Snakes, Spiders and Flies, Oh my!

Snakes, Spiders and Flies, Oh my!

See those black spots.... Flies. All of them. Everywhere.
And see the UGLY kitchen wallpaper. It is on the list to get rid of
It's also in the bedroom. UHG. 

I have forgotten how many bugs are in the country. And I feel like this place has double its share. The grass and weeds were halfway up the side of the house, so the bugs had plenty of room to take over. The house is swarming with flies. We finally got screens up for when we open the windows on the warm afternoons. But we still haven’t gotten the doggie door put in for my dogs. So we have been leaving the back door open for them to come and go outside as they please. Unfortunately, this has been letting the flies in and out as well. Well mostly in. I don’t think any are leaving. Paul walks around at night and swats them with a kitchen towel. Why not get a fly swatter you ask? Because the local dollar store is sold out, and if I go into Wal-mart for just a fly swatter, I will come out with $50 of other unneeded stuff. 

Apparently there was an incident with a dog sized spider the other day while I was at work. Penny tried to grab the very large “tarantula” scurrying across the floor. Paul grabbed her away, got the spider killing spray, and apparently the spider proceeded to laugh at him, grab the spray can, and carry it away under the stove. Apparently. I wasn’t there to witness said incident, but that is how Paul tells it. I am just lucky he didn’t get the 12 gauge out and blast it away. So there may or may not be a mutant size spider lurking in my house. (That’s right Mom. I hope you sleep easy this weekend while you are staying with me).

Let's play spot the snake lol. Can you pick it out? 

That just leaves the snakes. We found the very large, and very fresh snake skin in our barn about a week before we moved in. Paul assured me the snakes would leave when it got cold. We finally decided it was cold enough, I moved the kittens out to the tack room in the barn so they can get used to being outside. And yesterday we found big and nasty’s baby in our flower beds. EWWWWWW. Paul promises it wasn’t poisonous, but his “snake expertise” is losing credibility with me… fast. We didn’t kill it. We are hoping it will eat some of the very poisonous spiders that hang out there as well. Brown Recluses. They are ALL over outside.

So confession. I am very much against the use of pesticides and poison in and around the house. I know how bad it is for the environment and people. With that being said. I also know how bad carpenter ants (they have been eating the walls of the house, or so my dad says) and brown recluses are for our health as well. The landlord is scheduling a bug guy to come spray the outside of the house. The winter will help kill off some of the bugs. And then we’ll have chickens in the spring. But I would like a mostly bug free house someday.

The kittens are adjusting to barn life VERY well. They are racing around the closed in tack room as I type. I will leave them shut in and safe for a few weeks. I want to make sure they know this is home.

Other updates. My bathroom is about near finished. Living room carpet goes in this weekend. Wood stove goes in, eventually. And yeah. Lots to do, lots done. I am sealing a roof with tar this afternoon. Or at least making sure Paul doesn’t fall off the ladder. Or at least driving him to the hospital if he does. I’ll let you know how that goes. 

Not sure if the picture is crooked or the floor. It does kind of slant
on that end of the house.