I add a bit of Elderberry syrup to my morning orange juice (just a little of both, to get some more Vitamin C). When the dark purple syrup hits the orange, it makes very interesting patterns, which are different every morning. It feels like the patterns could be read, much like tea leaves, but unlike tea leaves, the liquid swirls and changes rapidly. There isn’t much time to let the brain make up images. Except one day, when my OJ smiled at me. Surely that would be a positive sign? Unfortunately that day was quite traumatic, and the next day was worse. So maybe it wasn’t a smile, but a leer. Beware the grinning breakfast drink.

When we first moved here, there was an army of baby frogs in the summer; tiny jumpers here, there, and everywhere. In the intervening years, we have seen less and less little ones, but a fairly consistent number of adults. When the snake ate the Gulf Coast Toad from the backyard, we stopped seeing any toads by the back door (so apparently it was just one toad that hung out on the doorstep asking about tea). Now, we are seeing younglings again! Not an invading hoard, but toadlets here and tree froglets there. I picked up a water dish to dump the June bugs and realized not all the critters were insects. A little green tree frog regarded its situation for a moment before hopping off. Maybe we will also get another threshold toad (although I have not missed shooing a toad from the door).

Rather clever of the spider to set up over her prey’s food source. The blooms only last a day, so we’ll see how successful she is.

Underneath the chicken foot bath (a shallow dish of water in the run because my hens like to cool their heels), some night crawlers have been hanging out for a few weeks. I picked up the bath to rinse and refill and found that they have decided to start an earthworm family there. Hm. I had to go look up the earthworm life cycle because I honestly didn’t know how new worms were made. Earthworms are hermaphrodites, but not asexual. Two organisms need to exchange genetic material before they can lay cocoons in which the new generation of worms develop. Here is an interesting article if you are so inclined. Learn something new everyday.