Agnes has been a bit anxious about getting a date, but we were able to invite Justin over for an extended stay.
Justin is a Red Angus bull. He is a bit of an ‘extra’ bull in his herd, which is why we’ve named him “Justin Case”. He’s a bit small, maybe he’s the ‘nerd of the herd’.
However, here at Glory Farm, he’ll be the big man on the farm as he has all the needed body parts.
Our friend was happy to loan us this ‘extra’ bull, as his girls didn’t need his service just yet and this means we’d be the one feeding him, while he is here. Win-win.
Spring is in the air and the pond is full. The skies are gorgeous.
The bulbs are beginning to bloom…
To say nothing of the weeds…
We’re hoping all the prom guests stay at the dance and no one makes an early break through a fence to attend an unplanned ‘after party’.
None of the chickens have pooped on my new door mat yet, and so what can I say….
We realized with alpacas 2 is a bad number. We need 3 alpacas, in case one becomes injured. We needed to get 1 more. (2+1=3)
Except…you cannot add 1 alpaca to 2. The ‘1’ will not be able to join the herd as they are a highly bonded kind of animal. The Extreme Alpaca people happened to have 3 little boys, they would sell us for the price of 2. (2+3=5)
1 of them (Santana) makes the mistake more than once of spitting at My Loving Spouse. (I’m pretty sure this is why he was the ‘free’ one in the ‘buy 2, get 3’ offer.) We have a rule at Glory Farm. “If you’re not needed, you better be nice.”
4 alpacas would be fine, except again, 1 alpaca cannot go to a different herd successfully, even beautiful, but Spitty Santana.
Jett had become so protective of the herd, he began making it difficult to walk across the field. A good, but annoying trait.
We decide to re-home/sell Jett and Santana. They will be their own herd in their new field at someone else’s farm. It is difficult emotionally to re-home animals. As we prepare to separate the herd of 5, the 3 we are keeping move where we want them with ease. The 2 getting a ‘fresh start’ are both a complete pain, reinforcing our math. (5-2=3)
Santana & Jett’s new owners are enthusiastic young men! We feel confident of their ability to handle their new 2, what they lack in knowledge they will make up for with strength and good humor. As they drive off, my Loving Spouse mumbles a few British ‘blessings’ upon Santana.
We’ve now landed where we wanted to be…at 3.
Benny, (no Jett), Carlos (no Santana), and Smooth. Their cool Rock & Roll names don’t make sense anymore, but we’re okay with that.
As spring comes so do BIG jobs. We were feeling a tad/lot overwhelmed. We had a burden of work to do and little time to do it. It was hanging over our heads. How could we simplify our life?
A Mini-backhoe was dropped off as My Loving Spouse had a hole to dig. Major plans for a new irrigation box. Sounds simple, no? No! Our Handy Man in Training spent most of Saturday down in a muddy hole.
A wooden box with no bottom is replaced with a taller wooden box with a bottom. (Cue applause)
Tightly fitting around the two irrigation pipes was a must. My Loving Spouse builds the box in place with help from the Handy Man in Training and Number Four Son, (who was on a ‘break’ from working with me).
(The hope for the new irrigation box is to force the water up higher in the box. Thereby utilizing gravity to move the water where we want it. No more gas pumps and more control of using our irrigation water for us and our hungry herd.)
The willows were filled with ‘Widow Makers’. It wasn’t safe for the animals and was in dire need of a huge cut back and clean up. (This involves chainsaws and muscles) Number Four Son and Number Four Wife had offered to bless us by coming over for a day to work.
I cannot keep up with all they do, and I am on my tractor.
Agnes and Kirk look on while Number Four uses the back-hoe to scoop up Willow bits left and right.
By the end of the day, My Loving Spouse and I are hitting the ibuprofen and counting our blessings.
-grateful for young hard workers that share themselves with us
-for the amazing progress that was done
– grateful that the tractor is not in the middle of the road, where it was when I ran it out of diesel. (Yes, I do know you’re not supposed to run diesel engines out of fuel. Luckily, My Loving Spouse knows how to fix it, as this might not be the first time this has happened).
