North by Central...America

The Vineyard

2011-05-23T17:15:00.000-07:00

This year the vines look like they will actually Grow!

With a Little Help from our Friends - the trellis is going up,

and soon the deer-fence will be up.

We think it will look like a real Vineyard this year!

All is well on the Farm ....come for a visit and see for yourself!

Here and There Around The Farm

2011-05-23T16:54:00.000-07:00

Posing

2011-04-22T17:51:00.000-07:00

Lately we have had occassions to dress up.

So we have been practicing Our Vogue.

Here we are going out to Dinner to celebrate my Sister Mary's Spring Time Visit!!

A Very Happy Time!!!

This is How The Webster Girls Get in the Groove for Dancing With The Stars!

Ooh La La!

Silly Me Trying to Dance

That's All Folks!

Signs of Spring on the Farm

2011-04-22T17:04:00.000-07:00

Spring is the Time for Burning,

Rainbows,

and building new fencing.

The Goats and Roosters question the change of weather,

while Mama Hens have Chicks!

Barn Cats Prowl,

and all kinds of lovelies pop out of the ground.

Rhubarb

Peonies

Daffodils

Starts

Spinach

Violets and lettuce

and pretty flowers.

There is still a Chill in the air, but the Sun has been Shining so All is Good on The Farm.

Swallow Fest and The Octopus

2011-04-22T14:00:00.000-07:00

Once again Esther & I did a booth for Friends of the Library during the Annual Swallow Fest in Ardenvoir.

I am not mad, just being silly and doing a face and Esther is not flipping off the camera, she just is favoring her bandaged finger, but the shot is cool with the books. Our Friend and fellow booth mate, Lisa took these photos. What was new this year is Keith did a "float" for the Parade!!

Keith also got the Whitehall's old "Octopus" furnace put together and running as Yard Art and Fire Pit!

Don't you just want to come over and roast some marshmallows?

The Bug is Back!

2011-03-03T15:25:00.000-08:00

Keith drove a rental to Amy & Kevin's to visit and bring back my sweet green car.
Kevin's mechanic got him running beautifully, so that even in blinding snow, Keith made it home.
That's the end of the story, the beginning started in October 2010.
I decided a road trip to Mom & Dad's would be just the ticket, no planes or trains, I wanted the thrill of the black top.
I've been on many a road trip - in the 60's with the family from Panama to Wisconsin in a VW Bus, in the 80's with the kids driving from Louisiana to Winnipeg to visit Mary and her kids, to the 90's in our big bust out of Louisiana in a rented U-Haul to Seattle, Richard & Arlene.
This would be my first all by myself, but I was game and prepared.
Keith got Kermit checked out by the local mechanic, I had my route mapped out, my favorite foods in the cooler for picnics and my lucky charm - Edgar - what could go wrong?

3 in 1 - The Father, the Son and the.... sweetest baseball player the Mariners will ever have!

yummy bologna sandwich, mayo, butter....darn good

Just before the rain came down, crazy hard.

First stop - Livingston Montana - grand old hotel

on the road with the sun rising....

then this...over heated engine - woe is me - called Keith on our newly purchased cell phone - "what do I do?"

Back to Livingston - two mechanic shops and lots of walking around town....

The water pump busted, causing the thermostat to stick or something. With new parts on the engine and old parts in the back floor board ....

I'm back on the road again....taking side roads, tired of the big interstate...

Nebraska

Edgar points the way...

to Missouri...

visiting my brother Jehd & his wife Cheryl

In my short visit they took me on so many rides - the gator, the bass boat,

not this cool old plane,

but yes on their Baby - a very sweet Cessna...

a birds eye view of their home.

their are a lot of trees in Missouri!
I had a great time with them, loved their home and playing card games and eating home made pizza, Jehd's specialty!

On the road again - driving to Louisiana.

Every visit to Louisiana includes stopping by St. Joseph and seeing Mrs. Mac.

Sisters!!

Sisters!!!
and more games!

and of course I visit my family, by brother Ed and his wife Mitzi,

and my sweet Mom & Dad

always a good time!

My bro getting me ready for the road again.

First stop, Shreveport - my "cuz" Kim.

Next stop Amarillo.

No, no, no! Busted down in Santa Fe,

Ominous with the crows circling above..

ends with a tow, me to the hotel and Kermit to the VW place.

While I waited I took a walking tour and

drank....and ate.

Two days later I'm on the road again....

only to break down again - 5 hours after being "fixed" on a

snowy, isolated mountain road with no cell phone service. I wave down a car - a 1950 jalopy for pity sake... his cell phone had service, so I called Farm Tow yet again and waited 2 hours by myself for the tow truck...

it just kept snowing...

Kermit didn't like it!

deja vue

This break down (and if you are keeping track it's number three!) happened on a Friday afternoon, when the town of Durango is shut down for the weekend. I couldn't get anything done until Monday. So in the mean time I happened upon this cool nature trail...

Come Monday, after many phone calls between me and Keith and my brothers and folks it was decided that I would hop a Greyhound home and get a trucking service to bring Kermit back to Washington.

On the bus...

which involved a 6 hour lay over (during the night) in Salt Lake, puking babies, snow delayed buses, missing bus connections because of delayed buses, serpentine belts being lost, and too many stories for a two day trip, that ended happy with a shared ride with a fellow traveler and his wife who picked us up in Ellensburg and took me to Wenatchee where Keith scooped me up in his arms to never let me go again.
OK that was a bit dramatic but it felt like that at the time.

"Nothing but Blue Skies do I see"
So the trucking service didn't pan out, but lucky for us Kevin's family came to our rescue, a friend of theirs brought Kermit with a rented tow thing to their house and their capable hands which brings us back to the beginning where Keith drove to their house for a visit. Next post will be photos of his trip.
It's good to have the VW back. Thanks so much to everyone who helped me out along the way!!

This road trip just called out to Keith and his song writing mojo... "Me and My Beetle Kermee"

Snow Shoeing Days

2011-01-31T10:44:00.001-08:00

January began with very cold and sunny days with lots of fluffy snow. Half way into the month everything changed. There would be wafts of warm air towards evening, a few evenings the temp rose into the 50's! Rain fell instead of snow and the clouds rolled in to stay. Other nights the temp dropped making the morning walk to the barn a slippery adventure. Today on the last day of January, the sun is coming out (Hello Sun - we sure missed you!) and it's cold again (below freezing) Hopefully the snow will start falling again - ironic that the Northeast is getting all the snow that we want!

There isn't a lot to do on the Farm these days, no fields or gardens to maintain. The grounds to hard to build fences. Thank goodness the animals still need a little of our time to keep them happy. So Keith and I have been snowshoeing, quite a lot. We are getting out into the snow more this year because I now have fantastic winter wear (light weight and super warm) and we have poles to go with our snow shoes thanks to our neighbor Dorothy who had some extra ones in her garage. I'm no longer falling down and getting wet when I snow shoe!!!

We snow shoe around Longs Trail(butts up against our property) and ...

the farm.

The Vineyard.

When the weather changed the hens started laying like crazy. Time to put up the sign and time for a new sign.

The plaque with the eggs painted on can be flipped to show the word "empty" when we have no eggs to sell. I left plenty of room on the sign in case we have produce to sell this summer.

