400 Bouncing Babies

Praying Mantis Egg Sack

We're having babies. Praying mantis babies. They are waiting to hatch (within the month) in a terrarium on our front balcony. I like praying mantis insects. I encountered them often in Asia. They seem intelligent. We will set (the entire lot of) them free in our rose garden when they hatch.

Pip really wanted her own pet. We cannot get a cat because Pablo would probably try and kill it. Also, I don't believe in having a caged pet, so that limits most pets. But not insects!

Pip with Fernando(pug) and Pablo (Old Boston Bulldog) 

 I am working with Pablo to try to control all of his latent aggressive tendencies. It is work.  He is an Old Boston Bulldog. They were used around the turn of last century for dog fighting in and around, you guessed it, Boston USA. I adopted him because I love bulldogs and did not want to adopt the current popular bulldogs such as the English and French Bulldogs. I adore those breeds but they have been carelessly bred for giant heads above all else which, has made them very sickly breeds with short life spans. So, I went for a much healthier bull dog, hence dearest Pablo. I knew of their fighting dog genetics but also that they are super intelligent, loyal and athletic. My darling Pablo is all of that. He is so intelligent, alert to every sound and smell. He can open all of the doors in our home. He uses his paw like a hand to work the door handles until the door pops open. And truly,  the only aggressive tendencies he has are towards other dogs on our property and when he is on leash. He is super submissive to humans and he loves children.

Survived a busy weekend: major gardening, 2 soccer games, and a music concert at the Arts Centre.

 Hauled rocks from a recent dynamite on a close mountain. We filled the back of the vehicle 3 times to procure enough boulders for our front garden. I actually love hauling rocks. It is fun for me. We find a secluded place on the mountain with an abundance of loose rocks and haul away. Perhaps I missed my true calling--a Fred Flintstone like career at a rock quarry. But I wouldn't want to sit in a machine all day moving rocks. I like lifting the ones small enough for me to carry in my arms.

Tabs sang in her year-end music concert yesterday. The concert took nearly 3 h! Pip fell asleep during a most beautiful and relaxing violin solo. There was something magical about the young man's playing. He played seven dances in a row. One of the songs made me so relaxed that I nearly fell asleep, Peter nodded off momentarily and Pip was out like a light for the rest of the concert! Mist mentioned her love of the violinist's music too. Tabs' youth choir was beautiful too. Loved their voices and songs.Tabs sings with such happiness and passion. Will post pics of the concert at a later time.