I'm back...again!

 Hello there! It's been quite a while since I wrote about life here on Hickahala Ranch. My apologies for that...I've had my hands full (as usual). I have to confess...my biggest reason for not blogging is that I forgot my password! So tonight I finally sat down and figured out how to reset it!

As you can probably guess from the photos we've had a few new members join the family and, sadly, we've lost an old one that is missed.

Pictured above is little Max. I found him last December running down a deserted road late one cold rainy night in the Bankhead National Forest Wilderness Area. Of course I stopped immediately, hopped out and snatched the frightened little boy up and brought him home (a two and a half hour drive).

Max is a chihuahua/dachshund mix and was only four months old when I found him, weighing a mere six pounds. He's doubled his weight now and is quite a round little sausage of a dog. He's a Mama's boy too, of course!

Next is our most recent family member, Bailey. Don found her sitting next to our garbage can when he left for work one day a few months back. She was also about four months old and is a boxer mix.

Like all the dogs we find, Miss Bailey fit right in with the other dogs and is a happy-go-lucky
girl who loves to play and jump in the pond. She's like a bull in a china shop, but is such a friendly sweet girl I can't help but love her.

It is with a sad heart that I have to add that we lost dear old Drake a few weeks ago. Drake was nearly 14-years-old and was suffering congestive heart failure. Meds helped him for a while, but age caught up with him. Fourteen is very old for a Labrador, so we were fortunate to have him in our lives for such a long time.

A kind soul to the end, Drake released us from the hard decision of taking him in to be put to sleep. While I was grocery shopping he slowly followed Don to the pond where the other dogs were playing. Drake loved to go swimming, but hadn't made it down there in several months. I guess he wanted to leave this earth doing what he loved best though. Don watched in surprise as Drake swam out to the deep end and took a few laps. Then he paused, looked at Don for a moment and slipped under the water. Don dove in and pulled Drake out, but he was gone. Rest in peace old fellow. We miss you.

Kitchen Frogs and Other Oddities...

Life on the farm is kind of laid back...at least according to John Denver. Life on our farm has been kind of odd lately, but that's the way we like it. Okay, life on our farm is always kind of odd with all the dogs, cats and other critters we live with...some odder than others.

For instance, the other night I was cooking supper and had to get something out of the freezer, which is in the laundry room. When I walked back into the kitchen a tiny little toad was sitting on the kitchen counter next to the sink. I was taken aback for a moment, but realized he must have been in the potted plant I'd brought in earlier in the day (it was still sitting on the counter). I scooped Little Toad into a jar so I could show Don before setting him free. 

A few minutes later I stepped into the hallway to get something from the pantry. When I returned to the kitchen there sat a teeny toad on the kitchen counter looking quite content. I immediately wondered how such a small creature could have gotten out of a tall jar! Imagine my surprise when I realized that the first froggy was still in the jar. 

The rest of the evening I kept my eyes peeled looking for more baby toads, but these two were my only visitors. After showing them to Don they were put back where they came from - outside the garage under the floodlight where all the night time bugs gather. I'm sure they are both fat frogs now, even though I didn't invite them to have supper with us.

Early the other morning we were awakened by the most distressing cries coming from the fenced in front yard. I got up to see what was going on and was quite surprised to see a white-tailed fawn in the yard! I don't know how the little thing got over the fence, but it was panicked and couldn't figure out how to get out. Our dog Teagan was barking at it, but the other two dogs, Angus and Caoilainn weren't paying it much attention. In fact, Angus was asleep! 

Don threw on some clothes and hurried out to see if he could catch the fawn. I was able to call the dogs into the house and then went to slip on some shoes so I could help Don. However, in the few minutes I was gone the fawn managed to squeeze its way THROUGH the fence and ran off towards the big pond. 