We also snowshoed up Potato Creek - a dirt road about 3 miles up river from us.

Evidence of the 1994 Tyee Fire is everywhere, but you also see the new growth of planted trees by the forest service.

Love these trees.

Two weeks later we went up Potato Creek with our friend Anne-Renee. The snow melt was so thorough that we sometimes felt a bit over prepared for the hike.Below are 3 sets of photos from the two hikes taken from the same spots, just for comparison purposes.

Lots of Beaver Dams on Potato Creek.

With the lack of snow the beaver workmanship was seen more readily.

Last weekend Keith & I went up Preston Creek which is about 12 miles up river from us. We figure there would be better snow and there was. But also lots more fog.

"Don't jump Keith"
The hike is all up hill and the views are suppose to be beautiful. We'll go back when it's sunny, because it's a real nice hike. Any one want to join us?

Here are a couple of videos of our goats A-R took. We call it:
"Goats on Parade"

Cold Cold Days

2011-01-04T13:42:00.001-08:00

It has been a very cold New Year.
The mornings start with temperature readings below zero, warming up by 3pm to balmy numbers between 8 and 12 degrees. However there has been no wind and lots of sun which equates to Beauty.

The river is beginning to freeze, on top and from the bottom up.
The Entiat River is one of the few rivers in North America (the world?) where ice will form on the bottom of the river bed while the top water rushes over. It's amazing to see....hard to explain and photograph - at least for us, we need some of our great photographer friends - Kiley, Rob, Guy, Kent, Didi - to come over and capture this phenomenon.

This is a fun "sculpture" of snow and ice.

The snow started to slide off the roof of this shed, then it turn cold and ice formed underneath.

We have made snow trails around the farm....

for Fun Farm Snow Walks!

Cinder is so pretty and so cold!

After being out for her chilly walks she loves to snuggle in the blankets.

Cinder, Bandida and Franny were all sleeping together on the Chaise, but as soon as we brought out the camera they started to scram. I don't think they want anyone to know that they can get along.
Reminds me of our House of Representatives....

Besides standing by the fire, and cuddling with the dogs, I''m beginning a new project.
I'm piecing a quilt, using Keith's mom's house dresses, some old shirts of Keith's and my sewing scraps. This is my first patch using fabric from 2 house dresses and one shirt.
It's a 1898 Ladies' Art Company design called "Box Quilt".
I'm making it for our 1958 Shasta Trailer which we purchased back in August.
Only 79 more to go!

Speaking of August here's a little story...
we bought this trailer from our neighbor and wonderful lady, Musie.
Our plan is to get it running so that by October we can hire someone to feed the farm animals, pack up the dogs and head down the road with Shasta being pulled by Big Max(our gray truck) and visit some folks and see other sights.

Our friends Anne-Renee and Julie were with us that weekend when we picked up the trailer.
Typical of us we had chores for them. Julie and I worked in the garden, gathered vegies and cooked while...

A-R was given the task of making a Turkey Ramp.

- and didn't she do a fine job? I bet there is no better Turkey Ramp in the State of Washington!
We manage to get it in place - which was not easy, that thing is heavy!
There was just one problem - the turkeys wouldn't use it!

I had to go up there to coax them down - I got the lone rooster to come down then, well watch the video for the rest of the story...

We celebrated with the perfect wine courtesy of Anne-Renee!
How about one more look at a great summer day, just for old times sake...

Now back to the present.

Brrrrr...Happy New Year Everyone!

Christmas Day and Boxing Day - Yeah!!

2010-12-27T10:09:00.000-08:00

Now my memory may be faulty, but I do think this is the first Christmas I've celebrated since I was a Mom that no Kids were with us.
Thank goodness for the Phone!!
With that handy invention and having Richard and Arlene with us it felt like our whole family was together.

It seemed like Arlene and Richard arrived to an igloo instead of a yurt!

Setting the Festive Table.

Thank you Grace and Albert for the lovely flora arrangement!!!

Lights please!

Of course I forgot to take any photos once the meal was on the table. sigh.
I cooked the entire meal from one cookbook, my birthday present.
Everything turned out wonderfully and was very easy and fun to make.
If you want a new cookbook I highly recommend this one:
"Around My French Table" by Doris Greenspan
Great photos and clear instructions and the food is amazing!

Bandida fell asleep waiting for Santa.

Keith loves his new hand made pajama bottoms from Alyssa the Seamstress!
Later on Christmas Day we four drove up river to Potato Creek for a little snow shoeing.
Beautiful!
Naturally we all forgot our cameras.
But it was a perfect outing for Christmas Day.
I think Keith & I will do some more snow shoeing trips this winter.

Boxing Day Morning Moon sighting.

Boxing Day Morning (photos courtesy of Richard)

We hope Everyone is Staying Warm!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2010-12-20T13:05:00.000-08:00

I haven't blogged since Summer!
There is so much to catch up on and I think, most likely, probably that I will post what all went on in our lives this past September, October and November..... but for now I will start with what is going on right now.
Which is Snow.
Lots of it.
Which means Shoveling.
Lots of it.

Keith is Shoveler in Chief at WC Fields... he uses The Shovel and,

The Tractor. But he wishes he had what our neighbor Dave uses....

The Cool Snow Blower!

This was our first real snow, before Thanksgiving, 5 inches in one day.

and this was our second Big Snow on Dec 11th - 17 inches in one night!

"There's a truck under here, some where."

"The Pool"

View of the House from the Barn - cozy!

Bandida and I are of one mind!

My protector, Ms. Cinderelly.

New LED lights on the bridge and doors.

A decorated sled instead of the traditional wreath on the Door.

"Welcome"
except you have to enter through the back door because there is a big ol' chair inside blocking this entrance!

The Tree - Before and

After.

Santas and Spirit

"Meow"
Translation
"Merry Christmas!"

The 2010 Summer Holiday Really Began In Montreal

2010-10-09T13:10:00.000-07:00

Ben, my daughter Madeline's dearest friend, loaned me his apartment for the duration of my stay. What a great guy! Montreal apartments can be tiny but are definitely charming. At least the apartments where Madeline stays are always in older character buildings. Ben's apartment is in a building right next to Madeline's so we were always together even while separate.

This is Madeline in her apartment. While I slept in Ben's apartment, I ate my meals in Madeline's. Both apartments had books, so I was happy. Madeline's apartment has lots of colour while Ben's is the classic white and wood tones. Madeline's apartment is definitely bigger...

...important since it is here that she both lives and does her art: two glimpses of her studio.

And here is the neioghbourhood where they live...

Madeline and Ben walking to work, while I trail behind briefly then say goodbye at Central Stamp. While they earn their bread and butter, I wend my independent way. Madeline took her holidays while I was there to help me find my way around. Such fun!

My Summer 2010 Holiday In Montreal Part II

2010-10-09T12:24:00.000-07:00

There are so many things I love about Montreal, two of them are that there are parks everywhere and that I can walk just about everywhere. Here am I walking through a park very close to Madeline's apartment! Life could hardly be better!

