Backyard Wildlife Preserve

When Eric and I first began house shopping, our realtor told us..."Remember, the only thing you can't change about a house is its location."  Advice taken.  The area we moved to is growing by leaps and bounds...perfect for us. We love it. There is a Super Target that I literally could walk to if I wasn't too lazy didn't think I would get run over by other lazies wanted to. I spend way too much time there.  But although there are lots of things close by, our neighborhood is actually about a mile back off the road and completely surrounded on all sides by environmentally protected lands. That means no building any closer to our house, so it's quiet all the time, and we are so glad we bought this house.

Because of the protected wildlife zone, animals roam about at their leisure.  Sometimes I feel like we live in a zoo.  Two weeks ago while I was doing some intense cardio workout, courtesy of Exercise TV,  in the living room, I caught a movement in the pond out of the corner of my eye. We are now the proud Floridian parents of...an adolescent alligator.  Two years ago, I would have gasped and thought that was insane. Well, I did gasp and think that was insane mid-workout. But, they're so common here in Florida, I was surprised we hadn't seen one sooner than now.

(Sorry for the terrible quality photo - it was dusk and this was through my glass door at a distance.)

See that dark blob midsection? That's his little head.  "Oh, he's only 4 or 5 feet long," says my 6'2 husband. Well...5 feet means he's closer to my size than not, thank you very much!  I named him Albert and have been keeping a close eye on him...I think he travels back and forth between our pond and another one close by in our neighborhood. (Is it weird that the thought of frogs in my backyard bother me more than this?)

And then there are these regulars...

Seriously, regulars.  We really do miss them when they don't come around! But not seeing them is a rarity...quite literally, they join us on the back patio in the mornings if we have the curtains open.  And talk to us. Oh yeah...click here if you want to know what they sound like. So loud! But we love them. Eric tries to mimic their call and they respond to him.  Insane.  Sandhill Cranes are actually endangered here, and I'm pretty sure you can get in more trouble for harming one than for murdering someone. Minimum fine of $10,000...they stop traffic everywhere they go. I had to smile for a photo before I left (pre coffee, don't judge)...the male is super brave and will eat out of our hands.  Eric said after I left they squawked so much he had to close the curtains! If only shutting me up were that easy...;) I kid.  I just hope they watch out for Albert!

Then there's this guy...

If you know anything about Florida, you know we have lizards all. over. the. place. Comes with the the territory in a tropical climate.  This guy likes to hang out on the sidelight beside my front door and just look in my house. All the time! Same lizard. Same spot. Always upside down.  Just peeking in to see what's going on I suppose. 

So welcome to the Ferri zoo! Bring the kids over to observe...although none of our creatures are suitable for petting.

I love that even though we crashed their home with our houses, they're still protected and like us enough to stick around :)