The Zoo

Date: July 10th

There's always some sort of creature lurking around our house.

First it started when Anden came home from his Dad's

a week previous all excited that he had caught a baby snake.

Yes he brought it in the car in a bucket for the 20 min ride

back to our house.

That weekend was 4th of July and we had all sorts of family over.

Anden had been holding it and petting it all day.

Well the snake experts of the family determined it was indeed a baby rattle snake.

Lovely.

Anden was in love and begging to keep it.

UM HECK NO!!

He had it in his little bug aquarium and the kids admired it all night.

Well that's when we went out front and lit fireworks.

Then the massive monsoon storm hit.

Well after the rain stopped the kids went to check on the snake

on the back patio table.

And somehow it was GONE.

That puny little thing had managed to push open the top lid and slithered on out.

(yes my skin is still crawling knowing it's lurking somewhere close)

Anden was so upset.

I assured him that there was NO way I was letting him

keep a pet that would one day grow up and kill him anyway.

That line of reasoning didn't console him too well.

He still wanted that baby snake.

Well fast forward a week.

Ryan, Laiklyn and I had just gotten back from dinner.

Ryan was pulling the garbage can from the street into the backyard.

As he passed the side of the house he mentioned,

"Dang what is in that hole?! I keep filling it up and something keeps digging it out again!"

Which of course you know that means the

creature extraction began.

Lovely.

Here we go again.

So Ryan at least got gloves on this time and started the process.

He did the humane way of putting a hose in the hole

and drowning out whatever was in there.

Eventually a snake poked its head out.

I screamed.

Ryan oohed and aahed.

Then he grabbed that snake and continued to pull it out like he

was pulling in the ski rope.

It just kept going and going!!

He was so excited.

I was so grossed out.

Then the best part.

Ryan says to me,

"Hey babe can you hold this while I grab a bucket to put it in?"

Really?  Do I need to even answer that?!!

Needless to say he went and sat it in the street while he raced to get the bucket

before it's grossness slithered away.

Laiklyn and I stood and gawked from a safe distance.

Then started the texts to the snake experts to find out

what kind of squatter we had found dwelling amongst us.

The decision was made that it was a bull snake which is non poisonous.

That didn't ease my fears at all.

But Ryan decided it would be a good idea to keep the snake

to help keep away other critters...um like our children?!

So he put it in a huge garbage can outside

with a metal mesh fire pit lid on top

and then a cinder block on top of that.

Well guess what was missing in the morning?

Yep now I have a missing baby rattle snake

and a huge bull snake somewhere in my backyard. 

So what do you have burrowed up next to your house?!