While I was in Montreal Madeline talked through a Grant Proposal she was planning to make. While she talked I took notes, then in this cafe we sat together to organize the details. Lots of fun for me. After I left she did the hard part: putting it together. She is now awaiting the results!

Another thing I love about Montreal is the Italian Market. This is too far away to walk to so at least once a visit Madeline and I take public transport here. We walk for hours first sampling the fruit that is placed for just that purpose, then return to the kiosk that had the best of whatever. We have a...

... coffee there then lunch then wend our way homeward. Madeline leading the way above and getting the cafecitos while I hold the table.

My visit ended with parties; this one was at Isabel and Enrique's house. That is their son Quique helping Ben put a puzzle together. Sacha, the owner of Central Stamp, was there too.
From here I flew to Washington State to see Megan and Keith, Richard and Arlene.

Saturday Market in Mexico City

2010-10-02T08:03:00.000-07:00

Near San Angel Restaurant is a park that becomes an art exhibit on Saturday. WOW. Can't wait to show Madeline this when she visits for Christmas.

Every inch of the park is used...

The Virgen of Guadalupe protects the artists and all who wander therein...

and surrounding the park are artesans selling their crafts along the walkways.

Even leaving the market is charming. I left Mexico City late June for Montreal. The next posting will focus on that leg of the summer journey.

Summer 2010 Started in Mexico, Checking Out the New School

2010-09-26T17:24:00.000-07:00

I was in Mexico City for 5 days. First came work: meeting with Jutty, my boss and director of the school. Here she is with Bill aka Guillermo, at dinner. She hosted me in her apartment. What you see next are views from her apartment, which by the by is my apartment block as well.

The Block is call La Triada and I live in Tower B, Jutty lives in Tower C. What you see is the center, common area...

and a view across this little part of the city. The Peterson School is just around the corner.

On Saturday we played. First to dinner at a fancy restaurant called San Angel, right across from Diego Rivera´s house and Frida Kahlo's blue house. The houses are linked on the roof so Diego could visit Frida when he chose. While we could go on the roof, the pass was blocked and guards
made sure we honored the restraints.

The restaurant was once a monestery.

The Last Days in El Salvador Were Fine

2010-09-19T14:41:00.000-07:00

Here am I drinking cold coconut water from it's source. There were two beaches I learned to enjoy. One was here where I went with Carol who has a membership at this exclusive Club Salvadoreña and the other was the following photo....

... also a club but its membership is the school's, the American School of El Salvador. I like the second because of the wonderful saltwater pools, and the first because of the...

friendship with Carol. Both beaches are very dangerous for swimming in the surf, hence the saltwater pools of the second. Carol and I didn't swim, we walked the beaches. Once, when the surf looked mild we attempted a swim but after being buffetted about, we went in for a coconut.

A friendship is also what made this jaunt possible. Sam´s half-sister´s half-brother, Kenton by name, came to do some work with a Coop the Canadian Government has been sponsoring and called me. He was in desperate need of books to read and I was in need of a companion with whom I could explore. One of the first places we went was to the Mayan ruins: Joya de Ceren.

The last year in El Salvador, the seniors asked me to be one of their sponsors. This involved meetings and monitoring their plans, including designs on their tee-shirts as well as various other things. One bonus was being able to travel with them. here we are taking a party boat across a lake near Suchitoto.

Relaxing.... Farm Style

2010-08-17T13:27:00.001-07:00

Keith found the perfect place to hang the hammock!

I spend the heat of the day here reading or just....

drifting off into the tree tops or

drifting in the river below.... It's lovely.

He also placed a rope for me to help my decent to my favorite spot on the river...

sitting under the bridge - I get to pretend I'm a troll!

Sitting in the chairs you get a nice view of the hammock above...

Soon the river will be low enough that I can "swim" in it.

The dogs love to play in it when I come down.

Two weekends ago our friend Anne-Renee came for a visit.
We did something I have been wanting to since we moved here.
We took the canoe down to the mouth of the river,where the Entiat meets the Columbia . We saw eagles, great blue herons, king fishers, a doe and her two spotted fawns, it was very relaxing and beautiful.
I didn't even have to paddle, I just got to be The Princess while Keith & A-R paddled!

We didn't get any photos so I took this shot yesterday of the canoe....

More veggies are ripening - green beans, beets, zucchini, carrots, cucumbers, no tomatoes yet, still very green.

Cheers!
Hoping that all of you are having a relaxing summer.
We hope your travels brings you to our door.

The Browns Visit the The Farm

2010-08-13T14:13:00.001-07:00

A farm visit begins with a cocktail - friends usually arrive in the afternoon and it seems the best welcome after a long hot, beautiful drive through the mountains to our place by a little river.

There are lots of conversations and stories being read.

Of course it isn't all play, we put all our visitors to work - kids included!

Lucy and Jasper have become great helpers - they know how to feed the chickens and Ducky,

and to collect the eggs that I sell from our house,

and now they are learning how to be one with the Flock.

April made friends with Jack & Jill,

and Fred & Ollie, the Tom Turkeys.

"Gobble, gobble, gobble"!

When the chores were finished we did let the kids play in the hay!

Meanwhile, the Men were busy working in the vineyard, finishing putting the last of the trellis poles in the hard, rocky ground.

Thanks Rob!!!

All these photos were taken by Rob and April, and they were so kind to share them with us.
There were so many beautiful shots it was hard to pick which ones to post.
I will close with these two that shows off the farm and the great weather we had during their visit.

We hope The Browns visit again soon!!!

End of July

2010-08-13T13:44:00.001-07:00

I'm doing the "catch-up on the blog" dance.
Unfortunately I haven't been taking very many photos....we've had lots of visitors and lots of fun, guess too much fun for me to take the time to get photos.
Mary was here in July for a short visit and the only photo I got was on her last morning just before she boarded the train to Seattle.

We had a good visit, lots of sisterly talk and hanging out, we did pick peas and shell them, I took a photo of that....the rest of the visit I have photos that Mary took,

she documented my first attempt at Camembert (we call it "fuzzybert") and baguettes...

Keith on his tractor, he was still hobbling about at this time, he is now very much improved,

and she just had to take a photo of Felix's present he left for us to find early one morning in the bathtub....Life on The Farm!

After Mary's Visit Keith finished the new chicken coop.

This is where the chicks and turks that we hatched earlier this year will live.

From this small yard they have access to the larger goat yard for even more tasty grazing.

I'll just finish this wee update with some shots of the goats out in their yard.

Cinder feels she must keep an eye on those goats, but it does get her tired.
An August update coming soon....

HAY!

2010-07-06T18:40:00.001-07:00

The hay is in and we needed to put it up out of the way for more hay to come.
For the first time we needed to use a contraption Mr. Whitehall left behind.

Our task for the morning - move 74 bales of hay to the loft.

Mission Accomplished!

Of course we have two sore backs....but they would have been broken without the hay conveyor.

Goats On The Lam

2010-07-04T15:08:00.001-07:00

The male goats must have got wind that today is Independence Day and took it to heart.
They were out of their pen this morning.

"Ha Ha, we got out! La De Da" said Valentino sticking out his tongue.

"Hay, Watch Out There's A Cat!" warned Sparky.

"You are my Best Friend Sparky", murmured Valentino.

