Muddling through, clean up, home searches, prayer focus

Friday night at RU seemed to go smoothly in spite of the fact that neither Mama nor I were feeling  up to it. Even though we had our normal crew there seemed to be a contentedness with the twins and Braden – all of whom are normally quite a handful. This coming Friday night we will have only two if the twins and their family get to go on the vacation they are anticipating. The night will also fall on a non-work day since I will be off both Thursday and Friday.

Mama and I spent Saturday morning cleaning up on the farm. I edged the buildings and Mama mowed the horse lot. When I had done all I could handle with the weed eater I loaded a fridge from the old farmhouse to take to Mike and Ida. We learned on Friday night that their fridge was on the fritz. The one we took was not a particularly pretty one, but it has worked for us for the past three years and hopefully it will give them some good service.

Since we were out that way we took the time to go look at a house in Paradise. TX. The house was an eye catcher sitting on ten acres. Since we had gotten Mama a map of the county we let her navigate. As it turned out we made only one wrong turn and had to backtrack to see the house. We were just doing a drive-by so we did not stay long, besides there seemed to be a good bit of activity at the house. Even though I would like to see abiding war between buyers of our farm (wishful thinking), I do not want to participate in one for the property we will buy.

The house was everything the pictures led us to believe, but ultimately it is too far and a little too difficult to find to be practical for us. It is far too easy to get turned around on the back roads in that area and we are trying to make ourselves more accessible in this move. Even though the house was nice, the property had nothing on it other than a perimeter fence.  It was only twelve miles from the church but the way you have to come through Decatur it took over twenty minutes to get to the church. All in all, it was not something we are going to pursue.

After church last night Victoria had me drive by the property off of 380, north of Decatur. She really likes that property but I remain less inspired. When I asked what she liked about it she said it was “magical” to her – just like our farm. I admit that that is a rare quality but it does not lighten the amount of work required to make the house livable or the building serviceable.

I talked to the pastor Friday evening and asked his advice on how to pray for the sale and move. He referred to the verse that says “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way.” Ps 37:23 If God will only reveal one step at a time, the first step is finding a buyer for the farm. So that is where we will focus our prayer efforts. Letting God show us the right property to buy will follow next.

I response to those prayers our realtor is coming today to put up signs (that he has specially made) on the farm. These signs normally take three weeks to get done but he got them in only one week this time. I am anxious to see what he has for us when I get home this evening. While he is in the area he is going to take us to see the log home that started us on the quest to sell the farm and get us closer to the church.

I will meet him and Mama there at lunchtime today.

Home again, memories, work ahead

Mama and I got home yesterday about 4 pm. It was a productive and enjoyable trip to Borger/Amarillo. All the needed moves happened in the Borger office without a trace of a bad attitude. The building owner and the building superintendent (both difficult persons) were pleased with the move and the young men that did the physical work were very cordial and professional. All in all, it was a great close to a very vexing problem.

On the drive home the Lord brought to my memory a property Mama, Grandpa and I had looked at with the realtor that helped us but the farm. I described the property as best I could but Mama had no recollection. I remembered it being very close to Decatur and quite a mess with junk piled up everywhere.  I had no idea why it came to mind but it was an intriguing thought.

Only an hour after we got home we took off to Decatur to look at a home and property. Lo and behold, it was the very property the Lord had brought to mind earlier that day. This time it was significantly cleaned up although there is still a good amount of junk still there. Mama still does not remember us looking at it three years ago. Oddly enough, even though the house has been vacant for six years and has been on the market for a couple years, there has been little activity at the property; until yesterday. We were one of two prospective buyers to see it on the same day. I am interested but have no idea whether or not the Lord is. Time will tell.

Our farm should be listed this weekend. The realtor who we are listing with is doing a top notch job of getting the word out. He is even making up special signs to put on the property for the tire kickers who will drive by to check it out. Mama and I are both apprehensive and excited about the listing and potential sale. We are both dreading the packing and move; her more so than me.

Mama was happy to get home yesterday and see all her “babies”; bovine, fowl and canine. While she tended to her brood I laid back in the recliner and slept for half an hour. For me it was an exhausting three nights in a hotel. The hotel itself was nice enough but the bed was softer than I need and there were few alternatives. I slept the first part of each night on a small couch in the room. It was not overly comfortable either. Add to that the trouble I have had sleeping lately and it ended up being some long nights with little sleep, but we got by.

