After living here almost three years - the one thing I've dreaded most since day 1 of moving to Arizona has finally happened...
I encountered a rattlesnake in our backyard.
Or should I say Porter encountered a rattlesnake.
I sent him back to clean up the toys in the yard and he comes in frantically excited, "There's a snake in the backyard, I found a snake!"
In a way only mothers can discern, I immediately know he's not telling one of his famous tall tales.
I head to the backyard, but I can't find anything. Porter points - "look mom right there, right there!" I still can't see anything, just a bunch of rocks. Then I spotted it, I was amazed at how the thing blended in so well to my perfect rattlesnake-camouflage backyard.
Now I'm wondering how many rattlesnakes I have passed by that I did not see before.
My neighbor friend came over to help me dispose of the snake. The same bus-stop mom friend I got too chatty with a while ago - we are partners in crime apparently.
The snake was curled up, but when we moved it, my fear was justified and we confirmed that it was indeed a rattler.
We decided to kill it - sorry Mr. Snake, I was too scared to move you to another place far away from me and my little ones.
If you look at the picture you can get an idea of exactly how close Porter was to the snake when he discovered it...
He was trying to pick up the soccer ball next to the snake, and the skinny gray thing in the corner is a broom that he dropped when he saw it. Yikes...
Thank goodness I pray to the Lord every night to protect my babies.
Yikes!! That was a very close call!! Glad Porter was safe:)
ReplyDeleteRight before Ally was born we had a 5 1/2 ft long rattle snake in our yard. Our boys found it too. It totally blended in with the sand in our sandbox too. I couldn't see it at first and then it looked like the sand was moving. We had to call the fire dept. to come and take care of it. And then they just dropped it over our fence in the open area, not even out in the wash!!! That freaked me out as much as the snake. I hope some poor unsuspecting jogger didn't happen upon the angry snake along the bike path! SCARY!!!
ReplyDeleteFreaky!! That is the one thing that I was scared about too. I always wondered how many I had passed without knowing. I am so glad Porter came to you first before playing with it. I don't think you'll see too many in Utah.
ReplyDeleteScary!!! You are very brave to dispose of it yourself. I am glad that no one was hurt.
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how did you kill it?? you are brave ladies. I had a pet snake growing up, but I would be a little freaked out if I found a rattler in my yard!
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