Mama’s near miss, Mama and Kimberlyn, looking up

As often as possible Mama and I have been walking our county road in the evenings. The walk from our front door to the junction with the larger county road to the west and back is just over a mile. Mama struggles at times to make the distance, but she has been faithful to try. It is typically an uneventful walk. We see the same things each evening. Other than avoiding the potholes and other potential tripping hazards, there are no real hazards to watch out for. However, last night as Mama lingered near the creek that runs under our road while I walked the rest of the distance to the intersection and returned, she did not realize she was only a foot or two from a three-foot-long Cottonmouth snake.

I would have looked past it also had not the dogs been warily investigating it. It looked like a small branch. Like so many other that fall onto the road. But something in the approach the dogs were taking to the “branch” got the alarms going in my head. The snake was almost fully stretched out in length. That is unusual. The snake was completely still. That was unusual. It made no attempt to move when the dogs were investigating it. It made no attempt to move when I stood over it to take a picture. All of those are unusual actions. Or inactions. All of those worked in favor of Mama not getting bitten. When I showed Mama the snake, she immediately called the dogs away from it, but she did not panic. Fortunately, the snake was feeling passive. It could easily have bitten Mama where she stood listening to the water gurgling in the creek. It is the first time we have seen a poisonous snake near the farm this year. We know they are out there. We just do not see them very often. Even at the tank on our farm. Hopefully, it will be the last one we see.

Yesterday, Mama and Kimberlyn spent the day together lining out some of the craft items they could make and sell. Some of their ideas are extremely cute. I am reserved in my judgement of the enterprise. Not that I doubt the abilities or creativity of Mama and Kimberlyn to make items that would attract buyers, but we have typically not been good at selling anything – ever. Perhaps this is the beginning of a successful venture, but only time will tell. For the moment they are concentrating on making things that do not require us to buy a lot of supplies. Working with what we have is a great idea for as long as it will last. That way we can actually see what sells before they make a bunch of things that we cannot give away. I should have taken a picture of the Lady Bug Kim painted on a rock to be put with a small potted Aloe Vera. Since we have hundreds of little Aloe Vera plants that need to be rehomed, and hundreds of rocks that can be used in that application, I would love to see that item become a hot seller.

As it stands now, I will continue to disassemble pallets so the wood can be repurposed for craft projects and my shop will be open for use to our crafters as needed. I am continuing to set up the shop, but I have managed to keep all the tools accessible. Band saw, table saw, miter saw, scroll saw, drill press, planer, router, a wide assortment of hand tools, battery powered tools and fasteners. And a wealth of accumulated blocks of wood and pallet boards. We should have enough to get them started in their business, but I will be careful not to buy anything before it is actually needed. They have my utmost support in their venture – to a point.

This morning as I was leaving for work, storms were moving in fast from the southwest, but to the northwest, the sun was shining brightly as it cleared the horizon. The rainbow that that combination of events produced was a nice surprise. When I got near the end of our county road, the rainbow was positioned right above the little Lutheran Church that sits almost directly across from the intersection of our road and the larger county road. I could not resist stopping and taking the photo that line up offered.

It often helps to look up.

Mama’s errand, lots of rain, late deliveries, late feeding, ongoing

Mama let me know early yesterday that she would be following Krystal and the kids to the place where their van was to be worked on. They are traveling to Florida next week and Trace wanted the transmission serviced and the brakes replaced. No problem. Right? Well, that simple errand turned into an all day wait. Krystal was told that the van would be ready right after lunch. That was about the time that very severe thunderstorms hit the Denton area where they were killing time while waiting on the van. The tornado sirens went off a couple times in the next several hours and everyone was warned to shelter in place. The staff at Joann’s Fabric was very gracious to Mama, Krystal and the kids. They spent several hours in the store as the worst of the storms worked their way through the area. Though there were several near misses, no to tornados touched down in the area. Eventually, Mama had to take Krystal and the kids home; storms and all. The van was not to be ready until after 4 PM.

It was still raining off and on when I headed home. Some of those rains were very hard rains. At one spot on the county road the water from a flooded creek was running over the road. When I recognized how much water was actually on the road, I braked hard in approaching the runoff. At the same instant, there was an eighteen-wheeler approaching the rivulet from the opposite direction. He did not even bother to try to brake; hitting the water at 65mph. My truck was swamped. I could not see anything for about three seconds, and I was not in a straight section of the road. Fortunately, I had slowed enough to keep myself on the road while I was literally under water. The first thing I saw as the water slung onto me by the gravel truck cleared were the lights of a police cruiser flashing. The officer stationed his vehicle on the side of the road to warn other drivers to approach cautiously. Water was draining out of the back of my truck for the next several miles.

Mama still had to take Trace – now home from work – back to Denton to retrieve their van. I could tell she really wanted me to make the drive with her, but it was church night. Since the roads were flooded and the rain was still falling, I elected to make the drive with her to take Trace to retrieve their only vehicle. We had to drive out to where Trace and Krystal are now living, pick him up and make the drive to the repair shop. There was no chance we would be back in time to get ready for church. We made those calls on the way to Denton alerting the Pastor and Bro. Zach about our absence. Much of the drive was made in the rain. Much of the drive from the highway to the shop was made on very flooded county roads. But we made it safely. We were back home a little after 7 PM.

Once I had changed, I went out to feed. Our animals were happy to finally get some food. I was only three hours late. Everywhere I stepped was either soft or soupy. The pigs were extremely happy to have their mud lakes refilled. The chickens do not mind the wet as long as their feathers stay relatively dry. The goats hate to have wet feet. The sheep, I am not sure about, but they did not seem thrilled about the soft, wet ground. Kobe will sit all day in the rain while she wades through deep puddles of water. Kira does not like to get her feet wet – at all! If the patio is wet, she will hold her bladder all day or until she can find a dry-ish spot to release the contents. Our plants are liking the abundance of rain. We still have a little water that gets into the house in a hard rain and I will eventually have to find the leak and correct it, but that is about the extent of the inconvenience for me and Mama. That, and it holds us up from mowing the pastures; which are looking pretty ragged right now. That really bothers Mama.

Mama will be out most of the day today also. She has been agonizing over things at home that have not been getting done because of all her time out of the house. But most of those errands are unavoidable. She is meeting Kimberlyn at church this morning so they can finish decorating Mama’s Sunday School class in preparation for Mama getting a new group of students Sunday morning. Tuesday, I had met Mama at church to hang a little picket fence as part of the decorating process. Aliza happened to be there to help. So, Mama and I were entertained through my lunch hour. Aliza will be one of Mama students starting this Sunday.

Tomorrow, Mama will be helping Grandma make Texas Sheet Cakes to take to the nursing home. Hopefully, that will still give her the afternoon at home.

Disappointments, a brighter side

Mama was struggling yesterday. Struggling with disappointment. Not only are the houses we purchased not going to be ready to list anytime soon, but some other money she and I were expecting is not going to come to us either. It was a misunderstanding as opposed to a broken promise or a deal that fell through. It was not much money, but we had made tentative plans for using that money on several things that are out of reach for us at the moment. One of those was to pay for flights to New Jersey to attend a wedding. Since we need to purchase the tickets very soon, it looks like that will not happen. Our trip to Victoria, TX for Joshua and Alicia’s wedding is still on. We would not miss that.  And our trip to Honduras later this year is still probably a go, but we will have to wait until we have the cash on hand to purchase those tickets. Mostly it is the trip to New Jersey that is off the calendar right now. Mama was really looking forward to that trip. I was also, but not as much as Mama. On top of that we got a large medical bill from Mama’s knee surgery last year. Oh, well. Life goes on. After all, it’s only money.

In times like these I stop to appreciate what we do have. Salvation. Heaven is my home. Our happy marriage. A lot of people I know will never have the kind of blessing I have in being married to a woman like Mama. Children and grandchildren serving the Lord. A very nice home and farm. Paid for vehicles and equipment. A great church home and family. And so much more. All that other stuff that distracts us from what is really important is peripheral. If we have it, fine. If we don’t fine. We have each other. All the money concerns eventually work themselves out. And when we do start selling houses, this will seem like a very small thing. However, we have to deal with the disappointing timing of our current lack. This too shall pass.