This weekend and the next several weeks will be spent on dressing up our little property; mowing, brush hogging, weed eating and spraying weeds; all in an effort to showcase the farm. Although none of that was done for us when we bought the place there are not a plethora of persons who are willing to see past the obvious flaw and focus on the hidden beauties of such a purchase. Our realtor tells us we only need one.

I suppose that’s a good way to look at it.

Borger/Amarillo, Chase and Makaila, property search

Mama and I have been in Borger for the past couple days. I am overseeing the personnel moves in the office here. It is finally good to get the move done since we have been back and forth with one offer and a counter offer after another between my manager and the building owner for the better part of two years. When I can check this off of my list it will bring some welcome closure.

Mama and I visited with Chase and Makaila last night for an hour or so and had a really good visit. Makaila has painted their apartment in orange, turquoise, grey and blue. It sounds pretty wild when describing it that way but is looks pretty good the way the walls are coordinated and accessorized. They are doing really well materially but we are still a little apprehensive for them spiritually.

Makaila has painted several pieces of furniture in their apartment and the work she does is pretty exceptional. It is not the kind of color scheme that Mama are normally search for but the detail and color selection shows both her talent and her training. She and Chase are also riding bikes on some hilly trails on the south side of Amarillo and seem to be enjoying the exercise and the activity overall.

Mama is planning a trip to Amarillo today. She has scheduled a visit with Mrs. Patrick – probably over lunch. It is the highlight of the trip for both of them. Mrs. Patrick is losing her memory pretty rapidly so she becomes confused and disoriented every little bit. It takes a gentle heart to spend the day with her and not become frustrated helping her keep up with the activity at hand. With respect to that, Mama is one of the few people Mrs. Patrick’s daughters will allow to take her out of the house for a short trip.

Mama and I are planning on going to a church here in Borger tonight. I did not want to make the trip to Amarillo for services because we do not get back until almost 11 pm when we go to Central Baptist and visit then drive the hour back to the hotel. As it is we have been pretty late getting to bed for the past several nights and I am starting to feel the effects of the loss of sleep.

If all goes well, we should be headed home tomorrow, but I will not know for sure until we see how far the movers get today. Yesterday they got ten offices completed. We have another eight to complete today; along with setting up the file areas and cubicles. So far everyone is satisfied with the change. Most are thankful for the way I laid out the seating – they can tell I spent time considering personal and professional needs in the arrangement.

Mama is setting up with a realtor in Decatur to see a couple houses on Saturday. There are a couple we are interested in seeing if only to cross them off our short list. Our timing may be a little off since we have not even formally listed the farm but all the homes with property we are looking at have been listed for over a year so there does not seem to be a sense of urgency in making a formal offer.

I cannot imagine the difficult position a realtor is in when a home has been on the market for a year or two without an offer because the price is too high or the property is so unique (either in location or design) that it is hard to find a buyer. Most of the properties we are looking at are in one of those two categories.

These showing would seem an exercise in futility; at least to me.

Rain, house hunting, insurance complications

We are starting to get a lot of rain at the farm. On Sunday morning we got close to three inches and this morning we got another two inches or better. Both times the rain was being blown in sideways. It is making a huge difference in the look of the farm; bringing it to the lush green we have not seen, except in our mind’s eye, since we bought it. It vastly improves the visual effect for our potential sale.

Of course, we cringe every time the rains come because we have not yet made the full repairs to the roof yet. I did patch the holes with some roofing tar in order to hold back the majority of the rain and so far it has proved effective, but that does not keep me and Mama from worrying every time the wind blows the rain onto the shop and apartment and the last two rains have been hard driven rains.

Mama and I went out soul winning Saturday morning and had several really good visits but it was Victoria that got someone to come to church with us. She invited one of the girls her age that had gone to the fingernail party with her Friday night and we picked her up on our way Sunday morning. After the service she met with the Pastor and got assurance of her salvation. It was a great morning.

We even took her along with us since we had been invited out to lunch after church. The couple that had us over is just beginning over in life – spiritually, physically and materially. They fed us out of their meager supply (happily adding the extra person to the meal) and it was a wonderful time of fellowship. Our guest really enjoyed it also.

Saturday evening Mama found a property that I thought we worth the time to do a drive by. It was pretty late in the evening but there was still plenty of light and I had finished all I was going to be able to do, so we took a small road trip. What we found was definitely worth a second look. We will probably set it up for Saturday afternoon to meet with a realtor to get a closer look. I have not been told yet.

