Jurassic Snail

We found it on our back deck moving at a surprisingly brisk pace for a snail. It was HUGE! Notice the eye stalks and the little feelers that project from the side of it's head. And the veins in it's neck....juicy!

(you simply have to click on the picture for a "close-up" view of this beauty, a word of caution first: wait til after lunch.)

p.s. i've yet to figure out what that oogy-looking thing under the leaf by the snails head is???

Getting BACK ON THE BUG!

We made ladybug cupcakes for a picnic last weekend. They appear nervous....as well they should have been because we ate them all!







In light of recent parasitic perplexities, I've been judicious with the kid's outdoor play. Before the parasite incident, we played outdoors extensively, inspecting the insects, sniffing the snails, touching the turtles, following the frogs, petting the pets (the dog was negative for toxocara by the way so it wasn't her; the cat disagreed with the specimen collection method...ahem...and the vet couldn't get a sample so we don't know if it was her but regardless, they both got "de-parasited" just in case).





We visited our most favorite place yesterday (Oatland Island Wildlife Center) to see our animal friends and noticed this sign for the first time.


It was just what we needed to "get back on the horse (OR BUG)". We love exploring our natural world and after 2 weeks of shunning it, we got back out into it. We are picking up bugs and things again but with a new respect for them and the dangers they can bring.

What Do Cows Drink?

Their noses apparently....

We just love our neighbor and her cute hair 'do.

GUESS WHAT?

ok, ok, enough with the juvenile humor....more fun photos of "Oatland Island Wildlife" to come!

Snips and Snails and Dog Butts

The diagnosis is in folks. The pediatrician called me yesterday with glee in his voice..."Your son has Toxocara!" Yayyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!! What in heaven's name is "Toxocara" you might ask? Well it's not a Death Metal Band from Europe, but instead a type of parasite that lives in the soil, put there by dogs and cats. And just why are we gleefulthat he has a parasite? Because it's not LEUKEMIA.

You know you've been warned not to let kids play in sand boxes? But you really didn't know what they could get from it? Well folks, Toxocara is what they could get. A potentially harmful parasite (permanent eye damage). Not really many symptoms of this parasite, just elevated white blood cell count and eosinophil count, some vague abdominal complaints, low grade temp, etc.

Toxocara eggs are found mostly in soil where dogs and cats frequent (uh, that's just about everywhere folks) and they are microscopic and they could be potentially fatal in rare cases. We don't know where he got it and will never find out. Of course I've been doing profuse research which I won't bore you with, but some interesting tidbits...15% of commercial potting soil contains Toxocara eggs, it's found in sand boxes, playgrounds, yards, brought into your house on shoes. The only way to diagnose it is a blood test because stool tests won't pick it up. They say it's rare in humans but common in dogs and cats. What can you do to prevent it? De-worm your puppy as soon as it's indicated. Keep your pets on routine de-worm medication, especially PUPPIES. Wash hands after playing in sand and before eating. Don't let your kid eat poop.

(We now have OCD of the handwashing variety...........)

While this past week was harrowing, at least we know (despite how disgusting it may seem that a parasite is in our midst) that our son will live and will not have to go through years of chemo or bone marrow transplants. Our lives will return to normal but with a greater appreciation of it's fragility and a stronger respect of Mother Nature and her little microscopic devils.

Respect Your Mother,

Amber

Meet my son.

My beautiful boy. We thought we almost lost him last week. It was the worst week of our lives.

He wasn't lost in the woods or grocery store, we thought Leukemia offered him some candy or a cute puppy and then tried to snatch him into a beat-up van with tinted windows.

He had not been feeling well for 4 days so I took him to the doctor "just to be safe". The doc decided to check some blood work "just to be safe". When the doctor returned to the exam room with a "funny" look on his face and wanted to repeat the lab work "just to be safe", I got a bad feeling. After 3 lab repeats, we were admitted to the hospital "just to be safe". Luckily, we had the best Pediatrician in the whole world and we will forever be grateful to him for the excellent care he gave Wyatt.

His white blood cell count was outrageously elevated, so much so that they immediately suspected Leukemia. After many tests, bone marrow, spinal fluid, xrays, etc... and 7 days of waiting, we got the news today that it's probably not Leukemia. We are still waiting for a few results but for the most part, we are relieved.

I've recently been a proponent of "finding the good in everything" and this experience has really tested my outlook. I've passed the "test" and even the most simplest of acts, putting mayonnaise on my sandwich for example, causes extreme joy. Gazing at my son, knowing that he will grow up to be a beautiful person who contributes to society in a positive way, causes floodgates of emotion.

A sadness still persists for those families who did not get a "negative" test result and are looking at 3 years of chemotherapy, bone marrow transplants, and painful treatments and then not knowing if their beautiful boy will make it. My heart cries for them. Do what you can to help others who cannot help themselves, I believe that is our true purpose.

Signs: I'm not one to believe in signs and symbols, but this morning as we were getting ready to go to the doctor for some test results, our stomachs were in knots and our brows were wrinkled with stress. My daughter bounded in full of exuberance as usual with her hair flopping into her sparkly blue eyes. I asked her to get a clip for her hair and instead of her usual loud protests, she skipped away to find one.

She came back with this dainty rainbow clip that she dug out of the "reserved for gifts" bow and clip box.

She normally does not go into that box under strict orders from the Captain but when she galloped back to me with it clipped into her bangs and a demure smile on her face, little hands folded in front of her, and stated while blinking her huge long-lashed blue eyes, "How does this look Mama?" I just smiled and hugged her and told her she was beautiful.

