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| The bees are buzzing...... |
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Spring time
So, Spring is here. The sun is shining and hopefully warm temps are gonna stay. With the longer days comes longer hours outside working on projects. For the past two days we have spent the whole day cleaning and clearing our new pasture for our horses. Yesterday, we began the fencing process. With the animals and land it is never a dull moment. Just as we finished a section of electric fencing, the horses got excited and started running and " boom" they sprinted through it..lol.Thank goodness it was just a preliminary strand and not hooked up yet. We also started on our garden and some flower beds. I am at a stand still though until I expand my chicken run. The chickens will destroy any young plants I try to start. Not to mention they think any dirt I put in the flower beds and pots is for their amusement only. I am doing alot of reading about container gardens since that is what we are trying this year. There are several good books you need to check out on Kindle, they are free. I have also been sticking to my diet in the midst of all these other projects. I am already 19 lbs down. I am still trying to follow the induction phase. It is hard but it is working for me. Before any diet plan please talk to your doctor. I hope that all of you are enjoying the sun shine, We are..Happy farming to ya..
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Winding down
Another day on the farm, oops,The Ranch
Hello folks,
I am new to blogging so I am still trying to get the hang of getting on here everyday to post. It is very good for my soul to bear my successes and my failures. (even though the failures usually out weigh the successes)
So.. while I was away this is what has been happening. We have been working on our garden. The soil her is not that great so we decided to do an above ground garden. I found some great ideas online. Some from Pinterest, others from Facebook pages and other bloggers. I will share the ones I can remember..lol. I decided to do a large box garden and some separate sections done with pallets. I love pallets. They are usually free and the ideas are limited only by your creativity. We loaded all of the boxes and pallets with top soil yesterday and man that was a job. It was made more challenging by the constant energetic interruptions by our new addition, the German Shepard puppy named Z, ( Alaric Zelic Von Lewis Haus)and our chickens. the chickens thought we were putting all of that dirt out for their amusement. Pics to follow.
Also, a diet update. i have been on this low carb diet for 9 days. it has been an adjustment. I wanted a BLT yesterday and I cant have bread so..I did a Lettuce sandwich with bacon and tomato between the lettuce... It was awesome and I didn't miss the bread.. I could get used to this, I think.Give it a try..
Laken is working hard on her school work while I blog. I decided to home school when we moved to the middle of no where. She is very smart and has always been in gifted programs. There are no resources available in this area for her. We found an awesome Christian School with an very appropriate program. She is loving the work and it has been a challenge for both of us. We spend several hours a day covering her work and I have learned a lot also. Some of it is self guided and other parts are not. I am new to home schooling so I did a ton of research. I advise everyone to read all the pros and cons before deciding but I know we made the right choice for us. Lola said ..." That is enough school work Laken." We need to play!
The four legged friends in the pasture are loving this awesome weather. They are as sick as we are with the cold weather. Spring is awesome when you have a true winter. In the south we don't normally have a cold winter and of course we complain..lol. Without a good cold winter we are bombarded with bugs and it is impossible to fully enjoy this awesome climate we live in. We are a funny bunch( southerners) when we get a little ice and snow...we freeze... no pun intended, but hand us 100+ temps with 100% humidity and we seem right at home. However, as I said before..it is impossible to enjoy this beautiful spring weather when you never have a winter and this year we had a winter.. a cold one for us and I could dance outside in the sunshine on a day like this...No pics for that one...lol. So back to the 4 legged friends. They are soaking in the sunshine, running and playing and "talking" to me every time I walk outside. The donkeys are especially vocal...very loud. I am sure the neighbors ( a few miles away) can hear them. I have scheduled the horses for a bath in a few days, I will let you know how that goes. We got 3 of the horses from a lady that had not had time for them. They have not let me bathe them. We decided to work on other grooming until they got used to us. They will let us brush them an clean them now so a bath is the next step..I think I may get a little wet.
