Deer can be so destructive in the garden — another year of no tulips or Asiatic lilies for me!  But, when you glance out the window to see a cute pair of spotted fawns ambling into the woods with their mother, it’s hard to stay upset for too long.

In Minnesota, unfortunately, the overpopulation of deer has become a hazard, and finding humane ways of population control is important (along with encouraging people not to feed them in an effort to attract them in groups).  Even wildlife “pests” such as these deer have a beauty that belongs to nature, if you allow yourself to enjoy it by setting aside their destructive tendencies for a moment.  Looking at the mother, you understand where that description of “doe-like” eyes comes from.  Her protective actions toward her twins remind us of the protective instincts all mothers feel toward their children.  She is just trying to survive and raise her young so they can do the same — it just happens that our gardens sometimes get in the way!