Remember all those boldly colored reddish-orange and black bugs that were all over the place in the fall? Hanging out in huge clusters? Well, theeey’rrre back! That is if they ever left you in the first place… And now they’re multiplying! Literally, lol.

It’s that time of year… The weather is finally starting to warm up and the early spring critters are all hatching – frogs are peeping, robins are chirping, and the ants, well the ants are searching. The ants have emerged and are now awake, on the move, and very hungry…

You know in the movie men in black where they stare into the tiny glass orb that has a galaxy within a galaxy, within a galaxy? This is like that. Ok, maybe not as sparkly. Or with as many layers. Or with quite as many life forms… Ok. Maybe it’s not really like the galaxy thing - but it is super cool and on an uber tiny scale. I was so excited to find it!

Hooray!! Moths! Why am I excited about moths you may ask? Moths at my porch lights means spring is finally coming!

You see a slight flutter out of the corner of your eye. That’s odd – it’s a tiny brown moth. Nothing to worry about, right? Unfortunately, this particular little moth is the savvy shopper, food prepper, and stock piler’s worst nightmare. This is the infamous Indian Meal Moth – and it has found your pantry.

I’ll be the first one to admit – spiders can be creepy. Outside is fine, but I really don’t like them in the house. However. Most of them really are super beneficial – even the ones hanging about in the corners of my house!

It’s finally indoor seed-starting season! In Michigan anyway. I always get excited this time of year because it means spring and green things will be here soon. It also means its time to start figuring out how to grow all the veggies and flower plants I want without spending all my money on them. But without sacrificing quality or quantity – because who wants a tomato plant that doesn’t produce any tomatoes? And we could all use a few extra bucks, right? Even if, as in my case, you often just…

It starts out with a spike in the temperature – when days may reach 40-50°F even though it will probably be cold again the next day. Next there are flashes of metallic greens and blues zipping by your face. This is followed by annoying buzzing and little angry pings against the windows. The flies have returned.

There always seems to be something eating my plants. Even in winter when I thought they would be safely tucked away inside! This time the little bugs are particularly sneaky though, as they hardly look like bugs at all and blend right into the plant…

Please welcome guest author: Carrie Spencer!