Jurassic Grasshoppers!

We seriously thought we'd been transported to a scene in Jurassic Park!  Since our kitchen is outdoor, it feels a little bit like glorified camping.  Bugs are constantly flying around and dirt continues to cover every square surface.  Sometimes when we turn on the flat surface electric stove, we can smell the burning of the unaware bugs who got a little too close to the hot surface.  We are constantly flicking giant, harmless ants off of everywhere, stomping on huge spiders that jump around, and wishing we could kill the stealth mosquitos.  The grasshoppers took us by surprise the very most.  At first we thought they were big hummingbirds, since they fly around and have a very pretty, red wing design.  Then they came zooming into the kitchen and crashed into the window and we all screamed! Eight inch long grasshoppers!  They are very clumsy and almost seem blind, like they fly around without purpose until they collide with any hard surface.  We were trying to enjoy a nice dinner, but the grasshoppers were going crazy!  Some of the kids were scared to tears, especially if the Jurassic bugs landed on them, and some of the kids loved the crazy adventure.  Linc grabbed every tupperware in the house and began catching them all.  We were all laughing and screaming and crying and grabbing various weapons to fling them out of the kitchen.  It seriously looked like a circus!  Unfortunately, the grasshoppers told their friends about the fun we had and invited more the next night.  It took every effort to capture them!  Free entertainment for all!  It became the ultimate challenge to hold completely still if they landed on you.  One even landed on Lily's lip and she claimed the victory!

After a while they became super annoying. Linc (5 years old) was fed up and exclaimed, "Why do they even make houses like this!  Look, (pointing to one side of the kitchen) no door.  Look, (pointing to another) no door.  No door, no door!  Arghhhhh!"   Lincoln, we all wonder that!

 This is how we sometimes feel when they are flying around and we're trying to cook dinner!  Soooo annoying!  (Yes, that is a stone bust of Frankenstein on the wall of the outdoor shower...)

On my leg....

Brigham attached a string to one of their necks and flew it around like a kite.  It was hilarious!

Here's our little friend who lives under the fridge.  We see him come out at night.  Adam put a praying mantis in its path and within one second its quick tongue snagged it and it was gone.

I put on my backpack and soon felt something crawling on my neck. Not wanting to know what it was, I flicked it off near the life jackets.  Then we saw this.....