Having lived on the farm for two years now and having invested the money, sweat and emotional energy we have it is difficult to imagine living elsewhere. However much we may be able to get in the new property we find and purchase there will be some corresponding loss in what we will leave behind on the farm. This is difficult process for Mama and me but I know God is in it.

On Friday I submitted a question to the lender on our mobile home. Since it is the focus of the insurance we have on the farm they are considered a concerned party in the disbursement of funds from our insurer. I got a standard answer through a return email so Friday afternoon I called for clarification. It was not a warm, helpful conversation.

I will call back this morning to see if I can get the help I need in order to get the money released for our use. I have been praying all weekend for the wisdom and favor of God in the conversation.

Home again, listing the farm, repairs

Now that my trip to Houston is over I can get back into the groove of routine – more or less. I did get to spend a few hours with Grandma and Grandpa Kline while I was in the area. I stopped on the way down to Houston and again on the way back. On the way down we visited for several hours but in the way back we only had an hour or so to visit; mostly over breakfast.

Mama is in a tizzy right now. We are scheduled to meet with a realtor this morning. He is going to list the farm for us so we have spent a fair amount of time getting the apartment and mobile home ready for pictures. Hopefully the farm will be showing on the regular realty web sites early next week. The only problem with the realtor we are listing the farm with is that he is out of Denton so it is a haul for him to show the farm. The reason we chose to give him first shot is that farm sales are something he specializes in. Not many realtors work in that nitch market.

We, Mama and I, are still both wrestling with the sale of the farm. Both of us see the need to be closer to the church, but neither of us wants to let go of the farm. Part of the angst is that we have not found anything else to take the place of the farm in all the searches Mama and Victoria have made.

Mama, Victoria and I looked at a property on Tuesday morning before I left for Houston. The property was fantastic. The home on the property was horrible – and the price was more than we can realistically afford. The time spent was not entirely wasted because the realtor we met impressed Mama enough that we will consider her first when we look at a property in Decatur.

I am perhaps more resolved to the financial constraints we will face in the purchase of another property than either Mama or Victoria so yesterday I asked that they would limit their searches to properties under the amount we can afford so we do not agonize over those that we cannot afford. Both agreed to the restriction so we should be getting closer to finding a suitable property.

Mama’s little chickens are about two thirds grown now. They are getting to the point where we can think about letting them mingle with the older portion of the flock. Since we gave away the rooster and five hens, that integration may actually go more smoothly than if the rooster was present. I am no chicken whisperer but the theory will be tested soon enough.

The insurance adjuster called yesterday to tell us that a check would be coming to us for the maximum amount we are allowed in such cases -10% of the insurance coverage on the mobile home or $3950. It will more than complete the needed repairs but it was a wakeup call to me to increase our coverage since it is far too little to cover the loss since we have built the shop and apartment.

When all the dust settles on this we will have to talk to our insurance agent and get that coverage adjusted.

Weekend update

I spent the day Saturday working on the surround above the shower on the apartment. We bought the tile and accent piece while we were in Florida a couple months ago and I just now saw the opportunity to assemble the pieces. I did get all the tile in and got the shower back in use but it took considerably more work than I had anticipated. I was thoroughly worn out by the time I got done. I will have to go back later this week to grout the joints and do the final seal of the surround.

Father’s Day was pleasant and uneventful. I got calls and cards from our children and a book from the church in celebration of the day. It is always nice to hear from our children a reassuring note that we did not mess up too badly at parenting.

Mama and Victoria found a property in the area I am most interested in relocating to but the price they are asking is much higher than I have been planning for. It is certainly a beautiful place and the location is just about perfect. It is a struggle to find the right combination of location and price with the features we are seeking. It is even a greater struggle for me to have to consider a thirty year mortgage at my age. Thought it is not at all uncommon, I am not convinced that is prudent.

I am a little concerned that the quest is starting to affect my sleep. I have been having serious trouble sleeping for several months now. I will have a couple good nights if sleep followed by several very troubled nights where I might get four or five hours of sleep – mostly in the very early morning. It has been many years since I have struggled with sleep. Whether the events are related or not is still a matter to be sorted out by prayer – another thing I am having difficulty finding time to do.

On the brighter side Mama and Victoria dug potatoes this weekend. I did not make it over to the garden to see how far into the rows they actually got but what they brought to the kitchen was pretty encouraging. I did not expect there to be either the volume or the size of potatoes but it looks like this will be a banner year for them. It might make up for the pea crop we lost.