On a brighter side, Mama and I dug potatoes yesterday evening. I carried a strong, medium sized box out to the garden to put the potatoes in and Mama was chiding me gently for bringing a medium sized box as opposed to a large box. She had great expectations. I told her I brought a box that, if we filled it, I would be able to carry it. If we needed more storage space, we had other boxes in the garage. It turns out that digging one row of potatoes filled the box. It weighed about thirty pounds when we finished the row. The potatoes we dug were purple and red. Those plants produced well. We still have a row of white potatoes to dig. We will wait a week or two to get those out of the ground. It will not hurt for them to mature another week or two. We are also picking onions, beets, peppers and blackberries – wild and cultivated. Within the next week or so, we will be picking blueberries. We are excited about that.

Heavy rain is forecast for today. Our pigs will be thrilled about that. Over the past couple days, we have had no rain and their mud wallow is beginning to stiffen to the point that they cannot immerse themselves in the mire. They have had to settle for nestling into the damp top of the mud. You can see the imprint of their bodies from where they have lain. Because of that they have dumped their water every morning to create as much wet space as possible. Mama and I have to climb over the fence to enter the pen, retrieve the tub we set out for them to drink from and wash the mud out of the bottom of the tub before we place it in the pen to be refilled…only to be dumped as soon as the pigs have taken a drink. Today, that may not be necessary. By early afternoon, things should be wet enough to suit their desire to have an abundance of mud to play in. We only have another two weeks to deal with the pigs. I am looking forward to getting them moved off the farm. Mama is not so excited about them being taken away.

She loves her pigs.

Victoria home, goat purchase, home visit

Friday afternoon Mama and I left the farm almost as soon as I got home. Victoria’s flight back from Honduras was due in that evening and Mama had a list of stores she wanted to visit in the general area of the airport before we met Victoria. I even took off a half hour early that afternoon so Mama could get started earlier. We got to two of the four planned stops before Victoria called to let us know she had landed – almost a half hour earlier than scheduled. We were at our second stop when she called. We were only about fifteen minutes from the airport, so we were able to drive to the terminal and pick her up after she had gotten her luggage. In all, we were in the airport toll tag area less than twenty minutes. That worked out well.

Victoria was exhausted – partly from the trip but mostly from the emotional strain of saying goodbye. She and Savanna both spent Saturday in poor health; one thousand miles apart from each other. It is always anticlimactic to come home, unpack and get into the routine that defines our day-to-day existence. For Victoria it is more difficult than for most. Female issues only added to the physical and emotional strain. She spent all day Sunday in bed as well. By Monday, a holiday, she was showing signs of recovery, but limited her activities – including contact with me and Mama – to a minimum.

Saturday evening, Mama and I went to Rick’s. He and Mama had worked out a price for us to purchase some tri-color goats. It was a steep price, but very much in line with the normal pricing of any marketable stock from Rick’s herd. We spent a long time talking – as is typical – and were about settled on one of the little nanny goats when we began to look at the little bucks he had for sale. After an hour or more of debate and general counsel from Rick, Mama and I decided to get a little buck. I could only afford one at the price agreed. I had planned to get two but had to spend almost the same amount getting us registered with Samaritan insurance. It was time to reinstate my insurance at work, so I needed to make a decision to move to Samaritan or continue paying for Mama’s insurance through work. We chose to make the move in preparation for me leaving my current job within the next two to three months. The sun was setting as we left Bowie, having taken a few minutes to check out our nanny goats Rick is currently running with bucks.

There is one mature buck that I would like to buy if he turns out to have a low sperm count. If his count in healthy, he would be worth $7,500. With a low count, he is worth only about $250. That is a problem for Rick because this champion buck will only successfully breed about half of the nanny goats he is put in with. That means the nanny goats that did not take have to be run with another buck to ensure kids are produced. For me and Mama, that would not be an issue. We would simply run him with our herd for as long as needed to get the nanny goats bred. Any offspring from him would be championship stock. Plus, we would have our tri-color buck to take up the slack. We will see if that works out or not.

Sunday was a normal day. Great services. Lots of fun with the girls. Since it was the day before Memorial Day, we had a fellowship after church. Because of that the girls insisted on coming back for the evening services. Since Monday was a holiday, they were allowed. There was less food set out than is normally done, but there was a pile of brisket sandwiches that made up the difference. The dessert table was overloaded. So, the girls had a lot to choose from in total and a lot of children to play with when the eating was done. We got them home a little before 9 PM.

Monday morning, Mama and I headed for Lawton. We were anxious to see how much progress had been made on the houses – especially the first house we purchased. When we got to the house, we were disappointed by what we saw. Nothing had been done on the first since we had been there in mid-April. Some work had been done on the second house, but not an impressive amount. As we ate lunch Mama and I prayed about what to do. What to say. When I did contact Glenn, I was humble and non-accusatory in my text, but I got an immediate response. Not overly defensive, but he definitely understood the extext of our disappointment. He promised to have the house finished and on the market by the 15^th of June. We are doubtful of that promise and I told Glenn so by letting him know that would be awesome, but I would not hold him to that date; knowing the extent of the work that needs to be completed. He said it was not only possible but that it would be done. We certainly hope he can come through on that promise. We will see.

For now, I am moving my two-week notice date out to the end of July.

Diet decisions, little things

After writing yesterday that I was not as excited about a low carb diet as I was about encouraging Mama, she and Kim Cantrell had a very long discussion and came to the conclusion that there are better, less faddish ways to change our diet sufficiently enough to lose the weight that is troubling both of us. As stated yesterday, I do not do well with a high protein, high fat diet. For some reason, my digestive system cannot process proteins or fats in the quantity required to sustain that diet – and, believe it or not, I do not lose weight on that diet. Though counting carbs is an easy way to monitor intake, it has never worked for me. I do far better if I fast; if I just quit eating. However, that does not work for Mama. And it is not a good long-term diet plan. I know Mama realized that I was struggling with the low carb diet. I was doing it to help and encourage her. And it worked.

Over the years Mama has gotten several books outlining various diet plans but none have been effective in the long run. She would follow one and lose a significant amount of weigh only to gain that weight back after reverting to “normal eating”. We have always needed a diet plan for a lifetime. A change-of-life diet plan. I believe in this renewed effort to find a solution, Mama may have stumbled onto something workable. It is far too soon to tell for sure, but we are looking at a couple options that focus more on the overall attitude toward food, both in consumption and preparation. Not only what to eat but how to combine foods in beneficial ways as opposed to creating weight control issues through unhealthy combinations. Mama is excited about a renewed focus on something we can do that will change our eating habits, not just jumping on a fad diet that cannot be a life-long pattern of behavior. We will see how this turns out, but I am encouraged, and my digestive system is relieved.

Last night Mama attended a party at Erin Echeveria’s. it was a “Ditch Your Bra” party selling bras that were not called bras. Not sure how that works, but she had an interesting time. She did not order anything if that is any indication of how impressed she was with the product and the prices. I am sure she was tempted to buy just to support Erin, but I had cautioned her to avoid spending any money. We have way too many other things to do with money that are not discretionary expenditures. She did share a couple things with me about the party, but I had to shut her down when she got a little too graphic about the fitting portion of the product demo. I go to church with all the ladies that attended the party.

While she was at the party I worked outside. Last week we brought home four file cabinets from Rick’s. I had emptied those cabinets, but they needed to be cleaned of the dirt, the mouse droppings and mud dauber nests. The shop vac made easy work of that. So, I began to fill the drawers of the largest of the four with items that were sitting on the floor of the shop and on open shelves. At least in the cabinets they will stay cleaner than out in the open. The cabinets still need to be painted, but two of the four are in the place where they will sit for the foreseeable future.

Once that was at a point that I felt I had spent enough time on tidying up the shop and packing items in the cabinets, I got the weed eater and made some more adjustments to see if I could make it less awkward and painful to use. I still need to work with it, but I have finally gotten to the point that I can use it for more than thirty minutes at a time, but I am not there yet. It still hurt my back to use the weed eater, but not as quickly as in the past. Maybe I made a little progress. Time will tell.

After my mile walk to the end of our road and back, I was done for the evening. Or at least I thought I was. When Mama got home, fairly late, she was in the mood to talk. Mostly about what she was reading in one of the two books she is working her way through in her study of a workable diet plan for us. It was interesting enough and she was excited enough about the information that we were up until almost 11pm.

