Top Five and music from the Farmer

Since this month marks our one year anniversary of moving to Alabama, I thought I would post the five most read stories of the year. Have a good laugh at my expense.


How To Have A Really Fun Sunday

I Need To Stay Away From Anything With Water In It

Gardening is Dangerous

No Respect

The Sky Is Falling

Just in case you have not seen it, enjoy the musical talent of the crazy farmer lady....

Morning On The Farm

One

It has been one year this month since we moved from Alaska to Alabama. One year since we bought our house and completely changed the way we live. We went from living on an Air Force Base like sardines to wide open spaces and a house in the country. We have turned our land into a small hobby farm. We have a simple life filled with blessings. I am so thankful.



When we moved in , the house and land was a blank slate. There was no landscaping or plants at all.
We put in a 50 foot walkway with slate stepping stones and and framed it with gardenias, camellias, rosemary and various other plants.



We planted over 200 tulip and daffodil bulbs around the front of the house. We also put in hydrangeas, jasmine, wisteria, hibiscus, rosemary, crepe myrtles, columbine and various other perennials. Of course, it is fall now and everything is going dormant. I can't wait for spring. It will be so beautiful.


Above is where we put in a vegetable garden. There was quite a bit of clearing to get done before we could even till and plant.

The garden is about 50 x 50. In a few weeks we will fence the garden in and put a nice gate on the front. We will let the pigs in to till everything up and get the garden ready for me to plant in the spring.
We cut down 98 trees around the property. Many of the trees were in danger of falling on the house. The others were cleared to make room to put in a orchard and pasture. The above picture is what the orchard area looked like after cutting the trees down. We had so much clearing to do that it took almost 3 months.


This is after clearing. Grass has started to grow in where there was only moss.


We have planted 16 fruit trees and transplanted a magnolia tree.


My next project for this area is to put in a walkway and sitting area. I'm also thinking about putting in a small garden pond and fountain.



Above is what the pasture area looked like before we cut down the trees.


After we cut down the trees and had a barn installed.


This is now. The area has been cleared and we put up a fence. We still have a lot of stumps to deal with but they will be gone soon. I love how green everything has become.



We also picked up a few animals along the way.













































All the hard work has been worth it. Our family has grown closer, we have all become stronger in many ways, and we are seeing the fruit of our labor. Our whole way of life has changed and I would not want it any other way. I am so thankful for our blessings.

Lum and Princess

I have not posted for a while because we have been working our tails off. We have put up a fence, cleaned out and organized the barn, and cleared the pasture of dangerous weeds and "treasure" we keep finding all over the property.
Lee got me these two boot planters for my birthday. I fell in love with them. They look like a pair of worn boots. Specifically, Lee's old boots. Every time I look at them I think about him and smile. They frame the walk in gate nicely. We did all this work to get ready for.......


These big guys.

Lee went home to Arkansas to pick up these sweet horses from his dad. Meet Lum. He is a pure Missouri Fox Trotter. He is just beautiful and so loving. He melts me. He is named after Lum from the Lum and Abner comedy radio show. The show took place from 1932-1954 in a fictional town, Pine Ridge, Arkansas.

This is Princess. Princess is just a sweet and beautiful girl. Her name suits her well. She is 1/2 fox trotter and 1/2 mustang. She is pure sugar.


Both horses come right up to us every time we go in the pasture and expect to get lots of pats and neck rubs. They are spoiled already.
They are both such a welcome and long-wanted addition to our farm. Expect lots of pictures and tons of gushing over them for a while. They are worth every sore muscle and blister it took to get them here.

Let's Hear it for Bachelor Number Two!

Meet our next bachelor, Butter. He likes going for long walks in tall green grass, head-butting on Friday nights, and loves beards on his does.

He is a young buck but prefers older does. Hopefully he will be well-received by our bacheloretts. They are hard to please and need a buck to that is able to hold his own.

Unlike

Our Last Bachelor

So far so good. Both girls acted like love-sick teenagers. They were flagging their tails, curling lips, nuzzling noses and May kept doing this thing with her tongue. Weirdo. I don't think she has put her tongue back in her mouth since Thursday.

I pray that all goes well and we will have babies (and especially milk) in the spring.

Let's hope our buck can perform under pressure.

Church

There is a sign not too far away right off the highway that says; "Go to church, or the Devil will get you." I'm not sure that is the best route to take but it certainly does stick with you. What interesting church signs are in your area?

This can't be good.

Lydia Brenner: Maybe we ought to leave.

Mitch Brenner: No, not now. Not while they're massing out there.

Lydia Brenner: When?

Mitch Brenner: We'll just see what happens.

Lydia Brenner: Where will we go?

Mitch Brenner: I don't know. We're safe here for the time being...

Lydia Brenner: What happens when you run out of wood?

Mitch Brenner: I don't know. We'll break up the furniture.

These birds are really freaking me out. They are congregating in a tree right behind my house. There were hundreds. I got them on video just as they were quieting down. I think I'll hole up in the house for a while. *shudder*

Furious. Sickened. Praying.

Enjoy...

The cute and cuddly kittens because they are the last.


They got spayed today. 5 cats are more than enough for the farm. We don't want any more "oops" moments. They are outside cats but must stay inside for several days so they can heal.
Sometimes good things come from accidents. We sure do love them.

Remind me of that at 2 in the morning when they won't stop meowing and jumping on my counters. They are already driving us nuts.

The sky is falling

Once upon a time there was a very masculine chicken named Henrietta. One day, Henrietta was squawking by the side of the house and throwing a hissy fit because she could not get back under the porch to lay her eggs when something hit her on her head. She immediately started running and clucking wildly as if to yell, "The sky is falling, the sky is falling!"

Of course, all of her commotion got the attention of the other hens and they came running to see what was the matter. What could it be? Did a chunk of sky fall and crash to the earth? Is the world going to end? Everyone stared at the gaping hole in the earth and tried to figure out if they were doomed.

Henrietta clucked that first something went and stole all her eggs, then something covered up the hole she used to get under the house, she was hit in the head and now there is a massive crater in the earth. We're doomed! We're all going to die!

Run for your lives!

Or maybe the crazy farmer lady just dug up a magnolia tree and hit the shemale chicken in the head with a piece of dirt. It was purely accidental but then the crazy farmer lady hoped that maybe it would simmer the hysterical chicken down and convince her to go lay her eggs in the barn like a normal chicken.

It didn't.

Maybe I should rename her Chicken Little. Or Chicken Licken.

If she does not calm down, I'm gonna order some Zanex.