Spiders

 I knew before moving out to the country that we were going to have encounters with wild life.  I even talked to the girls about it--snakes, critters of all sorts, and insects.  I for one really do not like spiders at all and that is the part I was not looking forward to the most!


The above picture was our first day here.  I didnt put anything next to the thing to give a scale of how big this fella is.  At the time I thought it was huge--but I was very proud of myself.  I did not freak out.  I got a cup, captured it and flung it outside.  The reason I didn't just step on it is I have heard several people tell stories of squishing big spiders (mostly wolf spiders) that are mamas and when squished babies scatter EVERYWHERE!!!!  NO thank you!!  So, I braved it and threw the thing outside.  The girls and I all heard a "thud" when it landed!!  Yucky!!!  I have since seen several more of these at about that size, so apparently that is going to be a more "normal" occurance, and when I have more time I will look that one up.  It may be a much smaller version of the next one...yes, I changed my tune from that being a BIG spider to being a MUCH SMALLER version...

Meet our latest "friend".  No that is not my hand!!  This was a picture I found online when trying to id the spider of last night.  It is a Huntsman Spider!  A demon that comes in nightmares  LOL!!  Of course Mike is out of the country and he is our spider killer.  I have woken him up to come kill one in the rental (a wolf spider, that now also seems small).

It was storming last night and Bella was distraught.  Clara had been in bed for hours and Bella and I were heading up to bed with Lucy right behind us.  I was consoling Bella and not paying any attention at all.  When I got to the top of the stairs though Lucy started yelling "I am NOT going up there!!!"  HELP!!!"  Now Lucy tends to over exaggerate and when she said spider I was thinking it was one of the ones from the first picture.  Scary--yes, but we need to get over it and deal.  So I told her, like any good mother, "take care of it."  Then I sat at the top of the stairs and laughed at the freak out that ensued from there!!  Apparently the things was on the riser of the stairs, so from upstairs I was unable to see it.  Lucy however was eye to eye and apparently the demon was taunting her and mocking her (this is what Lucy was saying during her freak out!). 

Fluffy caught sight of it and decided to go get that toy!  He flew up a few steps and Lucy, with lightning speed, caught Fluffy and in a flash tossed him in the half bath and shut the door with a slam--"saving him from absolute death!"  Bella was sitting with me at the top of the stairs and decided to go down to see what was going on.  By this time Lucy had a mop (I threw down one of Mike's big shoes thinking that would be a great weapon--but it required too close a combat zone, so she felt a mop made more sense).  She flew that thing around like a swordsman and chased her back up the stairs.  Saving her life also in the process!  Felix too went down and was quickly snatched and flung out of harms way!

The conflict going on with Lucy was hilarious!  I didn't have room on my phone to video--oh how I wish I had!  She would get her brave voice on and was praying and saying "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!"  then move in a bit and within an inch, back up cowering saying this was the one thing she couldn't do.  This went on for about 45 min.  It was midnight when it started and I wanted to go to bed!!  I did not go down as I really didn't want to see the beast, I wanted her to brave up and see she could do it and be empowered by it.  I would go to the bedroom and she would freak out that I left the top of the stairs.

Finally, she poked it--not enough to kill it, mame it, or even hurt it, just enough of a nudge to piss it off!!  The thing ran to the top of the stair where I could clearly see it and then I too started screaming!!  She said it was the size of her hand--but clearly she was exaggerating!  Nope--she was NOT!!  This thing was HUGE!!!  At the landing of the stairs there are several pictures I intend to hang there and he ran behind them.  I ran down and got some hornet spray.  Lucy was armed with the mop (which proved to be useless, but seemed to make her feel better), and I had to pull away picture by picture until we found him in the corner.  I sprayed the living daylights of the sucker!!  The poison may not have killed him, but I was determined to drown it!  Once sufficiently swimming in a puddle of poison I was able to beat it (I am unaware of what I even used) and once it was in about 7 pieces we felt it was dead.  I did make Lucy clean up the carnage.

Someone sent me a link to homemade spider killer/deterrent and that will be a science experiment tomorrow for sure--we will whip up a batch and spray around the house and will have a bottle upstairs and down to be able to grab in a pinch.  That way we don't have to squish just in case of the babies.  Fortunately this one was not with child.  I would never sleep again if babies (and from what I understand it is like HUNDREDS of babies) scattered throughout my house!  We heard from several people today with similar experiences and that is just WRONG!!