By that time, I really was done.

Small class, boot mishap, wrong wipes

I taught a small class yesterday. It was one of twelve classes extra we had added to our schedule in a flurry of activity only to cancel all of those classes except the one yesterday. Ordinarily we would not have held a class as small as the one I taught yesterday, but I thought it best not to cancel out on those who had made travel arrangements to attend. It was a good class of individuals; seven in total. All were eager to participate. There were lots of discussions and I think everyone walked away from the class feeling that the day had not been wasted. One of the participants hung around after class and chatted with me as I cleaned up and packed everything away to be returned to the office. We spent almost an hour talking. Mostly about the class and related topics, but also about personal topics. It was a good class. It may be one of the last times I teach that class – depending on how quickly Mama and I can get our business going.

Our evening went very quickly since it was a church night. Mama now has a pressure cooker she is not intimidated by. I t was ordered from Pampered Chef. She prepared a pork roast in that cooker last night. We have a pressure cooker that Cori gave us but for some reason Mama will not use it. Only Victoria and I will brave danger to cook in it. The new one looks more professional. More heavy duty. And it is has a dial to select the digital setting required versus touch buttons on the other. Anyway, Mama did an outstanding job of seasoning the meat she cooked in her first attempt to master the appliance. That is what we had for dinner along with a small salad.

We are counting carbs for a few weeks to see how well that does for us. So far, I am not impressed, but I typically do not do well with high protein diets. Not with the ongoing digestive issues I have. But Mama is encouraged to be trying something to limit carbs and sugars in her diet. She is meeting with moderate success and is encouraged to keep going as she refines the process of determining what foods should and should not be eaten. High fructose corn syrup is still her flavor of choice and we are determined to attenuate and possibly redirect that desire. We will not know if was have succeeded for many months. There are so many easy horrible choices out there that can quickly wreck our progress.

As I dressed for church last night, I got a pair of boots out of the closet. I noticed when I sat down to put them on that they were reversed. The left boot was on the right. The right boot on the left. I thought to myself, “I must have been pretty tired when I put these up the last time I wore them.” To have them in the closet that way would be unusual for me. It was not until I got home and was putting the boots back into their spot in our small closet that I realized I had grabbed one boot from each of the two pair of brown boots I have sitting next to each other in the closet. They are so close in color that no one noticed – including Mama. I thought about not saying anything to Mama but confessed my mistake so we could both get a laugh out if it.

Another anecdotal story. Mama casually mentioned that in her purchases earlier this week, she had picked up wipes for the hall bath. She mentioned that we had not had any in there for a while and since she thought about it while she was in Walmart, she picked some up. I told her there were in fact wipes in that bathroom. I had used them a couple times. “Oh, no! Honey.” She gasped. “Those are Victoria’s expensive makeup removing wipes.” No wonder my butt felt so good after using them. I told her I could retrieve them and put them back.

She advised against that.

Our little mud hen, Grandma, Kobe

Friday evening as I was working on the pig building, I noticed something odd. One of the pigs was flopping in the mud hole on the far side of the little shelter I had put up when I ran the pigs out of the building. She would stand up and flop against what I thought was a stone or a price of wood. About the third time the process was repeated, I realized what she was smashing into the mud. It was a chicken. The chickens often fly into the pig pen to get tiny scraps of food, worms, fly larvae, and edible droppings. We say “Yuk”. They say “Yum”.  This time the chicken had chosen the wrong place to land in the pen and was mired in the mud. Once her feet landed in the mud, she was doomed. When she tried to get herself out of the mud, her wings had gotten covered in the mud as well. By the time I got to her, the pig had almost buried her in the mud. Fortunately, it had been several says since we had any rain so the top of the mudhole was a little more firm than it otherwise would have been.

I was able to stretch over the fence and reach the muddy hen but I did not have enough balance to hang onto her when I got her onto terra firma. She made a mad dash away from me, the pig and the mud. Some of the mud was flung off in her haste, but she as still thoroughly caked. I went back to working on the building so the pigs would have a dry spot the next day. When Brittany, the twins and Mama got back from visiting Grandma I enlisted Mama’s help in cornering the hen so we could bathe her. Unfortunately, she was mobile enough that at the first hint that we were interested in catching her, she ducked under the coop. That was it for Friday night. Saturday night we saw her in the coop, but it was too late in the evening to get her bathed. She was safe so we let it go. I was finally able to catch the hen Sunday evening and put her in a cage so she could be dealt with properly. That bath finally happened last night.

It took me thirty minutes or so working with the clods of dirt that remained on her wings and underside to get them removed. The clods were hard as little pieces of concrete, but eventually they began to dissolve, and her feathers were visible once again. All the time I worked on the mud balls the hen was immersed in a tub of water. She did not fight too much. Maybe she realized we were helping her. The amount of dirt that had accumulated in the tub we washed her in amazed Mama when she rinsed it out so that we could rinse the hen. Once she was clean enough to satisfy Mama, the hen was put back in the cleaned cage so she could dry out a bit. Later that night, as Mama closed up the chickens, she let the hen out of the cage so she could roost. She was able by that time to fly up onto the roost. All that work for a chicken. No wonder Mama’s chickens love her.

As I worked in the shop, Mama got an urgent call from Grandma. Grandma had called a couple times earlier in the evening but with this call, Mama felt compelled to go to Bowie and spend some time with her. I am still unclear of the urgency, but Grandma was having trouble, and a good deal of pain, with her acid reflux. Mama went to comfort and coach. It was one of those difficult times that nothing that was tried produced the results Grandma was looking for. But together, Mama and Grandpa got Grandma to a point of at being able to rest. While Mama was on her way home Grandma called to tell Mama she thought she was allergic to whatever oil or lotion Mama had used on her because she was itching. Mama assured her that was not likely, but she could wash off what had been applied of that would make her feel better.

Grandma has had some troubling episodes lately. We are never sure if there is true medical need or not. No matter what test is run or what doctor sees her, there is nothing uncommon in the diagnosis presented after all the results are evaluated. The healing process for her esophagus would be a long, patient, bland, disciplined road to travel and so far, Grandma has been unwilling to make that commitment. I am not sure she even understands what would be required. What will follow this morning is anybody’s guess. But I hope Grandpa and Grandma were both able to rest last night.

Storms rolled in this morning. Those thunderstorms that produce high winds and lots of lightening but little rain…thankfully. We do not need the rain right now. Mama is scheduled to take Kobe to Kim Cantrell’s this morning to visit Leo. The storms should be well away by the time she is ready to leave for that trip. This will be the last puppies we will have. If Victoria does not change her mind. Kobe’s puppies sell very well and Mama and Victoria love caring for baby animals – especially puppies. The birthing center is ready, if there is a successful breeding, we should be able to handle the offspring.

Such is life on the farm.

Muddy mess, travel trials, hard goodbyes

After getting the hog building cleaned out Friday afternoon, I moved the feed trough into the building, cut the entry to accommodate the larger hogs and invited them in. They were hesitant at first, but quickly overcame their temerity when I put some scraps in their trough. The only problem I still had to deal with was the swamp they had created just outside the entry. It had once been a shelter for the pigs, but they had turned it into a sloppy mud hole and were having to get up into the building from the mud hole – which was making their feet slip on the wooden floor of the building. It was comical to see them struggle with the slipping as they battled frantically to get into the building to beat each other to the scraps I had put out. Only one of them could fit through the opening at a time so whoever got there first could block the other out while they ate what was in the nearer end of the trough. They figured that part out very quickly. They enjoyed being in the building while it rained all Saturday morning. I had to go back Saturday evening and put a pallet over the soup at the entry, so they did not have to try to leap out of the slop to enter the building. That has worked out fairly well. Time will tell if it will last until we take them to be processed.

We got almost two inched of rain between 10 am and noon Saturday. That was just about the time Brittany needed to go the airport to pick up Andrew. He had been delayed a day due to some rescheduled training and was scheduled to get to Dallas right at the height of the storms. While Mama and Brittany debated whether or not Brittany and Andrew should drive home through the storms or wait until tomorrow, I suggested Brittany check on Andrews flight. The flight had left Seattle on time but had a delayed arrival time. Everyone settled down to wait. I cautioned Brittany to wait until Andrew had landed to even head to the airport and she agreed. It was better for him to wait on them should he be delayed further.