My Loving Spouse rebounds from ‘overwhelm’ to…
“Let’s get bees…”
and we are blessed,
especially by those who share themselves with us.
PS: Gunner wants you to know, that camping for a few rainy days was the best part of Spring Break
We do not have an Alexa, mostly because we don’t want one. We do have something on the remote of the TV. It doesn’t work well for us. The first time I tried to use it, nothing worked. Finally the TV got frustrated and a message came up telling me to hold the button down. (Maybe it wasn’t the TV’s first rodeo).
My Loving Spouse’s does not speak ‘American’. As he says, he speaks “The Queen’s English”, which is all well and good unless your TV speaks ‘American’. He tried to tell the TV that he wanted to watch ‘Tough as Nails’. The TV said, “Toss a Snail?”. The Bad British word didn’t work either.
My family had the original Alexa. It was called ‘Hey, Ellen’. ‘Hey, Ellen’ was a more obedient upgrade from their previous model which was called ‘Hey, John’.
‘Hey, Ellen’ what time is it? I would run to the kitchen and report back.
“The big hand is on the 12 and the little hand is on the 5”.
‘Hey, Ellen’ also worked as the TV remote. “Hey, Ellen, change the channel to the 7”
A lot of my kids at school seem to be suffering from ‘Hey, Alexa’ syndrome waiting for someone to spoon feed them the answers. Part of my job in the library is to teach them how to use the library. The older kids get the information they need to figure it out. The little ones get to use the upgraded system called, “Hey, Miss Ellen”, because I just want them to love books and technology cannot replace that.
We just got speakers for the house, so I could enjoy more music than the phone in my back pocket provides. We asked one of our young techy friends to tell us what to get. We’re now trying hard to not ask him how to make them work.
I am on a steep learning curve. The dog will be happy to know that on night 2 he won’t have to listen to piano music all night. I’ve figured out how to switch the kitchen one off, when I’m trying to listen to the sewing room one. There’s a fair chance I will do a bit of yelling at them, but as we didn’t get the Alexa ones it won’t really help.
I bought a jelly roll on sale. Not the kind of jelly roll you eat, the kind of jelly roll you sew.
I wish I’d planned to blog about it when I started, but planning is often a ‘hindsight’ thing.
Hang in there with me, because I think this quilt could be stunning.
I randomly sewed 5 jelly roll strips together, then cut 10 inch squares, along side a white on white 10 inch square.
With right sides together sew a .25 inch seam all the way around the square.
If you are honestly going to make a quilt like this, I’d advise you to follow this link for much better directions than mine, (possibly because they planned it out). Carefully make two cuts exactly across the square from one corner to the other. (I didn’t think of showing you this part until after it was done, so it will look a little different when you do it.)
Get ready for the “Ta Da” moment…
Is this cool or what? (Could be no one says ‘cool’ anymore, but I don’t care).
Even if you don’t say ‘cool’ anymore, you might admit this is.
There are all kinds of designs one can make simply by turning the squares in different direction. I had my quilt all laid out, but then decided to show you just some of the options with these squares. So here we go.
And turned this way…
There is something about each one that I like..these are only a few. Chevrons and diamonds are a few of the many other options.
After making all these changes, I’ve confused myself. My Loving Spouse likes a simple triangle best and I put some thought to where each color pattern should lie.
Now I’ll finish it off, delighted to be able to be on my feet and sew and design again, after the accident.
The only question now is, who is it for? Do you know someone who needs or wants a quilt? If so, let me know…perhaps it is time for another give away. I love giving….
We’ve found another kid to love, the son of a friend. When he learned we lived here, he told his mom, “I’d like to work there and learn stuff”. After the flying incident , we needed a little help. Meet Glory Farm’s ‘Handy Man In Training’.
December 4th:
He got his first lesson in tiling. He caught on quickly, tiling half of the long back wall of the new shower. My Loving Spouse loves working with him. Unfortunately for us, the holidays came and the Handy Man In Training went to visit his Grandparents in Hawaii, (he’s no dummy).
Dec. 18th:
The ‘A Team’ gets back to work. I can tile in hour long sessions with a little help from My Loving Spouse. In my learning curve I seem to spread mastic everywhere, so some help at this stage is appreciated.
