Call me toady

Years ago as I first ventured into the world of blogs I often times found myself caught up in jealousy as I read posts about nature tables in peoples homes, and nature walks they'd taken with their children. In my freshly built neighborhood with it's crushed granite and zero-scaping there was no room for nature.  All the nature had been pushed back by the bulldozers and warned to keep out.

 On walks with my children through our world of concrete, stone and deliberately placed cacti I was discontented.  Thinking to myself "why can't we have any nature?" 

On Wendesday I set out to run.  My running partner wasn't with me so I steered my double jogger along a less traveled route opposite of the direction I'd head to meet my friend.  

The path through the park was littered with rocks. I was concentrating.  It's hard not to step on things when there's a stroller between your eyes and the view of the ground before you. Then one of the rocks hopped, and then another.  Rocks? No, these were bitty baby, thumbnail sized toads.  

I stopped the stroller, I hauled Moo from her seat so she could see the weeny little things.  She was glad to chase them off the sidewalk to their safety in the grass.With the way cleared before me we headed home.

On Friday Moo, Duke and I stopped in the park again.  There weren't so many toads that time, I expect  the birds have been busy thinning the population, but there was still a smattering.  This time Duke came out of the stroller to see the little guys. He was delighted, but I'm pretty sure the delight came from running free in the out of doors.  I don't think he took note of the toads.

 

Today,(Saturday) Ziz and Enz finally got the chance to come toad watching.  There were even fewer toads to be found on the toady stretch of sidewalk this morning. We did manage to find a few, and with Zizza involved, the watching quickly progressed to catching.
  

 

 

 

 

 

Nature guys! In my neighborhood! It only took 8 years to find some! How about another exclamation point? OK! Seriously though, I was really happy about the toads.