Keith and I decided to let them be for the day - let them have fun in the sun and worry about getting them back in later. These boys really hammed it up for the camera... I think they Stars!

Happy Independence Day!

What we are eating from the garden this week

2010-07-01T16:23:00.000-07:00

Haying Time Again

2010-06-30T16:14:00.001-07:00

The first cut is about 3 weeks later in the year than usual.
The cold wet Spring is the reason, but this first cut is a good one.
The grass is tall and thick.

"Come to Mama my lovely gophers!"

Summer Time is Here.

Goat Manuevers

2010-06-29T17:55:00.001-07:00

The grass in "Turkey Gulch" was getting out of control.
To tackle the situation we called Tuffy, Girly-Girl, Ella Mae and Vanessa into active duty.
They are the experts when it comes to mowing down grass!

The roosters and turkeys were not amused at first but now they are putting up with the hoofed creatures, especially since those girls have the grass more manageable for them.

The other part of the plan is putting into place part two of Weaning Jack & Jill.

Part one was keeping them in the Nursery where they could still see and smell Tuffy, but couldn't get a hold of her teats.
With Tuffy next door at "Turkey Gulch" I moved the Kidds into "Fletcher's Field" with Daisy & Brandy. I'm hoping that by the time The Big Girls finish the job over at "TG", the Kidds will be completely weaned from Tuffy and all 8 goats can be together in "F. Fields".

Jack is very friendly and loves to jump onto my back, Jill is still a bit stand offish but a sweet heart just the same!

Sunflower Monday

2010-06-28T16:59:00.001-07:00

Our first sunflower of the season, right by the back door to greet us!

The "Sunflower House" is growing,

waiting for visits from Tyler, Susie, Amyah, Lucy, & Jasper!

Trellis is Going Up!

2010-06-27T19:11:00.001-07:00

The Good Word is that the Vineyard is Alive and Growing!
It was tough going last year what with a Spring that had thaws and freezes, Deer discovering the vineyard and finding it was good to eat, and gophers attacking their delicate roots.

But some hardy vines survived and are growing well so we need to get a trellis in place.
Thankfully our young strong friend (Alyssa's childhood chum) Tyler B. came to the Farm to work for Farmer Keith last week.

His job was to dig holes in the rocky, sometimes very rocky, soil and put in the wooden posts that will hold the wire the vines will grow up to.

On Friday Farmer Keith came and helped him a bit.

But Tyler put in the majority of these poles plus got started on the upper side.
We hope he will come back again for some more work - but we aren't holding our breath!
That guy worked hard!!!

To The Good Life!

Randomness

2010-06-15T14:29:00.001-07:00

It's been a different Spring in the Valley.
Very cold and wet.
Not so good for planting or your Spirit.
We had two hard freezes, one killed our Apricot tree, the other did damage to our other fruit trees, in that there were not any bees around to pollinate the flowers when they bloomed.
As a result we have no pears to speak of, few peaches, cherries and prunes.
We do have apples, they bloomed last.
But most important the vineyard looks good and is growing!
And we have had some nice weather as the photos below will show, but just this morning it was 34 degrees when I woke up and the potato plants were frost bitten. It didn't kill them but they won't look pretty for a while.

We had a great visit with Alyssa, her friends Leia & Tyler and Keith's in-laws Dena & Les
Lots of music and card games were played!

The dogs & I made it to the river, for some dipping (Cinder) and rock hunting (Bandida)

"Attack!"

"It wasn't me!"

The turkey hens have moved their nests to the hay field - do you see her?

Penelope laid this huge egg - on the left is a normal turkey egg and above is a chicken egg - looked liked it had a rough time coming out - poor girl! It was a double yolker.

The first batch of chickens and turkeys hatched May 8 - here they are at one day old, and at...

one month old.

A second batch hatched June 8th - all chicks, no turkeys this time - there is a total of 32 chicks and 6 turks. All are doing fine.

Below are just some pretty shots.

Valentino

Tadpoles!

Hawthorn - wheeew!

Snow ball bush

They say the sun will be out this weekend and that it is suppose to be 80 - I'm sure hoping!

Talkin' Turkey

2010-05-07T18:43:00.001-07:00

Ever since Tessa was attacked by the coyote we've been trying to figure out how to keep those birds in their yard. We observed that they never take off directly from the ground over the fence. They seem to have to fly to a rock or ledge then fly over. With that in mind we thought that we could net just the backside of the enclosure leaving the front as it was. We used netting that the Whitehalls had left behind, thankfully no rats were nesting in the piles!

We got the netting up but the hens were out of the yard on their nests. Keith had found Penelope's nest a few day's back so we knew we could get her in, Winnie was the problem. He had searched all over that hillside and could not find it. After we got the net up he and Cinder went on another search. This time Cinder was the lucky one. She stopped and pointed at a brushy area under a pine tree. Cinder didn't bark or jump, just stood her ground and pointed. Keith looked and there was Winnie!

I set up two lovely nests, at least I was hoping the hens would find them satisfactory and then off to get those girls and their eggs. I grab the hen and Keith grabbed the eggs then we put them together in the barn and crossed our fingers.

They didn't like the nests, but they did stay inside.
For one day.
High winds came and blew down a section of the nets and out went the hens.
Luckily Keith had anticipated that they might get out and had the great idea of putting one egg back in each of the turkey's nest, so they would go back to them, just in case.
Which they did.

Next plan was to put sturdier netting on the blown down side.

The turkey hens still get out, but we know where they are. We are not exactly sure how, because when we watch them they act innocently. We turn our heads and out they go!
Penelope isn't broody so she comes back every evening. Winnie has become broody so every night before I milk Tuffy I climb the hill and bring Winnie home. We gather all but one egg, saving them for the next hatch.

Before we put up the orange netting, the roosters would get out and head to the Ladies Palace.
These three hang together, from the top down they are: Andrew, Ernesto, and Eugene.

Now all the males, Turkey and Rooster stay in the yard.
We've come up with another idea for the hens, but that will have to wait. In the meantime we go fetch them and wait for the broodiness to end.

Thought you might like to see how the little birds that were hatch by their mama's are doing.

Mama and the two chickies behind.

Quack!

Fancy Fencing

2010-05-07T18:04:00.001-07:00

Last Summer the
Billies got out of
hand at the old playground.
Farmer Keith took care of that
by building them a new play field.
Now they can't watch all the
girls go by and should stay
out of trouble!

The girls got a new play field as well.

Here the grass is if not greener, longer on the other side of the fence.

Another new fence project for Farmer Keith, was an extension on the Nursery.

Now the Kidds have a play yard while they get weaned from Mama.

Jack & Jill can still see, feel and touch Tuffy. They just can't get a hold of her teat!

Farmer Keith's next Fancy Fencing Feature is putting in a Deer Fence around the Vineyard.
Good thing he bought that auger for his tractor this Spring.

The Milk Follies

2010-05-07T16:12:00.000-07:00

This is my forth season of milking goats and I feel it's my best by far!
Every aspect of the routine is working smoothly - like butter.
I'm still learning new methods but I feel like I'm building on top of a foundation.

