A Bat in the House

We have a very old house, ca. 1840s. Every once in a while, we get a bat in the house. It doesn't happen too often, but it does happen.

This morning as Dan and I headed into the downstairs bathroom, I noticed something on the floor. When it moved I have to admit to letting out a little start! It was a bat. I closed the door and gathered up my bat catching tools.

Poor little guy clinging to the wall in our bathroom

I used Gabe's bug net and a piece of cardboard. I gently put the net flush with the wall over the bat and slid the cardboard between him and the wall.

Safely in the net, I brought him outside. He seemed quite startled by the bright sunshine and took a few low wide circles before flying off, looking fine.

I'm sure he was just as glad to be out of the house as we were to have him outside.

My trapping technique

Bringing him outside

The Pool

Our pool is such a blessing to us. We really had never thought of having a pool. I grew up swimming in the river and Brian had a lake near by.

When we first saw this house, the pool wasn't one of the major draws. It was covered and we didn't even get a look at it until the next spring. It had been closed up for a few years and was terribly dirty and needed to so much work to get it cleaned up and ready to go. I was ready to have the thing filled in!

I'm so glad we persevered and took the time to clean it up. It has been wonderful over the years to have the pool. The kids can go in and out several times a day. We don't have to pack up all our stuff just to cool off and get in a nice swim. We are able to share our blessing with family and friends. The kids get a lot of good exercise. It is a great summer time diversion from the "I'm bored" monster.

I love our pool!

After the Storm

This morning while everyone else was eating breakfast, I ventured out to enjoy the early morning aftermath of the snowstorm. The sky was blue and clear and the snow was full of sparkles. The world was quiet. The wind had picked up and it was very cold, but I enjoyed this time before the snow was disturbed.

Our vehicles before Brian cleaned up the driveway

The homestead
My perennial border and water garden

are under there somewhere

The shadows made such beautiful patterns

After breakfast, Brian headed out to tackle the job of cleaning up the driveway and paths. We have an extensive path system...out to the chicken coop and bunny hutches, over to the woodpile, around the house to the birdfeeders and a serious of paths for the dog. We have a snowblower, but this still takes about two hours after a large storm like this.

The path to the chickens and bunnies

The kids had a snow day yesterday, so I told them they had to get some work done today. Gabe wanted to go out with Bri, so he quickly did his language arts and math and then went out.

Gabe digs a fort

Later in the afternoon, Gabe, Rachel and Bessie went out for some sledding. The wind was blowing very hard and the temp was only around 11, so I did not let Hannah and Dan go out. They were disappointed, but it was just too cold and windy for them.

The Red Doors

Last week I wrote about painting our outside doors red. Here are the photos. They don't do the doors justice as they look so striking painted red, but you get the idea.

The side door

Front door