Make yourself at home, Roger

I'm not sure if Roger will be staying with us, but let me introduce him. He is the little turtle that was crossing the road near our mailbox on our way home from Ryan's school today. Well, I couldn't just leave him there - he could have been run over. And "wild turtles" aren't common around these parts, so I'm sure he's someone's pet who likely dug under their block wall and escaped.

This is one of the most exciting things that's happened around here in a while. The kids were absolutely enamored with Roger. (BTW, I suggested cute T-name choices like Trevor, Timmy and Tucker, but Ryan chose Roger, so Roger it is)

As Roger explored our house, the kids followed him around, giggling and imitating his crawl. He's actually fairly fast...maybe he's used to running away from toddlers?

Because we're out of lettuce and I'm ignorant about turtles, I googled their diet and took out some spaghetti squash from the freezer. He went to town on that, but ignored the tortilla chip that Kaylin offered him from her high chair. I like him already - he's such a good example for healthy eating!!!

When Mike went back to work after lunch, Ryan asked him to give Roger kisses. I thought he'd fake it, but he actually kissed his head which surprised the poor creature to death!

We let him roam around outside with supervision and he eventually settled into a teeny, shady spot under Kaylin's swing for a nap. How cute is that? I need to remember to check on him in a few minutes and transfer him to a safe box so he doesn't sneak past the fence and find our pool.

With signs posted on the mailbox, I'm certain Roger's family will call to claim him once they discover that he's missing. I've known Phoenix turtle owners before and when their turtle disappears, they've always assumed it was a hawk who swiped it from the backyard. I'm hoping that rescuing him from the street was the right answer. If no one claims him, we might have ourselves our first pet!