that he comes inside at night also.

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