Bonzai

This is our second foster baby. His Humane Society name is Bonzai. I'm learning about Pekingese by having him in our home. What a gorgeous dog!! He's a tank, big chested and short legged. He snores like a Shih Tzu and lays flat belly to the floor too. He is a confident male but gets along well with Koko, Mijo & Gracie Lou. He and Koko are gone for the weekend to the home of a couple who intend to adopt one or both of them. She picked up the dogs this afternoon and took them to a party with 16 society ladies; better mobile adoption opportunity than we could ever offer. ;0)

Its amazing that Koko has been with us so long because he's so precious. I think the Humane Society adoption coordinator needs some help so I'm going to learn more next week and start helping her out. She's well connected with every pure breed rescue and shelter within 500 miles but is less familiar with small furry breeds and less comfortable with home visits etc. We simply need to save more dogs and I'm going to work toward that end. Bubba is too. He applied to the board of directors for the Humane Society. They met today but we haven't heard if they voted on him yet.

There are at least three new members of the menagerie that I haven't posted pictures of yet but promise to in the near future. Bubba brought home his big dog and outdoor companion, Gracie Lou, this week. He also brought home two more geese. China geese; just beautiful animals.

I better go crochet. The craft show is just over a month away and I'm not nearly ready.

More later ........

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The Bubba of my dreams

I was in my 30's and had experienced a myriad of things, good and bad, before I met Robert Allen Brooks. God bringing him into my life was, by far, the most profound thing that has ever happened to me. I am thankful each and every day of my life that I get to spend it with him.

Yesterday I felt compelled to capture him doing his morning chores. A simple little can of corn shared by ducks, goats & a goose is a delightful encounter every day. It gives him a chance to mingle with the animals and observe them for health issues, personalities and such. Its a really wonderful thing we're able to do now.

When we spent five glorious weeks with Ed & Sheila in North Carolina we saw how the simplest tools can simplify life .......... as they should. This old mower & trailer combination is Bubba's farm truck. He mows the ditch and rough yard with it while I mow the house yard with the push. He takes along his 'grabber' tool to pick stuff up out of the ditch while he mows. He's able to drag things here and there around the acreage with it to mend fences and such. It keeps him from having to run our only vehicle through the pastures where there is great potential for tire damage and such. And this little trailer he picked up for $25 is a dump trailer too! ;0)

Just ten years ago I was at the top of my game, or so I thought. I had been promoted in my job and transferred cross country for work. I was learning all kinds of new things and experiencing things I never thought I would have the chance to. After having experienced life from one end of the spectrum to the other, I can absolutely shout that this simple life is an amazing blessing for me. It gives me the opportunity to appreciate God, people and the Earth. Bubba is a HUGE part of that and we're both amazed by it all.

PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!!!

The world loves Koko

It was no big surprise to me that, after the TV broadcast Saturday evening, there would be great interest in Koko. The surprise was that the Humane Society employee who took us to the TV station seriously wants to adopt this little love bundle. Because she is one of only two actual employees of the Humane Society here, she will be given the opportunity to take him home for a night and see how he fits in with her family, furry and otherwise. ;0)

I predict that Koko will love Laura & her family as much as she adores him. Will keep you posted. I'm getting excited already, wondering what type of foster baby we will be offered next.

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Chickens at last

Another big step at Our Promised Land Farm; CHICKENS!!!!!!

20 pretty birds, mostly red/black, some black/red and one white/black. All have the slate colored legs and you can see the little tufted cheeks.

I'm hoping and thinking they're older than seven weeks as the seller claimed. I'm thinking he had them for seven week, maybe.

We increased the existing fence from three to four sides and brought it up to six feet or more. We put tin at the base for physical and visual barrier. I'm planning to keep them inside the coop for a day or two at least, maybe longer.

Koko

It doesn't take many words for you to see just how adorable this little boy is. He's Shi Tzu and likely about 12/15 pounds.

He was brought in to the animal shelter by someone who could not care for him. He was all matted up and had to be completely shaved, shy his ears.

All it takes is for you to let him lay on your lap or in your arms and his eyes close and he starts to snore. He wants to be held often; especially when our two babies tag team him and he gets a bit overwhelmed.

He's a bow legged and flat footed little love, just like Mijo.

He's only been with us 24 hours but seems to be perfectly potty trained, even after more than a week in the cold, wet kennel where he never even saw sunlight.