I love the improved Milking Parlour. I've had a recipe for making Goat Milk Paint Wash for years but only got around to making it this Spring. The walls are painted with the wash. I was surprised that the paint gave off a sweet clean smell! The floor is painted with Porch Paint.

The room is brighter and will be easier to clean - and the recipe said that the Wash helps repel flies ....will see this Summer.

Keith set the camper up for me this year. He picked a spot that is easier to hook up to a good water source, improved the steps getting into the camper and fixed the hot water heater - no more boiling water to wash dishes!

Best of all the cheese making has improved - taste and texture!
So far I have made yogurt, plain and Keith's favorite, Vanilla Maple Syrup, Vanilla Ice Cream and

herb wrapped French Style Chevre and

herb marinated feta. The herbs come from the green house,

which I am utilizing more efficiently this year. We've had salad greens, spinach, mustard greens and Swiss Chard harvests plus the herbs and still being able to have room for the veggie starts.

We are trying to push our growing season by making some growing frames for the cooler climate plants: Cabbage, Broccoli and Cauliflower. Without the frames these tender starts would suffer from the early morning frosts that we can get up until June.

I washed up these old window panes to help grow Okra - not sure if it will work, but can't hurt to try.

Spring is full-on in the Valley. The maple trees are leafing; the hillsides are coverd in yellow and purple from the blossoms of the Arrow Head Balsum Root (I always get that name mixed up) and Lupine and finally the last type of fruit tree, apple, is flowering and so are the lilacs

one morning this Canada Goose flew onto our bridge - his mate made it over but he couldn't quite make it. He honk for sometime until his mate came back down river, then off he flew.

Mish Mosh

2010-04-15T06:39:00.000-07:00

Finally I am writing about the rest of April!
It was a month filled with Play, Work and Sorrow

April 10th was the annual Swallow Fest in Ardenvoir.
Arlene and Kay came to share in the festivities, and Arlene took these photos so I could share with all of you.
The Shank Brothers were there, playing their great old style music.

Lots of classic cars and men.

Kay with the throngs of Valley folk watching the Big Parade.

Of course Smokey The Bear was Thear.

I was working the Used Book Sale for the Entiat Library.

The weekend wasn't just the parade, there was the Fire Men Auction/Dinner that we all went to, and I set up the incubator in the Brooder Room for Turkey and chicken eggs.

and of course there was the relaxing time spent on the farm with the animals.

Sadly that was the weekend Spaetzle died. Even though we were expecting her death it caught us by surprise.

She was such a great, friendly, brave, funny, and loving dog.

We miss her.

That Sunday our toilet started acting up and by Monday Keith had dug up the the septic tank lid to have a look-see. He then called the Septic Man to pump her out. It only took a couple of days and a few repairs by Keith but all is in good working order again.

The Tuesday after the Swallow Fest weekend, our favorite Turkey, Tessa, went broody. Her nest is hidden behind that rock in the brush.

We didn't realize she was broody -meaning that she wants to stay on her nest to hatch her eggs - until after dark when Keith went out to see if she was still there. It was late and I thought she was well hidden so decided that she would be safe for the night, and in the morning we would figure out what to do with her broodiness. In the morning a coyote killed our Tessa. And the next morning killed our old white rooster who never went inside to roost. Since then we have been having a time keeping the Turkeys in. The other two hens, Winnie and Penelope have been laying eggs and Winnie has gone broody. I do not let her stay the night on them but gather her up and put her inside. On another post I will show you what we have done to try to contain our flighty female turkeys.

Meanwhile it is Spring in the Valley. The Daffodils are outdoing themselves,

our young peach trees are flowering,

violets bloom under the fruit trees,

the old cherry trees are hanging on and acting like they are as young as ever,

and the pear trees are not going to out done by any of the other fruit trees.

Our kidds, Jack & Jill, named by our neighbor boys are growing strong.

They are very playful and tame.

A couple of horses came to visit us, they escaped their pasture to come sample ours. We called our dependable and knowledgeable neighbor Dave to show these horses back to their own place.

I close this post with a photo of another neighbors dog who came to visit the goats with his family. He just has the right face to end April with.

I wont be so long with posts on May, and hopefully I will have news of chicks hatching.

We're On The Cover of the Rolling Stone!

2010-04-02T10:46:00.000-07:00

Well almost....Our friend/neighbor Alan wrote an article about us for a local publication and his photo of us was chosen for the cover!

Thanks Alan!!

Good Snowy Friday

2010-04-02T10:13:00.000-07:00

"meow, wonder what awaits for me out yonder today?" mused Felix the Cat

"Snow!"

"At least my favorite puppy will accompany me on this snowy day"

"Blaaaad, Blaaaad, Snooooow!" bleated all the goats

Turkeys, Roosters, and Barn Cats all stay dry under the Breeze Way.

"What's the white stuff?" peeped the chick

"come out, come out it's fun" clucked the hens

'Hmmmm" pondered Ducky

We may get 3 - 7 inches from this late winter storm
"Time for a fire and indoor chores" whined Megan
"I'll take care of the barn animals" said Farmer Keith in his best Hero voice.

Fire On Purpose

2010-04-02T09:25:00.001-07:00

There was a Thrill in the Hills a couple of weekends ago.
Our neighbors received a grant to do some control burning all in the name of Forest Fire Prevention. The idea is to burn the shrubs and debris (pine cones, needles, etc.) that act as fuel when there is a real fire.
We were warned by Dave before it happened, "it will be a show, get your camera ready", he said.
We always listen to Dave so here are the photos.

Just a few spot fires

Lot's of fuel here,

and here,

Our neighbor Dave!

It got pretty smoky.

They also used the burn as a training exercise for our local volunteer fire fighters.

Looks like these trees have hot roots and are stepping out of the fire, can't you imagine them saying "Hot, Hot, Hot!"

No burning on our side of the river, but plenty of smoke.

It was a good show and even beautiful at night with the fire spots glowing.
Now hopefully the hills are a little more prepared if a forest fire comes through.

This Sunday Afternoon

2010-03-14T15:16:00.000-07:00

Keith is burning branches from the pruning of fruit trees and an old wooden fence.
For awhile, I sat near-by toasting my legs while reading "Ava's Man" by Rick Bragg - a book club book- and helped to keep an eye on the fire while Keith drove the tractor to get more fence to burn.

Then we roasted hot dogs.

Keith is still outside burning - I came in to practice my latest song on the Uke - the classic Carpenter's song - "Top of the World"
How's your Sunday going?
Cheers from the Farm!

KIDDS!!

2010-03-06T16:00:00.001-08:00

Friday evening Tuffy gave birth! She has two kidds.

Boy on the Left, (white & black with gray), girl on the Right(black & white)

These shots and video were taken this morning, Saturday- their first full day of Life.
It's amazing how fast animals can move about after birth.

They Grow So Fast

2010-03-05T19:21:00.001-08:00

Thursday night when I tuck the hens to bed (close their yard door and turn off the light) I saw that the Mama's had moved the chicks to the ground floor! Day two and they are out of the nest box.

These are photos from Friday Morning.

We have six chicks. I found one dead in the nest box.

They are already eating - at least they are making the motions...