On Sunday we took several chickens to a new family at church. They recently moved into the area and have been resurrecting a small farm. The wife and Mama have talked for several weeks about the transfer and we just now were able to coordinate the timing. However, it was more of an undertaking than I had thought it would be.

Mama and Victoria caught the hens and the rooster on Saturday morning thinking the couple would be coming to the farm to fetch the starter flock. As the day wore on the rooster and a couple of the hens managed to escape the dog cage they had been put in. Late in the day we found out that the couple would not be able to come and the arrangement was made to meet in Decatur Sunday morning.

So at roosting time Mama and Victoria went to the coop again and caught the rooster and hen that had originally been in the group to be transported and they were once again put in the cage. The cage was then put in the back of the truck. About an hour later Mama read the weather forecast. It called for thundershowers through the night. So the cage with the chickens was moved into the shop – just in case. The rooster woke Mama at 5 a.m. with his usual welcome to the morning. Since he was I the shop we got the full effect of his crowing.

It did not start raining until Sunday morning but Mama and I loaded the cage back into the bed of the truck and the “poor chickens” had to hunker down and travel the best they could as we drove in the rain to Decatur.

Mama felt so bad for those poor birds.

Insurance, shopping, pecking orders, lots of work ahead

The insurance adjuster is coming to the farm today to survey the damage to our roof. I have held off on too many repairs in order to leave the scars from the damage clearly visible but after he looks it over I will seal it up thoroughly in so I do not have to cringe every time it rains. I will replace the damaged panels soon but it will have to wait until I have the money and the time to do so. I am praying that insurance will help with the money part. Chase and Makaila, by the way, made out very well on the car they totaled recently.

We are scheduled to look at another property tonight before RU. I do not think I have looked at this this property listing online but Mama assures me that I have. It is south of Decatur. I really wanted to be north of Decatur but we are not finding anything in the price range we are willing to pay. We are trying to be very careful to let go of what we have only under the right circumstances.

I found a property listed on the website of the lender who holds the note to the farm. It too was south of town a few miles from the farm we will look at tonight. Unfortunately we will not have time to see both because of prior commitments, but I am considering taking my lunch hour to go to see that property. I have not gotten permission from Mama yet.

The realtor we agreed to list the farm with has not gotten back in touch with us for the paperwork he will need to start the listing. I realize it is a challenge to sell a farm these days but that is the role he has chosen; I can only hope he is up to the challenge.

As I went around spraying wasp nests on various structures I noticed the rooster and one of the guineas fighting. I got Mama’s attention and she and I watched as the pair continued to spar. I can only guess that the rooster won the contest because the guineas would not go into the coop last night. It will only be a matter of time now before we lose them because they will have to roost in the trees somewhere nearby.

Mama has mixed emotions about the outcome because she likes having the guineas but they have terrorized that poor rooster for months. Now that he has his spurs eh was able to put them in their place – outside of his coop.

This weekend I will finish the trim in the apartment and begin tile work on the shower. We are doing some deep cleaning of areas we have let go too long. That is one of the reasons I think everyone should move at regular intervals. It motivates us to take a hard look at what things we are accumulating and what areas we are neglecting. If only it did not take a move or the prospect of a move to motivate us to do what has been needed all along.

I finally got some much needed rest last night. I am not sure why I am having trouble sleeping. We have been through the struggles of listing and selling property, packing and moving our belongings, prepping a place for showing to prospective buyers, etc.  It very well could be those things interrupting my rest but it seems like something more.

Time will tell.

Egg hunts, dry runs, more rain

It seems that every day is Easter on our farm. Even though Mama was mostly dressed for church last night she had to go on an egg hunt to gather what had been laid that day. Since we divided the coop in order to allow the little ones to grow to full size in a protected area the mature hens and rooster have been unhappy with the arrangement.

Now the hens are laying in a wheelbarrow in the barn, in a pile of hay in the hog building and in a recess by the equipment in the calf lot. At least those are the places Mama has discovered so far. We have been down on the total count of eggs both because of the discontent of the hens and the way they are laying in so many locations. Even I get confused.

We left Bowie quite early last night so we could look at a house just north of Decatur. It is not quite what we are looking for but the price and the attached acreage were within the range we are considering. When we got a good look at the property we were very disappointed. It is obvious why the house has been on the market for over a year.