Are you wondering why we don’t get more done when we’re ‘at it’?
Jan. 6
We get the big wall done. Tile saws use water and spray cold water on your hands with each tile cut. This shower has a LOT of cuts.
The weather is winter. As in approximately 23 degrees or so, give or take 7 degrees in either direction. The water in the tile saw has to be emptied after every session, because it freezes. Cutting the tiles on the porch and getting damp gets one very cold. It can only be done for so long. No one would plan to tile a big project in winter, but then we didn’t exactly plan it this way either.
We get a few more walls finished and by Jan. 16 ‘we’ tackle the niche. The Bad British Word shows up during this phase.
Jan. 17
My Loving Spouse heads out for the day to pick up a replacement propeller for his flying machine as the other propeller became unusable in the flying ‘incident’. I tackle the last wall and the fiddly cutting bits. My Loving Spouse gets home in time to do the fancy cuts.
That was when we found it. The tile we’d been looking for all along, the last one!
A quick look back to why we built this shower….
Yes, we have a bit more to do….
grout, grout and grout….
Add the window, a final bit of plumbing and painting,
but I can almost feel that warm towel soon.
Stay tuned. I can’t wait for the grand finale…and we are blessed.
We’re not really ‘New Year’s Eve’ kind of people. For me New Year’s eve parties are a tiny bit over rated. I usually want to go home by 9:30 or 10:00 and have to try and figure out how to keep acting ‘pleasant’ for 2-3 more hours.
On Dec. 28th we headed off to Salt Lake City bright and early, as it was an 11-12 hour drive. It was snowing as we left, so we’d carefully packed winter gear (sleeping bags, woolly hats and gloves, boots and snacks, well, I should say ‘extra’ snacks) just in case.
The plan was to stay for two days.
Our hotel was right near all kinds of stores.
Oh, my gosh….Barnes & Noble….
Sportsman’s Warehouse….
Best Buy…
Lowes, what do we need? Grout, stop there for sure.
We didn’t go for the stores we went to see My Other Girl and Number 5 Son and our Little Miss. My Loving Spouse needed to bring her a little Teddy Bear for Christmas, just like the one he was given many years ago. There were tears in his eyes, when she got it.
We headed home on New Year’s eve at 6:30 am with lite snow and lite traffic. We planned to be home by 6:00 pm, it was a mere 700 miles and then at 2:30 with only 218 miles left to go, we got invited to a ‘Grand’ New Year’s Eve Party.
“Hwy closed at Le Grande”.
Stuck in Le Grande, Oregon. Check the map, there are no other routes nearby. We filled up the car and secured our spot in the parking lot at the Flying J truck stop, and watched the other invitees roll in. We listened to our book (The Woman in Cabin 10) and mentally recalculated what time we were going to get home. The party had drinks courtesy of the party supply store (Flying J).
The party had a dance floor and everyone did ‘the’ dance. Showcasing their moves as they made their way across the ice and snow when crossing the parking lot attempting to stay upright.
The weather was…cold and got colder. Instead of tracking the minutes dropping until the New Year, My Loving Spouse was tracking the temperature dropping to -17 at the lowest point. I’d unrolled my sleeping bag, but we were fine in our Hybrid car, which ran all night keeping us warm.
We had our own New Year’s Eve ‘ball’ high in the sky…
Which fortunately for us did not fall down.
On one of my trips to the bathroom and the ‘party store’, I bought our traditional New Year’s breakfast item. (32 years now, this has been the staple. Don’t ask me why, because they really aren’t good, but it is a tradition).
We did see the new year in. All night we were wondering, when we could leave and/or when should we leave. At 5:30 am the biggest party goers started up their Semi-trucks and began to pull out. At 6:30 am we said goodbye to our ‘Host’ and crept back onto the hwy. The sun was coming out and as we drove up the mountain we were grateful for a clear road we had all to ourselves.
We arrived home after 28 hours since we started our journey, tired and happy to be home.
Most people wouldn’t plan this kind of trip, but as you know by now, we might not be ‘most people’. Was it worth it?
Absolutely.
The kids were grateful we’d made the journey and happy to see us.