I think his new family will fall in love with him quickly!! We sure have.

More later ..........

One more big step

Our new life at Our Promised Land Farm is becoming even more rewarding and fulfilling than I imagined it could. Like the rest of my family, I never imagined that I would end up on an acreage raising animals. My career was as an operations manager in the transportation industry. It was a job I grew into and, at times excelled at, but always took stress from. When I was laid off from my last employer in that field I vowed never to re-enter it if at all possible and, by God's blessings, I haven't.

Those of you on Facebook have already seen the pics of the chicken coop. Those of you not on Facebook get to be bored by my sillyness for the first time! ha ha ha

This is the chicken coop, on a trailer, as brought over from our good friend's place. By the time I took this picture I had already added one 2x4 on the bottom in the front to hold it together so it could be removed from the trailer.

This is how the chicken coop looks today. We dropped it on a base of cinder blocks so it would be tall enough for me to walk into comfortably. I had a ball adding all kinds of support, roosts, ladders, screening, tin, nest boxes and a walk in door to the coop. Bubba was very gracious and only helped when I asked. I wanted this to be 'my' project; control freak that I am, and he indulged me.

The only new product used in the remodel are the cinder blocks the coop sits on. I bought screws, nails and paint but no other building materials. I re-used wood salvaged from our remodel and brought the nest boxes up from the coop we dismantled out back. I used a plastic, accordian style closet door, from the remodel, to make the exterior door on the nest boxes. That way its big, light weight and water proof. ;-)

I mounted the nest boxes on the outside to maximize interior space and made the door for outside access to eggs.

I'm a 43 year old little girl who can't wait to show her Daddy what she built!!! HA HA HA HA

We've put up 6' fence around it and will be shopping for laying hens next week.

Today we took another step in raising goats. We brought home an amazing billy from the auction. I wasn't patient enough to find one on private sale and was really impressed with the look of this animal. He appears to be a cross of Spanish and Boer. He weighs nearly 100 lbs and is extremely muscular. The funniest thing about him is that he walks like a chicken. He leads each step with his head jutting it out in front of him.

We unloaded him into a rigid panneled pen connected to the barn and soon found out his potential ..... LOL I made the rooky mistake of placing a wedge of hay in a make shift feeder on the fence. He tested it first then used it as a ladder to jump up and over. Once we contained him for a couple hours in the larger pen with the entire herd he calmed down and is now moving through the pasture with the nannies. He's not attempting to "do his job" yet, is still acclimating to his new environment.

We contained the herd to the center pasture with access only to the neighbors property on both sides and to our other pastures front and back. Hopefully, that way he won't be so inclined to run and won't have immediate access to the road if he breaks through. We'll be keeping a pretty close eye on him; both to insure he's doing what he's supposed to be doing and to insure he's still on the property and hasn't headed to greener pastures. ;-)

I love my life!!!!

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Its official!

It took some time but we're now officially a goat farm. We went to the Producers Livestock auction this morning and bought ten young Spanish goat nannies. We really intended to start with just half a dozen, but it was easier to buy the whole group. We'll let them work on the property and keep an eye on them. We'll choose those we may want to get rid of and either re-sell them or butcher them.

Lots of beautiful faces in this bunch!!

I'm so happy I could just sit on a lilly pad and croak! HA HA HA

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Mission accomplished

Just one quick snap of the kids. They have gotten to the point of playing wildly each and every day. Mijo is eating more and staying fit for it. Munchkin is still having problems with the potty training but offers an immediate reaction to a simple, firm NO. ;-)

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Found the window

Our church was asked to provide desserts for the funeral of a 17 year old boy this very morning. I just happened to have several cakes and several dozen cookies prepared to be dropped off in the name of Harriett Baptist Church.

Thanks again, Lord, for the wake up call.

When God closes a door .....

So, last Saturday we got up early and went to the Farmer's Market. We spoke to a couple vendors and to the secretary/treasurer about the market and becoming a vendor there. The secretary asked what I would be selling and I told her no produce at this time, only baked goods. She said ok and gave me an application. She told me about their hours and fees and looked forward to seeing me when I was ready.