Trust is a lot of work with an animal that can crush you if they wanted to. I trust my babies now but they are still getting used to us. They are a little jumpy sometimes. They donkeys are not on the bath list... I am sure they are fine. They tend to do their own thing. We got them to ward off any predators, so I would not classify them as pets but they will eat out of our hands but that is about it. Frosty, The Ole Man isn't in these pics, I will have to include one of him later.
My feathered friends are wandering around the yard, digging and dusting. The large pile of top soil is a hit..They are aerating and fertilizing it for me. Thanks guys...I cant wait to get my new babies. I want to add about 30 more chicks. I am expanding my coop to accommodate them. they all free range during the day but I have to have room for them when I am unable to let them out. We have about 20 projects in the works and the coop is one of those. On the farm..oops Ranch..lol we have to work till the money runs out..then come back when we can. It is a juggling act but I would not trade it for anything. One day it will be much better. All of the essential will be done. Now if you ask my husband about the loving it part..well you may get a different answer. God love him, he is always doing a "honey do" list. I love him more everyday.
A few weeks ago we had a pig problem. The pig pen had to be moved. Saban the pig is a pet and he thinks he is a dog. I have heard him bark... Really, no joke. We moved his pen and we thought all was well. We left for work and upon our return we were in for a little surprise. The horse buckets were turned over, the gas grill was on its side and various other things were moved and or destroyed. I immediately knew what had happened. We have seen this destruction before. Saban had escaped before and we had a rather comical time with it. It included a rain storm and me chasing the pig in the rain storm. He was lucky to be a pet at that moment cause Bacon, I mean Saban was looking tasty. So back to this episode. I got out of my truck and what do I hear...oink oink oink.. I look up and I see this fat pig waddling towards me full speed across the horse pasture. He is so excited to see me that I can not be mad at him. Besides it isn't raining so my mood is much better this time. I took him back to his pen with a little help from a loaf of bread. I put him in, try to establish where he escaped and I am clueless. No gaps or dig makes..hmmmm. So i leave him and head back to the house. Before I make it to the house I hear...oink oink oink. I look behind me and yep.. there he is... running behind me. We head back to the pen, he follows. I lead him in with food and he lock his door back. Scratching my head , I decide to wait at the top of the hill and see what he is doing to escape. I will have to say..he is one creative pig. I wish I would have had my camera. He managed to climb the fence and push his weight against it until he flipped over it. Well, now we have poles much closer together and a few other adjustment and no more " Saban on the loose" stories.
Well Laken is done with her self guided stuff, so time to teach my little genius. Be back soon...
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| " Z"...the new puppy |
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| the dirt pile |
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| the pallets...they are ugly right now but I hope for tons of beautiful green stuff soon |
Also, a diet update. i have been on this low carb diet for 9 days. it has been an adjustment. I wanted a BLT yesterday and I cant have bread so..I did a Lettuce sandwich with bacon and tomato between the lettuce... It was awesome and I didn't miss the bread.. I could get used to this, I think.Give it a try..
Laken is working hard on her school work while I blog. I decided to home school when we moved to the middle of no where. She is very smart and has always been in gifted programs. There are no resources available in this area for her. We found an awesome Christian School with an very appropriate program. She is loving the work and it has been a challenge for both of us. We spend several hours a day covering her work and I have learned a lot also. Some of it is self guided and other parts are not. I am new to home schooling so I did a ton of research. I advise everyone to read all the pros and cons before deciding but I know we made the right choice for us. Lola said ..." That is enough school work Laken." We need to play!