I assured Don that the doe was probably standing in the trees at the pond keeping an eye on her baby. He was worried because the fawn was still young enough to have spots and it had banged itself up a bit trying to get through the fence. We are both still amazed that our dogs didn't touch it. Don said Teagan appeared to be trying to herd the fawn, not hurt it. We haven't seen it again so I'm sure baby and mom were reunited.

Last, but not least (that would be the baby frogs) was our critter adventure last night. I went out to the garage and as soon as I stepped out I noticed my cat Norah was trying to get something from behind the cooler where the dog food is stored. Cautiously (as in I stood in the house and leaned way out) I used the flashlight to see what she had. Poor frightened little field rat! It was huddled up and trying to be invisible, but Norah kept circling and trying to figure out how to get Mr. Mousie. I quickly closed the door and let nature take its course.

When we were getting ready to go to bed Don put some of the dogs in the garage for the night. I asked him if the little rat was still there and he wasn't sure so I got the flashlight and we checked again. Amazingly, it was!  I convinced Don that the poor thing was terrified and the dogs would make quite a ruckus if they found it. My soft hearted husband put on his work gloves and carefully caught the little rodent who squeaked in terror more than once.

We took the rat outside and set it free in the grass. As we stood there watching it make a cautious getaway I told Don that we were probably the only two people on Earth who would go into their garage at 4 a.m. to rescue a rat!

I guess we're just two soft hearted  oddities ourselves, but I don't think being odd is a bad thing. It certainly keeps things interesting around here!

Forecast: Sunny and scorched

I did it again and I apologize for going AWOL for a while. I've been dealing with some health issues...mine and some of the critters, but things are settling down now just in time for the drowsy hot dog days of summer.  Or maybe those days are already upon us considering all the sleeping dogs scattered about the floor around me!

So far this summer has been a very hot and dry one. The  Sycamores (above) have been losing leaves and the elms have pretty much kicked the bucket. We lost another favorite elm (right) in our yard this year...a real beauty...and I will probably cry when it is cut down for firewood. We just had a week of rain, which may have saved some of the vegetation, but this tree is past saving, as are a couple more elms down at the pond. At least they will not go to waste since we only harvest dead or downed trees for firewood in the winter. This enables us to keep the thermostat very low (a chilly 64 degrees) so we don't have to burn as much propane gas. 

Last year we made it through the winter on just over half a tank of propane! Of course, it helped that we had a mild winter and I am thinking we may be in for another...the climate is definitely changing and I am convinced that global warming is upon us. I'm pretty sure this won't be the last elm we lose and am kind of relieved it is the last one that was in the yard.

Today the USDA designated our county a national disaster due to the drought we are having. I know a lot of folks around us have lost their corn fields, but last week's rain saved our peanuts. I was worried because the peanut plants weren't growing, but they look good now and are blooming. I've pretty much given up on my garden this year. Last time I tried to plant something in the garden the ground was so hard and dry I could barely scratch out a shallow hole. We're getting potatoes, Roma tomatoes, onions (left in the garden from last year) and peppers. In fact, I should be canning tomatoes right now! 

One thing that has done well this year are my two apple trees. They are just now old enough to really set fruit and they are loaded. One tree is even leaning over from the weight of all the apples. Last week's storms helped cull some of the apples and I picked them up...no sense letting them go to waste! I've made green apple jelly with them...a new jelly for me. Hopefully we'll enjoy it as much as we do the dewberry jelly (which is already down to only two jars that I have hidden away for wintertime). Dry weather means the kudzu won't bloom this year, so no kudzu jelly and there may not be any elderberries, so no elderberry jelly either...apple is going to be it!

Fortunately, all the critters are managing in the hot weather so far. The goats, chickens and ducks all have plenty of shade and are given fresh cool water throughout the day. Elvis (the rabbit) is enjoying life in his new pen and snuggles up to the bottles of ice we place in his pen when the temperatures soar. The horses can find shelter in the barn or under the trees at their pond and the dogs and cats...well, let's just admit that the dogs and cats are SPOILED ROTTEN and get to lay about the house in the air conditioning all day long!

