Still Our Little Feller

I'm getting quite spoiled....Kevin comes to visit every day, morning & evening. Possibly it's the free food buffet waiting for him that brings him back...here he is this evening eating one of the snap peas from my garden.

But I don't think it's just that. Twice last week he visited me in the middle of the day and wasn't even looking for food. On Friday, he waited for me in the Red Tips by the driveway for hours. I went out three times and played & wrestled with him. Was he missing me? Or did he know how much I'm missing him? Whatever the reason, it was the sweetest time with him ever. He wanted to be loved on, and I was happy to oblige him. I stroked his cheeks, rubbed his belly, scratched behind his ears, rubbed his back, and stroked under his little arms. He snugged into the crook of my arm and went to sleep for a couple minutes. I was so happy to stand still as a statue with a little squirrel sleeping on my arm while the world around me just carried on.

He's growing, and we can scarcely believe this is the same little feller we picked up off the sidewalk way back in March. He'll jump on Jamie, take food from him, and eat sitting on him. Besides that though, Jamie doesn't try to touch or pet him. It's a good approach to take.

I took the same approach in the beginning, until Kevin gave me signals that it was okay to pet him. Each visit is different, and I take my cues from him. He gives very clear signals about what he wants. Some days, just hand over the food and let him eat. Other days, handling is okay. This evening was a bit of a mix. He let me pet him a little, but he mostly wanted food. You can see in the photos that I keep my hands open so he can see I'm not hiding food from him.

I did try something new this evening. Little Feller likes to sit on the swing and eat, and for the first time, I eased myself into the swing with him, talking softly to him as I did. He didn't seem to mind me being there.

I keep saying this, but it's true. There's something magical about being able to walk outside and have a squirrel come down from a tree & visit with you. We love our Little Feller!