Rainy Sunday

A cool and light,slow moving rain has settled in this morning, and I got up early to tend to all the animals before the heavier stuff starts. I apologize for the lack of posts lately...we have just been really busy around here.

Spring break came and went way too fast, but we got some things done. Like the new pen for the hogs. Senior took a couple of days off during that week so we could get it finished and move the girls in.

 They have nearly doubled in size since we first brought them home. It has been quite the experience...they are lots of fun to watch, and now that they have acclimated themselves to us, they like nuzzling up to us and even let us rub their backs and scratch their heads sometimes. We have decided to keep the spotted one, later in the summer we will start looking for a boar and hope to successfully breed her. Piglets are big money around here...especially the sows. The next building project is her own enclosure, we are going to put it right next to where her sisters are so they can still see and interact with each other. The two black ones are from a different litter then her and they over take the feeding trough and boot her out of everything. Those two will eventually be in the freezer....I guess that is poetic justice in a way because one day the spotted one could potentially eat the scraps of her bully sisters....

We have also been busy with the garden, got the corn in two weeks ago and the first sprouts popped though last week. We spent the money and time putting together a drip irrigation system which helps tremendously with watering and keeping the weeds under control. Then last weekend spent almost the entire evening on Easter Sunday putting in everything else like green beans, onions, squash, tomatoes, cabbage, a variety of different peppers, pickle bush cucumbers, and a load of cantaloupe plants. I hit the annual high school garden sale, and was only going to get 3 cantaloupe plants, but we had a cold snap the night before and they all looked crummy, so the lady said to take the entire tray at no extra charge just in case some don't make it...well, she obviously did not know me, I brought them home, loved them and gave them water and sunlight...and "POOF" they all came back so 12 plants went into the garden...hope all my friends and neighbors around here like cantaloupe..lol

We planted red potatoes in February and I have to tell you, the crop is looking very promising. Blooms have started to come out and I know with this rain that is moving in it will only help...

Last year the boys and I worked on a little garden area... Kind of like a memorial place for mine and Seniors parents, well yesterday we got out there and did some cleaning up and  added in pine needles. My gladiolas have broken through and blooms should start popping out any day..my mother loved her gladiolas I added them in just for her. And while they have not sprouted yet, I do have some elephant ears in there. It sits  outside of the kitchen window and I can look down at it and watch the birds on the feeders and even one pesky squirrel that wont stay off. The next thing to add will probably be a bird bath.  It is very nice here in the evenings, as it over looks the garden and faces west so we can watch the sun go down. There is an aspect of each of our parents in this little area, and it makes us feel closer to them.

Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday, now that the garden is in, all there is left to do is watch it all grow, so I hope to post more often and yes Senior and I are still working on the one project I mentioned in an earlier post...

-JUGM

veggies have sprouted..and other stuff

 As you can see the bees have been busy pollinating our garden, we now have baby zucchinis, yellow squash and tomatoes. Our corn is about knee high now, and Friday ND planted his giant pumpkins. We got them in two months earlier then last years, so we just end up with some nice sized ones. .
 

Tropical storm Bonnie, has brought us some much needed rainfall, not overly heavy stuff, but a nice slow light rain that we have needed in this area.

In other news, our boys Baseball Team won the County Championship 6-5. It was a very thrilling game, and came down to an unassisted double play by our first baseman in the bottom of the last inning...  
 ND and NW both had a stellar season. ND recorded no strikeouts in the regular and we hoped that would have given him an All Star team birth..but that was not the case, as little league politics would go, they went with some other kids who were less then talented. Thus, I had the dubious task of drying the tears, and giving hugs and comfort. NW being the best catcher in the league was picked...but, brotherly love kicked in, and seeing how they chose kids who had a bad season over his brother who had an excellent season...he pretty much told the coaches to go pack sand.    We let the decision be up to him, no matter what he did we would have supported him.
Senior and I decided along time ago to empower our children to make their own decisions. we laid the facts out for him, and let him sleep on it. I was very proud when he called the coach himself the next day and broke the news.  Needless to say, coaches weren't happy.

Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday.....

-JUGM

i am here...

much to the dismay of some, I am still here..sorry to disappoint!

Now with Spring in full gear we have tons to do around the estate. Garden has been plowed and planted. Baby chicks are growing, and I have since acquired a baby "Jersey Giant" Rooster. I googled them..they get up to 15 pounds.  Senior is in the planning stage of building another coop for him and the black austrolops we got a few weeks ago.

With the start of spring, that also means "baseball". We got lucky and both boys were placed on the same team. Practice started this week, and so far all the kids look really good and ready to play.

Well that is kind of the news for now..  Like I said, it is Spring, and we are all busy, busy busy. So don't fret over my lack of post...afterall I can't be like some folks who sit in front the monitor in their tightie whities hitting the "refresh" button 24/7 while chasing prescription drugs with a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20  and dreaming of a blissful three cherries on the local slot machine...wouldn't that be the life!