As do I!

Fear and loathing in Mississippi...

If there's one thing I hate about living in the South during warm weather, it's got to be venomous snakes. I do not like them, I do not want to be near them and I do not want to see them. However, I am married to a man who insists on bringing them to the house so I can take a photo every time he kills one, which he did day yesterday.

While sitting down at the pond after a walk with the dogs (a morning routine for Don) he noticed my little dog Aislainn had spotted something in the shallow end. Going to investigate, Don saw a huge water moccasin (also known as a cottonmouth down here in the South) slither out of the water and raise it's head up.

Water  moccasins are known to be aggressive and whenever we see a snake taking a stand, instead of fleeing, we immediately go on alert. Don approached this one cautiously and was able to pin it down by stepping on the snake's head and then killing it with a stick.

Don has killed cottonmouths with sticks before and even killed one at the barn with a screwdriver! This was the biggest one he's ever killed though and I have decided he must get a pistol for Father's Day. He's very lucky he didn't get bitten and so is little Aislainn. She's barely 15 pounds soaking wet and if that big nasty snake had gotten her, Aisliann would not have survived.

As you can see in this photo, the water moccasin's tail narrows suddenly. This is one way to identify a moccasin should you come upon one while out walking. They are usually short and stocky too. This one was very stocky and about three and a half feet long. I'm telling you...it was humongous!

We don't condone killing wildlife on our property, in fact, we're a certified Wildlife Habitat (even have a sign on our gate). However, we do make an exception when it comes to venomous snakes. We've had two dogs bitten by water moccasins. One spent a week at the vet's and barely survived. We don't want that to happen again and the dogs are always with Don when he's out and about. Fortunately, the dogs are fairly cautious about snakes and the ones who have been bitten (by venomous or nonvenomous snakes) are extremely cautious with a snake.

We've been very luck to have never come across a copperhead or rattlesnake and last year we didn't see any water moccasins. Now we've got them in the front yard pond! I've already informed Don that I will not be going to the pond in the evenings until we have our first snow.

I suppose I could go down there and take his pistol with me, but if I saw a cottonmouth as big as this one I'd be shaking so bad I would probably shoot myself in the foot! Then the dogs would have to call 911 because I'd be snake bitten, shot in the foot and having a heart attack!

Just call me the Goat Granny...

When my children were younger I used to tease them about getting three goats and naming them Obi, Juan and Kenobi. They thought I was corny (something I'm often accused of being) but I'm happy to report that my dream has finally come true! I am now happily sharing my life with three adorable goats!

Obi is a sweetheart and even kissed me on the nose yesterday when I was working on her new house (something quite difficult to do with so many four-legged helpers). Obi helped me out by jumping on top of the house and holding it down for me! If I am in the pen, Obi can be found right by my side watching everything I do. I find that quite charming as she is very good company. I love her black and white markings and think she's quite a cutie. When I talk to her, Obi looks me in the eye as if she understands me. (I have a confession to make. When Obi kissed me on the nose I responded by kissing her on the top of the head!)

Then there's sweet little Juan, isn't he a handsome fellow? I love the black "bow tie" on his face! Juan is a shy little fellow and I've only touched him once since bringing him home. He sticks close and watches everything, but stays just out of reach. I felt so bad for Juan yesterday when I brought a few of the dogs out with me. Having never seen goats the dogs immediately started barking. Obi and Kenobi stood their ground and the hair down their spine stood up (something I didn't know goats would do). Poor little Juan stood behind the girls and trembled like a leaf! Fortunately, the dogs quickly lost interest and Juan stopped shaking.

I've got my work cut out for me when it comes to Juan. I am determined to befriend him and plan to do it with bribery...the yummy type! I haven't been able to sweet talk him with baby carrots or apple slices, but I will find out what his weakness is and then Juan and I will be best buds!