Thursday I spend 5 hours baking and making signs. Friday I spend another five hours baking. I make more signs and slip them into plastic covers. I dig out a table and table clothe. I give Bubba a big shopping list of things from town to finish up baking and ask him to get me cash to make change. Bubba loads the table and lawn chairs into the truck with the tub full of breads, cakes and cookies. We tell all the neighbors we see that we will be selling Saturday morning and they promise to stop by if they can.

Saturday morning we get up, shower, slam coffee, inhale breakfast and hit the door for town by 6 AM. We pull in, find we're likely running well behind most vendors but there are still a few spaces open. I take my application and money to the director who asks me what we will be selling today. When I tell her baked goods she asks me what produce I will be offering with it. When I say no produce she says .................................... you may only sell baked goods if you are also selling produce, unless you have a health permit.

:-(

We pile back into the truck and head home. Emotional, needless to say, and frustrated to the extreme. Did I want to go to the secretary/treasurer and educate her on this issues? YES, but I didn't. She was standing within ear shot of my conversation with the director and I pray she understands how this affects me.

So ........................... later this morning I will call pastor Mike and ask if church families in need could use care packages of baked goods. Later today I'll take treats to the neighbors and I may even let Bubba dig into one of the saffron loaves he's been drueling over. ;-)

For now I'll set here with a tear in my eye and look for the open window. In a bit I'll head outside and start working on my chicken coup. More info on that later.

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I love my life

Getting ready for my first day of sales at the Farmer's Market. Everything from fruits and veggies to eggs and baked goods are offered. Saturday morning I intend to have a table loaded with Parmesan Herb bread, Ginger Snap cookies, Braided Saffron bread and Kentucky Sorghum cake. I broke out the ledger to track my progress and make sure its more than just fun. ;-)

As you can see Munchkin is really hating life these days. She's learned a great distain for her new Daddy too. HA HA HA

This is what I saw from my front porch the other night. Amazingly enough it was rising from the ground, not dropping out of the clouds. Regardless, there were some anxious moments and some fervent prayers.

This one is kind of rugged, but one of my favorites; the mockingbird.

Who said inter-species relationships would never work? HA HA A fowl is a fowl when you need a friend. Two Buck, after a few weeks of excercise and being herded to and from the pond, is freely mobile. YYIIPPEEEE

I got a little closer to my beautiful friend, the scissor tailed fly catcher.

More later ..........

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I must be an adult; I'm repeating myself. HA HA HA HA

A beautiful day

Sunday is my favorite day of the week. As I sit here reflecting on this past week I think of several things that I consider blessing.

This week we were able to stock our freezer with a hind quarter of beef. What a great feeling. Its something I've never done before and that I remember from childhood. Buying meat in volume gives a great feeling of security and affords a great savings in the grocery bill. We are well stocked with extra lean ground beef, T-Bone steaks, Sirloin steaks, Round steak, Rump roast, Liver and a nice rump roast.

Thursday night we went to the annual meeting of the Concho Valley Electric Coop. We became members when we moved into the house. It was my first experience like this; a business meeting, dinner and door prize night. The barbeque was awesome!! The meeting was sort of interesting and the door prizes all went to other people. ;-)

Its very silly to, at nearly 43, be saying I really felt like an adult this week. HA HA HA The things we did and the conversations we had brought Mom & Dad to mind over and over. Then, in church this morning, Mike preached about respecting our elders and taking care of family members. It all seemed to fit together like a faith puzzle again.

My life is so blessed. I see it and feel it every day and it is simply amazing. My life just keeps getting better and better.

In your prayers tonight please remember Lorenzo Luna. He is a very, very dear and precious man who needs our well wishes to support him through a brief trial in his life. Please ask for strength and peace for him and his family.

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Amazing blessings

I remember a time last year when I was surprised by God's blessings and how the timing can be simply amazing. It happened again yesterday. Sunday we decided to contribute to the Vacation Bible School at our new church. I simply felt compelled despite the fact that it will, at this time, not work well in our monthly budget. Yesterday, in the mail, we received an unexpected financial surprise just a smidgen (?) larger than the amount we gave to VBS.

Pastor Mike also asked for volunteers to make a meal for a couple families from our church who are in need. I wanted to help but don't know the families and would have to rely on someone else to make the food delivery for me. Well, as it happens when the Lord is in control, when I stopped by the church to drop off the check for VBS the pastor was on the phone trying to find someone to make a meal because his volunteer had backed out. I offered and was able to go home and cook up a pan of lasagna for this family of five. I was able to offer wheat bread and Amish cinneman bread from my freezer as well. It felt SO GOOD!!!!!!! Kathy, Pastor Mike's wife was able to pick up and deliver the meal for me.