See ya on the flip side!

First Fishing Trip

It took a few years to happen, but yesterday was the boys first official fishing trip. I guess it had to do with the age thing, and wanting them to be able to handle their own little poles and not get bored.

One of the things I like about the Carolina Estate is my Uncle lives about 50 miles away. He has a small stocked pond on his property, and the bass are plentiful. So yesterday we spent the afternoon with him, grilled out, and then got in some fishing.

NW got his first little bass, but it was so small we threw it back...did not matter the kid was delighted. Then Senior started getting some bites and landed his first of the day..

little ND and I were fishless, he got tired of using his kid sized pole, and began learning how to use a bigger pole. At the time he was practicing throwing it out and reeling it back in..  I was about 30 feet away, Senior and NW were clear on the other side of the pond, and my Uncle was sitting near ND. Every thing was silent, then all heck broke loose. As ND was reeling in the big fishing rod a  real monster took the  little bit of bait still on the hook.  He landed this big guy, his very first fish:

We tried getting him to hold it, but no way was he sticking his hands in the mouth..lol   My Uncle said it was the biggest one he has seen in a while out of the pond. ND is still so proud and has not stopped talking about his fish. After the excitement wore down, Senior caught one more. Then the fish seemed to stop biting.  

We headed to the garden where my Uncle taught NW how to cut okra, then sent us back with a mess of tomatoes, beans, cucumbers, and okra

A Weekend Away..

We took the kids out of school on Friday, said "good bye" to the rainy weather that has been plaguing Florida, and headed up to the South Carolina Estate.
Weather was gorgeous the entire weekend. Blue skies, a warm breeze. Spring is in full swing, and the trees had all filled in with leaves and were just so darn green...
I love this time of year there. Every thing is just so alive...

Mr. Farmer gave us some okra and green bean seeds. The boys wanted to plant them in the garden. But Grandpaws ole Farmall is currently out of order. I told them we would have to do the digging manually, so I gave them each a hoe and told them to go at it.
This isn't a violation of child labor laws is it? The thing about it is, they actually enjoyed it. NW loves fried okra and couldn't plant his seeds fast enough.

With the planting of these two new crops,  it sealed the deal on the boys and I spending the summer there. Some one has to be there to take care of the garden, so we will head up after school is out later this month. They are thrilled over the decision.
I am hoping this will encourage my parents to get up and out of their house. A change of scenery will do them both a bit of good, plus there is plenty of room there for them to walk around and not feel so confined.
My uncle lives about 60 miles north of the estate, and is hoping my parents visit as well, he just had a pond put in on his property, and  stocked it with bass and some other stuff. Uncle C is hoping dad will join him in a day of fishing. 

Now we are back home, boys in school...house is quiet for the moment--time to let out a deep *sigh*

-JUGM

My Raised Garden Project

I said it since last Thursday that  blankety Debby was coming this way..my sister is a human barometer, when the rod in her back starts to aching, you know bad weather is coming. Not only that, but the humidity around here has been so thick you could cut it with a  knife. It has been like  steamy jungle tropics in these parts, okay I know Its Summer time in Florida,  you don't need to tell me about the humidity, I am from here...but seriously, Its rare I see it like this..and Debby is like a bad house guest, that doesn't want to leave. Forecasters are saying we may be dealing with her until Saturday!. 

Well, enough of Debby--This past Saturday Senior got to work on what is the first of several raised garden beds for us. I absolutely love it..mainly because it is elevated and I won't be on my hands and knees digging.. We plan on adding about 2-3 more. The boys love it too, we planted pickling cucumber seeds in this one, and every day they have ran out to check for sprouts.. Senior decided to play a joke and put a blade of grass and came in telling us one had sprouted..so the kids went running out the door..Needless to say they weren't happy with the joke.

We Used The Wood From Sod Pallats as the legs, and bottom support

Looks kind of like a coffin uh?

We put plain pavers under the legs to help keep it level.

Keeping out the Mockingbirds

The news this morning was so full of so much stuff that I have chosen not to blog about all the stressfull current events, all though I must say: " Evoking Executive priveldge?"..what are they hiding?

Anyways, Senior and I this coming weekend are working on raised garden beds, I absolutin tootin cant wait. It is something I have wanted for a long time.
But, (and there is always a "But" in there somewhere)...  Its growing tomatoes..and mockingbirds..
They love maters as much as we do...I get excited watching them grow and turn orange to red, and then I start seeing the little holes, and the holes become bigger...grrrrrrrrr

So what is recommended to keep birds out of a garden? I guess we could make a scarecrow of sorts..But would that really work? Mockingbirds are agressive little pests anyways, Once we had a nest in our orange tree and even the poor dog couldnt go outside without being attacked, it was like a WWII air raid... So, do I honestly think a scarecrow would indeed work and scare them off? noooooo

Any advice would be greatly appreciated....now I am off here to meet my Russian friends...