The house is nice enough but it is smaller and less finished than many in the area. The acreage is a total bust. It is a very rocky area with very little depth of soil. The bulk of the property that goes with the house is a gully and the only really usable land has a battery of oil tanks with a pump jack sitting on it; not exactly what we have in mind for a home – although it could work in Texas. Not only that, but the realtor stood us up.

It was raining pretty hard this morning when I left the apartment. With half of the porch roof missing and the tears in the damaged part of the roof over the apartment I am not confident that the repairs I made on Monday and Tuesday will hold out all the water but they should keep out the vast majority of the rain. I will know later when I get an update from Mama. Pray that we will hear from the insurance company soon so I know what I have to do to fully repair the storm damage.

We are enjoying the rain otherwise. It is much needed. The recent rainfall has our garden looking very good. Mama and Victoria worked in the garden for several hours yesterday and it looks so much better than the withered, weed infested rows we had a week ago. There is still a lot to be done but we are catching up and maybe getting a little ahead.

The rain did not come soon enough to save the blueberry plants I had in the little orchard. I am not sure there is any life left in them but I will water and care for them for another month to see if they will survive. If not, I will give their place to some other plant this fall.

It is an ongoing struggle to get trees started.

Hurting, cleaning, travel plans

The fall and the cleanup efforts of Monday morning have left me very stiff and sore. It is disappointing to be in this shape with so much still needing to be done. I wanted nothing more than to sit still yesterday evening when I got home but I could not. Knowing that we will be listing the farm motivated me to do some cleaning, discarding and rearranging of the shop and the area around it.

I told Mama we need to look with a very critical eye at what we have and where we have it. In order to have the pictures of the farm look half way decent we need to do a major cleaning of the property and buildings – beginning with our living quarters and working our way outward.

With that in mind I started in the shop last night. I only worked a couple hours but I nearly filled the dumpster with things that should have been discarded long ago. My rule of thumb was that if I did not want to pack it up to be moved it should probably be thrown out. It is amazing how much stuff Mama and I have just left lying around; gallon jugs, coffee cans, empty boxes, etc.

It was when I rearranged the shop that Mama really saw what I was getting done. I do not think she made a single trip to the dumpster but she did allow me more latitude than normal to put things into the dumpster. If we are not able to sell the farm, or are not offered enough to make it worthwhile to make the transition, we will at least have a much neater place to develop.

Tonight is church so we have arranged with a realtor to look at a property just outside of Decatur on the way to Denton. This is the ultimate shopping for Mama. Victoria is off today so she will be able to go with us for the initial viewing. She is more ambivalent toward the sale of the farm and resulting relocation. The way I am hurting today makes the idea seem a little more practical.

Mama is working through a travel agent in Victoria, TX to get the tickets we need to fly to Alaska to visit Maggie, Aaron and the baby. I have transferred the money so we should have the tickets in hand this week. The trip is set for some time around the 12^th of September. We are planning a day layover in Seattle, Washington so I can show Mama the northeast coast.

I traveled there with my family many years ago but Mama has never been. With the cost of the flights to AK it will not be a trip we will take very often so we are hoping to capitalize on the time in that part of the United States. We have not set an itinerary for the time either in Alaska or on the stop in Seattle, but we are looking forward to the trip.

On a more immediate note, I have to be in Houston next week for work. I hope to see Grandma and Grandpa Kline while I am down there. Mama may not go with me depending on what needs to be done on the farm to get it ready for pictures but for the moment we are planning on both of us making the trip; leaving Victoria to cover the farm chores.

One day we’ll settle down…maybe.

Rain, ruin and rejoicing

We have finally gotten rain. If I were to guess I would say that we got three inches at the farm yesterday. The only caveat to really enjoying the rain is that when the storm started a microburst tore off part of the porch roof on the apartment and in doing so ripped open a portion of the roof over the apartment.

Mama woke me about 3:30 a.m. Monday morning because there was a two by four knocking against the glass door on the front of our apartment. I had to go outside in the driving rain and bend the bracket holding it to the apartment wall back and forth until it broke free. I was thoroughly soaked in the process – and I nearly broke one toe on my left foot when I tripped and fell in the sloppy mud outside our front door. I was really disturbed by the roof panel that the porch roof had pealed back on the roof over the apartment. It was too dark to tell how bad the damage was but I knew it could be really bad.