Meanwhile, Mama and I headed to Bowie for the BBTI graduation. It was scheduled for 11 am. What was originally planned as an outdoor event was taken inside because of the rain. Mama and I drove through very heavy rain all the way from our house to Bowie. A lot of water had accumulated on the road so everyone with any sense was moving along much more slowly than normal. On our twenty miles of four lane highway we saw two trucks in the median; one of which almost made it across into oncoming traffic. We saw two eighteen wheelers in the median as well. One had jackknifed so badly that the cab was partially folded up underneath the trailer. Mama and I got to the church for the graduation safely. Fortunately, they were a bit late in starting. It was a well-attended event.

While Mama and I were at the graduation, Andrew’s flight was redirected to Lubbock. Yes, Lubbock. Brittany had driven to Decatur to at least start her drive to the airport when she got the text from Andrew. She fed the girls a panini, headed back to the farm and put them down for a nap. Andrew did not get into DFW until 6 pm Saturday evening. He had been at the airport in Seattle at 5 am local time; 3 am our time. He was exhausted by the time he got to us. While in Lubbock, he was not allowed to leave the secure area because no one had proper boarding passes for that airport. Lubbock is a one-gate airport. Not much to see there. Certainly nothing to do there but wait. The passengers on his flight got to know that area very well as they waited for a flight to DFW. On the bright side, everyone was safe.

Sunday morning was difficult for Mama. We were ready to leave for church by the time the girls woke up. Mama got to help get the morning diaper changes done one last time and I was able to participate in the morning snuggle with each of the girls – mostly Zoe. When we could wait no longer, we kissed each of the twins goodbye and started out the door. Zoe called out, “One more kiss, Papi.” Who can resist that? That worked so well that Sophia called Grammy back. That went on for another couple minutes until I dragged Mama away. We had to drive past the picture window in the dining area to wave goodbye to the girls before we could officially head to church. By the time we got the house to pick up our Chinese granddaughters, Mama had mostly recovered.

Brittany called Mama during Sunday School. That was unusual so Mama stepped out to answer. It turned out that they could not find Lucy. They had checked everywhere by the time they called. Brittany was frustrated and a little panicked. Mama gave them a couple ideas on where they might not have thought to look and one of those turned out to be a good guess. Lucy was in the well house. She must have followed me into the well house when I was out feeding the sheep and I closed her in not realizing she was there. She is a sneaky little dog. Once Lucy was located, they headed home.

Mama and I went back to our empty home that afternoon. It had been a very busy weekend.

Lunch, Brittany back

Just as I was about to leave for lunch yesterday, Mama called and asked if I could meet her and the girls. She had to get out of the house for a bit. We are at the time of the year when the flies are getting bad and Zoe is freaked out by any contact with a fly. After Zoe’s second or third meltdown, Mama had to do something to distract our granddaughter. Plus, she needed to get to Walmart to buy some fly strips. So, we met at Wendy’s. Our normal default for lunch. The twins love hamburgers and fries. Their mama has taught them well. Honestly, they eat just about everything because Brittany has exposed them to a very wide variety of food items and the twins have not seemed picky about most foods she has given them. But they really like cheeseburgers. Fries are an accessory to burgers used almost exclusively as a way to eat catsup. Mama was constantly telling each to the girls, “No. You have to bite it.” when they were using the fries as intended – to get catsup to the mouth.

Every drink is water to the girls. But they especially liked the ”water” at lunch yesterday. Mama had unconsciously filled the cup with Coke – her default when at a soda fountain. While at home they like it when I put a little of our green tea in their cups. They act like they are getting a real treat – almost like they are getting away with something naughty. I hope Mama and I do not get into trouble for that infraction. It is just so much fun for them to show us their cup and happily tell us, “Tea. Tea. Tea.” One lady eating near us at Wendy’s yesterday remarked that she could clearly understand everything they were saying to us as they jabbered through lunch; narrating what was going on in their young minds. Mostly specific identifiers; cheeseburger, water, fries, dip (catsup), Grammy, Papi, cup (fry container), table, chair, etc. It is fun to listen in on their thoughts.

After Mama and I ate dinner yesterday evening, I went out to do the feeding. It is hot enough now that I get sweaty when I work outside, so I like to eat dinner before going out. Since I was outside and already wet, I started to clean out the pig building. We have had the goats in that building for a couple months and have not cleaned it up at all during that time. It was in far worse shape than I had expected. I started out with one of the broad scoop shovels we use to clean the coop but had to swap to a smaller, more rigid flat nosed shovel to cut the trampled manure and hay loose from the floor of the building. I got only about halfway through the chore before I had to stop. Sparing my back so I can finish this evening. Once I get the bulk of the residue removed from the building, I will open it up for the pigs.

They need a dry place to sleep and I cannot provide that in the pen with the renovations they have made throughout the pen. It is forecast to rain about every other day starting tomorrow. Several inches of rain are predicted. It would be nice to give them some shelter. The building is the only option I have right now. I will clean it up again once we take them off the farm – in about a month. I may have to expand the door to accommodate the larger pigs, but I will let them try the opening first. It should be wide enough, but it may not be tall enough. It was made to accommodate our potbelly pigs. These girls are much larger. I am certain they will dirty the building more than the goats did so I will need to keep up with the mess on at least a weekly basis.

I am taking a half day vacation today. Mostly to make the run to Muenster for feed, but also to spend just a bit more time with the girls before they head home with their mama tomorrow. Brittany is due back at about 2 pm. Her flight is scheduled to land around 12:30 at DFW. She and Andrew have had a great time in Seattle. Just as they flew to Seattle separately, they will not get to fly back together. His training was moved back a day delaying his departure. He will fly out tomorrow and meet Brittany in Oklahoma City. She will time her trip home based on meeting Andrew’s flight. Oklahoma City is about the halfway point between our farm and home for Brittany and Andrew.

We will be sad to see Zoe and Sophia leave. Mama has thoroughly enjoyed her time alone with the girls. Grammy is certainly a clearly defined identity on the register of their minds. Permanently placed. Significantly valued.

It has been a fun time for all of us.

Getting ready, clinging tightly, money questions

Getting all of us ready for church last night took some coordinating. Mama had taken care of most of the feeding before I got home. She had gone out to gather eggs and feed the pigs. All I needed to do was feed the sheep and remove the snake that had caught itself in the ventilation holes in the side of one of the nesting boxes. It was too large to get its body all the way through the hole and was unable to go backward because its scales would now allow that kind of reverse motion. I ended up having to cut it in half where it was stuck – which proved a bit more difficult than I had anticipated. Oddly enough, bisecting its body did not immediately kill it. The front half, the one with the head, slithered out of the coop while I disposed of the non-animated half. I tried to pick up the headed portion but was bitten several times for that effort. So, I let it go. It will die somewhere of its own choosing.  Hopefully, it will not smell too strongly while decomposing. If it does live, which I strongly doubt, it will be easily recognizable.

Anyway, back to preparing for church. The girls were not too interested in eating dinner, so I fixed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They enjoyed that. I tended to them while Mama took a shower. I added pineapple, graham crackers and watered-down green tea to the dinner offerings. We played while they ate. They called my name and I called theirs. We played with the word, banana. They giggled when I said it different ways in different voices – which they tried to imitate. When dinner was done and Grammy was out of the shower, I took my shower. But not before we did several Hokey Pokey’s and turned ourselves about. By the time we had the girls dressed and ready to go Mama and I were ready to sit down for a few minutes. On the bright side, Mama was ready for church almost an hour early. When we did leave – still in plenty of time – the girls were ready to go. They were not nearly so excited once we got to church.

The girls were their normal selves when we unloaded them in the parking lot but once inside the church building, they refused to be set down or parted from us in any way. Sophia was my little clinger. Zoe was with Grammy. I had to do all the normal things I do in preparation for the service, but I did it one handed. Sophia was so determined to stay in my arms that it was a challenge to switch her from side to side as my arms tired. By the time I set her down, amid much protest, in the nursery, my tie liked like it had been knotted over and over. I just had to go with the crumpled look for the service. Everyone who knew the circumstances understood. For those who saw the frumpy looking tie and did not know my granddaughter had gifted that to me, I am not sure what they thought.