The last couple of days we haven't collected eggs because all the hens layed where the Mama hens layed so I couldn't tell the "almost hatched" from the "fresh" eggs, so

I gathered them and put them in the compost - 40 eggs!
But at least I can collect eggs without worrying if the egg is fit to eat.
Good reason to have a brooder room where only the hens who are broody stay, allows no mix up with the eggs!

Isn't that beautiful compost?

Friday we moved the male goats back to the "Manger" and I cleaned out their winter stall, "Turkey Gultch" - Now just the Turkeys are there - hoping that having the goats gone they will start laying their eggs in the nest boxes.....

Check out Valentino's Mohawk! (That one's for you A-R)

The turkeys won't be completely alone - next on the list of "Spring Cleaning the Barn" is the Rooster Room. I will move the down to "Turkey Gultch" and transform the "Rooster Room" to the "Brooder Room" Farmer Keith is going to build a new "Rooster Romper Room", but it's a little way's down the list...

Here are a couple of very short videos of the chicks on the ground with their Mama's.
The one on the right is dark but the sound is pretty good.

Stay tuned for more Spring News - something just happened Friday night....

Hatching!!

2010-03-03T10:01:00.001-08:00

Last night when I went to put up the hens and collect the evening eggs I noticed that my two sitting hens had moved slightly. They now are sitting with a nest area between them instead of side by side. Laying in that space between the hens were 3 eggs and a empty half shell that looked very suspiciously like a hatched egg. But I saw no chicks.

This morning the hens still had the space between them but they were positioned differently - sitting higher on the tail end and one was facing me - as you can see in the photo above. But I still didn't see a chick - until...

I returned after feeding the goats and there was one sweet chick nestled in her mama's wing!

One very cool thing is that the hens purr, like a cat almost. I took a video in hopes to share the sound with you. Listen closely and I think you can hear the hens purr and the chick chirp. There could be more under those wings - It's going to be hard not to keep going up there to check - but I don't want to disturb the hens so I will restrain myself to the morning and evening checks.

Over and out on the Hatching update.

February Where For Art Thou?

2010-03-02T10:51:00.000-08:00

Yikes the whole month of February has passed by without a single posting!
Here is an attempt to capsule what was happening on the Farm during that time.

On the Farm the change from Winter to Spring is heralded by the Turkeys marching down to our porch.

They seem to be wanting me to get hurrying with the morning feed.

"May I come in?"

"No."

"Well then, we'll just wait for you outside under the Apple Tree."

"Come a-long little Turk Turks."

Cinder wants to try out her herding skills...

"Whoa little doggie!"

All corralled, safe and sound.

Weather-wise the month was drab. The first 3 weeks were cloudy, damp, and uninspiring.
What little snow we had melted, causing the ground to be muck.

Spaetzle began to show signs of old age - she slept a lot, seemed to be hard of hearing and didn't have the spring in her steps. We took her to the vet and she basically got a clean bill of health, she had lost a couple of pounds, but her blood work came back very good. Than this last week, we thought she was dying - she didn't move for two days and only drank a little water that I brought to her in a tea cup. But on the third day she started getting up, wanting to go outside, started eating a little and almost seemed like her young self. We believe she will be with us a wee bit longer, which makes us glad, for she is such a sweetie.

Other Farm news...
Tuffy seems to be managing her pregnancy well. She is due in April (I think)

All the goats are fine and with the snow melting they get to go on walks!

Tuffy

Smiling Vanessa

Squaring off with Spaetzle

Funny Ella Mae

Girly-girl queen of the woods.

We have two hens who are broody! One hen is sitting on 15 eggs, the other has 10 beneath her. They don't seem to care who eggs they sit on, for there are all the types of eggs under them, blue, brown, tan, all are there! I believe they should be hatching this week or next - I will definitely post timely on that news.

The change in the weather allows the hens to go outside.

They love scratching in the dirt - it must be hard being cooped up for those Winter months.

Ducky loves it also!

Keith has finished pruning the fruit trees, I have greens growing in the green house, and soon Keith & I will be building more fences - we always seem to be in need of those structures. And so the Growing Season begins.

The last week of February the Sun came out and hasn't really left! We did get one pretty snow fall but really it was a gift for our visitors who's kids really wanted to play in snow. It was gone the next day, but stayed around long enough for Lucy to build a snow girl and for Jasper to throw a few snow balls.

Joey Jasper and his Papa.

Lucy and a very happy Bandida

April, a happy Mama in the Woods.

Richard, loving the pups.
You can't sit on our couches without a Pup in your lap - take it as a warning or a gift - your choice!

Spaetzle we are so happy that you are staying with us.
Now it is March and I will try to post in a more timely fashion.
Having Sun is very helpful.

Late December and Early January was in Panama

2010-01-24T10:23:00.001-08:00

Christmas in Panama was about visiting old friends. It started with Carlos, my wonderful taxi driver who picked me up from the airport. He took me to Anne and Howard's apartment, which I was to be house-sitting while they visited family in the US. Imagine my surprise when I arrived and they were still there. Howard has suffered a stroke so wasn't traveling. I was still able to stay and was some help, especially useful to Anne who needs another hip replacement - postponed until Howard is stable. For my birthday, they took me to an amazing restaurant in Casco Viejo. When the lights went out, I thought we were having a power failure, instead the waitress sang Happy Birthday and a candle topped a flan. The best flan I have ever had.
Annie Laurie took care of me for Christmas Day and most of the time I was not with Anne and Howard. Here she is sporting an attitude while cooking. Isabel, her maid of umpteen years, is in the background.
We did a walking tour of the renovated/non renovated cobble streets of the French Quarter of Casco Viejo. Annie Laurie does not hesitate to ask strangers ot pose with her...
I am more reluctant to approach strangers, but wanted a picture with this wonderful iguana.
With Anne I went to the Canal Museum in Casco Viejo which had a display of hundreds of molas from the 1950's. Anne is the one to see molas with because they are her passion. Afterwards we went to the Cuna market to look at Diego's molas - I bought two and Anne bought one.
Anne and Katrina (standing) and Jutta (the director of the school in Mexico where I'll be working next year) gathered at Katrina's new house not far from The International School of Panama, where Anne and I used to work and Katrina still works.
I also got to see Cheryl whose husband, George, died in a car accident a year and a half ago. I needed to confirm that she is all right and has a game plan in place since I knew that her income is greatly diminished with the loss of George, though the demands of the property near Las Uvas on the Pacific side are the same. She is OK.
Approaching Cheryl's front door, one is met by orchids and a friendly snake.
Cheryl's place is high on a hill, at the foot of which is the beach. I do not have a picture of the beach but it is worth describing. I walked down about 40 steps carved into the hill, through this jungle (about a ten minute walk) then onto the beach. As far as the eye can see in any direction not another soul was to be seen. Cheryl's dobermans accompanied me. While I swam in the gentlest water the ocean is capable of, one dog sat next to my wrap and shoes and watched me, while the other turned his back and watched the path. I was in the water for an hour and the dogs stayed in their positions the entire time.
One night was spent at Mi Ranchito in Amador where friends gathered so I could see everyone. Well not everyone, almost as notable were the people I did not see: I had hoped to see Padre Mickey and Mona, various former colleagues and students, Maritza Kitras, Egbert Leigh, and...the list could go on and on, but I needed to spend extra time with Anne and Howard since I had not seen them the last visits and they needed someone to run up and down stairs for them as well as listen. I loved being that someone.