Last, but definitely not least, is Kenobi. She is the largest of the goats and seems to be the leader. Obi and Juan defer to Kenobi in all matters. She was the first one to make herself at home in the new house (which I had to enlarge yesterday as the goats were bigger than I expected) and is the first to check out any treats offered. In fact, Kenobi ate ALL the baby carrots I offered today...Obi just sniffed hers and Juan wouldn't even look at his!

I think Kenobi and I are going to be great friends as she's quite friendly and very level headed.

My heart goes out to the generous lady who gave the goats to me. I know it was a difficult thing for her to do and I hope she will come by and visit them when she's in the area. I am just tickled pink that my long time dream of having goats has finally come to pass and I'll warn you now...there will probably be lots of blogging about goats in my future! I'm just totally smitten!

It's the Grinch's fault!

This afternoon I strung Christmas lights along the front yard fence until it was dark and chilly. The dogs and I were singing Christmas carols, the cats were helping hang the lights and everyone was having a merry old time.

Okay, I confess. I strung Christmas lights until I got tired of trying to untangle huge wads of lights. The dogs kept barking and digging holes in the yard so I finally gave up. It's supposed to rain tonight and tomorrow so I really wanted to finish the lights this afternoon, but it will have to wait until after the rain.

I honestly do not know how the lights get so tangled. The wad that made me give up didn't seem to have a beginning or end.  While my memory isn't the best, I'm pretty sure I would remember if I took the lights down last year and tied them into knots. No, I recall taking them down quickly because it was cold and folding them neatly before storing in tubs.

So what happens from one Christmas to the next?  Do seismic shifts cause the lights to tangle throughout the year? Is it the pull of the full moon? Does Don go up in the barn loft to tangle the lights after feeding the horses?

After much deliberation I think I know who is to blame. The Grinch! Yep, during his off season I bet the Grinch sneaks in while I'm sleeping and tangles up all my Christmas lights. He was probably hiding behind a tree today while I was struggling to fix his mess.

I bet that's who the dogs were barking at the whole time!

Chicken in the hen house? Um...no!

Oh what a frightful day I had yesterday! First our old Lab Drake wandered off and it took a couple hours to find him. Well...technically we didn't find him, he just showed up. Don was down in the woods looking for Drake when I heard him at the garage door. Poor old Drake's been having a spell of senility so he'll be going out into the fenced in front yard from now on.

When I went out yesterday evening to do the chores I let several dogs out with me. This is routine for me and the dogs. Yesterday Maggie, Caoimhe, Seamus, Conan, Kyla and Katie went with me...the normal evening gang. As I stepped out of the garage and walked toward the chicken pen I realized the door was open and my Wyandotte chicken, Aunt Bertha, was OUTSIDE!!!

I ran to the chicken pen and tried to quickly guide her back in, but that wasn't going to happen. Chickens are not known for their high IQ. Aunt Bertha panicked and ran in the wrong direction, which caught the attention of two dogs...Maggie and Caoimhe. I'd been fortunate up to that moment that none of the six dogs had noticed the chicken was outside her pen. Now I was panicking too!

Screaming like a banshee I tried to keep Maggie and Caoimhe away while attempting to catch Aunt Bertha. It probably took just a few seconds to catch her, but it seemed like forever to me. Once I had her safely in the pen I have to admit...I shed a few tears and Aunt Bertha shed a few feathers.

I was quite upset with Don for not checking the latch when he was gathering eggs earlier in the day, but I am very grateful that the dogs were not interested in the chicken. I honestly don't think Maggie or Caoimhe had any interest in catching Aunt Bertha. No, they were just curious as to what was going on, otherwise they'd have definitely had her before I had a chance to get hold of the poor chicken.

A stressful day for sure, but you know what they say...all's well that ends well!

Bad luck comes in threes, right?