 |
| Lola telling Laken it is play time |
The four legged friends in the pasture are loving this awesome weather. They are as sick as we are with the cold weather. Spring is awesome when you have a true winter. In the south we don't normally have a cold winter and of course we complain..lol. Without a good cold winter we are bombarded with bugs and it is impossible to fully enjoy this awesome climate we live in. We are a funny bunch( southerners) when we get a little ice and snow...we freeze... no pun intended, but hand us 100+ temps with 100% humidity and we seem right at home. However, as I said before..it is impossible to enjoy this beautiful spring weather when you never have a winter and this year we had a winter.. a cold one for us and I could dance outside in the sunshine on a day like this...No pics for that one...lol. So back to the 4 legged friends. They are soaking in the sunshine, running and playing and "talking" to me every time I walk outside. The donkeys are especially vocal...very loud. I am sure the neighbors ( a few miles away) can hear them. I have scheduled the horses for a bath in a few days, I will let you know how that goes. We got 3 of the horses from a lady that had not had time for them. They have not let me bathe them. We decided to work on other grooming until they got used to us. They will let us brush them an clean them now so a bath is the next step..I think I may get a little wet.
Trust is a lot of work with an animal that can crush you if they wanted to. I trust my babies now but they are still getting used to us. They are a little jumpy sometimes. They donkeys are not on the bath list... I am sure they are fine. They tend to do their own thing. We got them to ward off any predators, so I would not classify them as pets but they will eat out of our hands but that is about it. Frosty, The Ole Man isn't in these pics, I will have to include one of him later.
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| The snow...we are not happy |
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| Patches, Penny and Sugar |
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| Momma, Clairece |
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| Daddy, Cletus, He loves playing with the strangest things |
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| Cletus, posing |
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| Laken , taking a break and feeding the horses |
My feathered friends are wandering around the yard, digging and dusting. The large pile of top soil is a hit..They are aerating and fertilizing it for me. Thanks guys...I cant wait to get my new babies. I want to add about 30 more chicks. I am expanding my coop to accommodate them. they all free range during the day but I have to have room for them when I am unable to let them out. We have about 20 projects in the works and the coop is one of those. On the farm..oops Ranch..lol we have to work till the money runs out..then come back when we can. It is a juggling act but I would not trade it for anything. One day it will be much better. All of the essential will be done. Now if you ask my husband about the loving it part..well you may get a different answer. God love him, he is always doing a "honey do" list. I love him more everyday.
 |
| Marvin, the beautiful..strutting his stuff |
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| the beginning of the addition to the coop |
 |
| "what cha got momma," , we are coming.... |
A few weeks ago we had a pig problem. The pig pen had to be moved. Saban the pig is a pet and he thinks he is a dog. I have heard him bark... Really, no joke. We moved his pen and we thought all was well. We left for work and upon our return we were in for a little surprise. The horse buckets were turned over, the gas grill was on its side and various other things were moved and or destroyed. I immediately knew what had happened. We have seen this destruction before. Saban had escaped before and we had a rather comical time with it. It included a rain storm and me chasing the pig in the rain storm. He was lucky to be a pet at that moment cause Bacon, I mean Saban was looking tasty. So back to this episode. I got out of my truck and what do I hear...oink oink oink.. I look up and I see this fat pig waddling towards me full speed across the horse pasture. He is so excited to see me that I can not be mad at him. Besides it isn't raining so my mood is much better this time. I took him back to his pen with a little help from a loaf of bread. I put him in, try to establish where he escaped and I am clueless. No gaps or dig makes..hmmmm. So i leave him and head back to the house. Before I make it to the house I hear...oink oink oink. I look behind me and yep.. there he is... running behind me. We head back to the pen, he follows. I lead him in with food and he lock his door back. Scratching my head , I decide to wait at the top of the hill and see what he is doing to escape. I will have to say..he is one creative pig. I wish I would have had my camera. He managed to climb the fence and push his weight against it until he flipped over it. Well, now we have poles much closer together and a few other adjustment and no more " Saban on the loose" stories.
Well Laken is done with her self guided stuff, so time to teach my little genius. Be back soon...
Friday, March 7, 2014
Hello
My name is Terri and this is more of a journal of my families adventures. A year ago we bought 124 acres of land in a rural area and have begun setting up a " ranch". I use the term ranch because it sounds more fun than a farm. We moved here after the loss of one of our daughters. It has been both an adventure and a challenge. We all needed a change of scenery and this has definitely been that. We currently have 4 horses, 2 donkeys, 28 chickens, 1 pig and 3 dogs. I have 5 girls but only one is still young enough to live at home. Some days are boring and others are loaded with drama and comedy. Stay tuned for the ride.
