Science

We have been hitting science hard around here. In fact, it's pretty much all the kids have been doing lately.

You do remember they are, um, unschooled for science, right?

They are ALL having a blast poking around here and nosing around there exploring the world outside.

Here are some of the highlights:

SNAKES
It started with Kerala, Nonny's dog barking her head off one day. Banana Boy ran up the hill to see why and discovered Kerala had found a snake. A big one. A really big one. Probably this one: Fox Snake (Pine Snake) By the time Mom got up there, it had slithered away. Drat! I never get to see snakes!

It took about 2 weeks, but Friday, Mr. GT called out "SNAKE!" He had almost just run it over with the wheelbarrow coming back from the garden. It too, slithered off into the grass. Mrs. GT, determined to get a glimpse, went marching up the hill and nosed around.

"SNAKE!!" she yelled, and everyone came running. Mr. GT took one look and said, disgustedly, "That's not my snake."

It was, in fact, a whole NEW snake. Mrs. GT had found a Brown Snake (DeKay's Snake). Cool! I found my own snake! When it had had enough of us all peering at it, it slipped under the daylilies. Pepper tried to spread them apart to see it again. We call her Pepper-No-Fear.

Saturday (the NEXT day), Rose Bud called out, "SNAKE!" She had found another fox snake, in the front yard this time. It was also much smaller than the first one.

Two hours later, Mr. GT yelled out, "SNAKE!" He had one in the garage. It zipped out to hide under a pine tree. We think this was the same fox snake as the front-yard snake.

Rose Bud and I went shopping. When we came home, we had just missed a giant fox snake. Daisy had seen it winding through the grass from her upstairs bedroom window, so they all came out to look at it. That one disappeared into the flower bed (look out, Nonny!) and could have been the original up-the-hill giant snake.

Towards evening, Mr. GT again hollered, "SNAKE!" (how come HE always finds them?????). He had a little one on the cement under his trailer.

Oh, and then there was the dead Northern Red-Belly snake. Rose Bud was nosing around in the mud made by the backhoe with her bare feet (you'd think she'd learn!) and found this tiny little snake that had been killed by the diggers. Sunshine enjoyed carrying this one around, all stiff from the sun, draped over a stick.


Up next, Birds.