GOD IS GOOD!!!! Keep your eyes open for ways you can help your fellow man, in whatever way is best for you, and you will be rewarded ten fold!!!!!!

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In Texas, any building that will house animals is considered a barn .. You can tell by the weeds, we haven't purchased any grazing animals yet.

This is the back side of a structure that used to be a chicken coop. You can see the nest boxes still hanging on the walls. We are going to fortify it and use it as half a dozen stalls for goats. It should work well because three stall open to the Middle pasture and three to the Northwest pasture.

This is a picture taken across the NW pasture, facing West. The structure on the fence line is our well house.
This is a view of our NE pasture from the gate next to well #2.

This is the driveway into the Middle pasture along the East fence line.

More later .......

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This fence separates the driveway from the middle pasture.

I'm anxious to get the 5th wheel cleaned up and sold so we can put a car port over the driveway and actually park next to the house.

I've removed several bushes from the flower beds in front of the house. I still have more to go and then I plan to fill the beds with rock and possibly potted plants.

These Century Plants parallel the house on the East side of the driveway. Its said they bloom once a century then die......... maybe. They also put out babies like an aloe or hen & chicks.

This gate closes our drive. This is the East side of the driveway lined with palm trees ..... we would love to get rid of. The truck and building you see in the distance are our neighbor's, the Greshams. They are the sweet folks who took care of our place while we were in Iowa.

The West side of our driveway is lined with Rose bushes. They bloomed and bloomed for months this spring. I haven't done any pruning on them yet ......

More to follow...

This is for you, my beloved aunts of the North. ;-)

This is a personalized survey of our property. I whited out a bunch of information they thought was important and penciled in information we think is. I gave an approximate location of the cross fences that devide the property into four pastures and some desert style landscaped area.

I'll have to post pictures later ................... Bubba's hungry.................

Worm ID

From what I can find about it, the "worm" is the caterpillar of a big moth. Its either a one-eyed sphinx, hawk or hummingbird moth larva.

Mowing today and trying to make progress on kitchen cabinet doors and drawers. Bubba is tired of them covering his work shop table.....

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A cool (85) and overcast day

When we were at the Humane Society yesterday we spotted a duck. This poor duck has problems with it's legs but can get around slowly. We thought it would make a fine friend for our mascot goose, No Fear. Since the duck only cost $2 we decided to name it Two Buck Duck. ;-P

As you can see, they're happy together at the friendly fowl day spa. The gate is open for them to wander and the fence gives them a sense of security.

I finally got my bird house gourds planted ....... upside down. I hope they grow well and give me lots of gourds that I can string around the property for the birds to live in and do their bug eating best.

This funky worm was crawling through the yard this afternoon. Its as big around as one of Bubba's fingers and nearly 5 inches long. Notice the horn on it's butt?? The colors were pretty amazing too. It wasn't bashful; crawled right toward me at a pretty good clip.

Must get to town tomorrow and get gas for the lawn mower ........ must ......

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Post script

These next two weeks are going to be so long!! Our little girl has to stay at the shelter until her scheduled spay surgery on the 13th. I think I'll take her a new soft bed and let her get used to it, then bring it home and, hopefully, make her feel right at home right away.

Pictures are coming, but not today

This gorgeous little girl stole my heart at the animal shelter this morning. We went searching for a companion for our Mijo. He's eight years old now and ready for a friend. Now that we're off the road and away from the RV Parks where he had chance to meet new dogs every day and play every time he went out, he's gotten lonely. Last week in Iowa he played till he dropped with Corky, Mom's dog. We've never seen him play so hard or so long with her. I think both of them lost weight from it! ha ha ha This little beauty will be Munchkin and she looks very much like Corky.

This is Corky, Mijo's best buddy. I'm anxious to see how she reacts to two dogs in our house when she comes to visit this fall. She is a rescue dog too and has proven to be a nearly perfect house dog and lap dog for Mom & Dad.

On a freakier note; how many people do you know who, in one five minute trip outdoors with their dog, encounter a rain shower, a jack rabbit and a small tarantula in their yard???? That was my late afternoon trip with Mijo. Very interesting!

More later .........

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