Iguana

Day 1
Hub takes me by the hand into the concrete jungle in our backyard...

'Look at IT!'

“OMG, ur kidding me right?

‘Isn’t she a bute?’ he announces with pride.

“And you're planning to do what with IT?”

‘Well, keep her of course!'

“It’s a her?”

‘Hey, I checked the internet ...it’s definitely a she.’

‘SHE’ lays across the concrete patio like a deer caught in the head lights... an iguana over 4’ long from nose to tail.

Day 2

Coming down the stairs Hub announces...‘We have to go shopping!’

“Shopping? Ok!!! Now you’re talking my language amigo!”

Grabbing the car keys, it's then that he informs me...‘We're going for her food!’

“Oh howwww exciting! Not!”

And so we go shopping for ‘the babys’ food. 
*It should be noted that our actual ‘baby’ will be 34 years old this year, so I had assumed shopping for ‘baby food’ was over.*

So we open the backdoor and hear
a scraping...hmmmm???

And then I see IT!!
Running over to one of our palm trees I drop the bags and point...“OMG she’s under the concrete floor!”

Seems ‘the baby’ has found a spot she likes to dig. 
All you can see is her tail.

Hub carefully drags her back out and places her on the ground...she plays dead.

He goes out and starts carrying in buckets of concrete, tiles and bricks and places them around the base of the three palms.

“Now what?” I ask, watching in amazement as he goes back and forth with the buckets.

‘This will stop her from digging to china!’

He then proceeds to drag out a huge plastic bin from the garage and starts filling it with dirt from the vacant lot next door.

“And this is for????”

‘Well she’s obviously bored. She needs something to do, so voila!!!! Her own sandbox!’

“You have wayyy to much time on your hands there Doolittle,” as I slam the back door.

Day 3

Hub ponders the big questions of the day over his morning coffee...‘So what do you want to call her?’

“Oh like she’ll come running by name?”

‘Well, we have to call her something.’

“Ok, let's call it Betty.”

‘But what if she’s a he?’

“I thought you checked this on the internet and she's a girl? Ok, how ‘bout Betty-Bob, to cover all bases.”

Sipping his coffee and deep in thought he says...‘I’mmmm thinking Ruby.’

“Oh yeah. Name her after our Canadian friend here in Maz. She'll just luvvvv you calling this reptile by her name. And speaking of Betty Bob Ruby, whatever....where the hell is ‘IT’?”

Taking a stroll around the back courtyard he finds her wrapped around the pool pump.

Contorting himself into position and talking to her gently, Hub drags her out...placing her on the ground...she plays dead, again.

Day 4

After putting out all the ‘babys’ food dishes and trays of water for her to sit in or drink from, I find her laying in one of my potted plants.

“HUBBBB!!! Betty Bob Ruby...whatevvver you call her...is now sleeping in my potted plants!!!” at which point I jump out of the way as she leaps, her tail whipping the air! 

Running along the wall she finds a spot and plays dead.

Day 5

Taking her fresh food and water trays out I holler up at Hub...“Ok, where is she now???”

He comes downstairs and takes a stroll around the yard. After some time he finds her playing dead on the back palm tree. Seems she’s climbed up about 4 ft. and just stopped. After an hour and a half he pries her off the tree...‘Get down here you silly girl,’ as he talks to her calmly, placing her down on the ground...she plays dead.

Day 6

Hearing a crash out in the backyard I whip open the screen door to find Betty Bob Ruby, now laying on the sun filled ledge of MY dipping pond (filled with chlorine.)

“Hubbbbbb she wants to go for a swim in MY pond. GET HER OUT!!!!”

Making his way into the backyard he starts talking to her like a 2 year old as he lifts her by the neck and tail and puts her gently on the ground...she plays dead.

Day 7

After an afternoon with friends we enter the back courtyard, carefully opening the door, as not to spook ‘the baby’. 
But she’s nowhere to be found.

We look in every potted plant, under the bbq, up the trees, in the pond, around the pond pump, and under the benches.

It happened...Houdini got out and has left the building.

Day 8

Sitting round the table on the deck in the back courtyard Hub runs back into the house and grabs the binoculars. Coming back out he peers up at the neighbours vacant roof...

‘OMG there she is!’

“What?”

‘Look!’ as he points up at the overgrown vines.

And there she was. Betty-Bob-Ruby had nestled herself and was hiding amongst all the climbing vines. It was definitely her and this time she’s upside down and her tail holding onto the vines.

She lazily crawls up to the roof for an afternoon of sunshine, while eyeing us the whole time.
And then she just leaves!

We take all her trays into the house and go back to our ‘petless’ house again.

Day 11

The weather’s turned hot and Hub finally gets to enjoy his outdoor shower. As I sit down at the table on the back deck, enjoying a tea I notice something on the wall above his head.

Leaning back on my chair...“Hey Doolittle...You have a voyeur at 11 o’clock.”

Covered in soap he turns around and that’s when he sees ‘IT’...Definitely not our Betty-Bob-Ruby. This one is smaller maybe 3’ long, bright green but definitely an adult iguana, enjoying the late afternoon sunshine as she lays amongst the metal protection spikes and the 1200 ‘twinkle’ lights I installed last year,... 'Maybe you should go inside and get her some food and water.'

Grabbing my tea (and not Hub) I head to the house, slamming the screen door behind me...“We’re Not doing this again!!!!”

Inside I hear him talking to the 'new baby'....
‘Hey...Ruby...Ruby...Rubyyyy...come here babbbbyyyyy....!’

Just a couple of thoughts from 2 Canadians living and loving it in Mazatlan!

Linda and Hub