If the old superstition about bad luck coming in threes is true, then I should be good to go! Computer virus last Friday, water leak in the laundry on Saturday and realized on Sunday our satellite wasn't working on the television.

Don fixed the computer last Saturday night, I called Directv on Monday and ended up having to set up an appointment to have a repairman come out on Wednesday, which turned into a very busy day!

I got up early yesterday so I could get the floors swept and the laundry room emptied while Don went to feed the horses and call the plumber. Plumber actually arrived before the TV repairman and got to work sawing two big holes out of my laundry room wall. Pictured above is the bad fitting he found. It has now been replaced, but the entire house was plumbed with this stuff so we're just waiting for the next one to spew. An example of the lovely plumbing work done on our house when we built it:

While the plumber was restyling the laundry room walls and plumbing, the TV repairman got busy restyling the cable to our television. Seems the dogs had been using the cable as a chew toy and the high winds we've had this Fall repositioned the satellite dish. The repairman replaced the cable and ran it above the windows along the back wall by screwing it to the brick wall.

HA! I'd like to see a dog chew on it now...the cable is a good 12 plus feet off the ground! Of course, I think it should have been installed that way in the first place, but we only had two well behaved dogs when we moved into the house almost eight years ago.

After everyone finished their repair jobs and left I was able to get outside and start putting up some of my Christmas lights. Don hopped on the tractor to do some driveway repair work and we stayed out until well past dark. Yesterday you would never have thought we'd already had snow twice this Fall as it was 68 degrees. I was hanging up Christmas lights in short sleeves...and enjoying every minute of it!

Here's hoping you don't get hit with triple trouble this holiday season! I know I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we don't get a triple whammy again any time soon!

More unexpected visitors...

The other day I was sitting here at the computer when I heard a sound that made my heart sink. From the sound I assumed that a water line had broken and water was spraying out into the back yard. Imagine my delight in discovering, when I peered out the back door, that it was an enormous amount of migrating birds!

I'll take birds over broken water lines any day, even if they are grackles, which these appeared to be. Obviously my neck of the woods is a very popular migration area for the noisy birds (just check out the map - http://www.birdsource.org/GIS/cgrackle.html). Next time I won't be surprised when I hear them out back!

They were a marvel to watch as they flew in unison from one group of trees to the other. I had to grab my phone and run outside to get a picture as they flew over the house. Unfortunately, it's very difficult to get a good photo of flying birds, so the picture doesn't even begin to convey the large amount of birds that flew over my head. I'm just glad none of them dropped a "gift" on my head as I was standing there gawking up at them!

Several years ago, during the winter, I caught a glimpse out the window of something large and white. I ran to the porch and marveled as a large flock of snow geese swooped around the barn and then landed in the horse pasture. There were so many that it looked like the pasture was covered in snow. Like the grackles, the snow geese didn't stay long, but I am so glad they graced me with their presence for a short time.

I have to admit, grackles don't even compare to snow geese, but the massive number of them was quite awesome and the sound was unbelievable. There isn't a week that goes by on the farm that something doesn't catch my eye and send me on a search to learn more about it. I am very grateful to live here where nature surrounds and entertains me. It makes my life full and exciting.

Now I need to go see what the dogs are so excited about outside. Must be another unexpected visitor...like a possum, an owl or a deer! Or, it could just be the neighbor driving down his driveway!

Hunkering down...

Maggie "hunkering down" last February

I've seen the satellite images of the storm that's supposed to hit us tonight and was very much convinced that we needed to prepare. So, we've spent most of the afternoon making sure all the critters have a roof over their heads and shelter from the cold rain we've had all day...which is supposed to turn into sleet and snow during the night.

We started first at the barn. Got a temporary fix on a stall door and repaired one of the handles on the big barn door so we could latch it and keep the horses from getting in the hall of the barn. There's five stables now open for four horses and I'm betting three of them won't be used! Rose and Angel will bunk together and I wouldn't be surprised if Jasper and Shiloh also share a stall.

