Yesterday at 2:30 in the afternoon, my mother called me from the office to look out the kitchen windows. There were four deer shank to shank, heads down, eating the black oil sunflower seed that had fallen to the ground from the bird feeder.
Earlier this week we had a snowfall of six or seven inches. The ground is pretty well covered, so the wildlife has less to draw on to sustain themselves. I cleared the sidewalk, and then shoveled a path to the bird feeders. I’ve been putting out ear corn and mixed birdseed with a high black oil sunflower seed content, and I fill a silo feeder with chipped sunflower hearts.
It’s unusual for us to have the deer visit during the day. Normally they are nocturnal, and their daytime visit might be a sign of their hunger. They were cautious, and nervous. At least one kept watch all the time while the others “hoovered” the ground. The ear corn was the least requested item on our menu yesterday, but even that was totally gone by this morning.
It’s supposed to warm up and rain this coming week, but we plan to keep up a heavy feeding schedule. If I get the chance to photograph the deer, I’ll try to share the pictures with you.
UPDATE:
Saturday night…..the deer are back. I went to drop something in the trash, and realized two of the deer were less than 10 feet from me, with just the kitchen window between us. I held still, and their need to eat was stronger than the need to run. I slipped away, and they stayed. Dear Husband said….”Where there are two of them, there’s likely to be two more.” I’ll check again, later.

“For the most part, I can give up sweets, other than the occasional chocolate or a slice of carrot cake, or …ummmm…HOME MADE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES. I used to be totally addicted to anything salty, but I think I’ve finally broken that habit. Now, it seems that comfort food, and things with a complex mix of ingredients draw me.
I have a plan…..maybe I’ll just go to the blog for this….”
As I was saying to Adele in the comments of Just Desserts, I have a plan.
1. No snacking.
2. Eat at regular times.
3. Treadmill or exercise every day.
4. Follow a low carb diet.
5. Gradually cut back on serving sizes.
I plan to eat oatmeal for breakfast, about 7:00 in the morning. A piece of fruit, or fruit yogurt at mid morning. A light lunch, probably soup or salad around noon. A second piece of fruit at mid afternoon, and dinner with Dear Husband. I assume that I can follow his diabetic diet, and have healthy meals.
I’m thinking about adding #6 (which would mean I’d have less time for blogging): Be more active after dinner.
And, I like Cop Car’s mantra of saying the weight I want to achieve over and over, when I’m tempted to cheat on my diet! *G*
Rather than trying to accomplish all that on one day, I’m going to add one aspect at a time until I can juggle it all. I know I’ll slip now and then, but hopefully, I’ll go right back at it.
What do you think??

Do you have a game plan when you go out to eat? Do you think about what you really want to have, and what you can reasonably eat, and then adjust your ordering accordingly? Or, do you order one of everything, knowing that you’ll have to get a people bag, no matter what you order?
We have an absolutely all time favorite place to eat. It’s part of a chain that serves Cajun food. I have eaten the exact same meal there every time I go, because it’s so good I’m unwilling to try anything else. If the restaurant was a bit closer to home, I’d eat there once a week.
We always start the meal off with what amounts to a Cajun version of a fondue. Next, a cup of bisque or chowder. Then, a crisp, cold salad. Dear Husband used to order a different entr