I got out of my sopping pajamas and started mopping up the water now coming into the apartment through the ceiling and began to pray that the Lord would ease up the rain so we could hopefully minimize the damage to the apartment. It was a little less than an hour later that the rain let up. By that time Mama and I had wrung our twelve to fifteen gallons of water off the floor of the apartment – one soaked dishtowel at a time.

When it was light enough I finally got to look at the damage to the roof and it was not as bad as I had originally thought. Only one roofing panel had been torn back. About ten feet up on the damaged panel one screw had held the panel from ripping further. Oddly enough, only one screw held the porch roof – which was flipped upside down on the apartment roof - to the damaged roofing panel; one screw.

I got out in the rain and managed to get the lone screw free from the panel and kicked the porch roof off of the apartment roof and onto the ground. I was able to get the panel back in place and fastened down in order to minimize the overall impact to the apartment. All this happened before 6 a.m.

When I knew the roof was sealed as well as possible I pulled the wet insulation out of the ceiling to allow the sheetrock to dry. Mama and I bagged it up and put the six bags in the dumpster. Later this week I will access the sheetrock and see if it needs to be replaced. That is my biggest concern – mainly because I am not good at those types of repairs. For now it looks like the damage was far less than it could have been. We can rejoice in that.

Completely unrelated to what we have been through the past twenty four hours, Mama and I are once again looking to sell the farm and move closer to the church. We found one home on twelve acres that might actually be worth sacrificing the farm for. The one drawback to finding anything we like right now is that it may be challenging – if not impossible – to sell the farm. But we will try and see how much God is in it.

As in times past when we have seriously considered moving we will continue to work on the projects we have laid out at the farm until the Lord really opens the door for us to do otherwise. Either way we are content.

Transport, confusion and blessing

When I got home yesterday afternoon Mama had already separated Daisy from the steers so we could load her for transport to the farm in Decatur so I hooked up the gooseneck stock trailer and moved it into position. I have never used a gooseneck trailer before and it took me three or four tries to get it lined up – but I did finally get it into place. Since we had everything ready we went ahead and got some grain and Daisy walked right into the front of the trailer where I wanted her.

She was not happy about the arrangement. She began to stomp and thrash around. Between temper tantrums she took a bite of the grain Mama had left for her. Her playmates were not at all happy to see her moving away and began bawling and walking along the fence line closest to the apartment. Mama and I were a little worried that they would tear up the fence trying to get to her. I am convinced that they were only interested in the grain she had been given. While she waited in the trailer we ate dinner.

Driving with a gooseneck is different than having a bumper pull trailer and I was a little worried about cutting a corner too close and tearing something up – but that did not happen. We made the trip to Decatur without any mishaps and pulled into the driveway at our destination in record time. Craig Shaw met us there and waved us through a gate into the pasture where the young bull was running with his herd. We opened the gates in the trailer and Daisy May walked right out.

The bull started bellowing and pawing the ground as if he was going to charge and Mama got a little concerned. Bro. Shaw told her not to worry it was just his way of showing off a little – trying to impress the new arrival. He then pranced over to Daisy and began to check her out. She was not nearly as interested as he was so the chase began.

Daisy ran over to the fence where Mama was standing as if to beg for a rescue as the persistent bull followed her around. Bro. Shaw told us that that would go for a couple days as the herd reassessed the pecking order – and as the bull encouraged Daisy into heat. We got back home and I parked the trailer as though I had driven it for years. God really blessed us!

I have no idea what state the steers will be in this morning without their leader but I will get an update later from Mama. They still seemed a little lost when we got home but that too should work itself out over the next couple days. They are creatures of habit and do not react well to any changes in routine. They even are confused by the new posts I have put in one of the fences. They smell them every time they come into that part of the pasture. It is pretty comical.

Mama and I have RU tonight and tomorrow I will be going to soul winning/bus visitation before going to Lee’s house for some music training. He wants to learn the violin and I want to learn the guitar so we are going to coach each other as we pick up new skills. I am not sure how long we will meet together but it should be fun and productive.

The hard part is giving up a Saturday.

Home again, visitors, breeding program, farm news

It was good to get home last night. I had fully expected to be in offsite meetings today but was excused from the portion of the proceedings this morning. I left after our “team-building” exercise; which is just another way to say we played a round of golf as a group. I did not play but rather rode around with my boss and two of my peers as they frustrated themselves. It was a very picturesque place to spend the morning – albeit I have no interest in the sport supporting that venue.