Don is headed over right now to check on Rose. She's our oldest horse at 26 years and we're concerned about her getting a chill (if she hasn't already). This could prove to be a very difficult winter for Rose.

After the horses were happily munching hay in the barn lot we headed back to the house and prepared a warm place on the front porch for the three dogs (Angus, Teagan and Caoilainn) that sleep in the front yard at night. We fixed an enclosure on a protected corner of the wrap around porch and filled it with hay. Aislainn and Tadhg immediately jumped in the hay and made themselves cozy little nests and curled up. I was happy to see them do it as it reassured me that Angus, Teagan and Caoilainn would be okay tonight.

Next it was time to tend to the chickens, ducks and Elvis. This mainly consisted of making sure their houses were draft proof and giving them dry hay. The hens, Aunt Bernice and Aunt Bertha, were very happily exploring the hay in their house when I came inside.

Now we've got a fire going in the fireplace and I'm going to make some venison spaghetti to warm our bellies!

It's a three dog night...or four...or...

Brrrrr...yesterday's fierce wind and lingering rain has made for some chilly weather around here! We've all pretty much hunkered down in the house all day snuggling up to one another to stay warm.

I lit a fire in the fireplace this afternoon and have spent most of my day trying to convince the dogs it is okay to go out in the rain to potty and then drying them off with towels when they come back inside. Most of the dogs love the towel, but Miss Aislinn definitely does not. I guess she prefers to be wet!

Poor Don went out to the barn this evening to tend to the horses and came back soaked, tired and grumpy! He's in the shower now and I'll fix him a nice plate of Thanksgiving leftovers when he comes downstairs. Then I'll cozy up by the fire and browse through some of my Christmas craft books until I grow sleepy and head upstairs to bed.

Hopefully there'll be room in the bed for me as I figure it's going to be a three...or four dog night, which makes for a very warm, but crowded, bed!

Long night ahead...

Saturday nights are always long around here. Don doesn't get home from work until 1 a.m. and it's usually 4 a.m. by the time we get all the dogs fed and bedded down for the night. We also have to round up cats. The coyotes sound like they're getting a little closer to the house every night, so the cats are sleeping inside (except for big burly Harley who hates to be in the house).

Tonight, however, is going to be an hour longer that normal and I am looking forward to it! An extra hour of sleep will be much appreciated since I had to get up early this morning to do the grocery shopping...a chore I normally do on Wednesday. I am most definitely not a morning person so any excuse for an extra hour of sleep is a good one!

Of course, I despise Daylight Savings Time in the Spring when I lose an hour of sleep. Just doesn't seem like there's any point in doing that these days...especially to a night owl like myself!

Signs of the Seasons...

Today I noticed that the berries on the holly bush at the end of the front porch are starting to change colors. Right now they have a pinkish tint to them, but before I know it they'll be bright red and ready for Christmas!

I've noticed other signs that Autumn is moving steadily toward Winter. We've had a couple frosts so I went out this afternoon to check the broccoli in the garden. It's doing great, but the frost killed some volunteer potato plants so I dug them up. Got two medium size potatoes for my efforts so we'll be eating them for supper tomorrow night.

The butter beans were also killed, but the catnip still looks good. I'll need to harvest it soon as I'm sure the cats would enjoy some toys stuffed with catnip, especially Possum, the new kitten (who is growing like a weed).

My garden spiders are slowly dying off as well. It always makes me sad to say goodbye to them, but they've lived their brief lives and next Spring their children will replace them. The only one still hanging on is the one of the porch. I guess she is better protected from the chilly nights.

Almost all the leaves have blown off the persimmon tree and there are only a few stubborn persimmons still clinging to the limbs. The dogs continue to root around beneath the tree looking for sweet persimmons, but it won't be long before there will be none to find.

