Monday, May 23, 2011

The weather, the workers, the weekends-oh deer!

What to talk about on this Monday morning? Hmmm....well, I could tell you that it's raining. It rained every day last week with the exception of a few bright spots on Saturday which were mixed with downpours. I don't think I want to talk about that.

Our patio workers were out in full force on Saturday trying to wrap up the landscaping and other remaining bits and pieces of this project. They almost succeeded.

Almost does not count.

The sprinkler is not working correctly in one spot and there is an entire length of gutter currently laying across the patio that will need to be reattached to the house. Lovely. I don't think I want to talk about that either.

I'm going to the dentist this morning. 'Nuff said.

Daughter2 arrived safely back in South Carolina yesterday afternoon and I for sure don't want to talk about that. How about something deer?


Is this the most precious thing or what?


Daughter2 and I had a girlie day on Friday which consisted of shoe shopping followed by a nice lunch out and then a visit to the salon for mani/pedis. Bliss.


As we turned onto our street I noticed some ears peeking out from under the tall grass (see paragraph 1, ahem) at the entry to our neighborhood. At first I thought it was a rabbit but we decided to turn around for a better look since something about that thought didn't seem quite right.


A newborn fawn. Oh my word. I've never seen one this tiny. We looked around and didn't see the mother at first so we got a little closer. We wondered if she was injured. (Yes, of course she's a she....so sweet and delicate.) She didn't look injured but she did sit almost motionless watching us with her beautiful brown eyes.

Can I have a pet deer Mom?


Tempting, but no.

We finally spotted the mother on the other side of the pond and she was chowing down like there was no tomorrow. Remember giving birth and feeling ravenous afterwards? She was just like that. We were cautious as we didn't want to disrupt the relationship in any way. We were pretty sure this fawn was only a day or two old.


Daughter2 googled baby deer and we learned a few things-

It's common for the mother to leave the newborn for extended periods of time following birth. The baby is safer this way than trying to keep up with an adult who is looking for food. And the newborn will sit almost motionless which is what this one was doing. If they are injured they will bleat continually and ours didn't make a sound. It did say that if they're left for more than 24 hours in the same spot they might have been abandoned and would need rescue. And although small and delicate apparently the hooves of a baby deer can still slice you and cause serious injury so that's a word of warning. Also, if you pet or handle the baby in any way it will bond quickly and attempt to follow you as if you are its mother. Daughter2 was all ready for this little thing to think she was its mother but we resisted petting or handling her in any way.

When we went out later that evening she was still there so hubs got to see her too. We all worried about her, not so much being hit by a car because she really wasn't up and moving, but we know there are fox and bobcats and who knows what else in the area that might feel the need to snatch her for their dinner.

Hubs walked down to the spot on Saturday morning and she wasn't there but he could see where she'd been laying. We didn't see any sign of her (if you know what I mean) so we assume she is now up and about and safely with her mother.

So deer dear isn't she?


I'm sure her mother thinks so too.

18 comments:

  1. They are so cute! Our groundhog just had babies. Cute but wish they were go somewhere else. I will try to get some pictures. What will your daughter do the rest of the summer?

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  2. It's raining here this morning, too, but at least no tornadoes! What a cool experience with the deer. There's no way I could have prevented my granddaughter from petting it. She loves babies of all kinds.

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  3. How cute and precious. Love the look on your daughter face too!

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  4. They are really cute.
    Wish ya'll could send us some of that rain. I can't remember the last time it rained more than a short shower. Now we're having record highs. Weekend reached 100 and it's only May.

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  5. Oh I so hope that she is fine! All through your telling us about the baby I was holding my breath.
    I'm glad that so far, she is doing well.

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  6. What an interesting experience with the deer! They are such beautiful creatures, especially the baby ones. We see grown ones around our house from time to time, but not baby ones.

    I can't believe how much rain and cold you have been having. Notice Thena's comment a couple of comments above this one? She lives about 30 miles from me...and yes, it's hot and dry here. Too bad we can't combine our weather with yours, huh?

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  7. I bet she is fine and telling her mom about the crazy people who kept watching her. We are now having our 10 day of rain. We all hate the weather man, we are also all depressed. We are SO done with the rain.

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  8. How adorable! I think our baby rabbits are gone; I didn't see them again. Isn't it amazing what you can find out by googling? I learned quite a bit about baby rabbits!

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  9. Oh how sweet!!! What beautiful creatures they are. We have several deer around here in the evenings. They are so graceful, and so ready to take off, bounding into the woods, when the dogs go out of the house. :-)

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  10. I woke up this morning with a bunch of stuff I don't want to talk about either. But the story I do have involves little ones too! Only mine are immature blue jays.

    What a sweet little deer. Glad you didn't see any sign of her! I'm taking that the mean that mom came and took her somewhere else.

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  11. Aww...that baby deer is the sweetest little thing! I could've sat there and watched her all day long. YAY for manis and pedis...I'm about due myself!

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  12. Tiny little thing....so sweet! Glad the rain stop for you this weekend! we had a day and half of no rain ......poured today in buckets full...as you say nuff already! Hope the dentist is painless! Have a wonderful Monday!

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  13. Bambi!
    Can't believe your DD could get so close to the baby. Awwwwww.
    Good luck at the Dentist. (fingers crossed for you)

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  14. She was just beautiful, how wonderful to get a chance to see her up close while she's still so young :) Hope your rain clears up soon and that you have a good week x

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  15. It will be so nice when your patio is done. I am sure the rain hasn't helped! Glad you had a nice visit with your daughter. How awesome to see the deer.

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  16. Stpped by to catch up on your blog. I've been away from all blogs for a while. Hope the workers are done soon. We just finished a few weeks of kitchen and family room remodeling. Glad to see the guys go. I'll post pics of the newness soon. Glad you had so much time with D2. She is a dear!

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  17. Must have been the day for baby animals. We encountered a baby sea lion while on an early morning walk on our trip ... the locals who were crabbing nearby assured us that mama sea lion was nearby. Unfortunately I didn't take my camera with me, so I didn't get any photos. And yes, your daughter is a dear. ;-)

    I sure hope your patio is done soon. Must be frustrating!

    Have a blessed weekend.

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