The best part was being able to be a help to them. Sharing the knowledge and experience of our years in the Real Estate business. Assisting them in making a plan, and helping them get ready for their next step in buying their first house.
I had a goal this year to read 50 books. I don’t finish books I don’t like, they’re a waste of time. I should say I had a goal to finish 50 books this year.
Here are a few of my favorites…
Ghosted My favorite book of this year. Well written, the characters are believable and likable. I recommend it to all my reading friends and buy it as gifts. I don’t want to say more….just trust me.
The Bookish Life of Nina Hill In a word, ‘delightful’. You don’t have to work at a book store or library to enjoy this book, but if you do, well, it’s just even better. Another gift giving delight!
The Perfect Girl my first time reading Gilly MacMillan and not my last. Thoroughly enjoyed this page turner.
The Quiet Girl The author’s first book, which is a problem as I want to read more of their work….now.
A Prisoner of Birth A return to a classic, My Loving Spouse and I actually ‘listened’ to this book on tape during our adventures on Tally Ho this summer. One of my Jeffery Archer favorites.
A Piece of Cake is a tad long, but the memoir of Cupcake’s life is something most of us middle class folks could not believe. I felt I owed it to her to complete the book.
Becoming Duchess Goldblatt I did not realize at first that this was a non-fiction book. It reads like a novel. The book is a mix of humor and sorrow.
Good Dog, McTavish a quick read aloud for you to share with your favorite 8-11 year old.
Chickens to the Rescue grab a couple of little kids, read them Chickens to the Rescue and just enjoy all the giggles.
51 of the books I read came from either the library, a friend or was bought at our local book store. 3 ebooks were purchased on Amazon. I can’t think of anything worse than not having a book store or a library around, so this is my shameless plug for you to use them.
Being laid up, after breaking my back, certainly helped me surpass my reading goal.
I’ve another week off of work and Number Two Son just gave me a great new book for Christmas, so who knows….55?
What were your favorite books this year?
Most importantly thank you for coming along beside me and may you all have a
It was slated as the ‘Ladies Christmas Tea’ at our ‘new’ (as of a year) church. They needed volunteers to help decorate a table. Throw a few decorations on it and bring in a few good dishes, is what I assumed.
I was wrong, and yet I did it anyway.
The list of instructions was a page long. As I read the list, I went into tea table decorating anxiety mode. However, two things happened, as I reviewed the instructions. Betty (my mom) had given me almost everything I needed and she’d be delighted to know that the stuff was getting used. I also now had the opportunity to be creative. Not only be creative, but be creative for others.
I ordered a three tier stand and made a new Christmas runner.
I wanted to make an ornament as a ‘take away’. I’d already had the words that spoke to me, especially this year. I’d been saving wooden spools, because I knew I’d need them ‘someday’. Then I turned to My Librarian for a second opinion and help finding just the right font, because the right font always matters. (If you don’t understand that, I can’t explain it to you).
As I gather everything on the list, I know Betty is beaming.
Water glasses – ‘Betty & Joe’s’ old gin & tonic glasses
White luncheon china – from the family (Jensen) ranch, which makes it very old
red napkins – graced many a Christmas table set by Betty
Sterling silver – Betty’s Rosepoint
teapot – The one My Loving Spouse’s mother bought him, as she couldn’t believe he didn’t have a ‘proper’ teapot in America
The greens cut from the fir outside
The angel garland purchased at the Ely Cathedral in England on our first trip together.
The wine glasses…purchased quickly that morning by My Loving Spouse as we have a habit of breaking them. What can I say, when you use something they don’t always last.
My table was actually one of the simplest, but I didn’t mind. I enjoyed how much my Mom would have loved it and how it was a reflection of me. The treats were delicious, but luckily someone else signed up for that job.
The time with the ladies was worth it all. The tea gave me a chance to do something for others, be creative and helped me find my Christmas spirit…
After living for most of my 50++ years in the suburbs of Southern California with pools and sidewalks, I am now living on a farm in the Pacific Northwest with animals and dirt…and having the time of my life! Change is good….and I am blessed.
Retirement brought the end of our time at Glory Farm and a move to Scotland...To God Be The Glory