Mama sat in the nursery with the two attached to her lap for about an hour before she decided to put them down and let them fuss out their frustration and fear. According to Mama, that did not take long. They sere soon playing. One eye always on Mama. By the time church was over, they were pretty relaxed, but they still wanted to keep me and Mama in their direct line of sight. We have two small steps in the front of the church that are a magnet to little ones. Zoe and Sophia were soon engaged in playing on those steps with Aliza. When we left church, I helped Sophia down the stairs in the back of the church. Aliza and Alissa helped Zoe. Mama had her hands full with newly purchased wreaths she bought from one of the young ladies in our church.

I was not pleased with the purchase. I reminded Mama that we had just spent money equal to two tanks of gas. Plus, I asked if we had been at Hobby Lobby or Buckee’s, would she have paid as much for either of the wreaths as she had just paid? She was taken aback by the questions and realized she would not have paid that much anywhere else. I do not resent helping someone out, but I am not in a position to do so at the rate Mama is promising those purchases. I am struggling to understand how money spent on LuLaRoe, hand-made earrings and these types of trinkets is somehow not accounted as using up money we need for food, for gas, for personal items. All of which I will still have to provide money to purchase for our needs after the money I could have used to make those purchases has already been spent.

Oh, well. Somewhere along the way we will find a balance. I will be broke, but we will have lots of pretty, albeit generally useless, things. And Mama will be happy. That is a big part of balance in my life. It just does not translate will financially.

Lunch, cookout, evening walk

For some reason, I woke up early yesterday. It was one of those mornings we all have, when you start to wake long before the alarm would go off. By 4 am, I was in the “you’re getting up soon” sleep patterns. By 5 am I was past the point of staying in bed any longer. I was not upset. I just knew I was not going to sleep any more. As I thought about it, I realized it was a good thing. If I got to work an hour early, I could leave an hour early. That would be a help to Mama as she was preparing to entertain that evening. So, I was at my desk a little before 6 am. I thought about taking half a day of vacation, but I scrapped that idea.

Brittany called me about 11 am to see if I would like to join them for lunch. I thought that was a great idea. So, Mama, who was just getting back from Sam’s about that time and Brittany, et. al., met me at the office. I took the twins inside for just a quick introduction to everyone. I even interrupted a meeting so one of my superiors, who is always asking about the girls, could see firsthand how big Zoe was. It caught my boss a little off guard, but she – and the group she was meeting with – recovered quickly. She thanked me later that day for taking the time to show her the girls. We all went to a Thai restaurant for lunch. The adults enjoyed the meal. The girls, not so much. Lunch is not their best meal. It is understandable when you see how much they eat for breakfast; oatmeal, eggs, avocado on toast, fruit and yogurt, pancakes or waffles and chocolate milk. Their normal breakfast routine takes close to an hour. All of that time is spent eating. I went back to work for a couple hours after our lunch date.

When I got home, I started the grill. As it warmed up, Mama and I went out to feed. Brittany and Andrew were just leaving the house. The girls were still napping. Brittany had taken the time to put all the steaks in a marinade. So, once the grill was ready, I began putting the larger pieces of meat on to cook. Eventually, I cooked two large bone-in sirloin steaks, two smaller sirloins, four T-bone steaks, beef ribs, a couple hot dogs, asparagus and pineapple. Mama fixed buttered potatoes, salad and a blueberry dump cake. We had plenty of food for us and our two guests.  I worked through the meal getting things off the grill. Fortunately, everything turned out well.

The last thing I put on the grill was the pineapple. It came off about the time our guests were about done with their meal. However, after tasting the grilled pineapple with the steak, both Nathan and Hannah went back for more meat to eat with the hot pineapple. The girls, who would not eat the leftover noodles from lunch, enjoyed eating from our plates for their dinner. They ate the hot dogs and the potatoes. A little bit of the steaks. Red meat is not their thing. It requires too much chewing. But when I brought out the pineapple, that became the complete focus of their attention. They ate so much that we had to move the dish away from the table. Everyone got full. Mission accomplished.

Nathan and Hannah have a ten-week-old baby, so they did not stay long after dinner. They left early enough that we had time to go out for an evening walk. It was very pleasant evening. We have so much privacy at our farm that it is easy to take it for granted. But we took our time enjoying it last night. As we walked with the girls a water hauler came from the well on the property to the east of our house. The driver proceeded very cautiously as Mama and I picked up the girls and shooed the dogs off the road. He stopped to greet us and thank us for being kind to him as he makes his daily runs to haul the water from the well pad. He is one of the drivers that does his best to keep the dust down and care for our road as he carries out his duties. We appreciate the conscientious drivers. Not all of them feel that way. Brittany called while we were out for our walk. She was still in Dallas. Her flight had been delayed. Andrew was already in Seattle. They had booked different flights because of the late timing of Andrew’s leave request. Hopefully, both of them are in Seattle this morning.

The girls were ready to get dressed for bed by the time we got back in. A bedtime book reading, a kiss goodnight and they were in their beds fast asleep before it got dark. Mama and I were in bed soon after. It had been a long day for all of us.

Brittany and Andrew, dinner guests, Kim’s pigs

Mama and I ate a light dinner before we fed last night. It is a chore to feed the pigs anymore. Every time we go out to feed, we have to climb into the pen and retrieve the rubber tub we use for their waterer. They like to dump the water into their already soaked, sloppy pen and then bury the tub in the slime. One day it was so deeply buried that I had to wade into the ankle-deep muck to lift it out of the mire. It had about twenty pounds of mud in it. I told Mama I would rather take time to eat dinner before dealing with that frustration. She agreed. Other than dealing with the pigs, feeding is a pleasant distraction. I still have a lot of cleanup to do in the hog building and the goat barn, but those are things that are not difficult. They just require time – which I have not been able to give to those chores just yet. When we take the hogs to be processed, I will have to leave the pen to dry out for several weeks before I do any cleanup there, but that is a task I am looking forward to.

We knew Brittany and Andrew were on their way, but we were not expecting them until later in the evening. Sometime around 7 pm. With that thought in mind, Mama decided she had time to mow. She had spent the whole day cleaning inside the house. It was now time to clean up the outside. Which meant that I would have to weed eat. I do not like to weed eat because of the pain it causes me, but some chores are unavoidable regardless of how uncomfortable they are. Fortunately, Mama is able to mow very closely to things in the yard with the zero-turn mower. That saves me a lot of time and pain in my part of the mowing. While I helped Mama with the yardwork, I burned our accumulation of feed sacks. Just to tidy up a bit. We were finished and back inside cooling off when Brittany, Andrew and the twins arrived. Our big dogs faithfully announce every visitor. They quit barking when Brittany stepped out of the car and greeted them. The girls are not the least bit afraid of Sasha and Sam – even with all the barking. They are among the few people not living at our farm that Sasha will allow to touch her. I find that interesting.

I had cut up a pineapple in anticipation of the girls needing a snack. Brittany added blueberries to the bowl and the twins ate almost the entire contents of the bowl. One of the girls went for the books and one went for the erasable calendar we have on the fridge. “Color. Color. Color”, was the petition repeated until acknowledged. I handed Zoe one of the markers that go with that calendar, but she wanted blue...and she repeated that until I gave her the blue marker.  They flitted from one thing to another while Mama and Brittany visited, and Andrew set up the bedroom. Later that evening we went out for a walk. Sasha, Sam and Lucy came along for the fun of it. We did not go very far down the road, but it gave the girls time to get some energy out. A quick bath and they were down for the night. I did not hear any protests when they were put in their beds. Even without my beard, Zoe would not kiss me last night. Sophia always kissed me goodnight.

Mama should have a full day today. Brittany and Andrew will be not be heading to the airport until late this afternoon; about the time our dinner guests arrive. So, Mama will have company and help getting things ready to entertain. We invited Nathan and Hannah Shrock over for dinner. They will be graduating BBTI on Saturday and will begin deputation the following Monday. They are planning to serve as missionaries to Ivory Coast, helping Hannah’s parents in their ministry there for a year or more. From that point on, they are praying about where to serve. They have been a blessing to our church during their time at BBTI. We will be sad to see them go. They are one of those couples you can be sure will be a blessing to the ministry wherever they serve.

