In Memory of Bentley

Bentley died in February. I think of him often, especially when I explore our yard. When he was healthy, Bentley would go outside with me and scout out all "points of interest".

I his honor, today I went on a tour of our yard and took photos of the critters Bentley might have discovered.

He loved to hunt lizards. . .



. . and he spent lots of time on the back porch checking out the visitors to our pond.


I found this beautiful black snake . . .



when I walked over to look at this tree because I saw insects flying around it.



Upon closer examination, I discovered it is a honey tree - look at the bees!



And finally, I convinced this butterfly to stop long enough for a photo op.



I thought that was a fitting end to today's exploration since it is Easter Day and the butterfly is a symbol of rebirth and resurrection.

Although it seems far too short, I'm grateful for the time Bentley was in my life and the pleasant memories I have of him.

Goodbye, little buddy. You are missed and fondly remembered.

. . . and then there were eight

Two of our cats, Cleo and Obie, had been staying at the vet's off and on for the past month. Yesterday we brought them home.

Obie was doing much better and ready to come home and keep her brothers in line. The first thing she did when she got home was to run to the back porch for "lizard patrol". The lizards have their own version of "X Games" - they scoot under the screen porch door and see if they can survive being on the porch with the cats before scooting out again.

Cleo had been frail and failing. The vet called us on Saturday afternoon and said she was gone. She is now buried in our back yard.

Cleo found us in Orlando in 1987 when we were staying with my parents and waiting for our house in Virginia to sell. When we moved to Brevard County, she moved with us. The vet estimated her age between 3 and 5 when we took her for her first visit. Since we had been married for 4 years by then, we decided to go with 4.

Our first major adventure with Cleo came one Saturday morning, shortly after we moved into the house. We are far enough off the road that I felt she'd be safe from traffic, so I let her outside. (I know better now!)

After a while I heard her calling for us and I went to the back porch to see what she was doing. I could still hear her, but I couldn't see her - until I looked up. She was clinging to the top of a sapling as it waved with the breeze.

Of course, we had to rescue her. And "we" meant my husband dragging out a ladder and climbing through blackberry brambles while I offered helpful suggestions. After that, we decided it would be best if she stayed in the house.

Over the years we got used to being bossed around by a 5 pound tyrant. She had no problem telling us exactly what she wanted and when. She was a dictator, but a benevolent, furry one. She fussed so much we'd call her a "grouchy old pooh". Pooh became her nickname. We knew she was nearing the end when she stopped fussing at us and spent most of her time asleep on her favorite beach towel.

Even though we knew it was time, it was still hard to say, "Goodbye."

'bye Pooh, we'll miss you.

Summer scenery

This little fellow and many more like it have been frolicking in the yard. They are incredibly fast. I was delighted to capture it in a photo.

The kwanso daylily in the background is one of several I planted a couple of years ago. They seem to have happily settled in and are blooming now.




More rain has meant more mushrooms. I found these two beside the driveway when I was taking my morning walk.




A ladybug is hard at work in the garden. Someone else has been munching on the leaf.





The mimosa strigillosa, also known as a sunshine mimosa, or powderpuff plant, is another Florida native that I've added to the yard. I'm looking forward to the next native plant sale at The Green Marketplace.

May flowers, etc.

The old adage "April showers bring May flowers" is usually true, but we didn't have much rain in April. In fact, it has been rather dry here. There have been several brush fires, none close enough to see, but at least one close enough to smell when the wind blows in the right direction.

I'm thankful that the only fiery looking things in our yard are the cardinals,

this amaryllis,


and the canna lily.



Meanwhile,
the tomato plants are growing and the first of the tomatoes are appearing --
the Eva Bell
and the Russian Purple



the cuban treefrogs have come back to their condo (also known as my wind chimes!)


and the lizards continue their patrol of the yard.