The rainbow signifies HOPE, which we were desperately trying to grasp. Coincidentally, on the way to the doctor's office, we saw a huge faint rainbow in the storm-darkened sky. We don't see that many rainbows in our area, maybe one every few years, if that, but it was there, and I took it as a sign. A sign of HOPE and BEAUTY and LOVE.

Yours in HOPE and THANKFULNESS,

Amber

P.S. Have a BEAUTIFUL day and find some GOOD in it, I know that it is there.

Kitschy Kitschy Coo!

It was a Decoupage Day!I'm hosting a Baby Shower for my sister-in-law and got a little crazy with the party games! We are going to play the "Don't-Say-It" game (like don't say the word "baby") or somebody gets to take your tacky clothespin that's dangling from your shirt tail.

Ghost Girl in my Yard

I walked out the front door early one morning and found this little girl in a long lavender gown flitting about my front yard, chasing a butterfly.

Of course I was preoccupied with all the tasks yet to tackle on this particular day so my first thought was annoyance due to the effort it would take to corral this wild little spirit indoors.

Then I thought WHOA there crazy lady, you love this kinetic kiddo, SLOW DOWN...STOP and enjoy this whimsical moment, she's only a child once and if you can't chase butterflys in your lavender nightgown on a dew-sodden front lawn at 8:00 a.m. on a sublime summer morn, when can you?

Be bewitched by the simplicity, take a deep breath, time stops for no one...

Enjoy your day but most importantly, find the good in it!

Lady Lazarus

The Last Kiss Goodbye...

Our gift(?) of the day...Rhino Beetles! Hooraaay. They have an interesting back story or should I say "Love Story". We went to a relatives pool over the weekend and my entomologists-in-training made their routine check of the pool's flappy-debris-collection-container (?wha?)...I'm sure there's a technical name for that piece of equipment but we just refer to it as "The BUG co-lec-TOR". Lo-and-Behold we found these two pretties, belly-up. They appeared lifeless but intact and after a delicate but hasty inspection, we put them away for safe-keeping. I was already dreaming of the photo-op fun we would have. The one with the stately horns is the male Rhino Beetle and the other, his lovely lady. Which one blundered into the treacherous pool first, was it she, with her suitor in brisk pursuit? Was it he, with she following in demure fascination? The intrigue was abandoned for a moment when we spotted a HUGE 7 inch Rana Catesbeiana (that's bullfrog for us simple folks) swimming leisurely around the pools perimeter. We gave full on chase and the girl entomologist-in-training was the first to catch it. It appeared unharmed and she stroked it's resplendent head until I made her turn it loose. If I had allowed, the frog would have been brought home and implored to sleep next to her...if it refused, a dictatorship would have been inducted.

Upon our return home we unpacked the Rhino Beetles and had a lively photo session, well WE were lively but the beetles were dead...all the GOOD ones anyway, we miss you John and George...then they were placed up on the edge of a picture frame hanging on the wall until we could decide what to do with them. To find a male and a female together was quite lucky and to toss them carelessly into the yard would have been profane. 'Round about 6 o'clock, I noticed that the female beetle was in a different position on the ledge than originally placed. It was rather high on the wall so I ruled out pilfering from curious hands. Then one hairy leg moved ever so slightly as I rose from the couch...and to my astonishment, HER hairy leg also moved ever so slightly. I really should shave more frequently. "She's alive, ALIVE, AAALLLIIIVVVE!" I screamed in Frankensteinian exultation. She was quickly plucked from the ledge and sequestered in a cozy terrarium 4" deep in soil with a saucer of maple syrup for her dining enjoyment. We watched her appear to be drinking it and then burrow down beneath the soil. We crossed our respective fingers in hopes that her mate would awake from the dead but alas, he never did. Rhino Beetles are gentle bugs, despite their colossal size. Ours is about 1.5" in length and 1" wide. They don't bite or stink and are low maintenance. We may hang on to her for a time until she is strong enough to survive in the wild and then turn her loose.

Appearances can be deceiving and patience is a virtue...

Never Look a Gift Cicada in the Mouthpiece

Ever have one of those days when nothing seems to go right? And then we found this beauty!



Ahhh...the glorious bumbling Cicada! In the ground for 17 years, then bursting forth with it's cute bug eyes positioned on the sides of it's head and it's moustached mouthpiece...how could you not love this bug? Unfortunately this guy didn't live very long...we found him after he died and he now rests in peace on my work table...My Hibiscus plant had also quit producing blooms, I think I heard murmurings of "oppressive heat...dirty dishes...piles of laundry....fingerprint smeared windows....what a minute, that's me murmuring, not the Hibisci. But TODAY, a beautiful coral bloom, alone but cheerful, until I picked it to pose with my Cicada Gift Of The Day.


A day at the beach proved to have gifts of it's own variety. A huge military cargo plane made drop after drop after drop (I lost count after 11) of parachuteers (I think I just made up a word) right in front of us on the beach. They were so low that as soon as they jumped from the plane, the chutes billowed open, 6 men/women in a row with each pass. We could see the splash when they hit the water and see the boats speeding to pick them up.



Look for your gifts each and every day, no matter how small and unseeming, they ARE there.

Real Bugs

Well, HELLO THERE!

We can't resist a cute bug photo-op at our house! I only wish I had a better camera to get clearer shots of our frequent house guests.

This little guy was found peeking over our stack of table napkins. He stayed for a few hours until no food was served...and then he was escorted from the premises to more comfortable position...OUTSIDE.