Peppermint spends a lot of her time in front of the window during the day watching the bird feeders in the front yard. The only time she whines to go out is when the squirrels are brave enough to climb up onto the front porch, just a few feet from her.

So far she’s never even come close to catching one, and I’m pretty sure by now they’ve figured that out. The sound of the front door opening sends them scurrying to the trees. Peppermint trots out and then stands on the porch to survey her domain, now squirrel free for the few minutes she chooses to saunter around.

Then, just like clockwork, the squirrels return for another round of bird seed, and, eventually, they find their way back onto the porch. And, if they’re lucky, Peppermint will have decided this bird watching is way too tiring and retire to her bed for an afternoon nap.