Very late in the evening, Kim Cantrell called to tell Mama that they had successfully loaded the pigs into the trailer. Praise the Lord! They were worried about getting that done. Today Kenny and Kim will deliver the three pigs to the processor. They are as glad to see the pigs gone as I will be when our turn comes. I will probably have to retrieve the trainer next week. I have not been told yet.

I am just glad things worked out for Kenny and Kim and we had the trailer to loan to them.

Goat shuffle, more travel, catching up

Friday afternoon I took off from work at 3 pm. I had gotten to the office a little after 6 that morning. Since Victoria and I had returned from our trip to the airport when we found out her flight had been cancelled, I had gone into work early as opposed to trying to get an hour nap before reporting at the standard time. Friday proved to be a long day in spite of leaving early. When I got home, I found out that Mama had scheduled with Nancy (Rick’s wife) to get the goats to their farm that evening. I was all in favor of that. Having them with Rick for two to three months will help me and Mam in many ways. With Victoria’s help it did not take long to get all four of the goats loaded into the cages I had put in the back of the truck. We were on our way to Bowie by 4:15. The extra hour made a big difference. We dropped Victoria off at Grandma’ s before we headed to Rick’s.

We chatted with Rick as we always do for almost an hour before we positioned the truck to unload the goats. Unloading the goats proved more difficult than loading them. Mama is neither as strong as nor as flexible as Victoria – and she was not dressed to help; though she insisted on doing so. I appreciated the help, but I was very aware as Mama helped to keep her out of harms way and to ensure I did the bulk of the lifting. Even with that attention, Mama ended up with a significant bruise on her left hand when Millie, our largest goat, fought being taken from the cage and smacked Mama’s had against the tailgate of the truck. Other than that, and some mud on her non-farm shoes, we got the goats out without too much trouble. Next time I will use the trailer to move the goats. Both loading and unloading would be easier. But the trailer was in Gainesville with the Cantrell’s. And I needed the truck to load some file cabinets Rick had given me. The file cabinets turned out to be less than I had hopes, but I will fond a place for three of the four and discard the forth.

Saturday was a long and interesting day. I got up at 2:15 am to take Victoria to the airport to catch a flight to Houston, connecting to Honduras. We got to the airport in plenty of time. I parked a helped Victoria get through the check-in process, get her bags checked and rearrange her carry-on items to go through security. By the time I prayed with her and walked to the car to head home it was 4 am. Once home I napped for about an hour. Through the day Victoria kept Mama updated on her flights. When she landed in Houston. When she rechecked her bags for the flight to Honduras and was at the gate. When she boarded the flight to Honduras. When she landed in Honduras.

All those updates came as we traveled to Chappell Hill. Mama and I were on the road for that five-hour trip at 7 am. It rained on us for most of the trip, often heavy rain. But as we neared Chappell Hill, the rain stopped, and we got a couple hours without any rain for the reunion. Steve and Diane had driven down from Wyoming. Tony and Barbara, who have relocated back to Chappell Hills – a nearby subdivision of Brenham - were there early. Cathy was recuperating from a broken wrist, but Chuck came over by motorcycle later that day. Danny did the grilling; vegetables – including stuffed jalapenos, chicken quarters, venison and pork steaks. Mama brought macaroni salad and I brought a Choco-flan cake. Both were big hit with everyone. Diane made seven-layer dip and Marth and Stephanie (Tony’s daughter) made a Peanut Butter and Key Lime pies. We ate off and on but mostly we visited. Mama and I had to leave by 4 pm to make the drive home, so our visit was pretty short. Everybody appreciated us being there. We had a good time. The trip home took just over four hours under clear skies.

Randy was also there for our gathering also. He has been a good friend for many years. He will also be a valuable resource to me and Mama as we develop this real estate business. He and I took some time to catch up and talk through a couple investment strategies. I always enjoy that. Randy is going to help me with a kitchen remodel as Mama and I move forward on that project. He also gave me a piece of information I was missing for the remodel of the sunroom that Mama and I will tackle sometime later this year.

Mama and I got to talk a lot on the way down ad back. And yes, I drove the distance both ways. That is not unusual in and of itself, but Mama stayed awake talking to me knowing that I had been up since 2 am. One takeaway from the gathering with my siblings was how close some have become to the Lord over the past couple years. That was a very pleasant discovery.

It was not difficult to get to sleep that night.

Deliveries, travel plans

Victoria and Mama were out doing a second round of last-minute shopping yesterday afternoon while I was in class through the work day so, I had to wait until I got home to find out which delivery I was supposed to make that evening. Whether we were taking the goats to Rick’s or taking the stock trailer to the Cantrell’s. When I got home, Mama was napping, and Victoria was out feeding. I got changed and helped get the feeding done. By the time I was back inside, Mama was up with instructions. It is always a little funny because Mama assumes I know what the plan is because she has talked it out with someone other than me so, she was a surprised when I asked her which we were doing of the two choices. We were taking the trailer to Gainesville. I should have guessed that. I had a 50/50 chance of getting it right. But with Mama, I remain open to changing plans as needed.

Once I ate a quick dinner, we headed out to hook up the trailer. Fortunately, where we park the trailer, we do not normally have problems with the ground being soft. If I had left the trailer in the barn, I would have had problems. But as it was, I was able to back up and make the connection quickly and we were out the gate and headed down the road by 5:20. With the round trip and a few minutes visit once we got there, the delivery took a little over three hours. We did not stay long because we needed to get back home and get Victoria situated to pack up the car for an early morning departure to the airport. With that early drive ahead of me, I was in bed as soon as I could make that happen.

Mama woke me this morning just before the alarm went off at 4:20 am. Victoria was already up making her coffee. We were out the door at 4:35. Her flight was scheduled for 7:15. We were in plenty of time. However, on the way to the airport I asked Victoria to check her itinerary for the return flight information. Just to make sure we were all on the same page. When she looked, we discovered that her flight this morning had been cancelled. We were only about twenty minutes from the airport when we made that discovery. If I am remembering correctly, that is only the second or possibly third time we have had that happen. But severe weather in Houston caused the cancellation. Whether the flight from Houston to Honduras was also cancelled is a question I will not spend any time worrying over. There was no alternative way to get her to that flight. Victoria is now booked on a flight leaving DFW at 5:40 tomorrow morning.

That will be a lovely Saturday morning drive. We will need to leave the house at 2:30 am. The round trip plus time taken to help get all of Victoria’s baggage checked should put me back at the farm in time to feed before Mama and I need to leave for Chappell Hill. Since we are making the trip to Chappell Hill a day trip – there and back on the same day – we will not get back to the farm until 9 pm at the earliest. Our animals will be hungry Sunday morning. I just wish I could be home this morning when Mama discovery that Victoria did not leave. That will be a surprise. Savanna will be very disappointed – for a few minutes. Such are the challenges in international travel.

Brittany was trying to find a way to make it down this weekend to go to Chappell Hill with us but that is not going to work out. I-35 was completely flooded about twenty minutes south of Brittany’s. As of last night, there was one southbound lane opened to traffic. Both northbound lanes were still closed. Overnight the forecast was for continued rain in the area. They have gotten far more rain than we have here, and we are dealing with flooding in certain areas. Brittany has even gotten water in the house during the periods of heavier rain because the sump pump was unable to keep up with the water accumulating in the basement. That coupled with the fact that the girls have been running fevers and have been generally cranky because they do not feel well, has taken a toll on their Brittany. Hopefully, Andrew getting home this weekend will help her through this rough patch before he leaves again to go to Washington State for more training. Britany is booked on a flight out of DFW to meet Andrew in Seattle so they can spend a couple days together there. We will see if she is able to make that happen.

Life is full of surprises.

Home, corrections, neighbors, sickness

Mama made it home safely last night. It was near 9 pm when she got here. By the time we had unloaded the car and placed most items required for the night in their proper places, we were ready for bed. I will find out more about the trip in the days to come, but it is certain that Mama had a wonderful time with Kimberlyn and her kids and grandkids. I am sure the trip will be repeated at some point in the future, but Mama was very happy to be home. This morning, all the animals will be happy to see her also. Mama and I did not take much time to catch up last night, but I did get instructions for today and tonight as well as corrections for appointments later this week. It will be a tight schedule.