When I got home Mama had a group of three little ones laid down for a nap. They are the children of a younger couple at our church. The wife plays the piano and the husband runs the Master’s Club program. The oldest – about five years old – is mildly autistic so he can be a handful at times. Yesterday was not one of those times. The only drawback to yesterday’s visit to the farm is that the temperature was near one hundred degrees.

The kids went outside anyway and they really seemed to enjoy the farm, the animals and the two living areas. I am not sure what was going through their minds as we went back and forth between the apartment and the mobile home but they really seemed to get a kick out of the variety and expanse. We turned them over to their daddy after church and both Mama and Victoria were sad to see them go.

This evening I am planning on loading up our lone heifer and taking her to visit a young bull. One of the families at church has the young bull in a small holding area and offered us his services for Daisy May. Mama is excited to get her bred so we can have babies born on the farm. It is certainly the slowest way possible to build a herd but it will be fun to see our own calves be born at the farm. At least we have a breeding program started.

The little piglets are getting better. They have been to the vet twice now; once for diagnosis and initial treatment and once for a follow-up. They are scheduled for one further appointment next week. It is costing me a small fortune but they are finally on the mend and looking better.

Mama and I spent the evening Monday fixing up her little flower garden. We rooted out all the weeds and put down landscape fabric and mulch. It was a dramatic change. Mama is very pleased with the finished effect. Of course, we came up short on landscape fabric so there is still a small portion to complete, but overall it looks very nice. Maybe it will look that way for a while.

We are struggling to keep the garden watered in this heat and wind but it also looks pretty healthy so far. We are harvesting zucchini and summer squash already. The tomatoes are not doing well in the heat regardless of how we water them. Next year I may put them in a little shelter like I have the peppers and squash in. That seems to be making a big difference for the plants inside the shade and windbreak the shelter provides.

Without some rain I will have to start feeding out hay this week – especially to the horses.

Rough weekend, chores, traveling again

Mama, Victoria and I had a pretty rough weekend. I came home not feeling very well; some type of stomach bud. Mama got it that night and spent the night up and down between trips to the bathroom and trying to rest. We were blessed that we had a pretty small group for RU Friday night – only the twins and baby Fiona. Neither of us was feeling up to too much more than that. Victoria got the bug the following day and spent most of the day Saturday and all day Sunday in bed recuperating. I hope everyone is okay now but it made the weekend pretty disappointing.

We did get a few little things done over the weekend. Mama and I went early to Brad, TX. It is about an hour drive south of Bowie near Possum Kingdom Lake. I had come across and ad for posts and we wanted to check out what the man had. It was well worth the trip. The older couple marketing the posts made the visit and purchase delightful. We came home with forty three inch cedar posts and another twenty stays. The posts will be used to strengthen the fence and the stays will be used to place in areas where the fence is sagging but otherwise not too bad.

I closed off half of the chicken coop so Mama could let her little ones out of the cage they have outgrown. Most of them were happy about the liberation but a couple were very slow to vacate the cage they have called home for a month. I had to set up extra roosts in the open part of the coop but the chickens are slow to adapt to the change. They prefer roosting on the nesting boxes; Mama will have to clean them out much more often until I reopen the other half of the coop.

While Mama and Victoria bathed the pigs I put in two of the posts we had bought earlier that day. Later we worked in the garden for a couple hours. During our vacation to Florida the weeds really took over the garden and we are struggling to take it back. We managed to clean up three rows in the time we were out there and we hope to get the remaining rows freed of weeds through this week. Mama and I have yet to start on the flower garden. It looks pretty pitiful.

On Friday I received a shipment of plants I had ordered last week. I got two cold-hardy avocado trees and a few ever-bearing strawberries. The trees looked pretty good when I opened the box. I cannot say as much for the strawberries. I will probably have to ask for a replacement of those plants.

I am a little anxious about the avocado trees. Mama and I will plant them in pots so they can be brought in during the coldest part of the winter – they are good down to 15®F but last winter we got below zero a couple times. The instructions sent with the plants were quite specific on what will help or hinder the trees so I have a good bit of information to start with. The best part is that I have a one year guarantee replacement.

There is no shortage of things to do in the life we have chosen. Unfortunately, I will be out of town most of this week also. I have meetings in Oklahoma City with the leadership of our division starting tomorrow afternoon through Thursday afternoon. It will be a repeat of last week in the timing away from the farm.

On the positive side, this week will be a lot less stressful since I have a very small part in the meetings we will be having.