Now a little about me...hmmmm here goes...I love to cook and clean, I love to sew and craft, I love animals and tending a garden, I love to read and go to the beach, I love to entertain and spend time with friends and family, but I also love my alone time, I love church and I love God... I am always struggling with my weight and my mouth and never have enough time to do the things I love. I work as a Paramedic, I love the job but I have been doing this for a while and I am realizing I am not getting any younger. I wish I could find something that would allow me to work form home. I am married to a wonderful, loving hard working man. He loves me no matter what and I am sure he should get a gold medal for putting up with me.
Here in Alabama, we are getting ready for Spring. We have had the coldest winter I can remember this year and it has put alot of things on hold for us. It has also been so wet. I know most of the Northerners will laugh at that but we live in the South for a reason. We can survive 100+ degree weather in stride but let it hit the teens with wind and rain and ice and we stop...COLD in our tracks. Come on Spring..lol
As I said earlier, this is a journal of my adventures on Horns and Hooves Ranch. I am not an authority on anything, just loaded with ideas and opinions and funny stories. If I find an awesome recipe I will share it.. if I find and awesome craft of idea I will share it...if I do something stupid or crazy or if we have a silly day on this " ranch" I will share it. I hope everyone enjoys listening to these tales. If not well ...dont.. but be nice, we do not tolerate nasty attitudes on the ranch and I wont allow them on here.
Today my post is about my weight...ugh a bad subject. I am on day three of this healthy low carb diet. It is a trimmed down version of Paleo and Atkins mixed. I do not advise anyone to try this but it is what my doctor and I have come up with. I am doing ok with it but I would probably tackle a Girl Scout for her cookies, or the Lays potato chip guy if given a chance. I have set my goal for 46 days. I will by no means be at my goal weight but I want to stick to this and that seemed like a good time frame. I work better with small goals than with the big picture. So I guess today would be classified and boring to most but it is what it is...
Now a little about me...hmmmm here goes...I love to cook and clean, I love to sew and craft, I love animals and tending a garden, I love to read and go to the beach, I love to entertain and spend time with friends and family, but I also love my alone time, I love church and I love God... I am always struggling with my weight and my mouth and never have enough time to do the things I love. I work as a Paramedic, I love the job but I have been doing this for a while and I am realizing I am not getting any younger. I wish I could find something that would allow me to work form home. I am married to a wonderful, loving hard working man. He loves me no matter what and I am sure he should get a gold medal for putting up with me.
Here in Alabama, we are getting ready for Spring. We have had the coldest winter I can remember this year and it has put alot of things on hold for us. It has also been so wet. I know most of the Northerners will laugh at that but we live in the South for a reason. We can survive 100+ degree weather in stride but let it hit the teens with wind and rain and ice and we stop...COLD in our tracks. Come on Spring..lol
As I said earlier, this is a journal of my adventures on Horns and Hooves Ranch. I am not an authority on anything, just loaded with ideas and opinions and funny stories. If I find an awesome recipe I will share it.. if I find and awesome craft of idea I will share it...if I do something stupid or crazy or if we have a silly day on this " ranch" I will share it. I hope everyone enjoys listening to these tales. If not well ...dont.. but be nice, we do not tolerate nasty attitudes on the ranch and I wont allow them on here.
Today my post is about my weight...ugh a bad subject. I am on day three of this healthy low carb diet. It is a trimmed down version of Paleo and Atkins mixed. I do not advise anyone to try this but it is what my doctor and I have come up with. I am doing ok with it but I would probably tackle a Girl Scout for her cookies, or the Lays potato chip guy if given a chance. I have set my goal for 46 days. I will by no means be at my goal weight but I want to stick to this and that seemed like a good time frame. I work better with small goals than with the big picture. So I guess today would be classified and boring to most but it is what it is...
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