Sometime this week we have to get the goats to Rick’s, get the stock trailer to Kenny and Kimberlyn, meet Brittany and the girls, get Victoria to the airport, and go to Chappell Hill for a family reunion. A couple of those specific tasks can be shuffled. Some cannot. If Mama can work it out with Rick, we will take the goats to his farm tonight. They will be there two months. Enough time for me to get the second paddock done. That will also help me out in organizing the pig building to have the pigs ready to take to the processor. If we do not get that done this evening, it will have to wait until next week. We are thinking about getting the stock trailer to Kenny and Kimberlyn Thursday evening. The delivery of the trailer is time sensitive because they have an appointment to have the pigs processed Tuesday of next week. So, that drop off could happen as late as Monday evening of next week, but we would like to get things in place before that if possible. Meeting Brittany is set. That will happen Thursday afternoon. Mama and Brittany will meet somewhere near Oklahoma City and travel back to the farm caravan style. Victoria has a flight out of DFW at 7:30 Friday morning. That means I will be leaving the house with her somewhere around 4:30 that morning. The family reunion is set for Saturday. We will travel down and back the same day. Regardless of how we work things out, it is going to be a busy week.

Yesterday evening, Victoria and I went for a walk down the road and back. She took the dogs with her and the big dogs follow me. On the way we passed a couple working on a patch of ground near us. On a corner of the forty acres that sits across the road from our farm. I had told Victoria that it looked to me like someone was getting ready to build a home, but I did not know for sure. We waved as we were heading down the road, but on the way back, I stopped to introduce myself. I was right. Ricky sold two acres of that field to a family member. Cody; early forties. One daughter about nine years old. A fiancé. They are clearing the ground to lay out a homesite. They seemed like good people. Time will tell. It is not like they are right on top of us. Mama and I will try to be a good witness to them as they go through the construction process and as they settle in as our neighbors.

I will be teaching tomorrow. A coworker and I will be splitting a class of 43 into two smaller classes. It worked so well last time we did this that we are actually looking forward to doing it again. Yesterday, unbeknownst to me, one of the persons I have been trying to get into the office to do a mock class with, came to give that mock to the leadership team. It went well enough. Both of the individuals were here to give the mock but only one room was available for the presentations. At least we are one up in getting these individuals qualified. When I did a walkthrough with these two candidates last week, I cautioned one that he would need to be hurried to meet the time constraints of the class. Turns out I was correct. He was an hour behind at lunchtime. The second instructor candidate will have to be cautioned to slow down. He will present next week. We will see if I am right about him as well.

None of us, me, Mama or Victoria, are completely well. All of us are still snotting and coughing. As this information was related to Savanna Sunday morning, Savanna was undeterred in having her Aunt Tori come to see her in Honduras – sick or not. “It’s okay”, she cheerfully related to Victoria. “You can throw up in our potty when you get here.”

Simple problem. Simple solution.

Sickish, Mama, busy week ahead

Unfortunately, last weekend was one of those weekends that no one wants to have. The fact that it was a repeat of the previous weekend made it even more frustrating. Friday, Saturday and Sunday I felt miserable. I got up early Saturday morning and went through our normal feeding routine. I had not slept well so going out to feed the animals was therapeutic. When that was done, I got ready to go bus calling. I am not sure how the time got away from me, but I ended up leaving the farm later that planned. When I got to the church, the road was blocked off for a food fair going on in the square in downtown Decatur. Pastor was out of town this weekend, so I am not sure where the men were meeting before teaming up, but I was too late to find out and get on a team. I ended up just going to Lowe’s to get a few items I needed for the fence I was planning to work on. When I got back home, I changed and rested.

So went the day. Work a little bit. Rest a little bit. In that routine I did get some fencing done. I attached rolled fencing to the pipe fence that lines our driveway on the east side of the house. I had to stop in the early afternoon. I was out of energy. Now, I have about sixty feet of fencing left on the pipe fence portion of the paddock and about the same distance on the new back fence of that paddock. The gate into the paddock has been up for some time already. Once the fencing is complete, I can finish the shelter and we will be ready to house either our sheep or our goats there. It is just disappointing and frustrating to feel so badly when there is so much that needs to get done. I wanted to clean the coop over the weekend, but that did not happen. I wanted to clean up around the farm, but that did not happen. I wanted to sweep and straighten up in the wellhouse, but that did not happen. Oh, well.

At some point I will have to see a doctor to find out what the underlying issue is that is keeping me from beating this lingering respiratory issue. But I have been holding off because I hesitate to get a diagnosis that will affect the extent of coverage available to me once I no longer have my current insurance. In other words, I would like to avoid carrying pre-existing conditions with me to another insurance provider – past those that I already have. Maybe that is a poor reason to endure this ongoing malaise, but I feel almost compelled to do so as Mama and I wait for one or both of our houses to sell; thus enabling me to move to our real estate business fulltime – requiring a change in insurance providers. Time will tell.

Mama should be back tonight. She has spent the weekend in Louisiana with Kimberlyn. I suppose they have had a great time as Kimberlyn led two ladies’ meetings in two different churches. I have not been updated very often or very thoroughly throughout the time Mama has been away. She has been very busy. But I am pretty sure she told me would be heading home sometime near noon today. That should put her back at the farm around 9 pm. We will all be glad to have her back home.

Mama does not get much downtime. Tomorrow, Tuesday, she is driving to Oklahoma City to meet Brittany. Britany is traveling down so she can fly out to meet Andrew in Washington State. He is there for some special training on the new aircraft he is helping commission. Brittany will be back on Friday.  Mama and Victoria and I get to keep Zoe and Sophia. I could get used to that. Now that my beard is gone, I will see how the twins react to me.

We have a busy week this week. Tomorrow we will take the goats to Rick’s. Thursday we will take the stock trailer to Kenny and Kimberlyn. They have two pigs they need to get to the processor. Saturday we will be driving to a family reunion in Chappell Hill.

Lots going on. It would be nice to feel better.

Mama, a thorough soaking

Mama texted me mid-afternoon yesterday to let me know that she had made her decision to go with Kim Cantrell this weekend. That question having been settled, she sprang into action to get all the sundry items in place to spend four days and three nights away from home. By the time I got home a couple hours later, her bags were packed, her timeline was set, the laundry was caught up with, and she was ready for me to tell her how we were going to finance her holiday – whether cash or debit card. Kim’s husband, Kenny, is probably relieved that Mama was going along. It is a fair drive to Southern Louisiana from here. Not that Kim could not have done it alone, it is just nice to have company along on that length of drive. Mama had to leave the farm before 7 am. I am guessing that the meeting Kim is scheduled to speak at is sometime in the early evening at a church where her son is the pastor. So, the underlying driver is grandma going to see the grandchildren – and the children too, I suppose. Mama will meet Kim in Gainesville and the two of them will leave from there. Pray for their safe travel and for Kim’s message to the ladies she will be speaking to this evening and tomorrow. The two of them will be staying over for church Sunday. Traveling home Monday. I miss Mama already.

We have been thoroughly soaked now. Many of the creeks are out of their banks and lots of acreage is underwater. I am not aware of any issues with the flooding locally, but it is always inconvenient. The forecast if for an additional inch of rain through the day today but sunny skies tomorrow. Temperatures remain in the mid-70s, so it is we have a pleasant, sloppy weekend ahead. Fortunately, we may be rain free through Monday. Tuesday through Saturday next week are expected to bring more rain each day. Up to a half inch per day. No complaints. It will be a gift to have all the ponds, tanks and lakes filled up before summer hits. And, the rain brings cooler temperatures with it. It we can avoid the three and four inch rains our runoff channels can manage the downpours without incident. But the weather does what the weather does, and we adapt.

Our pigs have no dry place in the entire pen. It is their own doing. They have dug two very large wallows. One at the only gate into the pen. The other beside the shelter I built for them. The mud holes are on either side of the small shelter I attached to the pig building when I kicked them out and gave the building to the goats. The water from the recent rains has now accumulated to the level that it floods that shelter. Last week, I dug a channel to drain some of the level from one of the wallows, but that evening the pigs stopped up the drain. I guess they like being wet and muddy. They are pigs, after all. Last night I reopened the drain, but I do not expect it to last. Mama and I have taken to entering the pen – when absolutely necessary – by climbing over the pallets I recently placed around the pen to fortify the south and west sides. Yes, Mama has actually been able to use the pallets (they are like short ladders) to get into and out of the pen. I have not seen her do it and I would certainly like to see that happen, but I am confident that she was successful because she was very proud of succeeding at that little acrobatic activity.

