Bear

7:30am, June 30. The usual routine. Lydia and Garnet were eating breakfast, I was checking my email. Lydia said very calmly and matter-of-factly, "Mama, it's a bear." just as if she was pointing out a squirrel or Cardinal on our porch. So I turned around to humor her and... climbing up and over the railing of our porch, as if it's a ladder, was this little guy. I was completely struck and spinning. Good, bad, amazing, awful, glorious, scary, what the hell. Of course, even when too confused to choose between paper and plastic, I reach for the camera as I make the decision.

This bear hung out on our porch for an hour and a half, slowly finishing every morsel of bird seed in that tiny feeder (which we have since been rid of, ALL Vermonters know you shouldn't/can't have a feeder out past the Spring thaw). Thankfully our storm door was closed and this guy didn't seem to care whatsoever that we were so nearby. I did have the opportunity to point out the dangers of the animal UP CLOSE as the kids and I watched through the sliding doors. There's no mistaking the damage this bear's set of claws would do, not even to a 2 1/2 year old.

So we waited for the bear to leave, we went upstairs to get a better view of the woods to make sure there was no mama bear pacing and we watched and watched until we saw the bear retreat into the woods FOR SURE.

The silly thing is, this all happened the first week Chandler moved his office from our guest room to downtown Stowe. He wasn't home to see it.