A snapping turtle has taken up residence in one of the front border gardens.  I was walking by the front door, looked outside and saw it poking its head and front feet onto the step.  I called the twins to come see our new friend and while we watched, this creature walked down the front walk and proceeded to bury itself in amongst the day lilies and the allium.  So, as I did some reading to see if what this turtle might be up to in our front yard, it seems that snapping turtles will travel far from their water home to lay their eggs.  They can lay from 25 to 80 eggs at a time and those eggs can incubate for up to 18 weeks.

I have so many questions about this–how long will it stay in the border garden?  Will a predator come, find the eggs and eat them?  Will we have baby turtles in our yard one day?

We have lived in this house for over ten years and I can say without a single doubt that I love where we live.  It is quiet, peaceful and full of nature.  Yet it is also twenty minutes from major cities and bustling neighborhoods  and most importantly great take out.  In the past seven days, in addition to our new snapping turtle friend, we’ve also been honored to see a red-tailed hawk (twice!) posted right across the street, an owl, numerous birds, bees, dragonflies, deer and the garter snake who also lives under the steps near the gardens.  My children have a sense of wonder about the natural world and have lived here most of their lives so when they visit other cities or towns, they always remark on the visual differences between those places and our little town.

We watched out for the turtle for the rest of the afternoon as it wandered in and out of our yard and unexpectedly, in and out of the road.  Then next morning the turtle, like the owl hoots we regularly hear at night, was gone.

We merely live here, a temporary stop for our family;  we do our best to take care of the place for the rest of our animal family and friends.