However, the dogs have other things to enjoy now. They love lying in front of the fireplace when I have a small fire going (the photo is Guinness from a few years ago made just before Halloween). They also enjoy the cooler days and have been quite rambunctious the last week or so.

Elvis has also been quite frisky, hopping around his cage and greeting me at the door when I bring him treats. I'm sure his rabbit fur coat feels better to him when the temperatures drop!

Saturday I bought a pumpkin, which I will carve on Halloween. Since we live so far off the road I'll put it on the fireplace mantel for us to enjoy. I just can't imagine Halloween without a jack-o-lantern, even though they signal the end of October.

November is quickly approaching. I see the signs of it everywhere and I welcome its arrival with open arms!

Fitting in...

It's official...Aislinn is a bona fide member of the Gallagher family now. This was made official last night when she hopped up into a living room chair and claimed it as her own. None of the other dogs challenged her and Aislinn had herself a nice nap.

It always amazes me how easily our dogs accept new members to the family. I often read about people having trouble introducing a new dog or cat to their family, but we've never had a problem. Perhaps it's because we get new pets so often, or perhaps it's the way we go about it.

When we get a new pet they are crated in the den so that everyone can get used to them without the worry of an attack. It's also a good idea health wise too. With the high incidence of Parvo and other diseases stray cats and dogs may have, time in a crate is also a quarantine period.

Aislinn was in the crate longer than usual because the last two dogs we'd gotten prior to finding her had Parvo when we picked them up. We lost one of them (sweet little Aoife) and the other, Caoimhe, survived after spending a week at the ER veterinary hospital. I was terrified that Aislinn would get Parvo before she was completely immunized and our vet agreed that she should be crated. Poor baby did have a battle with intestinal bugs, but is now healthy, happy and a tad bit bossy!

It's hard to believe Aislinn has only been with us for eight weeks! She is so much a part of our family now that I can't imagine life without her. How did I ever survive without my snuggle buddy while watching TV? How did I get by without those warm kisses and her bouncy cheerful ways that light up my days?

I know one thing...I am so very grateful that we were in the right place, at the right time, that hot August night when we spied little Aislinn running down the deserted country road in front of our place. I am also grateful that she stopped and let me pick her up...trembling with fright while I reassured her that everything was going to be alright.

I think she believes me now...all is right in Aislinn's world tonight.

Jack Frost is coming to visit!

Looks like ol' Jack Frost will be paying us a visit tonight. It's been cooler since it rained Monday night and there's been a chilly wind blowing for the last couple of days. Of course, I'm loving it! Best of all it is now cool enough at night to have a fire in the fireplace.

I'm grateful we have a wood burning fireplace, especially tonight. When I came in from feeding the critters and visiting the pond the house was dark and chilly...an unexpected power outage! I decided the best thing to do would be light a few candles and build a fire. Of course, as soon as the fire was lit the power came on! That's okay, with the temperature outside at 42 degrees the fire feels very nice. The dogs must like it too as there are several of them snoozing in front of the fireplace right now.

Did you know that Jack Frost originated in Viking folklore? The Vikings called the sprite Jokul Frosti ("icicle frost"). I'm always fascinated by ancient lore that passes down from generation to generation and is still a part of our culture today.

So welcome Jack Frost, I'm glad you're here. Paint the grass and windowpanes with your icy paintbrush while I sit inside by my cozy fire with my book.

Busy as bees around here!

Today has been humming with activity...literally! There was the humming of my neighbor bush hogging his field behind us and the humming of farm equipment across the road and on the other side of the creek as farmers hurried to harvest the last of the cotton and soybeans. On our South side there was a bustle of activity as hay was loaded and taken off. Late this afternoon there was the drone of Army helicopters flying low overhead.

As you can tell, my dogs were busy as could be in the front yard playing with one another! Right now they're busy barking in the front yard, just letting the coyotes nearby know that they'd better not come up here!