When we take the goats to Rick’s next week, and I will clean out the accumulation of hay saturated with manure and urine that the goats have gifted to us and allow the building to air out for a day or two. I may then open the building to the pigs again. I will need them to be comfortable with the building before I use it as an avenue to load them into our stock trailer for transport to the processor. That date is still five weeks out. Five potentially very wet weeks out. They will dirty up the building in a big way, but we can clean and sanitize it once they are gone. All that, of course, requires Mama’s approval.

Yesterday we got our check for the sale of the two crazy cows. It turns out that the real crazy one was seven months pregnant. Mellow, the less crazy of the two, was only three months bred. They both brought a fair price. Mama and I were pleased. Pleased with the cash generated. Pleased that we do not have to worry ourselves over those two mad bovine upsetting our neighbor’s herd. Their departure will save us about $350 per month on hay and feed. Now we start over. This time we are looking at miniatures. Possibly Highland cattle. Equally possible, mini Herefords. For the moment we are just looking. Selling one of our two houses will be the key to how quickly we can move forward with any plans requiring more than $100.

That will happen soon enough.

Officially sick, storms, not a total loss

Mama is officially sick. Just how sick remains to be seen, but she has the cough and sore throat, the nasal draining, the snotty-ness and the general malaise that confirm to her that she is not well. She is mad at me. Sort of. Not that I could have done anything about getting sick myself, but she can confidently pin her current discomfort on me. Oh, well. This too shall pass. The real reason she is upset is that it may cost her giving up traveling with Kim Cantrell this weekend. That decision has not been made, but Kimberlyn has a weakened immune system and is battling fibro myalgia. Unnecessarily exposing her to any virus would be unwise. None of us, Mama, Victoria or I want to go to the doctor and pay them to tell us we are sick. Though we may be forced to take them to shorten the infection, we do not want to take any antibiotics. So, we let our bodies fight the infection with minimal medical intervention using herbs and oils to help us cope with the symptoms and fortify our natural abilities to fight an infection. It is not the easy way, but in the long run, it is the best way. Mama will make her travel decisions this morning. I will await the final news on that front.

The storms that passed us by earlier in the week battered us most of the night last night. It all started just before dark. Very strong winds. Very heavy rains. Lots of thunder and lightning. I woke up several times through the night and it was storming every time. I do not know if it was the storm that woke me each time, but I laid listening as I fell back to sleep. I have always enjoyed storms – other than when we lived in Bowie and dreaded the approach of any bad weather.  As I left this morning, I checked the rain gauge. We got three inches of water overnight. Not a huge amount, but significant. As I left the farm, I noticed the HIGH WATER warning signs were up on FM1655. That is the route Victoria normally takes to work so, I called her to let her know she might have to take an alternate route. She might try it anyway but based on what I saw of the creek that I cross over on my way to town, the bridge that is normally flooded after storms like these will be underwater this morning. Fortunately, there are a number of alternate roads she can safely navigate to get her to the same place. For Mama, feeding will be a soupy mess this morning; especially with the pigs.

We got our check from the stock sale where we took our sheep. We did not do all that well with them. It was not a total loss. We got about 60% of what we had originally paid for the bred ewes. And we have five lambs to sell in a few months. We should end up with a 50% profit overall. Not counting feed and vet bills. As far as operating a small hobby farm goes, that is a pretty good return. I was not too disappointed. As I stated when we brought the ewes home, they were butt ugly sheep. Compared to the Dorper sheep already in the lot, I had the feeling that ours would not sell high. Overall, I am pleased with our little venture into sheep. We will probably not repeat it. If we want some lamb or mutton in the future, we will buy one to have it processed. We will not raise it ourselves.

With the cows our neighbor took to the sale for us, I am at a loss to even guess what we will get for them. Some weeks the market is up. Some weeks the market is down. I suppose it depends on who is there to buy on any particular day. But both of the cows we were forced to sell were born on our farm so, any money we make on them can be tagged as a profit. At least in farming terms. We should have that check tomorrow or Saturday. At the very least, it provides us the cash we need to buy feed for the next several months – if we do not spend it elsewhere.

Cori called last night to offer me an inroad into Medical Missions Outreach as a translator. That would be an answer to prayer. I will make the contact and see how things work out.

Weather, sickness, travel plans, Maggie’s follow up

Mild mornings and pleasant evenings have been the order of our days lately. Rain had kept us under shelter more than was normal in the past three or four Spring seasons, but that is a blessing. Even though the days are ranging up into the 80’s, it does not seem unpleasant. For many of the past days, Mama has cut off the air conditioner and opened the windows. When it is humid, things in the house can get a little sticky, but for the most part, it airs out the house and blows out that “closed-up” smell.

Our lambs are enjoying the pleasant temperatures and seem more playful in the evenings when we are getting ready to feed them. In the absence of the ewes, they are calming down some, but it would take many months to get them as familiar with us as the goats are. Still, they are more playful than the goats when they are not running from us. The only issue with the goats is that they want to herd you as you enter the enclosure with them. It has not happened often, but when they push against Mama’s knee as she walks through them it can hurt her. Yesterday was one of those days that they hurt Mama. They were so hungry they were trying to get her to head to the feed trough not realizing that she needed to get to the feed first. As I struggle with balance lately, they have too often caused me to stumble – nothing dangerous, just something I have to watch for. 

The rain we were supposed to get this week has stayed mostly to our north and east. Though there is a significant threat of rain in the forecast, I may actually have to water our plants and trees tomorrow evening. I was telling Mama the other day that the current conditions remind me of my childhood. It was almost a certainty that each afternoon there would be a thunderstorm. Those storms would pop up between 2 and 4 pm, rain for about ten minutes and disappear as quickly as they had come. Leaving us with an oppressive humidity. Being north of the Gulf Coast, the humidity is not as bad here, but it is still a factor we deal with; usually by closing the windows and turning on the air conditioner. With the rains we are getting now, Mama and I are wishing we had planted a bigger garden. Maybe this Fall we will do just that.

I am still battling a deep cough. I know it is a disruptive cough in the quiet atmosphere of the Education department, but I feel the need to be at work. Since most of my day is spent sitting, it is not a hardship physically. But I am sure my cough is annoying. On the bright side, I am not the only one at work who is coughing. On the not-so-bright side, Victoria told us last night that she is starting to get a sore throat and Mama told me this morning that she is starting to get a sore throat. Mama is supposed to travel with Kim Cantrell this weekend – Friday through Monday. Victoria is traveling to Honduras next weekend. Leaving on the 10^th and coming home on the 24^th.  There is never a convenient time to get sick, but right now seems less convenient than most. Please pray we will all get well quickly.

Mama and Victoria are going shopping today. Hopefully, both of them feel up to the challenge. It is the last push to get all the requests met from Cori and the kids. Victoria has gotten packages from Amazon every day in order to provide items for transport to Honduras. So far, she is planning on taking just enough clothing to have three or four changes of clothing. The rest of the weight in the two suitcases she is packing will be items for her sister and nieces. Mama and I will probably be making our trek to Honduras in September – depending on my employment. We will not be able to do as Victoria is doing. Mama requires too many personal items to allow that much sacrifice of luggage space, but we can each take two suitcases, and I do not require too much for my own personal needs. If we follow the packing strategy we used last time we went, I will be carrying a backpack full of cereal and cookies, a suitcase full of items for our children and grandchildren a second suitcase with some clothing and the overflow if items for Cori, Nate and the kids. Mama will need the other two suitcases. That typically works for me.

Maggie goes back for a follow up visit to her doctor today. They will evaluate the condition of the tumor on her kidney to see if the cryogenic procedure was a success. We are all hoping the medical team likes what they see in that dye contrasted CAT scan. Maggie will need help following the procedure because they require her to take two Benadryl prior to giving her the dye. Sleeping that off is a must. If only they would give Benadryl to Walter and Cathryn as well. I am sure Maggie will work out the logistics of her recovery.

Your prayers are always appreciated.