Tadpoles

The water in the hydroponic water barrel had dozens of tadpoles recently that turned into frogs.

Garden

We have had good success with most of the things we planted this year and are enjoying all the fruit and vegetables from the garden.

Asparagus
Strawberries
Blackberries
Tomatoes
Broccoli
Cucumber
Potatoes
Green Pepper
Celery
Lettuce

Some nights we are able to eat mostly our own produce and meat for supper.

Weird Bug

We went to visit a cousin who lives in the Temple area. He has built a treehouse at the back of his property. Years ago my mother had built a similar one near the same spot.

But what caught my eye was this strange bug that was crawling on the tree trunk. It looks like it has a face on its back. What is this weird bug called?

Blueberries

We decided to try picking blueberries. I had seen various signs on different highways in the past, and finally looked it up on the internet to find the locations.

So one morning we got up promptly before it got too hot and drove about an hour east to a farm when you are allowed to pick. They provided gallon sized buckets and directed us to the best areas. We spent about an hour and then returned to have them weighed.

The blueberry bushes were so pretty. The ripe ones were very easy to find since the unripe ones were pink or green. Plus bushes are taller and don't have thorns.

The farm also had blackberries, so we spent another half hour picking them.

Once at home, I put them all in yogurt containers and froze them. We picked 15 quarts of blueberries and 10 quarts of blackberries. The average cost was $6/quart.

Snake

I was locking up the chickens the other night after dark, and was using the flashlight. I just happened to notice something a little different and aimed the light on it. It took me awhile to process what I was seeing because the shadows and colors were blending.

It was a pretty big snake just hanging by the chickens. They didn't seem bothered by it, but it certainly bothered me. I  went back in the house to get help. By the time Son and I had returned, the snake had moved around a little and was slithering behind the chickens. He managed to get the snake out of the coop before using the hoe.

He was satisfied and went back in the house. I wasn't convinced it was dead, so took a few more swings at it to make sure.

It has been a curious transformation for me because this particular time I was much calmer than in the past. I think the reason was that I was angry because the little birds had gone missing again and I knew it was the culprit. I had been watching them every day since the eggs appeared and was hopeful this time they would make it.