I figure everyone was extra busy today because we're supposed to get heavy thunderstorms Monday night with a drastic drop in temperature accompanying the storms. If predictions are right we'll see our thermometers dip into the 30s for the first time this Fall. I can't wait to build a fire in the fireplace! There's nothing quite as cozy as a little fire crackling in the fireplace, or the smell of it wafting in the chill night air.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go round up some very loud dogs. I think they've been busy enough for one night!

Day is done...

Sunday is done and the sun was gone much earlier than usually, not even giving me a lovely sunset like the one above that I snapped some time ago. Instead, dark storm clouds moved in and I had to hurry out to bring in a quilt hanging on the line and quickly feed the ducks, chickens and Elvis while long streaks of lightning snapped across the sky.

The loud, prolonged rumbling of thunder sent the dogs into hiding (Katie just got out from under the computer desk) and several of the cats decided to come inside. We got some rain and were under a tornado watch for a while, but the storm moved through quickly and the watch was cancelled early.

Now everyone is snoozing peacefully and I have the front door open so I can enjoy the cool fresh breeze and the hum of crickets. The next couple of weeks are going to be very busy for me so I am grateful for this lull...so still and quiet my eyelids are getting heavy!

I'm also grateful to Mother Nature for the rain. It will definitely help my new broccoli plants get a good start and will make digging up the last of the carrots an easier job!

It's beginning to look a lot like...

Autumn! It's almost here and you can definitely tell it. The trees are all starting to turn and it rained last night! We needed it so bad and we got a gully washer. We never got over 70 degrees today either...my kind of day.

Don was off today so I walked to the barn with him to feed the horses and then we spent some time at the pond. The ground was littered with fat juicy ripe persimmons and the dogs enjoyed feasting on them. I even snacked on a few myself.

It even SMELLS like Autumn now that its rained. I just sat there and took deep breaths...heavenly!

Of course, Autumn doesn't officially arrive until Wednesday. I'm just grateful I can feel it coming!

Can you hear it?

Can you hear my dogs? There's about 13 or so out in the front yard barking their heads off right now. Seamus, above, is listening with one ear cocked while trying to convince me he wasn't involved.

Psst...I'm not buying it!

If you can't hear the dogs barking that's probably because I'm blasting Guns 'n Roses to drown them out. I bet the neighbors think I'm having a party this weekend! Yeah...and the guests all have four legs and insist on howling at the moon!

I'm pretty sure there are a couple deer coming to the pond for a drink at night. They pay no attention to the dogs since they're behind a fence. For all I know the deer are standing on the other side of the fence sticking their tongues out at the dogs going, "Nah...nah...can't get us!" then flipping the dogs off with their white tails as they trot away.

Yeah, if I was a dog and a deer did that to me I'd probably bark too! As for the neighbors...at least I have better taste in music!

Yesterday there was a murder at our pond!

Yesterday, while a sad day for the country, was a peaceful and pleasant day here on the farm. Well, other than the murder at the pond!

I went out to sit in my rocker while I let the dogs play in the front yard, but it wasn't as quiet as it normally is here. There was a huge commotion at the big old oak down at the pond. Crows! A whole murder of crows cawing back and forth!

We don't often have crows here. Perhaps the numerous buzzards scare them away. I suspect they were attracted to the recently harvested corn field. I don't know for sure, but I do know I had a great time talking to them and hearing their replies (although I don't speak Crow so have no idea what they were saying).

After a 15 or so minute discourse they flew off past the barn...all two of them? I thought there were much more than that in the tree! It takes more than two to have a murder, so I was relieved when a third crow joined them as they flew out of sight.

According to Cornell University, the phrase "a murder of crows" is a poetic term and never used by scientists. Scientists prefer to call a bunch of crows a flock. I'll stick to murder...it appeals to my poetic side.

As the day faded away a big harvest moon came up over the trees. A perfect ending to a murderous day!