Our Very Own Charlotte!

Returning to school is always exciting, but I never imagined that a spider will generate some of that excitement. No, spiders are not my favourite creepy crawlies and my back-to-school activity did not have anything to do with spiders, for a number of reasons.

Beside our school are tall ceders and right in front of these trees we have planters. Yesterday some of the

students discovered a huge spider in it's yard-long web, which stretches from the ceders to the petunias in the planters. The children excitedly showed my sister, Elma and me this 'magnificient find'. I have never seen a spider the size of a dime! It's hard to get a picture that will show how huge (and ugly) this thing really is. But any spider, no matter it's size gives me the creeps. Thanks to the information highway, I've been able to learn that it's an orb-weaving spider. At least, of all the images I found, this one resembles 'ours' the most. I'm happy to say, though, I'm no spider expert. If you think my information is not accurate, that this is some other spider, please feel free tell me.

So, for a while anyway, we have our very own Charlotte. But it will not come inside, if I have anything to say about it -- You have a beautiful web! You can hide in the ceder, crawl wherever you like, eat all our flies, just don't come in here. Thank you very much!

So there you have it girls and boys, our very first science lesson of the year! (Glad we got that one out of way in the first days.) Remember the rhyme: Criss-cross applesauce. Spiders crawling up your back...? I think I know what it feels like. And I don't like it!