The Buck Stopped Here

I was sitting in the family room the other night when Jacob started calling to me from his room upstairs. His tone was loud and excited, so I ran to the stairway to try to decipher what he was bellowing about.

"There's a deer outside," he shouted breathlessly.

I ran to the window that overlooks our backyard and, sure enough, there was a doe standing about 20 feet away. Even though we have had our share of wildlife in our suburban neighborhood - like skunks, squirrels, rabbits, and even possums - I have never seen a deer. It was huge! The deer stood around for a while, then loped off through the unfenced yards. Jacob and I stared out the window for a few minutes and were delighted to see the doe return. Before long, it was joined by three other deer, who frolicked in our yard for quite a long time. We weren't able to take any pictures, though, because Jim has our camera in Texas. The next morning, Jacob did go outside and snap some shots of the snowy deer hoof-prints with his camera phone.

I have heard stories about how destructive deer can be to flowers, plants, and bushes - apparently even more so than rabbits! Since we will be moving soon, Jacob and I threw some apples into the backyard hoping to lure the deer back. We saw one deer the next night, but haven't spotted any after that. We do have Richie's camera poised and ready to shoot if a doe or buck decides to mosey on by again. Although the creatures are actually very beautiful, Jacob is a bit concerned that one might bound right through one of our picture windows, like a deer recently did at a local restaurant. With the way that birds fly into our doorwalls, I guess I wouldn't be all that surprised.