Well, this should catch me up on my part of the blogging. Megan is so patient with me.

Part of December was spent in El Salvador

2010-01-24T10:11:00.001-08:00

Carol, a colleague who has lived in El Salvador for many years, took me to the beach at one point. We went to Club Salvadoreno since she has a membership and where we are well taken care of.
The beach is lovely to look at, but the sand is littered when we walk beyond the Club's boundaries, and the waves are too strong to happily swim. We tried but were tossed about.
Lovely view from a nearby restaurant.

November in El Salvador

2010-01-24T09:42:00.000-08:00

My ex-husband's half-sister's half-brother, Kenton, came to El Salvador in November to do some work for the Canadian government - helping poor areas develop sustainable businesses. He looked me up; having someone to go places with made all the difference in the world to me.
Kenton found a taxi driver, Jose Miguel, he could depend on to take him hither, thither and yon, so we used him on all excursions.
This is one place I had been dying to see so we went together. Joya de Ceren is a Maya farming village discovered in 1976 when the owner of the property was looking to plant more crops. When pre-hispanic items were found, he called in the authorities. A well-known anthropologist from Colorado came to lead the excavation. It is pre-hispanic, from around 600AD, and like Pompeii was buried under volcanic ash.
Interestingly enough no bodies were found, unlike Pompeii, even though utensils and half-eaten meals were identified. This area was probably inhabited as early as 900BC by the Mayans.
More evidence of the Mayan presence in El Salvador.

This and That thrown in with a lot of Catching Up

2010-01-15T12:42:00.000-08:00

Meet Dudley - my new acquaintance.

Every morning for 20 or so minutes we attempt to bond with each other,
perhaps in the future we will be friends....
Aging makes you do things that only "old folks" do.

We've started to sell our chicken's eggs. They are laying about 15 eggs a day so we need to move them out the door. Whenever I go to a meeting (knitting or such) I take deviled eggs, or quiche, anything that uses a lot of eggs.
These next two photos are for my Mom's sake - she wants to see that Keith's leg is healing, so here ya go Mom - taken this very morning.

I've been bad about posting lately - I have some Christmas, Visitors, and New Years photos to share with you.

Keith had the tree outside lit up plus the bridge and

he found a perfect tree for inside the house!

A three-sided one that fit snugly against the bookcase.

Great Aunt Winnie hand-sewed this heart, we've had it on a Webster Christmas tree for as long as I can remember.

I forgot to take photos of our Christmas dinner - it was wonderful though - we had Richard, Arlene, our brother Butch and our neighbors Susan and Alan. "Fletcher's" ribs was the main course but we also had a "little Miss Piggy" leg plus the usual side dishes of brussels sprouts, and Yorkshire Pudding (recipe from Keith's Dad Al) I'm sure we had dessert but I can't remember what it was - oh and I made pumpkin soup which every one said was good but I couldn't eat it for the smell was not pleasant - I think our guest were being nice to me.
After dinner Alan played songs on his banjo and we all joined in with various percussion instruments. Susan then read a children's story that she had written and Alan had illustrated. It was about how the forest animals had a tradition of making harmony bread - when she was finished we all ate Harmony bread which she had made.
Lots of fun!

Another night during the holidays Arlene & Richard had us all over for Dinner at the Yurt. Our friend Bill and his dog Deuce joined in the festivities.

We had ham and a new recipes for scalloped potatoes that did not involved cheese or cream - and they tasted great!

Baked apples for dessert - a perfect ending on a winter night.

After Richard, Arlene & Butch left for Seattle we got more snow!

and a visit from Emily and her boyfriend Pete,

They came with me in the morning to feed the animals and collect eggs -

"wait for me!"

They headed back to Alaska - driving to Prince Rupert then catching the Ferry to Juneau.
Other news is that Ducky has started laying eggs - that puts to rest any question of her sex.

Can you see the difference? Do you know which is Duck and which is Chicken?

Both are delicious.

This was our New Years Day Meal - Cornbread, Black eye peas, Collards(from the garden, frozen) and Rooster. Should be a Good Year!

The snow is melting away, but maybe there will be more before long - feels more like March to me. Keith and I are doing fine - thinking of projects to keep us busy before the Growing Season begins. If you need a break from the City come on out to the Farm - we will be happy to see you!

Change in the Weather and Keith's Folly

2009-12-20T15:15:00.001-08:00

Last week we had beautiful weather - at least 5 inches of fluffy light snow and sunshine.
The Farm was a Winter Wonderland!
This week it changed to fog and rain. It's nice in one aspect - it's not very cold, above freezing - but the snow is melting, and there is slush mixed with mud. This is not the typical December weather. I did get some photos before the change - below are shots of the river.

I love this river - it makes me smile every morning.

This is how the farm has been looking lately - today this road to the barn is mud, you can see the grass even.

With the melting, cool icicles are forming on the ice piles on the river.

Still pretty in the fog.

Raccoons have been walking on the river - just as long as they stay on the river and not near our barn!

The other news on the farm is about Keith. He went out one night to get a squash for dinner.
He came back with the squash but also a huge gash in his leg. He forgot to turn the light on and his leg rammed into the disc plow.
Luckily he didn't cut any bones, arteries or tendons. He let me clean it and bandage it.
The next morning when he looked at the cut again he let me take him to the walk-in clinic.

The PA after looking at the wound called in another doctor for his opinion and then that doctor called in another for his thoughts. - it was very deep and ragged - they gave him a hard time about not coming in the night it happened and he told them that it cost too much to go to the emergency room - just coming to the walk-in clinic is expensive enough - they understood the logic and a discussion about what is happening (or not happening) in congress about Public Health - they thought perhaps the senators who don't want the bill should go without health insurance for awhile to see how it works (or doesn't).
The doctors also told Keith they usually see these type of accidents in much older patients.Ninety minutes later, 15 stitches and a tetanus shot in him they had Keith ready to go home.

Keith is going to have a "check mark" on his shin now!

He's doing better today - we both are!

The Before During and After Thanksgiving Post

2009-12-14T07:38:00.000-08:00

Finally getting around to writing a bit about what has been happening at the Farm....

The weekend before Thanksgiving we got a wee bit of snow and a fun visit from our friends Jeff,Sheryl and their dogs Olo and Marshall.

There is always music being made when they come over!

Olo looking like a dog from a Disney film...

Marshall being the Cool Dude,

and Bandida being the "Noisy One", with Spaetzle ignoring her.

After they left we got ready for Thanksgiving...

We Thanked the Tom Turkey for being our Main Dish,

I remembered to take photos before I cooked the meal, but forgot completely about the" after cooking before eating" shots

Trust me that he looked scrumptious cooked and was delicious! The best part of the Holiday was the wonderful visit with Alyssa, Moroni, Arlene and Richard!

I did get shots of the next day table though...

Moroni helped me with the morning chores - he even wore the appropriate sweat shirt!

After they all went home our thoughts turned to getting ready for the next Holiday.
Luckily the first week of December we finally got snow that seems to guarantee a White Christmas ... and enough accumulation that Keith felt compelled to shovel it.

That same week the river began to do its trick of freezing from the bottom up - I'll post later some more photos as the ice piles up.

Here are some snaps of the winter morning routine....

do you think we have enough barn cats? All are doing fine....so far.
Hope everyone is doing great!

Louisiana

2009-11-18T11:33:00.000-08:00

I took a trip this month with Betsy May & Reuben back to Louisiana. We stayed with my brother Ed and his wife Mitzi. We had a really good time visiting with the folks, playing pool, walking and of course eating good southern food.

Digger - a real good dog.

The Pool King

Mitzi taught a few pool pointers to the Bets and Reuben.

Dad walking Sandy - another good dog.

Love those country roads. The other nice part of the trip was the warm weather! '70 - '80's when we were there and no rain.

The second part of the trip Bets, Reuben & I drove to St. Joseph - the town where the kids got their start - as one of our old neighbors, Mrs. Ratcliff told them.

We went to church - the church my Dad was priest of after he left Panama.

The kids spent their time with their Dad - and I stayed with the sweetest Ladies of St. Joe. We played Scrabble, "Golf" & "Oh Heck" (two card games) and just had a great time talking, laughing and reminiscing.

One other cool thing - I drove the kids on the Levee - I used to drive it with my Dad's Chevy, but this time it was my Mom's Honda.

The "Good-bye Shots"

We had a great time - see you next year Mom & Dad!

Farm Fall Exercise Program

2009-11-18T11:14:00.000-08:00

With the changing of warm weather to cold I start to contemplate on how I am going to get my needed exercise. It's not so easy since I rebel going outside when it is cold. My latest idea is "Goat Walking"

I figure if I convince myself that the goats really need to go for walks and wouldn't it be fun to walk with the goats that I may actually bother to put all the layers of clothes on that I need to stay warm and venture out.
Arlene joined me on my first "Goat Walk"

It is fun, and I have done it since Arlene left, with Keith, though I haven't done it enough for it to qualify as a "program" - but it's sunny outside today, maybe I will go out with the goats...does anyone want to join me....any old time?

Nomadic Comfort

2009-10-17T15:21:00.000-07:00

Check out our brother Richard's web site - Nomadic Comfort.
(click on "nomadic comfort" to take you to the website)

Amy, Kevin, Tyler, Susan, Arlene and Spaeztle are on the front page photo!!

It's all about a new type of tent he has created (with his friend John) based on Yurts

It's a very cool site, we would like it even if it wasn't owned by our brother. :-)

comments

2009-10-17T13:26:00.000-07:00

We have to apologize for not publishing some comments. we usually get an email saying we have a comment to moderate, but no emails came so we didn't know that there had been comments.

We also want to thank you for commenting, it always feels good to read the notes from family & friends!

We think the problem is fixed, so please keep the comments coming.

Thanks, Mary & Megan

October Brings....

2009-10-17T11:36:00.001-07:00

Maintenance and Repairs

Farmer Keith has been getting ready for the winter,

the irrigation pipes & valves are drained (he still needs to pack 'em in),

he replaced the missing pieces of tin on the roof of the barns and tacked down the loose ones,

and shored up the splitting beam of this barn.

Fishing

We heard thru the grapevine (my knitting group) that the Hatchery was having some free fishing days. No license required and no limits, becausethey had too many trout in the pond - so Keith and our neighbor Dave went-a-fishing and came home with 20 trout each!

Grand kids

Amy, Kevin, Tyler & Susie came back for another visit! We had such a good time, it's so special to be able to see the grand kids so often!

They had fun playing with homemade play dough,

Tyler made a hamburger

Yummy!

We went to the Library for Story Time with Esther!

and did the Fire Interpretive Trail that is in Town.

Lots of fun, even with it being dampish and coolish out!
and of course there was plenty of coloring.

SNOW!

October 13th we had our first snow fall for the season,

and it was still on the ground the next morning.

Time to put a log on the fire.

Kevin helped Keith cut some wood out of the forest (logs that had already fallen)

Turkey Egg!

Thursday morning I found our first turkey egg, she even laid it in the room where the nest boxes are. It wasn't in the nest box, but at least it was in the room. I haven't found another since, but I keep looking.

Chicken egg on left, turkey on right.

We haven't eaten it yet, perhaps tomorrow - we'll let you know how it tastes.

Breeding
.......... on purpose!

Accidental breeding is much easier than this arrange stuff, let me tell you.

The first couple of weeks of October it was "Goat Rodeo" every day! Every morning we would find one or two of the baby goats out of their pen ("Turkey Gulch") We had no idea where their escape route was (still don't). Then Keith & I would begin the "chase, grab, leap, carry" dance. We are getting better at it. By the end of that week all 5 kidds were moved into "Fletchers Field" with the Big Girls.

Then it was time to try breeding - I separated the two males, putting Sparky in the Manger and closing Valentino out - where he had the outside area(The Dude Ranch) and Sparky the Manger to do the deed with Tuffy.

Well Tuffy couldn't concentrate with Valentino on the outside - as you can see in this video.

Towards evening time we look out towards the Manger and see that Sparky is in the field and Tuffy is hanging by the gate of Fletchers Field. Valentino was still in the Manger. Those two boys had busted the wooden gate!

We figure we had to give Valentino a girl. Keith chased Valentino out of the Manger, back into "The Dude Ranch", and repaired the wooden gate. I caught Tuffy, put the leash on her and walked her in front of Sparky and he followed us right back into the Manger. Meanwhile Valentino was on the rocks just outside "The Dude Ranch". He wouldn't let me come near him, so instead I put Ella May on a leash and pranced her in front of Valentino, he followed her like a dog on a hot scent, to Turkey's Gulch I lead the two love birds.

and all is well with the couple in the Manger .

The first few days there was quite a bit of activity. I saw mostly snorts, chasing, tails and tongues wagging, but no actual "deed" going on, and the girls would run up to me seeming to ask with hurt in their eyes, "why are you doing this to us?" I just apologized to them over and over.

But lately all is calm in both camps, so tomorrow I'm putting the girls back in "Fletchers Field" with the other gals and I'll move Sparky to "Turkey Gulch" with Valentino and the turkeys for the winter, since we can maintain heated water there and we can't in the Manger.

We just have to wait and see if anything happened between the males and females. I don't think they make a pee stick for goats....

Breakfast Time on The Farm

2009-10-17T10:54:00.000-07:00

I think breakfast is the best time on the Farm.

When I walk out the door, the turkeys & cats come running down the "road" to greet me. The roosters and girl goats of "Fletcher's Field" run down to meet me also, acting like it's Mardi Gras, crowing, quacking and bleating "Throw me something Mister!"

One can't help but smile.

All the hens come out in the yard now - it has taken a long time for them to do that!
We get an average of 7 eggs a day - way to go Girls!

Breakfast for Farmer Keith & I!

The Happy Couple

"Watcha looking at?"

The mad rush in Fletchers Fields.

Girly-Girl spies Ducky's food.

"Don't mind if I do."

The rest of the goats munch away.

This isn't the best video, but I thought Girly-girl and the rooster are pretty funny.

Have you guessed?

I've figured out how to use the "drive" mode on the camera!